Delaney Key Bend was raised in rural northern Illinois, where she developed an appreciation for the tension between effortlessness and diligence found within life's natural rhythms and cycles.

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She graduated from the University of Tampa with a B.A. in Art, concentrating in Art Therapy and Painting. During her first year of undergraduate studies, she discovered a passion for encaustic painting that inspired her to further explore the artistic process through education and her own creative practice.

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Delaney went on to earn a dual M.A. in Art Therapy and Counseling from Southwestern College & New Earth Institute in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Art Therapy Psychology at Dominican University of California. In addition to her academic pursuits, Delaney is a Registered Art Therapist (ATR) and Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern of Florida, integrating her interests in creativity, psychology, and human experience into her professional practice.

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Delaney has been represented by Marcolina's Gallery in Ybor City, ESP Gallery, with locations in New York, Miami, Tampa, and Santa Fe, and Houshang's Gallery on Canyon Road in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Alongside her artistic and academic pursuits, Delaney remains actively engaged in Tampa Bay's creative community through exhibitions, collaborative projects, and efforts to create more inclusive opportunities for artists. 

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Working primarily with encaustic, oil, and mixed media, Delaney continues to explore the sculptural and expressive possibilities of her materials. Her artistic and research practices reflect an ongoing curiosity about creativity, embodiment, consciousness, and connection, particularly the ways in which the creative process allows us to explore and make meaning of our experiences.