FAIRVIEW—Nancy Hayes, who moved to Sanpete County about a year ago from Davis County, will display her watercolors, stained glass windows and mosaics at the Fairview Museum from Dec. 10-Feb. 26.
An opening reception will be held Wednesday, Dec. 10 from 6:30-8 p.m. in the Rotating Artist’s Gallery at the museum.
Nancy and her husband, Kim, have lived in Cave Creek, Ariz.; Missoula, Mont.; Chino Hill, Calif.; and Bountiful.
For the past year, they lived in their trailer on their property in Mt. Pleasant while building a traditional Scandinavian log home.
Art has always been a big part of Hayes’s life. In her 20s and while she was raising her children, she did some tole painting, quilting and wool appliqué.
Later, while living in Bountiful, she studied watercolor under Lester Lee, a highly respected high school art teacher in Davis and Cache counties.
She also painted at a senior center in Bountiful with a group of artists led by Beth Arbuckle Ashdown, a “two-star” member of the Utah Watercolor Society who has exhibited at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts at the University of Utah.
While she says watercolor is her favorite medium, she also enjoys stained glass and has taken several classes in that area.
She says when you work with stained glass, you end up with buckets of extra glass, which led to her involvement with mosaics.
The Fairview Museum, located at 55 N. 100 East in Fairview, is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.
On Friday, Dec. 10, the Rotating Artist’s Gallery of the Fairview Museum will exhibit the artwork of Nancy Hayes. A reception and celebration of Nancy’s artwork in watercolor, mosaic and stained glass will be held at the museum from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on that date.
The Hayes family came to Sanpete County from Layton. They have lived in many beautiful towns like Cave Creek, Arizona; Missoula, Montana; Bountiful, Utah; and Chino Hills, California. Wherever they lived, Nancy sought out art classes and increased her knowledge of and skill in various art forms.
She moved to Sanpete County a year ago with her husband, Kim, her two dogs and a dozen chickens. They lived for the last year in their trailer while they were building their log home. It was a long year and she had to put her art on hold, but the end result was a traditional Scandinavian log home.
Nancy has been taught by Lester Lee, Beth Arbuckle Ashdown, Michelle Walton and many other talented teachers over the years. She now enjoys expanding her art by teaching others to have confidence in exploring their own special talents.
Nancy started out painting in her early 20s with tole painting. It gave her a chance to make a little money while raising two daughters. Over the years she gave away most of that work, but she still has a few choice pieces she has kept.
While growing up, her mother taught her to sew. She has always enjoyed the fabric arts such as quilts, wool appliqué and clothing. A memorable trip to Israel 12 years ago was highlighted by two special quilt blocks that she had seen. Many of her pictures from that trip have those blocks in them.
Her love of watercolor art has always been around. While living in Bountiful, she found an art class at the local high school. She had the wonderful opportunity to learn under the amazing direction of Lester Lee. When she reached the age of “retirement,” she started to paint at the senior center with a talented group of artists led by Beth Ashdown.
Watercolor is her favorite medium, but she also enjoys oil and acrylics. She has explored photography and won first place for her picture taken in Montana at Lake McDonald.
Stained glass has always caught her attention and so several years ago she embarked in more classes to learn this beautiful art. When you work with glass, you end up with buckets of extra pieces, and so it just made sense to bring another passion out in mosaics. She enjoys the challenge of finding the right wood tray or plate and creating a masterpiece from scraps.
Art has always been a major part of Nancy’s life. Now that the Hayes family is finally settled in the beautiful Sanpete Valley, she will have more time to create and share art.
This is an excellent and inspiring display. The museum staff invites visitors and Sanpete County residents to take time and see Nancy Hayes’s show. The museum is located at 55 N. 100 East in Fairview. The exhibit will be up until Saturday, Feb. 26, 2022.
