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Stevenson's early training at the Art Student's League with John Sloan, a noted Ashcan School painter, exposed her to American Scene painting and social realism. Sloan encouraged her to visit Santa Fe, New Mexico, where she developed an affinity for the vibrant colors and clear light of the desert landscape.

‍In the 1940s, Stevenson studied with German painter Hans Hofmann in Provincetown, Massachusetts. This experience was a turning point, leading her to adopt modernism and a personal form of abstract expressionism. Her later work in Santa Fe, where she acquired a second residence in the late 1950s, often featured colorful, rhythmic abstractions inspired by local architecture and natural forms.

‍Stevenson was a dedicated advocate for artists, particularly women, and held leadership roles in several organizations: 

‍She was president of the New York Society of Woman Artists and a board member of the National Association of Women Artists.

‍Initially a member of the American Artist Congress, she left to join the Federation of Modern Painters and Sculptors, an organization established to promote avant-garde art, when the Congress' affiliation with the Communist Party increased. She was more concerned with the advancement of art than politics.

‍In addition to her studio work, Stevenson served as a curator at the Brooklyn Museum and taught art. 

‍Her work has been exhibited extensively and is held in prominent collections, including the Brooklyn Museum, the New York Public Library, and the Library of Congress.

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