Jan Toland and Mike Steer have teamed up for the new backroom exhibit at Hope Arts Gallery this month.
Toland moved to Mador, Ontario after retiring in 2005. She found her inspiration while living on the Canadian Shield and spending time in Algonquin Park. Toland paints in watercolors and acrylics, reflecting her love for nature and wildlife. She moved to Hope in 2011 and now holds workshops in both mediums at The Art Machine on Thursday mornings.
Englishman Mike Steer signed up for naval school training in 1956 and served in the Royal Navy for 10 years. He married his wife Mary in Scotland in 1962 and later immigrated to Canada in 1973.
Steer took art lessons with former Hope RCMP Staff Sgt. Ed Hill in the late 1990s, as well as Chinese brush painting with local artist Marlene Easterbrook. He has also taken workshops in watercolors, acrylics, sketching and life drawing. An avid fly fisherman, Steer ties his own flies and has facilitated many fly-tying workshops.
Both artists will be at the opening reception for “East Meets West” on March 9, from 7-9 p.m. at the Hope Arts Gallery on Fort Street.