Shelley Black majored in Fine Arts at the University of Southern California, and graduated in 1973 with a Bachelors Degree in Art.
During her freshman year, she illustrated Your Future in Archaeology by Dr. Gerald A. La Rue. She completed her MA - Art Education at University of Texas at ElPaso.
While still attending college, she worked as staff artist, Tel el Hesi, for Dr. W. J. Bennett, Jr., a dig under the auspices of the American Schools of Oriental Research and the Albright Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem, with funding provided by the Smithsonian Institution. This position took Shelley to the Middle East in 1971 to work on site and continued after returning to Los Angeles until 1978 when the study was published.
Shelley developed her artistic endeavors in technical drawing by branching into Architectural Illustration and Rendering, and pursued fine arts through free-lance work, which included short story illustrations. She understudied to Nina George, a well-known award winning surrealist painter who introduced her to the limited palette and inspired further direction in oils on canvas.
Currently working as an art instructor for the Las Cruces Public School District, Shelley enjoys teaching at the high school level. Her proficiencies include various 2D applications such as drawing, painting, and printmaking. Students have successfully completed Advanced Placement requirements and received college credit at the high school level under her tutelage.
Her work includes a broad range of technique and application, ranging from portraiture to non-objective abstraction. Shelley attempts to bring forth the vibrancy of the world around us through art by focusing on color and poignant moments of life.