Island Arts
, located at 6196 Maddox Boulevard (across from Mr. Whippy ice cream), is a fine arts and craft gallery and retail store specializing in American-made artwork. In addition to wildlife art and landscape paintings by featured artist Nancy Richards West, customers can choose from a wide variety of jewelry (including TABRA), pottery, photography, limited edition prints, handmade bells, note cards, turned wooden bowls, sculpture, carvings, hand-made soaps and lotions, scrimshaw, glassware, toys, and much more. Island Arts is the only place to purchase Chincoteague Tee Shirt charms and Assateague Lighthouse charms, which were designed exclusively for the store.
Emphasis is on unique and skillfully made hand crafts. Quality artwork created by both local and national artist is featured in this interesting shop. Each season Island Arts adds work by new artists, which blends with favorites from previous years to present an interesting and varied shopping experience. New merchandise is constantly arriving throughout the season, giving the shoppers a reason to return.
Island Arts participates in the Second Saturdays Art Stroll from April through November, with musicians, jewelers, painters, photographers, carvers, woodworkers and other artisans demonstrating their talents at the store in the evening of the second Saturday in each month. Refreshments are served. Updated information for each art stroll’s featured artist is available at www.chincoteagueculturalalliance.org.
Island Arts is open weekends during Spring and Fall, and daily from Memorial Day through Labor Day. The gallery is also open weekdays in the off-season by calling 757-336-3113 for an appointment.
Gallery: 757-336-5856 Office/Off-Season: 757-336-3113 Fax: 757-336-1869
Nancy Richards West, featured artist at Island Arts, has been a professional painter on Chincoteague and Assateague Islands for more than 35 years. Her focus is on the quiet beauty of the birds, salt marshes and beaches of her island home. Nancy was chosen as the first Resident Artist for Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, and in 1996 was chosen to represent Virginia at The White House Easter Festivities. West also participates in prestigious wildlife and fine arts festivals throughout the East Coast, and is represented by numerous galleries.
In the last few years Nancy has begun painting on location, in the plein air tradition of the 19th century French impressionists. She can often be seen working in front of her portable easel on the streets of Chincoteague or along the roads of Assateague, striving to capture the fleeting effects of light and changing colors in the scenes before her.
The exclusive outlet for West's artwork on Chincoteague is Island Arts, located at 6196 Maddox Boulevard. Visit her website at www.nancywest.com.
