Today we’d like to introduce you to Nellie Gill.
Alright, thank you for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, how did you get started?
I was a late starter in the art field. My husband was career US Air Force, and when we were transferred here, I decided I would take art lessons. By then, my youngest child was in junior high. I was so lucky to have happened upon Warren Hunter (deceased), with who I started taking watercolor classes. I also took drawing from Mr. Hunter. I joined San Antonio Watercolor Group, which brought in top-notch watercolor teachers from across the country several times a year for four-day workshops. Before home computers, I purchased many art books and studied intensely from them. I worked hard at becoming a better artist and enjoyed the challenge. Soon I was entering competitions, and my paintings were being accepted. Not long after that, I started winning awards and began entering national competitions and winning awards there. Those awards encouraged me to continue studying and striving to improve watercolors.
Then one day, I just got tired of competitions and have entered very few since then. Also, my husband developed Parkinson’s Disease, and I became his caregiver for 10 years. After his death, I found it difficult to pick up a brush again, although I wanted to. I needed a class to kick me back into art, but I did not want to take any more watercolor classes. So I took an oil workshop at the Coppini Academy of Fine Arts.
Shortly after that, I started going out on location with friends to paint. Frequently I painted with oils in pleinair. Although it is getting harder for me to carry the equipment needed for painting outdoors on location, I can find something near my car that catches my eye. There was no art in schools in the small town I was raised in, and now I see that education with exposure to all the different arts is vital. When I first started painting, I had yet to learn how far I would go with it nor how much it would add to my life. Because of my art, I have traveled to many places and visited other countries. Because I like to paint nature, I appreciate it and am never happier than when I am out in my “office” for the day.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Has it been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I had a family at home when I started painting. Our eat-in kitchen was the only place for me to paint at home. I completely cleared the table after meals, put my art supplies on that table, and then put them all away before preparing the next meal. This included hanging a shop light above the table each time I wanted to paint. One thing I was fortunate with is that my husband was very good with woodworking and made frames for me. Sometimes it is hard not to get discouraged because I will never get a painting as good as I want it to be, but my hope is the battle for better paintings will keep me excited for the rest of my life.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Although I paint and draw various subjects, I enjoy working out in nature the most. Most of my paintings lose realism or impressionism. I enjoy sketching and drawing people in airports and other places where they still stay for a bit. Because of my background devoted to learning how to paint, I am always willing to help other artists in any way I can, telling them about things I have learned and giving critiques if they wish. When working out on location, I am always very encouraging to artists of any age, from the very smallest to senior citizens. When a child shows me a painting, and I’m not sure what it is, I always ask them to tell me about it. Never ask what it is. And this is a good time to mention that I like abstract and realistic art. I have painted both, although realistic is more of a challenge that I enjoy doing.
We love surprises, fun facts, and incredible stories. Can you share something that might surprise us?
I have no formal art education, so there is a way where there is a will. I hate to pass a barn without drawing or painting it.
Contact Info:
- Facebook: look for Nellie Gill artist on Facebook
