Malei Young is a contemporary, abstract painter from Seattle, WA.

Seattle native Malei Young is an accomplished artist whose work has been represented by prestigious galleries throughout the Pacific Northwest, across the United States, and internationally. Working across a diverse range of disciplines—including beeswax forms, oil painting, and pastels—she is currently enjoying the spontaneous nature of watercolor, embracing the medium’s inherent, naturally flowing states of being. Her celebrated artwork has garnered numerous accolades over the course of her career. When she isn’t in the studio, Malei can usually be found on the tennis court or immersed in a good book, especially those exploring mysticism and the fascinating intersections where science and spirituality meet. She resides in Seattle’s Madison Park neighborhood with her husband.

My process

Life is a process of exploration—a continuous cycle of birth, dissolution, and rebirth. Much like the act of painting, our experiences involve building and dismantling, creating and modifying, until a sense of completion is reached. Yet, this "standing back" is only temporary. Like a circle, the end of one cycle inevitably demands a new beginning, clearing the path for fresh possibilities of beauty, innovation, and inspiration.

In my work, I strive to visually intrigue and delight by mirroring these existential rhythms. Through a meditative process of intention, I layer watercolors and pencil only to intentionally "undo" or lift colors away. This technical push-and-pull reflects the cycles of construction and deconstruction we experience in life. I choose watercolor for its elemental fluidity and circular motifs for their geometric permanence; together, they create a tactile, grounding experience that feels as boundless as the potential they represent.

  • “Malei young’s Commitment to abstraction is a worthy endeavor. Her gentle sensibility is clearly leading her somewhere, and Young’s ‘pushing of the boundaries’ is deserved of support.”

    —Tom Lieber, Painter

  • “Strongly formal, frontal, and rooted in geometry, Malei Young balances external and internal worlds with paint and private iconographies. That her painting elicit such interpretations is a tribute to a considerable intellectual and painterly ability.”

    —Mathew Kangas, Writer & Art Critic

  • “Ms. Young displays deft command of her materials and a sensibility toward their application. Her formal approach to abstract concepts is tempered by an energetic and vigorous blend of form.”

    —Chase W. Rynd, Executive Director Emeritus, National Building Museum

  • “The depth, spatiality and intellectual challenge of a Malei Young Painting is as uncommon as the passion and devotion with which she paints. The experience of her continued progression has been truly awe-inspiring.”

    —Andria Friesen, Owner, Freisen Gallery Sun Valley Idaho

Education

1990 M.F.A. Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, NY, Major in Painting & Printmaking
1987 B.F.A. Whitman College, Walla Walla, WA,  Emphasis in Printmaking
1991 Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, Courses in Lithography & Art Criticism
1989 Eastern Washington University, Cheney, Washington, Courses in Painting and Drawing
1987 Royal College of Art, London, England, Courses in Textile Design & Advanced Printmaking

Solo Exhibitions

2017 The Hardware Store Gallery, Vashon Island, WA
2008 Whitman College, Walla Walla, WA
2003 Friesen Gallery, Seattle, WA
2002 Friesen Gallery, Seattle, WA
2000 Ginsberg Hallowell Fine Arts, Boston, MA
1997 Friesen Gallery, Seattle, WA
1996 Friesen Gallery, Sun Valley, ID
1995 William Shearburn Gallery, St. Louis, MO
1994 Friesen Gallery, Seattle, WA
1993 Friesen Gallery, Seattle, WA
1992 Friesen Gallery, Seattle, WA
1991 Friesen Gallery, Seattle, WA
1991 Friesen Gallery, Sun Valley, ID
1990 Friesen Gallery, Seattle, WA

Select Group Exhibitions

2025 Woodside Braseth Gallery, Seattle WA
1991 Art Fair, Seattle, WA
2024 Woodside Braseth Gallery, Seattle WA
1991 Art Fair, Seattle, WA
2023 Woodside Braseth Gallery, Seattle WA
1991 Art Fair, Seattle, WA
2022 Woodside Braseth Gallery, Seattle WA
1991 Art Fair, Seattle, WA
2021 Woodside Braseth Gallery, Seattle WA
1991 Art Fair, Seattle, WA
2020 Woodside Braseth Gallery, Seattle WA
1991 Art Fair, Seattle, WA
2019 Woodside Braseth Gallery, Seattle WA
1991 Art Fair, Seattle, WA
2014 Friesen Gallery, Seattle, WA
2008 Robert Daniel Gallery, Tacoma, WA
2006 Seattle Art Museum Gallery, Seattle, WA
2004 Alysia Duckler Gallery, Portland, OR
2003 Friesen Gallery, Seattle, WA
1991 Friesen Gallery, Sun Valley, ID
1991‍ ‍PONCHO Seattle, WA
2002 Anne Loucks Gallery, Chicago, IL
1997 Friesen Gallery, Seattle, WA
1991 Friesen Gallery, Sun Valley, ID
1995 Open Space Victoria, BC, Canada
1994 William Shearburn Gallery, St. Louis, MO
1992 Seattle Pacific Gallery, Seattle, WA

Select Collections

Brimstone Collection, Palm Springs, CA
CSC/INDEX, Chicago, IL
Development Resources, Boise, ID
Everett Properties, Bellevue, WA
EXOFICIO, Seattle, WA
Ginsburg Hallowell, Boston, MA
Glant Textiles Corporation, Seattle, WA
Guttman Travel, Seattle, WA
Merrill Lynch Inc., Seattle, WA
Karolinska Hospital Stockholm, Sweden
Dr. Roger Mann and Associates, Oakland, CA
Mark Twain Bank, St. Louis, MO
Mid-Mountain Contractors Bellevue, WA
Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR
William Shearburn Collection, St. Louis, MO
SIRE, New York, NY
Taymar Inc., Bellevue, WA

Select Publications (*Reviews)

Rebecca Teagarden, ‘The Dream Comes True’ The Seattle Times, Pacific Northwest Magazine, 2011

The Marquam Hill Art Committee, Art on the Hill works from the OHSU Collection Printed in South Korea sponsored by The Oregon Health and Science University, 2011

*Matthew Kangas, Relocations: Selected Art Essays and Interviews Midmarch Arts Press, NY, 2008

*Debbie Lester, ‘Freisen Gallery Presents Malei Young’ ART ACCESS, Vol.12, No.3 2003

Yvonne Owens, ‘Abstraction= Representation, Elements of Surprise’  REFLEX Vol.10, No. 1,1996

*Matthew Kangas, Modernism and Beyond: Women Artists of the Pacific Northwest, Edited by Ruth Askey and Laura Brunsman, Midmarch Arts Press, New York, 1993

*Shannon Rolle, ‘Untitled’, ART ACCESS, Vol. II, No.12  1993

*Deloris Tarzan Ament, ‘Art for Arts Sake? Well with the rent already paid, why not?’ The Seattle Times 1992

Let’s connect!