Amy P. Shaw

Amy Petrie Shaw (1969-still not dead yet) was born in Kentucky, where she managed to avoid being eaten by muskrats or sucked into quicksand. Raised in a rural area, Shaw spent her formative years blissfully poking at things with sticks, falling into creeks, and being bitten, stung, pinched, or chased by random samples of local wildlife.

Fascinated by all of life's possibilities and not understanding the concepts of "off-days" and "vacations", Shaw has been an English teacher, college professor, alternative newspaper editor, nurse, and nurse executive.

After 22 years in healthcare and academia, she chose to answer a call to ministry, and obtained her Master of Divinity degree from Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago and her Ph.D in Biblical Studies from Queens College of Theology. Shaw was determined to avoid the cold and so, of course, was first called to Hartland, Wisconsin, and then to Des Moines, Iowa. She is currently basking in the Florida sun, where she is grateful not to have seen a snowflake for years. Rumor has it that she is the minister for the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Venice.

In her spare time she is a mixed media artist whose artwork has been shown at the ARC Gallery in Chicago, and mentioned in New Art Examiner magazine.

Her work is characterized by use of vivid colors and distorted perspective, with bold use of line. She is heavily influenced by mid-20th century artists Barnett Newman, Helen Frankenthaler, and Sam Francis, and often uses thick material applications, layering, and compositing to bring depth and life to her art.

Amy wears black, sometimes runs with scissors, and always knows where her towel is. She gave up trying to be sophisticated when a raccoon ate her cigarette holder.

She still does not understand the concept of "weekends" or "off-days."