(Arnprior)
I was born in Salem, Massachusetts, known for its colonial history, an appreciation of the past is reflected in my art. I studied at Educational Center for the Arts in New Haven, CT, and received recognition from many local awards including the Key to West Haven, CT, and earned the National Artistic Merit award for Promising Young Artist in the United States. I was granted a Bachelor Degree in Fine Art 1987 from Parson's School of Design, NYC. I was formerly an Illustrator for various manufacturers of clothing, house wares and children's books in the tri- state area of NY, CT, and NJ. Current focus on charming subject genre reflects this past profession. As a citizen of Canada, my art portrays nostalgic discoveries in the Ottawa Valley. I participate with local art affiliations and have won show awards in Pembroke, ON.
"Daubs of harmonious colour and textured patterns record impressions of the environment. Collections of similar objects unify compositions and act as vehicle for rhythmic beacons. Familiar scenes, like memories, are romanticized to mirror harmonious feelings. Charming instances offer empathy to ordinary subjects: offing via the window, a door, a mirror, into another field and state. Subtly, these layers of composition, selection of timeless treasures or scenes executed with colour professed sentiment, invoke an atmosphere of both stasis and transition.”
HOMESTEAD LANTERNS IN WINTER
Nancy Lee Vadnais (Arnprior)
Oil on canvas
18 x 24 inches
One year after inheriting the family farmhouse, a blocked door to a closet was discovered containing all of these lanterns. The proud find sits in one of the three windows of the parlour of a stone home in Lochwinnoch, near to Arnprior. I enjoyed sitting quietly while subtle light played from globe to globe and then out through the windowpane. The snowy path led past the maple to the barns and the bush beyond. Each lamp an old soul embodied in glass, connecting to homestead and reflecting the light of winter. $ 1,250
THIRD PLACE
SPRING FEEDING
Nancy Lee Vadnais (Arnprior)
Oil on canvas
24 x 20 inches
On a visit to a friend in Perth, I discovered that all of her neighbours raised the most interesting animals. This scene embodied spring itself: a pastel palette and the feeding of nature's renewal. My farm-scape focuses on the movement of nine freshly-shorn sheep and two still fluffy ones eating a large bail of hay in early evening. The subject reflects regional characteristics in a quaint picturesque manner that harkens back to Victorian charm. $1,300
HAY STACKS BEACON BRIM ON DAY
Nancy Lee Vadnais (Arnprior)
Oil on canvas
18 x 24 inches
After strawberry picking in Packenham, we found a neighbouring field on a wrong turn. The farmer there cut his hay while we painted from the van in the afternoon. The scene was set for red. Red strawberries, the hay cart under a continually changing sky with breaks of lighting. Each hay bale a beacon in the event; each patch of grass a dimension to the quilt. Farmer and artists working under the same sky. $ 650
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