Meet the Artist
Sheila Evans
METALWORK/Drawing/Painting
Sheila Evans has lived in the Pacific Northwest for most of her life, working as a professional artist for the past 26 years. After earning a bachelor’s degree in fine art from Gonzaga University in 1988 and a ten-year stint as a graphic designer, Evans began her fine art career working primarily in pastel. She became internationally known through art publications, eventually earning a place in the permanent collection of a French pastel museum. After several years of exclusive work in pastel, she began painting in oil, expanding her subject matter to include birds and animals in addition to her original botanical and landscape work. In 2016, she added kiln-fired enamel on metals to her repertoire and now works regularly in all three mediums. An avid birder, Sheila takes her own reference photos for her artwork. Sheila shows her work in galleries throughout the West Coast, as well as in fine art fairs across the country. One of her major bird-themed oil paintings was recently purchased for the permanent collection of the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture. Sheila is currently working on a major publicly commissioned enamel installation in Washington State.
Each of Sheila’s paintings are original oil paintings on cradled wooden panels. All but the largest paintings are done alla prima to keep the application of paint fresh and clean.
Sheila’s metal art is inspired by photos taken on birding trips. She makes kiln-fired pieces created with multiple layers of liquid vitreous enamel, applied using a mix of airbrush, dip pen, and sgraffito techniques, firing each color layer separately. Flat work is created on steel prepared with a ground coat. She hand-cuts and hammers her bowls, feather "offerings" and other embellishments from 18-gauge copper sheets before enameling. Suspension pieces are made from hammered, salvaged copper pipe with patina.