Nancy Dean Kreger
Nancy Dean Kreger grew up on a dairy and apple farm in Shelburne, Massachusetts, where her ancestors go back generations to the 1700’s. When she was 10 years old, her family sold the cows and started a campground on part of their land with sweeping panoramic views for 70 miles. Nancy has taken private art lessons dating back to high school. She has a Bachelor of Fine Art in Visual Design. She became the manager of one of the Spectrum of American Artists & Craftsmen galleries on Cape Cod. On returning to her hometown in the early ’80‘s, Nancy worked as a freelance artist, a private art teacher and special needs advocate in a private elementary school. While she had been away, many craftspeople had moved to her beloved western Massachusetts. A local Artisans Guild was created and Nancy became it’s first president. In 1985 she created Salmon Falls Artisans Showroom in an historic old grain building where she represented over 125 regional artists and craftspeople, some of whom are internationally known. Her gallery gained national recognition through print articles in the New York Times, Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer, Yankee Magazine, and the “Chronicle” TV show on Channel 5 in Boston and a mention on “Prairie Home Companion” radio. She was a Guest Curator for an Invitational Furniture Show at the Fitchburg (MA) Art Museum before moving to Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 1991. Nancy has been co-owner of Kreger Design Build with her husband, Bob, since 2002 and her talent as a visual designer was integral in the custom client connection. In 2007, Nancy began plein air painting with Evelyne Boren, an internationally-known watercolor artist. Nancy was the 2011 Santa Fe Wine Festival Artist, juried into the 2011 Women in the Arts New Mexico show called “18 Days” and the PAPNM juried show at Millicent Rogers Museum "Land of Light", chosen for 2 Haciendas Parade of Homes magazine covers, created several wine labels and has been represented in One-Woman and Group Shows in New Mexico, Massachusetts, Provence, Tuscany and Mexico. Nancy’s paintings are in many private collections across the US.