Portraits by Nanybel

About Nanybel

Nanybel started painting with watercolors and oils at the age of five. Soon enough she discovered charcoal and pastels, and fell in love with portraiture, which became her self-taught and lifelong pursuit.

Back in Caracas, she founded a unique art and crafts business, which launched her into national television, hosting her own live segment on a weekly show.

After moving to the United States in 1996, she quickly earned a reputation for her realistic portrait style, completed many commissions and won several awards at fine art competitions. In 2011, after years of doing portraits strictly by commission and teaching portraiture drawing through private classes- but otherwise in relative isolation from the art world- Nanybel added floral paintings to her portfolio and joined The Portrait Society of Atlanta, Southeastern Pastel Society, Degas Pastel Society, Pastel Society of America, North Cobb Arts League and Quinlan Arts Center.

 

She had the privilege to study with master portraitist Jon Houghton and master Pastel artist Fred Somers, and resumed exhibiting her work, entered fine art competitions and won several national and international awards. She wrote and article on Jon Houghton’s workshop at the Portrait Society of Atlanta, which was published in an issue of their prestigious FOLIO magazine. She also served as the model for the Portrait Society of Atlanta workshop by artist Dawn Whitelaw on Feb 2-4, 2012.

She wrote several articles and served as editor and photographer for the FOLIO magazine, modeled for the Atlanta Artists Center and was featured and interviewed by “Voyage Atlanta” magazine.
Nanybel earned the prestigious Southeastern Pastel Society’s “Member of Excellence” diploma and The Portrait Society of Atlanta’s “Member of Merit” Status.

 
Trying to break from her strong attraction to realism and details, Nanybel has tried to embrace other subjects, media, even traditional techniques, but invariably surrender to her obsession with portraiture using her personal approach and methods. "At night in my studio, so quiet and surrounded by paper and boards, charcoals, pastels and some carefully chosen photographs, feels just like Heaven."

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Born in Caracas, Venezuela, Nanybel has also lived in France and in the United Arab Emirates, and currently resides in the state of Georgia, in the United States.

 

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