Jane Appleby is an expressive and intuitive painter who paints with the vigour of her love of life, inspired by the Canadian Landscape, often painting outdoors in the tradition of the Canadian Group of Seven – “En Plein Air.”

The works of Van Gogh, Mondrian, Kandinsky and Rothko have been influential to Jane. She recalls being especially moved by viewing original works in museums by these artists as well as those of contemporary Canadian artists including Emily Carr, Takao Tanabe, Jack Shadbolt and Gordon Smith, all of whom had an impact on Jane, leading her to take up painting at a more serious level. Her late architect father also nurtured her process, and her younger brother, Frank Pochyly, also paints.

Jane was born in Cheb, Czech Republic in 1964, and her family immigrated to Vancouver in 1969, as sponsored refugees. At a young age, she learned to appreciate the outdoors with her family, who valued the new found freedom of the west coast.

She recalls seeing the ocean for the first time at English Bay in Vancouver, where the family first arrived – and was mesmerized. When her family settled in Victoria, British Columbia, Jane could walk to the beach and also enjoy the beautiful setting of Beacon Hill Park.

After several years the family moved to Burnaby, where her father started his architectural business and her mother worked as an aesthetician. Their home in North Burnaby was an old-timer until Jane’s father remodelled it to include large north facing windows, which took in the views of the North Shore mountains and Burrard Inlet. Jane fondly remembers sitting and appreciating the surroundings of nature and the quiet neighbourhood. She started to paint landscapes and experimented with realism and abstraction, and although her favourite subjects at school were art and photography, she studied science and became an X-ray technician, taking her father’s advice to pursue a more “stable” career.

When Jane was twenty-one she met her husband, Ken, at Burnaby General hospital where she worked and Ken was a family doctor. They shared similar interests in the outdoors and after getting married in 1987, had five children. Before their youngest child was born they moved into Ken’s family home by Burnaby Lake that had a large basement, which become Jane’s studio.

Jane found more time to paint after she resigned from the hospital and their five children grew. She first started with watercolours, at the Shadbolt Arts Centre, and also took up photography.

She entered her photographs and paintings into various shows and received awards for both but decided to focus on the more tactile expression of painting. Initially Jane used her photographs as reference but later found painting from life inspiring and a welcomed challenge.

During those years Jane produced many works, some large colourful abstracts, and work that was spiritual in nature while dealing with the repercussions of a car accident, finding painting supported her healing as well as a renewal of her faith. Jane took on a part-time job at an art supply/framing store, Frame Right, and was a member of the Burnaby Artists Guild, where she served as president and show coordinator.

Jane also obtained membership with The Federation of Canadian Artists and over the years took workshops from established members of the group, including watercolours and oils with Mike Svob, abstraction with Don Farrell, and plein air with Brent Lynch.

After these classes, Jane wanted to take courses outside of Canada and ventured to California to learn plein air acrylics with Marcia Burtt. She enjoyed two week-long workshops, at Cambria and Goleta Beach.

 

She then furthered her studies at Emily Carr University where she excelled in drawing and composition of colour and received a Fine Arts Technique diploma.

Another turning point for Jane was when her intuitive approach to painting was affirmed by the Late Robert Genn during a workshop, taught along with his daughter, Sara, at Holly Hock on Cortez Island, British Columbia. The week long time painting in oils and acrylics focused on landscape into abstraction and Sara’s talk on colour relationships, and trying some of her colours, impacted Jane as much as the demonstrations and picturesque location.

In response to a challenge at Holly Hock, to paint a painting in 37 minutes and another in 37 strokes, Jane painted the garden pumpkins in her own style, and was dubbed a “full member of the 37 Club.” This fuelled her to paint more than 10 paintings a day at the workshop and was a springboard to a new way of painting for Jane: fast and purposefully expression. “The Curious Case of Jane Appleby” was posted in “The 37 Club” published on August 20^th 2013, in Robert Genn’s popular blog “The Painters Keys.”

