Artist Maija Kellner-Rode Paints Natural Flora Guided by Intuition

In her Gathered Wares studio of Bend’s historic Old Iron Works Art District, artist Maija Kellner-Rode engages in somatic and instinctive artmaking. She channels her reverence for the natural world through colorful and textured paintings, offering captivating imagery that is also a testament to the healing process of life as an artist.

“I live in a world where I’m always surrounding myself with art and art inspiration,” Kellner-Rode said, her world extending beyond studio walls and into the landscapes of Central Oregon. Kellner-Rode is a fine art painter who works with acrylics, oil pastels and graphite to achieve layered, colorful compositions. Her artworks depict rich, leafy botanicals, color-blocked landscapes and abstract interpretations inspired by the outdoors. Based in Bend, Kellner-Rode is the owner and designer of Maija Rebecca Hand Drawn, a local paper goods and design company. In 2023, Scalehouse Gallery’s Patricia Clark Studio residency program provided her with a six-month creative sanctuary where she had the opportunity to play and explore her art.

Kellner-Rode’s creativity is in her blood. “I come from a deep line of artists,” she said. Her aunts, Rachel Binah and Bonnie Ora Sherk, have been influential role models to her throughout her life, blending art with activism and environmental stewardship. Kellner-Rode’s family has been immersed in the Bend community for 17 years and has continued their legacy of creativity and civic engagement. Her brother, David, operates Boundless Farmstead, one of the largest vegetable producers in Central Oregon. Three years ago, she relocated from Portland to Bend to be near her family and continue the legacy of art and community contribution.

The nuanced world of shadows is a well of inspiration for Kellner-Rode’s work. A lot of her current pieces can be interpreted as shadows of nature’s flora. “When you look at a plant, there’s this very specific dimensionality, but once it becomes a shadow, it flattens and the shape can become something different entirely… I find shadows to be really mysterious and beautiful,” she said.

Intuition guides Kellner-Rode’s process. Sometimes, she inscribes words directly onto the canvas, akin to a journal entry, allowing them to peek through or disappear behind veiling layers of paint. “I don’t plan anything out beforehand. It’s all very of the moment,” Kellner-Rode said. Unwilling to let wet paint interrupt her momentum, she may even employ a hairdryer to prepare a piece for its next layer. Her approach oscillates between diluted pigment for watercolor-like washes and bold, opaque applications to form color blocks, investigating the possibilities of texture and hue in her medium. “It’s like being a kid, going back and allowing myself to play, not having rules and seeing what happens,” she said.

A photo of Kellner-Rode as a toddler hangs in her studio. For her, childhood healing is an undertaking she can permeate with her art–an introspective approach that allows her to explore her personal evolution. When Kellner-Rode channels various stages of her adolescence while creating, as she often does, she becomes her own muse.

Pulling on 13 years of experience mentoring youth—from Portland’s p:ear center for houseless youth to Central Oregon’s Caldera Arts program—she’s now devoting her passion for art to a new venture: the Open Arts Center. This nonprofit, co-founded with Claire Brislin, aims to provide a safe space for middle- and high-school aged youth to explore creativity. “The creative arts are a really powerful tool to engage awareness and understanding,” Kellner-Rode said. The center will offer after-school programming, self-directed learning and community-sourced mentorship opportunities, embodying Kellner-Rode’s vision of art as a catalyst for personal and community wellbeing.

Kellner-Rode’s studio in the Old Iron Works Art District is an intimate, public-facing workspace that she is grateful to call home for her artwork. Synthesizing personal development, social connection and nature’s wisdom, Kellner-Rode is both a student and teacher of art’s capacity for healing. See maijakellnerrode.com, @maijakellnerrode.