Nella Lush

Nella Lush grew up in the Puglia region of southern Italy between the ubiquitous olive groves and the Adriatic Sea. Growing up in Italy meant being surrounded by art. Nella spent many hours as a young child drawing at her kitchen table with sister Franca while her mother critiqued their efforts and encouraged them to take on more ambitious work.

In her twenties, Nella moved to the Basque region of Spain near Bilbao on the Atlantic coast and later in the Catalonian city of Tarragona near Barcelona on the Spanish Mediterranean coast. While in Spain, Nella painted marine landscapes and vessel portraitures. She sold "portraits" to local yachtsmen in Bilbao and Tarragona, but the work was ultimately not fulfilling.

Years later Nella realized her frustration was the result of self-imposed rules and restrictions for her work. Too focused on painting her perceptions of what others expected, she ultimately came to the realization that like the drawings she did for her mother years ago, it was the freedom of unfettered self-expression that ultimately excited her. In this realization, her work became what she calls "representational abstract" – art without a purpose at it's core, but with suggestions of reality.

This freedom opened up a new world for her, and made hours at her easel seem like minutes. She could not paint enough, and had finally found her art. Nella's work is now part of private and corporate collections throughout the United States, Canada, Italy, France, Spain, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.

Nella is an artist member of the National Association of Women Artists in New York City (NAWA), Past President Signature member of the American Society of Marine Artists (ASMA), Rockport Art Association, Cambridge Art Association, North Shore Art Association, past president of the Andovers Artists Guild in Andover, MA. Nella served for two terms as the president of the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Association of Women Artists. NAWA is the oldest association in the country whose mission is to promote women in the arts, this year NAWA celebrates the 125th anniversary!

Nella is represented by:

White Room Gallery, Bridgehampton, NY Thomas Henry Gallery, Nantucket, and UK Cortile Gallery in Provincetown, MA Nella's art has been exhibited at: Noyes Museum of Contemporary Art, Oceanville, NJ The Mystic Seaport Maritime Gallery, Mystic, CT The Whistler House Museum, Lowell, MA The Coral Springs Museum, Coral Springs, FLA The Salmagundi Club, NYC, NY Monroe Center for the Arts, Hoboken, NJ National Arts Club, NYC, NY Sylvia Wald and Po Kim Gallery, NYC, NY Ongoing exhibits at the Rockport Art Association, Rockport, MA