Jane subsequently took another outdoor painting workshop, this time with Brent Lynch. Jane recalls Lynch describing her paintings as: “Emily Carr Meets Gauguin,” both inspired by nature and colourfully unique. Following that workshop she furthered her studies of landscapes with Mitch Albala at the Pacific NorthWest Art School on Whidbey Island, Washington, in the United States which further fueled her interest in expanding on landscape painting.

Jane sometimes paints “En Plein Air” with a few of her friends and has organized several shows for the group as “The Passionate Outdoor Painters.” She also published a short story book called “Between Cottages” with images of their paintings of the Heritage Belcarra Cottages.

Her most recently published book “The Purposeful Brush“ has been well received. This paperback (and also available in hardcover) has her art on every page along with words that have inspired her creative expression, where she hopes to inspire us to pick up a “brush” and find purpose in it.

Jane has taught many classes and was part of the Fine Art Faculty at Place Des Arts in Coquitlam, also teaching for Okanagan School of Arts and the Port Moody Arts Centre. She is a popular instructor for various art groups and has done painting demonstrations at galleries, at seniors homes and for Opus Art Supply stores.  On occasion, Jane, with her husband assisting, can be found teaching watercolours on Cunard Cruise Lines and other Cruises.

In her classes, to both children and adults, Jane encourages individual freedom of expression similar to what she practices, while teaching valuable skills and building on strengths. She has developed various classes on composition and colour expression, and endeavours to help find the “Artist in all of us.”

Jane has produced a Youtube channel on “How to Paint Landscapes” where she shares her process and inspirations, including being “Thankful for the day.”

Jane’s artwork has contributed to many fundraising events including Boys and Girls Club, Big Brothers, Empty Bowls, L’Arche Greater Vancouver, and Burnaby Hospital. Lions Gate Hospital Foundation has three of her works in their public collection. Jane’s spiritual works, “The Gifts of the Holy Spirit” are an installation of Sacred Art at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Burnaby. She has also painted several murals and commissions.

 

Jane and her husband, Ken, live in Burnaby, with some of their adult children, a blind dog, and two cats. They frequent Galiano Island, where many of her works are painted. It is a place where she finds time for solitude in nature, also enjoying forest hikes, kayaking and seaside discoveries.

When on the mainland Jane always has her sketchbook handy, even while skiing, and has been endearingly nicknamed the “Bob Ross of Skiing!“

She is pleased her paintings are represented as far as Madrid Spain, including having shown at the Monaco Art Fair 2021 and Milan’s (Un)Fair in 2022. Her newest representative is Mountain Galleries in Whistler and Jasper.

Limited Edition Giclee Prints of Jane’s work can be found at her ONLINE SHOP 

Jane’s art is also now available on FINE ARE FASHIONS AND GIFTS.

What’s next for Jane?…More colour explorations on larger canvases including more shows and sharing her work – please sign up for Jane’s Newsletter (at bottom of page) to follow her journey.

 

JANE’S ARTIST STATEMENT:

I am most happy when in nature, and it is this joy that pulses within my canvases.  I appreciate all the movements of colour that play out within a landscape whether within a small tidepool, passing through the forest trees, or bouncing along a mountain peak…there are endless expressions that touch my heart that I wish to paint.

Every colour in nature inspires me, from subdued neutrals to vibrant highlights and deep tones, so I incorporate them all into my work through dynamic and expressive brushwork, lines and textures. This may be an immediate response or felt over a few days as the compositions come together. Each piece is a unique expression of the moment or experience of a place I recall or know well.

I especially enjoy working in acrylic or oils as they offer various ways to manipulate the paint, using water/oil, media and various tools, including brushes and palette knives.

The paintings are interpretations and reflections of times spent outdoors, the music that I sense is being played out within the landscape, and the connections I feel from the experiences.

The joy-filled gestures, colour and textures within my paintings bring to the viewer a new landscape to explore and enjoy.