Elizabeth Berry
A Toronto-based visual artist, Elizabeth Berry divides her time between her Beach Studio, The Caribbean and Europe. From old houses and small shops of Toronto that she originally painted to hone her craft in watercolor, she expanded her sources of inspiration and nowadays visits Northern Ontario, South of England, the Caribbean and Europe.
In all these locales, it is a world of natural beauty, stability and tradition that she portrays. Expressed in vivid colors, flooded with sunlight, this happy universe is ideal as much as it is real. Most recently Elizabeth has traveled to fishing coves in New Brunswick and the Quebec villages of Charlevoix.
As a school girl, Elizabeth received encouragement from her mother for her drawings, but didn’t pursue a career in arts. She became a teacher and then a book editor. A part-time art course convinced her to immerse herself in art studies full time. The success was immediate.
Her first participation in the Toronto Outdoor Exhibition, in 1982, brought her the Toronto Archive Award for water color; subsequent showings earned her the Best in Watercolor prizes in 1986 and 1987. One of her works was selected as the present to the mayor of Chongqing, China (former sister city of Toronto). Most recently Sonja, Queen of Norway has purchased 4 of Elizabeth’s watercolors from a Caribbean Gallery. Sir Bernard Ashley (Laura Ashley ) invited Elizabeth on board his private yacht and purchased two large watercolors
Posters International, Canada’s largest poster producer, discovered Elizabeth at the Toronto Outdoor Exhibition. The first 2 posters they produced sold over 20,000 copies in the first year. They went on to produce over 30 posters of Elizabeth’s paintings.
Girls in Pretty Dresses
Harbor Island, Bahamas
7" x 7" Watercolor
$380.00