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"I consider art to be a celebration of life |
Betty Nance Smith has a lot to celebrate as a native of unique northern New Mexico. Its artistic influence and dramatic scenery have brought a special sense of light and life to her paintings. Even the common becomes uncommonly beautiful.
The beauty of Nance Smith's creations has been recognized in
OIL PAINTERS of AMERICA (OPA) National and Regional Exhibitions since 2001.
She is a signature member of OPA, www.oilpaintersofamerica.com.
Among her other numerous juried shows is the National Audubon Exhibition.
Betty has consistently been active in her native state's art scene. One of her wildlife paintings was chosen for a New Mexico Wildlife Conservation stamp and others have been published in 15 NEW MEXICO WILDLIFE magazines. For two years her work was selected to hang in the New Mexico Lieutenant Governors office.
Betty attained a high level of communion with her subjects through years of depicting nature in water based mediums. Paralleling her new life as a mother, her artistic direction refocused on oil painting, still life, and figurative pieces. With a lifetime love of the ocean, seascapes have recently become an added passion for the high-mountain, desert-born painter.
During early motherhood she helped start a very successful Studio Tour, which she showed in for 9 years. Her paintings have been exhibited in galleries in New Mexico, Colorado, and California for the past 25 years.
Smith can't remember a time when she did not adore art, yet it was not a major focus of her life until she changed majors in college. After receiving a BA from Eastern New Mexico University, summa cum laude, in Commercial Art, she was chosen for a Rotary Graduate Fellowship in Sydney, Australia. The marvelous year was the beginning of a life-long passion for travel. Smith loves to grow and learn and continues to enjoy workshops with Master Painters. She has studied with Robert Bateman, Cary Ennis, Gregg Kreutz, David Leffel, Sherri McGraw, and Dan Gerhartz. John Singer Sargent and Rembrandt are two past masters that have greatly influenced her work.
Betty Nance Smith currently lives in her birth town, Los Alamos, high upon majestic mesas in New Mexico with her husband, 2 daughters, and 2 cats that rule the house. Her love of nature is expressed in her tropical forest solarium and her travels to beautiful places.
