Holly EB Draper
Hi, I’m Holly Draper — a practicing artist, new mom, and Upper School Art Teacher living in Reston, VA. I currently teach at BASIS DC, the top-performing charter school in Washington, DC.
Art has been a big part of my life for as long as I can remember, and it’s taken me to some amazing places. In 2011, I received the Carl Steinsieck Memorial Scholarship to study abroad in Bologna, Italy, where I exhibited my work at the Collegio San Tommaso. I later earned my MFA from the Burren College of Art in Ireland, and my paintings have been featured internationally, including in the Imago Mundi Irish Collection at the Fondazione Giorgia in Venice.
Before settling in the DC area, I worked as an Exhibition Coordinator and Art Workshop Facilitator in Dublin. My work has been recognized in juried exhibitions at the St. Augustine Art Association and published in places like Studio Visit Magazine and The Irish Arts Review.
Now that I’m based in Reston, I’m excited to reconnect with the local community — balancing life as a new mom, teacher, and artist — and continue sharing my work with others.
Education
2015
2015 Master of Fine Arts, National University of Ireland, Galway, The Burren College of Art
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2012
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting and Drawing, Minor in Advertising, University of North Florida
Awards
2015
2013-2015
2012
2006-2012
2011
2010
Commission: Public Art Project with Tidy Towns Ballyvaughan, Ireland
Commissioned restoration work for Emo, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
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Michael Greene Memorial Scholarship, The Burren College of Art, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
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Inspiring Spaces, Honorable Mention, Citizen Services Center, Ocala, Florida
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Nature and Wildlife Exhibition, Merit Award, St. Augustine Art Association, Juror: Larry Davis
22nd Annual Martin County Court House Juried Art Show, Merit Award, Stuart, Florida J. Shepard, Jr. and Mary Ann Bryan Arts Endowment, The Community Foundation, Inc. (of Jacksonville, Florida)
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Dean’s List, University of North Florida
Florida Bright Futures Scholarship, University of North Florida
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Figure Show, Merit Award, St. Augustine Art Association, Juror: Ed Hall
Member’s Show, Merit Award, St. Augustine Art Association
The Honor’s Show, Merit Award, St. Augustine Art Association, Juror: Don Martin
Carl Steinsieck Memorial Scholarship, awarded to fund residency in Bologna, Italy
Fantastic Florida, Merit Award, St. Augustine Art Association, Juror: Eileen Corse
The Figure Unveiled, Honorable Mention, Florida State College Jacksonville, Juror: Hope McMath
Exhibitions
Solo and Group
2022-2023
Fifty, Museum of Contemporary Art, Jacksonville FL
Teeny Tiny Trifecta 3, Group Exhibition, Second Street Gallery, Charlottesville, VA
Contrast, Underground Gallery, Arlington, VA
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Teeny Tiny Trifecta 2, Group Exhibition, Second Street Gallery, Charlottesville, VA
March150, Target Gallery, Alexandria, VA
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Imago Mundi, Irish collection, Fondazione Giorgio, Venice, Italy
New Paintings, Pop-up gallery, Raheny Library, Dublin, Ireland
Spread Thin, 2 Person Show (with Amanda Patten), Pop-up Gallery, Kinvarra, Ireland
The Shadow of Doubt, 2 Person Show (with Amanda Patten), Main Gallery, Burren College of Art, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
Munch, Solo Exhibition, Staff Club Galleries, National University of Ireland, Galway. Ireland
There’s Something in the Margarine, Solo Exhibition, Off-the-Wall Pop Up Gallery, Mountshannon, Ireland
Butter Me Up, Solo Exhibition, The Gallery Space @ Burren Fine Wine and Food, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
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Warped, 2 Person Show (with Amanda Patten), Main Gallery, Burren College of Art, Ballyvaughan, Ireland
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Melt Into Flesh, Solo Exhibition, Project Room, Burren College of Art, Ireland
Roots, Solo Exhibition, Perdue, Jacksonville, Florida
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Interpretations of Bologna, Group Exhibition, Collegio San Tommaso, Bologna, Italy
Artistic Migrations, Group Exhibition, Main Gallery, University of North Florida, Jacksonville, Florida
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Summer Show, 3 Person Exhibition, Plum art gallery, St. Augustine, Florida
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Food For Thought, Solo Exhibition, Second Floor Galleries, University of North Florida, Jacksonville, Florida
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Annual Members Exhibition, The Lavit Gallery, Cork, Ireland
Breaking Sensation, Hive Emerging, Waterford City, Ireland
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TRASNA IV, Courthouse Gallery, Ennistymon, Ireland
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Nature and Wildlife Exhibition, St. Augustine Art Association, St. Augustine, Florida
22nd Annual Martin County Court House Juried Art Show, Court House Galleries, Stuart, Florida
12 x 12 Exhibition, Middle Tennessee State University, Todd Art Gallery, Murfreesboro, Tennesse
Inspiring Spaces, Citizen Services Center, Ocala, Florida
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Figure Show, St. Augustine Art Association, St. Augustine, Florida
Member’s Show, St. Augustine Art Association, St. Augustine, Florida
The Honor’s Show, St. Augustine Art Association, St. Augustine, Florida
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Fantastic Florida, St. Augustine Art Association, St. Augustine, Florida
The Figure Unveiled, Florida State College, South Campus, Jacksonville, Florida
Gallery 126, Galway, Ireland
Collegio San Tommaso, Bologna, Italy
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Underground Gallery, Arlington, VA
Arlington Arts Alliance
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The Art League, Alexandria, VA
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Cork Arts Society, Cork, Ireland
Gallery 126, Galway, Ireland
St. Augustine Art Association
2010-2011 Jacksonville Coalition for the Arts
An Image of Ireland: Contemporary Artists From Ireland (Imago Mundi) Luciano Benetton Collection, texts by Ciara Gibbons and Sean Kissane
Studio Visit Magazine, Summer 2016 Edition, Juror: Mike Lash, Independent Curator and former Director of Public Arts for the city of Chicago
Work included in the Irish Arts Review’s New Generation Online Gallery
Interviewed by Irish TV SkyChannel 191, Promoting MFA Exhibtion The Shadow of Doubt
Morning Focus, Interview with John Cooke promoting MFA Exhibition The Shadow of Doubt, Clare FM, Co. Clare, Ireland
Full: A Search For Meaning in Food Through Collage and Paint, dissertation (self-authored), The Burren College of Art
Review, author Michaele Cutaya, article written in response to MFA exhibition
The Shadow of Doubt, author Ruby Wallis, article for the published exhibition catalog, Burren College of Art
2020
2019
2017​
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2015
Juried
2012
2014
2011
2010
Residencies
2015
2011
Memberships
2020-2021
2016
2013-2015
2010-2013
2010-2011
Publicartions/ Selectd Achievments
2016
2015