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Mary Mitchell | West Coast Artist & Coastal Landscape Painter on Gabriola Island
About Me
About Me
About Mary
About Mary
I'm a West Coast artist based on Gabriola Island, British Columbia, creating paintings inspired by the landscapes, light, and natural beauty of Canada's Pacific coast. My work ranges from expressive acrylic landscapes to UV-reactive and glow-in-the-dark pieces that reveal hidden layers as the light changes.
Art has always been part of my life. While I continue to work professionally as a forester, painting has remained a constant creative outlet and source of inspiration. I feel fortunate to now have more opportunity to pursue my artistic practice and share my work with others.
I love both traditional and light-reactive approaches to painting. Traditional acrylics allow me to explore colour, texture, and atmosphere, while fluorescent and phosphorescent pigments create unexpected moments of discovery as a piece transforms under UV light or in darkness.
Over the years, I've developed my skills through both formal instruction and countless hours of experimentation in the studio. In 2016, I had the pleasure of illustrating the children's book Lily and Flinge and the Piece of Kibble, bringing its story to life through vibrant colours and whimsical scenes.
My work as a forester has deeply influenced the way I observe the world. I'm drawn to the patterns of bark and branches, the changing qualities of light, and the small moments of beauty that often go unnoticed. Living on Gabriola Island, I find endless inspiration in the forests, shorelines, and coastal landscapes of the Gulf Islands.
Whether I'm painting a familiar West Coast scene or incorporating hidden luminous details, my goal is to create artwork that evokes memory, sparks curiosity, and invites viewers to see the natural world through fresh eyes.
If you are interested in seeing what I have been working on recently, check out my Instagram account.
Mary Mitchell, Exhibiting Member — Federation of Canadian Artists (FAC)
About My Work
About My Work
UV & Glow Pigments in My Work
UV & Glow Pigments in My Work
Every piece I create is designed to be complete and beautiful in regular light. But some paintings carry a second, hidden experience—one that only reveals itself under UV or in the dark. I use two kinds of light‑responsive pigments to build these surprises: fluorescent pigments and phosphorescent pigments. They behave differently, and that difference is part of the magic.
Fluorescence
Fluorescence
Fluorescent pigments react instantly to ultraviolet light.
When UV hits them, they flare into vivid, electric colour, and when the UV source is removed, the glow stops immediately. This is the effect you see in black‑light posters: a sudden, dramatic transformation that feels alive and kinetic. In my work, fluorescence creates hidden patterns, colour shifts, or details that only appear under UV—like a second layer of meaning waiting to be discovered.
Phosphorescence
Phosphorescence
Phosphorescent pigments store light energy and release it slowly over time.
They charge under daylight or UV, then continue glowing in the dark, fading gradually. This is the classic “glow‑in‑the‑dark” effect, but in fine art pigments it can be subtle, atmospheric, and beautifully controlled. I use phosphorescence when I want a piece to have an afterglow—something that lingers once the lights go out, like an echo of the painting’s energy.
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