Meadowlark Nature FestivaL: Art of Anne-Marie Harvey
May 17th – June 15th, 2024
TONI ONLEY GALLERY
Written by PAUL CRAWFORD
As the tulips, daffodils, lilacs, and tree blossoms announce the arrival of spring, so too does the growing jumble that is our lawn and garden. However, for me, spring's official arrival is heralded by the annual Meadowlark Festival exhibition. Over the years, this exhibition, along with our annual High School Exhibition, has evolved into two of our most enduring community partnerships and outreach initiatives.
Our partnership with the Meadowlark Society has showcased some of British Columbia's most celebrated artists, including Robert Bateman, James Fenwick Lansdowne, Jan and Patrick Little, Terry Isaac, Alex Fong, Skyler Punnett, Laila Campbell, Lee Claremont, Julia Hargreaves, Dorothy Tinning, Angie Roth McIntosh, Dr. Murray Roed, Dr. Michael Sime, Lyse Deselliers, and, most recently, Stephanie Perry. This year, we are thrilled to welcome Anne-Marie Harvey into the fold, whose vibrant paintings have been a fixture here in the Okanagan for many years.
I am grateful for all these who have helped make this exhibition happen especially Prema Harris and Lyse Deselliers who have supported and assisted Anne-Marie throughout this process.
Each year we receive a number of inquiries on how the artists are selected for the honour of being the annual Meadowlark Nature Festival featured artist, and I thought I would share the answer I received from this year’s guest curator Lyse Deselliers who shared the following:
“The selection committee first makes a list of local artists who have produced a significant body of works, who are interested in conservation or the environment, who will be willing to donate a painting, give two workshops and a talk as well as mount a solo show and be available during the festival for other events. We make every effort to be inclusive and welcome inquiries. Once the list is made, we all vote on the artists and the one who receives the most votes gets contacted. We realize that it's a lot to ask of an individual, but we also see it as a great opportunity to network, get one's work distributed widely through our media campaigns and promotion materials and a chance to have a one-person show at the beautiful Penticton Art Gallery. All in all, a great collaboration, and a lot of fun for the artist.”
Once again, a heartfelt thank you to Anne-Marie Harvey for graciously sharing your art and unique perspective with us, and to the Meadowlark Festival for continually reminding us of the profound importance of nature to our own well-being and survival.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
A self-taught artist, Anne-Marie Harvey spent her first 23 years as an artist exploring and painting in oils the wilds of northern British Columbia and the Yukon. She and her artist husband raised their three children in a land accessible only by bush plane. The dynamic landscape and transformational quality of light in the far north were her teachers.
In 1984, Anne-Marie left her beloved northern mountains for a new life on the west coast. Here she was introduced to watercolours, a challenge even more elusive than northern light! Anne-Marie loved this defiant and delightful medium and with mastery came success and security, along with dozens of shows, both solo and group. Watercolours led to acrylic, and finally mixed media. Only recently, to keep her paints wet while plein-air painting, Anne-Marie picked up her oil paints again, re-kindling an old love affair. She now delights in painting her world in an old medium but using new and freer techniques to express her love for the Okanagan.
Anne-Marie’s ability to paint people as well as landscapes won her success in the competition for cover artist and illustrator for the Advocate, the law magazine for B.C. Each issue features a notable and interesting person in the field of law. With one short interview, Anne-Marie created for the cover a light-hearted portrait, which accurately captured the spirit of this person. This work earned for her a spot as finalist for best illustrator at the Western Magazine Awards in 2003.
Anne-Marie teaches part time for the Federation of Canadian Artists, but mostly she paints, and works steadily towards expressing her great passion for simplicity, clarity and colour.
In 2006 Anne-Marie and her husband Chris purchased a small piece of land on the Naramata Bench in the Okanagan. They put in some Riesling grapes and built a splendid home and a bright new studio. Recently Anne-Marie has been learning singing and songwriting which has been her lifelong dream. She is finding it exhilarating to express her love for life in words and music as well as well as in paint.
“In my heart, I am a storyteller and songwriter disguised as a plein-air painter. I love painting people in their everyday interactions with Mother Nature. With big brushes and many colours, I seek to capture the grandeur of the ordinary. As a self-taught artist, I have been earning my livelihood through painting since the early 1960’s. I am thrilled and honoured to be chosen as the Meadowlark Festival Artist. When it comes to subjects to paint, the meadowlark is perfectly inspiring to me in both its colour and voice!”
- Anne-Marie Harvey, Artist Statement
For more info on
Anne-Marie Harvey visit:
For more info on
Meadowlark Nature Festival visit:
