Heather Mehra-Pedersen is an award-winning palette knife painter with deep ties to both Sandpoint and Sun Valley, Idaho. 

Formally trained in Marketing and Fine Arts at Lehigh University, with advanced study in Aix-en-Provence, France, Heather initially followed a business path at her East Indian father’s urging. 

Her diverse career, including work as a licensed stockbroker, veterinary hospital administrator, and sign language interpreter, adds depth and perspective to her artistic voice. 

Her creative roots run deep, with her mother having trained at the Philadelphia School of Art and grandparents who were also painters.

She is represented by galleries in Sandpoint and Sun Valley, Idaho; Scottsdale, Carefree, and Sedona, Arizona; Jackson Hole, Wyoming; and Telluride, Colorado. Her work is also displayed nationally by Hallmark Cards.

She was named the 2024 Art on the Green Poster Artist, 2025 World Cup Ski Poster Artist, and 2025 Wagon Days Poster Artist. Heather also participates in numerous live-painting fundraising events, including the upcoming 2026 Trailing of the Sheep Festival. 

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Heather is a contemporary artist known for bold, large-scale palette knife paintings that blend abstract expression with impressionistic details in a style unmistakably her own.

Her work features recognizable forms paired with unexpected palettes, rich texture, and dynamic movement, scenes remembered more for how they feel than how they are precisely seen. 

Painting quickly and intuitively, she favors energy over fine detail, using fearless strokes and layered color to evoke mood, memory, and presence. Light plays a central role, often illuminating her subjects with warmth and quiet reverence.

She draws inspiration from the rugged beauty of the American West and her global travels. For Heather, painting is both prayer and purpose: a joyful, fearless act of bringing memory, light, and spirit to life on canvas.

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New this year, the Festival is inviting the public to the unveiling of the 2027 Fine Arts Poster art on Thursday, October 22, from 7 to 8 PM at the Pend d’Oreille Winery Tasting Room, located at 301 Cedar Street in Sandpoint.

Guests will have the opportunity to meet Heather and see her original artwork in person for the first time.

Heather has generously donated her original artwork for auction, with proceeds supporting the Festival at Sandpoint’s year-round music education programs and nonprofit mission.

Bidding will open during the public unveiling on October 22 and conclude during the final performance of the 2027 Summer Series on August 8, 2027.

As a nonprofit, the Festival relies on community support to sustain its annual concert series and year-round programming. Approximately 20% of the Festival’s annual revenue comes from donations, making initiatives like the annual poster art auction an important source of support.

Participating in the annual poster art auction is a meaningful way to support a local nonprofit while adding a one-of-a-kind original work by a local artist to your collection.

Heather’s artwork was selected to represent the 2027 Summer Series during the Festival’s 2026 Poster Contest selection process.

While reviewing submissions for the 2026 contest, the selection committee was particularly impressed by two pieces: one from Cyndie Hammond and one from Heather.

To ensure the opportunity to feature both works, the committee proactively selected Heather’s artwork for the 2027 Summer Series and Hammond’s for the 2026 Summer Series.