LISSA ALEXANDER
reporter@pqbnews.com
Pauline Nadeau Evans fell in love with the very idea of being an artist at a young age.
“I remember getting my first paint-by-number kit when I was about 10, an oil based paint set, and just the smell of oil in the air made me feel like I was an artist,” she said.
The Nanoose Bay artist currently has work hanging for sale at the Island Exposures Gallery in Parksville.
Nadeau Evans was born and raised in Edmonton, Alberta. Her natural talent for art was recognized while attending school and she was encouraged to continue her painting. Mainly self taught, she took an oil class at the age of 19 and then painted as a hobby for family and friends for a number of years.
After she was married she said her husband appreciated her artwork and encouraged her to take it further, so she decided to take some classes and workshops, and she joined the Federation of Canadian Artists in the mid ‘80s.
After living in Tsawwassen for 28 years where she sold paintings in a gallery in the west end of town, Nadeau Evans moved to Nanoose Bay with her husband in 2010.
“The scenery here is mind boggling, every day is beautiful even in the rain and the fog, there’s still some beauty to it.”
Today Nadeau Evans paints mostly in acrylic, often adding texture using layers of rice paper and different glazes. She used to paint a lot of florals but nowadays enjoys painting landscape and outdoors scenes and, particularly, capturing the whole atmosphere of a location, including the smells and the mood.
She’s a member of the Nanoose Bay Studio Group and was recently featured at the successful Studio Showcase at Nanoose Place.
Nadeau Evans likes to paint sunny scenes and has plans to paint an enormous 38 by 68 inch painting showing sunny ocean views from Nanoose Bay’s Brickyard Bay, which will make everyday in her home warm and bright.
Although it’s easy to simply purchase cheap prints these days, Nadeau Evans said it’s nice and artists certainly appreciate when original pieces are purchased. She hopes people can connect with her pieces, that a piece may appeal to someone’s senses and make them feel really good when they look at it, she said.
On the last Wednesday of every month the Island Exposures Gallery holds a reception and meet-the-artist event from 5 to 7 p.m. Nadeau Evans encourages people to come out and have a look at the wide variety of original artwork. The gallery is located at 183 West Island Highway in the Beach Plaza retail shops. For more information visit www.islandexposuresgallery.com.