Representational painter Rosanne Lillard Mckenney’s figures and interiors capture a simple moment of everyday life.  She balances between revealing too much detail, and leaving parts unsaid.  Inspired by Renaissance painters and 19^th century French, American and more recently Russian painters, she incorporates elements and techniques that made these artists distinctive.  A theme she lives by is; doing what it takes to learn from the masters who go before us.  Working primarily in oil she tells a story with the elements of art (shape, value, color, line and rhythm).  Recently, she incorporates symbolism and abstract elements along with the figure.  She chooses the figure as her principal subject, because human gestures and expressions can say so much.  The stories explore the essence of human experiences, often unresolved emotions, common through many cultures.

Raised by American parents in Italy, Rosanne Lillard McKenney learned to appreciate classical and ancient art without thinking about it. Though appreciating and creating art drew her from the start, she did not pursue a career in art. In college she studied nursing, but took art classes whenever she could.  After college she took classes from artists in Portland, Mississippi, and Italy.

Currently McKenney volunteers in nursing through The Cornerstone Foundation, the nonprofit arm of Cornerstone OnDemand on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi. She paints every opportunity she has.