About the Artist

January 30, 2015

NANCYANNE COWELL

Nancyanne Cowell, BFA (Hon) (Distinct), MBA, LFC is a Canadian artist, born in Ottawa, Ontario, and lives on Vancouver Island. From an early age, Cowell began painting our relationship with nature in the Canadian landscape.  Embracing sensual, spilling light, her Abstract-Impressionist paintings straddle the built and natural worlds we live in. With sweeping gestures and energetic passages, Cowell’s powerful and luminous paintings emphasize how our existence is inherently linked to nature. Her work ultimately illuminates the beauty of this relationship.

She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts with Honours and was granted the Award of Distinction for painting, from the University of Victoria.  Cowell is recognized as an elected member of the Federation of Canadian Artists.  She also earned a Master’s Degree in Business Administration, with studies in Environmental Philosophy, which deepened Cowell’s understanding of civilization and art making. A series of her paintings have been published, exploring how love, science, and compassion can build a more sustainable world.  In addition, the series was granted cultural interpretation through the Robert Bateman Centre. Other artwork is held in private and corporate collections.

ARTIST’S INSPIRATION

“By responding to chapter themes, legends, and fairytales, I draw on relationships and interconnections between our built environment and the natural world.  Water —as a symbol of renewal, cleansing, and emotional energy; flows throughout the painting series. It is the source of all life, representing both life and death existing in the same place. Making up most of the Earth and most of our bodies, water is a conduit between and amongst all species, communities and the biosphere.  Painting beyond the conventional boundaries of the traditional ‘landscape’, my brushes found moments of emotion and wonder expressing these mysteries.  These paintings are an offering that we may find possibility — towards a fresh understanding of being. With our planet deeply seeking care, perhaps this exhibition will stir both our hearts and minds to find meaning and strengthen our connection with the world around us.”

  – Nancyanne Cowell, Edging Forward Art Collection