Nell Shaw Cohen is an artist and composer based in the Shawangunk Mountains of New York. Her plein air and studio practice focuses on landscapes, wildlife, and botanical imagery rendered in watercolor and mixed media.
Gallery
Many of the works above are available for purchase. Please see this list for availability and pricing information.
Upcoming Events
F
riday, November 22 – Tuesday, December 31, 2024
Small Works: Narratives for the Future
Woodstock Artists Association & Museum, Woodstock, NY
My painting Western Bluebird (Sonoma Vineyard) & Eastern Bluebird (Mohonk Meadow) will be included in this group exhibition juried by artist Brigitta Varadi. More information here.
Friday, November 22 – Tuesday, December 31, 2024
Gratitude: Annual Members’ Holiday Exhibition & Sale
Woodstock Artists Association & Museum, Woodstock, NY
My painting Fresh Snow on the Peterskill will be included in this group exhibition of works by members of the Woodstock Artists Association & Museum. More information here.
Recent Events
Friday, October 25 – Sunday, November 17, 2024
Water: Source of Life
Woodstock Artists Association & Museum, Woodstock, NY
My painting Autumn Pool on the Vernooy Kill will be included in this group exhibition juried by Kathleen Vance and Daniel Aycock of Front Room Gallery, NY. More information here.
Friday, October 25 – Sunday, November 17, 2024
Small Works A-F
Woodstock Artists Association & Museum, Woodstock, NY
My painting Laurel Ledge will be included in this group exhibition of small works by members of the Woodstock Artists Association & Museum. More information here.
Saturday, June 8 (Rain Date: Sunday, June 9), 2024
Auction & Exhibition through Sunday, June 30, 2024
Plein Air Art Walk – Public Event, Charity Auction, and Exhibition
Presented by Mohonk Preserve and Roost Arts Hudson Valley
Mohonk Preserve, New Paltz, NY
I participated in this special event celebrating environmental preservation and the magic of creating artworks en plein air. Visitors had a chance to watch artists at work, stationed at breathtaking views on a trail starting from Mohonk Preserve’s Testimonial Gateway. Immediately following the event, the finished artworks were sold in an online auction (see works here) and displayed at the Mohonk Preserve Visitors Center through the month of June. More information here.
Friday, May 3-Sunday, June 30, 2024
Woodland Creatures
Wallkill River Center for the Arts, Montgomery, NY
My painting Acorn Woodpecker (Coast Live Oak) & Red-Bellied Woodpecker (Red Oak) was included in this group exhibition juried by Susan Siegel. More information here.
Saturday, July 13 – Saturday, September 7, 2024
Opening Reception: July 13, 2:00-4:00PM
Showcase Exhibition II
Woodstock School of Art, Woodstock, NY
My paintings Autumn Ridge and June Hay Field with Old Tedder were included in this exhibition and sale of student works from the Woodstock School of Art. More information here.
Works Available for Purchase
Purchase archival-quality giclée prints of Nell’s paintings on Etsy.
To purchase Nell’s original paintings, please see this list for availability and pricing information. Purchasing inquiries, or requests for additional images or information, may be directed to the artist at nellshawcohen@gmail.com.
Artist’s Statement
My current body of work focuses on the landscapes of the Shawangunk Mountains of New York and the surrounding region, painted both en plein air and in the studio.
Living in a forested valley, I’m surrounded by striking landscapes from sculpted rock cliffs to sun-dappled woodland creeks; and a diversity of fascinating plants and animals, from the nighttime hootings of barred owls in winter to the bee balm flowers of summer meadows.
My paintings and drawings are a reflection of hours spent in observation of wild places, and the flora and fauna that inhabit them. Study of these subjects forms the core of my artistic practice.
I respond to these natural phenomena, and aspire to convey some of the spiritual impact they hold for me, by making images that straddle observational specificity and illustrative abstraction. As a composer and musician, my artist’s eye is led by the rhythms, patterns, and contours of my subjects’ forms; searching for songs within the array of colors and textures that the visual world presents to us.
Each year of my childhood and adolescence was divided between California and New York. Today, my family of origin remains in the San Francisco Bay Area while I have put down roots in the Hudson Valley. I believe this bicoastal life has led to a hyperawareness of, and fascination with, “sense of place” as a personal and social phenomenon. This has also become a thematic focus in my art.
Watercolors, often used in combination with pen, ink, and/or gouache, are my primary medium. I delight in the delicacy and luminosity that can be achieved through glazes of transparent paint; the drawing-like precision of watercolor brushwork; and the improvisatory process of mark-making in conversation with how water, pigment, and paper react. Charcoal drawing is an emerging interest for me and has focused my eye on texture, gesture, light, and shadow.
My inspirations and favorite artists include Charles E. Burchfield, Georgia O’Keeffe, Chiura Obata, Emily Carr, Hilma af Klint, Andy Goldsworthy, Michelangelo, William Morris, Tom Killion, and Jackie Morris—to name just a few.
—Nell Shaw Cohen
Biography
Nell Shaw Cohen is an artist and composer based in the Shawangunk Mountains of New York. As a visual artist, Cohen is primarily self-taught. Her work is the product of a lifelong journey with art, from her teenage freelance career in illustration and design to her present plein air and studio practice focused on landscapes, wildlife, and botanical imagery rendered in watercolor and mixed media. Her paintings have been included in recent and upcoming juried exhibitions with the Wallkill River Center for the Arts, Roost Arts Hudson Valley, and the Woodstock Artists Association & Museum.
An award-winning composer and opera librettist with degrees in music from New England Conservatory and New York University, her musical works have been commissioned, performed, and recorded by major artists and arts organizations and have appeared on GRAMMY-nominated albums. Learn more about Nell’s music.
Cohen’s work is available for exhibition, commission, and purchase. To get in touch, email nell@nellshawcohen.com.