The Deep River Library Arts Committee featured an exhibition by contemporary landscape artist Sheila McGregor from February 3rd until February 24th, 2018. The solo exhibition Look Up, features luminous pieces such as Majesty, Mr. and Mrs. Wonderful (pictured above), and Winter’s Eve, showcased this summer at the Deep River Town Hall as part of Canada’s 150th Celebration. The artist will also be debuting her most recent pieces, inspired by en plein air work produced over the summer and further developed in her Deep River studio during the cold winter months.
Working en plein air is a process Sheila is grateful for, as it connects her to the scene she’s painting. Sheila loves to combine her love of the outdoors with her passion for painting, and is continuously in awe of the glory that resonates within the natural world. She is especially drawn to trees, “the giants of the forest,” and the way they gracefully reach to credit the Creator of their beauty, even urging us to “look up” and do the same. This fascination with trees is evident in the lively and iridescent rendering of Sheila’s pieces. Her work has a glowing depth to it which Sheila says is produced through layers upon layers of thoughtful strokes of paint. She likens this to a depth of character in people cultivated over layers and layers of time and trial, not unlike her own life story.
Part of Sheila’s childhood story has been featured in Woman’s World Magazine and on the front page of a newspaper published in Dallas, Texas. Growing up in foster homes, Sheila changed schools over a dozen times, and found herself in the difficult place of being officially “unadopted” at a young age. Finding a healing place in expressing herself through art, she now has a desire to share her paintings as “encouragement to the discouraged, and beauty to the broken.” Working within nature has been important to Sheila’s artistic process, as a way to feel connected to the story she paints. Much like taking in the beauty of one of Sheila’s large-scale paintings, Sheila finds comfort in feeling small, yet significant and known by her Creator, when she spends time in the vastness of nature. The characteristic use of light and colour which radiates from Sheila’s vivid paintings is a tribute to the hope she has despite her broken childhood. She wants her upcoming show to serve as a bright reminder to continue hoping, to keep looking up.
For further information on Sheila’s upcoming solo exhibition, please visit her website at www.sheilamcgregor.com, or email her at fineart@sheilamcgregor.com. Her work will be on display at the W.B. Lewis Public Library located at 55 Ridge Road, Deep River, Ontario beginning February 3 through 24, 2018. An opening reception will be held on February 3rd from 1-3 pm. The show may be viewed by the public during the Library’s regular hours. Contact the W.B. Lewis Public Library at (613) 584-4244 for more information.
Contact information:
Sheila McGregor
Sheila McGregor Fine Art
Phone: 613-639-9604
Email: fineart@sheilamcgregor.com
URL: www.sheilamcgregor.com
Deep River Library Arts Committee 