Celeste Bergin grew up in Elgin, Illinois. As a young girl she was attracted to the landscape and expressive faces, filling her notebooks with sketches of the gentle rolling plains of the Midwest and with portraits of the people she knew.
After graduating from high school she attended the prestigious Art Institute of Chicago. Unfortunately, some unexpected events interrupted her art education. She moved to Florida and worked for 7 years in an un-related field. By 1976 she moved to Portland, Oregon and she went back to college (Mt. Hood) to earn a degree in Graphic Design. She also attended the Pacific Northwest College of Art.
In 1978 she began her 25 year career in Graphic Design and advertising, working for Robert Selby Design, Borders, Perrin & Norrander, Nike and Wieden + Kennedy. In 2004 she began painting full time and sought the company of like-minded people. She started painting outdoors and directly from life. Currently Celeste serves as the moderator for "Alla Prima Portland" an art discussion roundtable that meets weekly in Multnomah Village.
Celeste has had workshops with Kenn Backhaus, Robert Gamblin, Eric Jacobsen and Ovanes Berberian. She is strongly influenced by Manet, Andy Warhol, Dan McCaw and Wayne Thiebaud. Her work incorporates an appreciation for the beauty of nature and a preference for bold expression. She has exhibited her paintings in Galleries and non-profit arts organizations. Her work is included in private collections throughout the United States.
