Elysia Nagel

Tell us a little bit about yourself?
Growing up in Gippsland embedded a strong love for nature within my soul which is reflected in my art. I have always been artistic, studying art and graphic design throughout high school, and Visual Arts at university.

My true passion is painting, this is when I most feel like myself.

I painted a lot in my early twenties, but the frequency became part time, until Covid 2020 when I realised something was missing from my life, and that was art! This fuelled my decision to make a career change and start painting again, which included building my own business and website – artbyelysia.com.

The last few years have been successful and enjoyable. I Featured in the 2020 Art Edit summer edition and numerous other blogs and features. Not only have I generated sales locally, but also internationally, with paintings finding new homes in Japan and the USA.

This year I’ve entered artworks into the Pakenham Art Show, Incognito Art Show, and the Fifty Squared Art Prize at the Brunswick Street Gallery. I’m excited to see what the rest of this year brings.

What is your favourite drink?
I can’t go past a classic margarita.

What inspired you to start painting/drawing?
I’ve always loved art, particularly drawing and photography. My inspiration to start painting began when I was at university studying Visual Arts. My subjects were photography, print making and life drawing, but I loved our studio time where we got to explore other mediums and ideas. I started dabbling in painting and fell in love with the process and how expressive I could be within this space.

What advice would you give other artists/creatives starting out?

I would suggest looking into building or having someone build a website for you. Also, sharing your art via different platforms is helpful and can create more reach. Plus, you get to meet other amazing artists along the way. Just go for it! You never know what might happen.

You can read more about Elysia here.