One summer afternoon, Megan Nielsen and her family were canoeing on Suttle Lake when the Sisters artist felt the unmistakable zing of inspiration. “Just looking at the lake, I knew what I had to paint,” she said. Back in her studio, she sketched a bear and rabbit fishing that are oblivious to the bounty of fish swimming beneath their boat. A mountain resembling Black Butte rises above the scene.
Nielsen’s whimsical work embodies the solace and magic of Central Oregon’s surroundings. “I want to capture those moments that reset you and connect you to both the natural world and to the people you are sharing it with,” she said. Her artistic enterprise, Canyon & Cove, features original paintings, prints, cards and stickers.
The artist’s path toward becoming a full-time artist began when she was very young, tracing Disney images while dreaming of becoming an animator. An ardent animal lover, her work honors creatures because of “their simple, peaceful nature,” but she is drawn to some in particular. “I’ve always been attracted to bears, compositionally. Though they appear ferocious, I love their big, peaceful spirits,” she said. Otters are another favorite.
Her goal is to hit a sweet spot: “Not too cute, but not too realistic either:” A bear catching lightning bugs in a jar, a dog paddleboarding on a river, a moose riding a ski lift. Her drawings invite a smile, but her adept brushwork, clever composition and sophisticated color palette reflect an artist with studied talent. During college, she focused on interior design. The architecture courses inspired her creatively, and the teaching faculty urged her to experiment conceptually.
The charm of Nielsen’s art reveals a fierce aesthetic curiosity; she continually pushes herself to learn new techniques. “I deconstruct paintings and illustrative styles I’m attracted to and then figure out how to uniquely apply those techniques to my work,” she said. While many artists of her generation work digitally, Nielsen prefers watercolor, pencil and acrylic gouache. “You gain so much when playing by hand.” The next stop on her artistic journey may be paintings that are “larger and looser.”
Although she has a successful stationery and print business, Nielsen asserts she doesn’t relate to a production mindset. “I must feel something to follow an idea. The intention comes from the artwork, not from a deadline.” Her husband Jarred Nielsen joined the company in 2021, applying his business background. “Jarred’s dedication, focus, organization and faith in the artwork have allowed the business to grow and shine,” she added.
Megan was born in Alaska and raised outside of Seattle. Her move to Bend in 2015 came after a single visit. “I got that feeling that so many get when they visit Central Oregon,” she said. In 2022, she and her family sought closer access to nature and moved to Sisters where she feels a particular affinity to the sight of the mountains and forest. In 2023, she rebranded and named her business Canyon & Cove to reflect “the places of erosion where beauty is found.” See canyonandcoveart.com.
