About Me

Laura Gates grew up in Pennsylvania Dutch farm country near the Appalachian Trail, where the outdoors quickly became her favorite place to be.

One of her most meaningful early memories is time spent at Hawk Mountain during migration season, watching the sky fill with movement - a reminder that nature is always changing, and always worth noticing.

As a young adult, Laura carried that love of the outdoors into travel and adventure, spending time hiking and canoe tripping in Canada, Maine, and beyond. Although creativity was always part of her life, she didn’t begin painting until later - after a long career as a social worker and family therapist. After moving to the Southwest, she began taking lessons with local artists and gradually developed her own style, with a focus on landscape painting in watercolor and oil.

Today, Laura paints what she’s drawn to most: nature-inspired landscapes, waterfalls, and canyons, along with people hiking in the places she loves. She also creates floral paintings that celebrate the quieter details of the natural world - color, shape, and light up close. Many of her pieces are inspired by locations she has explored firsthand, including Ireland, Peru, the Grand Canyon, and Utah’s Big 5.