Award-winning water-colour artist Jan Martin will be opening her studio / gallery at 24 Marine Parade for a final open studio to view her watercolour paintings over the King’s Birthday weekend where visitors can enjoy refreshments in the gallery and garden.
This is the last chance to see the studio / gallery as Jan has already begun to pack up in preparation for a complete rebuild. The gallery has welcomed many visitors, locals and tourists for several years now and Jan has offered her guests a guided tour and information about watercolour painting. Some works will be discounted to make packing a little easier.
Jan believes their fisherman’s cottage was built by Harold and Alveenee Newman in 1948. It had a beautiful shell museum behind the house which she remembers visiting as a child.
“Growing up, I spent all my holidays in Lakes Entrance at my great grandmother’s home in Hunter Street,” she said.
Her great grandmother was Cecelia Neal (nee Carstairs). The garage Jan has converted to her studio was at one time Ozzie Mitchelson’s bicycle repair shop and it was also a refrigeration repair business. Jan transformed this old unlined, dirt floored space with her creativity including a recycled bay window for lots of light, and recycled furniture.
Unfortunately, the house has succumbed to age and is to be demolished and a wonderful large new studio gallery will be built soon. Nevertheless, Jan has turned the current building into a beautiful artistic space, with her collections and works of art including her hand made books, journals, drawings and paintings of the local area and further afield. Jan has more than 100 paintings on display as well as many unframed works.
Jan and her husband Doug bought 24 Marine Parade 36 years ago. When they retired from secondary teaching in Melbourne, they chose to spend most of their time in Lakes Entrance. After exhibiting in local galleries Jan decided to set herself up as Lakes Entrance Studio / Gallery at home, so she was able to paint in her studio and at the same to display her professional watercolours to the public. Her studio has thrived over the years with a steady stream of interested visitors and many paintings going to new homes.
Due to the size of her studio Jan has been unable to offer tuition here, but she hopes to offer workshops in her new space, which quite a number of people are looking forward to. She will still be there painting in her studio until plans are finalised, opening in between packing up.
“This is an invitation to all who have visited me in my gallery and all those who haven’t done so yet to make sure you visit over the weekend to see this amazing space I has created to display my art works,” she said.
IMAGE: Award-winning watercolour artist Jan Martin’s studio / gallery will be open over the King’s Birthday Weekend before she starts the rebuild of the gallery. (PS)
