LOCAL artist Isabelle Devos’ latest exhibition titled Calm Before the Storm will open at the New England Regional Art Museum (NERAM) this Friday night 20 September at 6pm.
For the past 10 years, Armidale resident Isabelle Devos has been interpreting what she sees with the eyes of an artist, creating paintings of mostly New England landscapes and townscapes.
Calm Before the Storm is a new group of paintings created over the past 15 months, all colourful works that give a sense of quiet and mysteriousness.
Following a four-year program at art school in Canada, Devos combined her two passions, photography and painting, in a series of abstract works. Then after moving to the countryside, her work changed and became more representative of the rural landscape around her.
Moving to Australia 10 years ago created enormous challenges for a painter who bases her work on her surroundings.
Yet, within a year Devos began to sense that she had found ways to understand and interpret her new surroundings in a way that was exciting.
The warm welcome and inclusiveness of many local artists became a great support network and helped Devos understand the new art world of which she was becoming.
Together, several local artists have applied for exhibitions, entered art prizes, taken group sketching excursions and encouraged each other in their art practice.
Devos enjoys the friendly sense of competition when several artists, who are friends, enter work for the same art prize. In the end, all of the artists are genuinely pleased when one of them wins a prize or is a finalist. They see it as recognition of the quality of work by regional artists in general.
Isabelle Devos, Calm Before the Storm, opens at New England Regional Art Museum on Friday 20 September at 6pm. All are welcome.
