The Pearl Ellis Gallery in Comox will be starting a new show on March 31 entitled Landscapes and Other Things.
The show, which primarily has oil and acrylic paintings of landscapes, is being put on to showcase two relatively new artists in the Comox Valley.
David Netterville and Jock MacNeill have been painting together since first meeting back in 2009 when they took classes together.
MacNeill, who stems from Saskatchewan, actively started painting when he moved to the Comox Valley in 2005 after encouragement from a number of artists, friends and family. He says that he found painting to be a source of stimulation while creating peace and tranquility within. His art focuses on landscapes and he often uses imagination to interpret it in an abstract form. Painting has allowed Jock to discover a new appreciation for colours.
Netterville, also from the prairies, came to the Comox Valley after 22 years in Europe in 2008 and has been studying painting since then with various artists.
He continues to take lessons twice weekly and says that he is trying to develop a style while concentrating on getting the composition and brush strokes properly done. Netterville has participated in classes from a number of gifted artists since retiring to Courtenay and has moved from watercolours (the easiest medium for the kindergarten class teacher to clean up but the most difficult to master) to acrylics (which dry too fast on the palette) and has finally settled on water-soluble oils as his preferred medium.
His canvasses generally depict local west coast scenery as in his painting of Bamfield Coast Guard Station with the odd experiment on abstract painted from imagination such as his 100 Eyes view of the underwater estuary.
Many of MacNeill’s paintings reflect the scenery of the Yukon where he taught for many years. His goal during painting is for recreation as a tool and a hobby. He enjoys making bright colourful paintings just for fun.
The art show and sale will be from Tuesday March 31 until Sunday, April 19. The Pearl Ellis Gallery is located at 1729 Comox Ave. in Comox and the show is open from Tuesdays to Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. and from 1-4 p.m. on Sundays. The gallery will be open Good Friday but closed on Easter Sunday.
A reception featuring both artists will be held at the gallery on Saturday, April 4 from 1-4 p.m.