Meet the Artists
Susan Marjetti
Susan grew up on Cape Breton Island. She started painting when she was 12. First with oils, later watercolours and now acrylics. Susan has a solo exhibit in Toronto the fall of 2019.
She works for CBC Radio and is presently based in Toronto but returns to her island home regularly for family and inspiration.
Diana Morrissey
Diana was born and raised in East Germany, where she trained and worked as a geological assistant and graphic designer. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, she fulfilled her dreams of travel and spent over a decade in Asia. She lived in Bangkok, Thailand for 12 years, where she worked for a lapidary & jewellery manufacturer and designed jewellery lines for international brands, as well as custom ordered pieces. During the first 6 years she worked in the lapidary, she learned everything there is to know about coloured gemstones.
Her inspirations are the extraordinary gems and organic textures found in nature. Her logo represents her zodiac sign, Pisces, and her love of water. Her artistic freedom allows her to create original, authentic pieces that allow the wearer to express their individual style.
Nancy Oakley
Unique native inspired art. Specailizing in pottery and beadwork. Nancy creates culturally significant vessels that imbue her spiritual and traditional knowledge and honour her role as a mother. She creates her pieces by using a wheel or by hand, building larger sculptural vessels that find inspiration in nature and the creation of life. She incorporates traditional practices in her creations, such as stone polishing and smoke firing and later embellishes each piece with traditional Mi’kmaw black ash basketry, intricate beadwork and/or the spiritual element of sweetgrass.
Kris Tynski
Born and raised in Cape Breton, Kris Tynski developed a strong admiration for the outdoors. His lens captures the wildlife, seascapes, and landscapes of the Island, focusing on the eagles, fox, heron, and deer that inhabit Cape Breton. Kris also offers wedding and portrait photography to clients looking for a unique experience to capture their special day and family dynamic.
Pat Morris
I work primarily in pastel but also enjoy acrylic and oil paints and drawing with pencil or silverpoint. I am a self-taught artist; my ability to ‘capture’ life on paper, feathers, birch bark and other canvases is a humbling gift. Nature provides me with not only my inspiration, but also its own canvases! My inspiration is drawn upon a lifetime of observation in the woods and natural areas of New England and beyond, where I have been fortunate enough to catch glimpses of the wildlife that find their way into my paintings.
Lisa Finney
I live on Cape Breton Island, in Nova Scotia, Canada. Originally from Canberra, Australia, I moved to Cape Breton in 2002, and now live in the country in daily sight of the Atlantic Ocean. I like to be out and about, and I'm rarely without my camera. My favourite subject is unposed nature in action. Occasionally, you'll spot a denizen of my native land in my work…
Alison Grapes
Originally from Ontario, Alison Grapes has lived mostly in Nova Scotia since the 1980s. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from The Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, and a Bachelor of Education from Memorial University. Having taught visual arts for fifteen years, Alison now dedicates her time exploring her interest in nature and the human form, sometimes using techniques where the shape and colour are created with cut paper.
Alison lives and paints in Sydney, Nova Scotia
William Rogers
William Rogers is a plein air artist working in oil and watercolor. He is past President of the Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour (CSPWC) and a signature member of the Transparent Watercolor Society of America (TWSA), and the Société Canadienne de aquarelle (SCA). He has won numerous awards from all these societies and from plein air events since 2009.
In 2016 Bill took home 2nd Prizes in Mountain Marland Plein Air, as well as awards in Paint Annapolis, and Paint the Peninsula. He also was given an Award of Excellence for his work in the Oil Painters of America Salon Show in September 2016 and the Dorothy Corson Award from the CSPWC in October.
Another highlight came in 2014 when Bill served as the official Tour Artist for HRH Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall on their Royal Tour of Canada. Many of the completed works were acquired by His Royal Highness for his personal collection.
Penny Steele
Penny Steele is the owner of Colouratura and is the chocolatier and creator of Cabotto Chocolates. Her background is in the arts through teaching and community theatre. Now she thrives on the interaction between herself, the artists and the visitors of her gallery