Colleen Hayward received her BFA from Kansas City Art Institute and her MFA from Indiana University, Bloomington. Her teaching career included Purdue University, Mount Holyoke College and San Diego State University. She has lived in Seattle since 1995 and taught at Cornish College of the Arts. Her work has been shown around the country and was represented by Catherine Person Gallery. Currently, she works in the Sunny Arms Artist Cooperative; her work has been placed in several buildings and private collections in Seattle.