Born in 1958 and raised in a rural area outside of Moncton, New Brunswick, Carole has been drawing and painting ever since she can remember. Growing up, her family spent weekends and vacations camping along the beaches and rivers throughout the Atlantic Provinces, Quebec and Ontario, her dad an avid fly fisherman and her mom a nature lover who grew up on a farm in Quebec. Carole couldn’t wait to get out of the Maritimes because she thought the pace of life was too slow, the towns too small and imagined that the grass had to be greener everywhere else.
Out of high school, she joined the Canadian Armed Forces while continuing to paint the varied landscapes/flora of Canada. In 1995, she had the opportunity to live in Colorado for six years where she began to paint full time, attend arts related business classes, workshops, teach watercolor classes, paint murals and faux finish walls. Now that she has explored other parts of the world and has a better sense of how fortunate she has been to have grown up in maritime provinces, those are exactly the things she cherishes most. Now revisiting these places as an artist, these memories continue to influence work along with the process of gathering reference material, sketching or painting on location and creating the final paintings in her studio.
Her series of work on canvas and paper have evolved out of a continued interest in the natural landscape. She painted for years as a watercolorist before discovering liquid acrylics. The transition from watercolor to acrylic was seamless since many of the same techniques apply.
Having recently added a palette knife to her toolbox for added texture, her work has evolved from aspiring to create realism toward focusing on a more romantic construction of simple elements. She enjoys working where not every step is planned and controlled, exploring the impression of a landscape, while inviting the viewer to share a pause in everyday things and the memories that it triggers in their own selves.
Exhibitions
Montreal Mural Festival, Montreal, PQ, July 2015
North Grenville Arts Guild 2015 Show, Kemptville, ON, June 2015
Holiday Show, Arta Gallery, Distillery District, Toronto, ON, Nov-Dec 2014
Brockville Art Center, Brockville, ON, April 2014
Arts Court, Ottawa, ON, Solo Show 2013
The Pilot, Toronto, ON, Solo Show 2013
Dandelion Festival, Kemptville, ON 2012
Renaissance” Art Show, Kemptville, ON 2012
Toronto Art Expo, Toronto, ON 2011
Factory Grind Coffee Company, Perth, ON, Solo Show 2010
Cornwall Regional Art Gallery (CRAG), Annual Juried Show 2009
The Branch Restaurant, Kemptville, ON, three person show 2009
Manotick Spring Art Show & Sale – Manotick, ON. Group Show 2008
Dandelion Festival 2008, Kemptville, ON, Group Show 2008
Spencerville Mill Art Show, Spencerville, ON, Group Show 2000
Cedar Lane Studio, , Spencerville, ON, “Art on the Trail”, 5th Annual. 2007
Heron Bay Gallery, Shediac, N.B, 2009 “Shorelines”, three person show. 2007
Moncton International Airport, Moncton, N.B. Commissioned mural. 2007
Heron Bay Gallery, Shediac, N.B. Solo Show. 2006
Faux Unlimited, Vanier, ON. Murals and faux painting. 2005
Moncton Gallery, Moncton City Hall, Moncton, N.B. Solo Show. 2004
ClasSea Interiors, Colorado Springs, CO and Sidney, B.C.- Interior design, murals and faux painting. 1999 –2000
Colorado History Museum, Denver, CO., Colorado Watercolor Society Annual Show. 1999
Business of Art Center (Gallery), Manitou Springs, CO. 1996-99
Bronze Coast Gallery, Cannon Beach, Oregon. 1998-99
El Pomar Center, Colorado Springs, CO. Solo Show 1998
Bader/Melnick Gallery, Vail, CO. 1997-98
University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, Group Show 1998
Smokebrush Center for Arts and Theater, Colorado Springs, CO, Group Show 1998
Colorado Springs Fine Art Center, Colorado Springs, CO. Group Show 1998
New West Art & Frame Co., Colorado Springs, CO. 1996-97
North Bay Fine Art Center, North Bay, ON. 2 Person Show 1995
The Great Gecko Art Store, North Bay, ON 1995
Sudbury Paint Gallery, Sudbury, ON 1994-95
Art Effects Gallery, Sudbury, ON. 1994-95
Lake Nosbonsing Studio Tour, Bonfield, ON 1994
White Water Gallery, North Bay, ON. Solo Show 1993
Metropolis, North Bay, ON. Solo Show 1993
Boreallis Gallery, Ottawa, ON 1992-93
Francis Alexandre Gallery, Vanier, ON 1992-93