Art show to shut Gallery Fourteen
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Marie Nagel climbed up on a snowbank to peer inside the window of an abandoned church in the Cariboo town of Wells.
It was the early 1990s and the town, population 150, was as depressed as it had been since the mine closed after the Second World War—many buildings were run down and up for sale.
Through the window Nagel saw a beautiful big space and high ceilings, perfect for an art gallery where she could finally pursue her dreams of becoming a professional artist.
She called the church and asked how much they were asking for the 1936 structure.
The church official replied, "Well, if you won't quibble about the price we won't have to have another board meeting.
"We're asking $5,200."
"I didn't quibble," said Nagel, now 70, with a laugh.
A show of Nagel's works entitled Obsession is currently on display as the last exhibition at Gallery Fourteen in New Westminster, which announced earlier this week it will be closing Oct. 31.
Now living in Victoria, she reminisced in a phone interview about her days plying her craft in Wells, which is located near Barkerville.
Growing up in Saskatchewan, she'd always loved drawing and painting but it wasn't until Grade 8, when she had a professional artist as a teacher, that she started taking it seriously. The encouragement of her teacher to keep painting somehow led to her parents—her dad was a door-to-door salesman at the time—managing to scrape together enough money to get her some paints.
Then, in the days when girls were expected to become nurses, teachers or secretaries, Nagel bucked the trend against her parents' wishes and enrolled in the Alberta College of Art.
Over the years she took jobs in commercial art and as a photographer and cartoonist for the Moose Jaw Times-Herald, while painting in her spare time.
But it was her time in Wells that pushed her closer to her dream.
By then, she was divorced, her son was grown and she'd just left a job as director of the Prince George Art Gallery wanting to spend more time on her own painting.
Now on her own, she was ready and motivated to make a living from her art.
"It was really liberating."
Soon the Wells church was turned into a focal point for the arts in the town. She bought a house next door and moved in. She painted through the winters and opened up the gallery for the tourist season in the summer.
"For the first time in my life I was really able to focus on my art."
After filling the gallery with her own work she soon started carrying works by other area artists. She became a community booster by starting up a town newsletter to let people know about the positive things happening around town. For six months Nagel even served a stint as a volunteer firefighter, until a training accident led to her breaking her painting arm.
Today the town is experiencing a mini boom, buoyed by the influx of young families drawn by affordable housing.
After 17 years, she decided the physical work of keeping the gallery going, which included shoveling snow off the roof every winter, was getting to be a bit much. She sold her gallery last January and her house, which has since been turned into a gallery itself.
She is now in Victoria producing artworks, and exploring the world of plein air painting—or painting on location. It's a method quite different from what she's used to, where the focus is more on the subject than on instinct and the feel of acrylic paint on canvas.
Nagel typically paints semi-abstract landscapes and still lifes, using bold colours and strong brushstrokes as she tries to capture the beauty she sees around her.
"I don't have a strong presence physically and I don't have a strong voice," she said quietly.
"Painting allows me to speak loudly and clearly—I hope."
Obsession is at Gallery Fourteen, 614 Columbia St. in New Westminster until Oct. 30. Also view her works at www.marienagel.com.
wchow@burnabynewsleader.com
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