Leila Ward
Born in Winnipeg, Leila remembers having to live in her Grandma’s Victoria Beach cottage during the 1950 flood. Photos show her drawing at an early age and fortunately samples of those early renderings were saved by her mother. At age 19 she became an elementary school teacher. In 1969 she studied to obtain a Bachelor of Arts degree in English/Psychology.
Several moves to Vancouver, Abbotsford, Cherryville, and finally Vernon found her pursuing further study this time for a Diploma in Fine Arts in 1990 followed by distance learning to obtain an Education, Fine Arts MA in 2000. Throughout her studies her interest in art prompted her to take a special interest in photography.
Leila states, “My images are drawn from nature – I love to zoom in on small objects with my closeup lens and produce large images in photos, paint, or pastel. In addition, my creative passion has led to a small business, Okanagan Eye Photo Art, where I market photo greeting cards. I enjoy sharing my passion by leading groups of budding photographers on tours of local beauty areas, so that they too may capture the beauty that surrounds us.”
