Erna is a Canadian artist and art educator whose passion for art has driven her to explore and experiment with diverse media while challenging students who have come under her guidance.  

 

Born in Hilversum, The Netherlands, Erna immigrated to Canada with her parents and 2 sisters and relocated to Hamilton, Ontario where she attended elementary and secondary schools.  Pursueing her artistic goals, she enrolled in Continuing Education Programs and University Studies; simultaneously teaching full time art and raising 3 sons with her spouse.  Erna designed and developed the school's art curriculum and became an advocate in the community for visual arts education.  Through the years she organized art shows, conducted workshops for educators, judged fine art competitions, and was engaged in professional development.  Erna has also taught, mentored and evaluated teacher candidates at the university level.  After viewing the paintings of Jasper Johns and Tony Scherman, her love of wax began and she directed her attention to encaustic/mixed media painting while developing her own style of art.

 

As a practicing artist Erna has participated in juried shows exhibiting in: The Netherlands, New York City, New Mexico, Quebec, Ontario,  an invitational solo show in Richmond VA., and was invited as the featured artist at McMaster Innovation Park. An article on her working methods and techniques was published in the 2015 Spring issue of  "EncausticArtsMagazine".  Erna received the "Reserve Best in Show" award at Vaughan City Hall and a Jurors award from the Ontario Society of Artists juried show in Toronto. Her paintings can be found in private and corporate collections in Canada and the USA. Erna holds a:  B.A. in Art/Art History, B.ED, Honours Art Specialist, Vocational Art Certificate, Plastic/Fine Arts Certificates and is a Certified Enkaustikos Instructor.

 

Erna resides in Mount Hope, Ontario, with her spouse where in addition to creating and teaching out of her home studio, she teaches encaustic workshops at galleries, studios and schools of art.

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