Local Artists

At Russell Nursery we are pleased to feature the work of talented local artists. We love to showcase art which can be used in the garden and feel blessed to have so many amazing artists in our local community.

Russell Nursery is proud to feature garden art by the artists below. However, this list is not exhaustive by any means, we often have work by other artists for sale as well. As well, if you are an artist local to our area and think your work would fit in well please drop by or contact us; we love to meet new artists!

Ed Bruning birdhouse

Rustic Woodcrafts by Ed Bruning

The birdhouses Ed creates for Russell Nursery reflect the natural beauty of our local environment. Constructed with cedar from Vancouver Island, his structures provide a natural, safe material that shelters our feathered friends. Ed loves the outdoor life, and his work centres on rustic furniture and children’s toys that reflect the raw loveliness of our world.

The idea of making birdhouses came from his wife Sue. He had purchased quite a few cedar boards with the intention of making standing planter shelves. The product didn’t generate much enthusiasm, so Sue suggested he make birdhouses instead. We’re happy to say that after four years, he’s still making them!

Botanical Greeting Cards by Pam Croger

Pam loves plants.

She has always been a keen gardener and the amazing variety of beautiful plants available now inspires her to bring them to life on paper, either with water-colour paints or oil-based coloured pencils.

“I guess I could be classed as a plantaholic!”

Her greeting cards feature exquisitely painted beautiful botanical prints.

Cards by Pam Croger
Debbie Elkins Ceramics

Ceramics by Debbie Elkins

Debbie makes whimsical hand-built pots and small sculptures in her home in Central Saanich. Since her retirement from the health care system, she has also been working with another of our featured artists, Sue Starkey, at 2 Crows Studio in North Saanich.

The things that inspire her work are a love of animals, being in nature and being in and working in her garden. Her English and Scottish ancestry inspires some of her more medieval pieces while many years of caring for seniors has influenced the faces she creates.

Metal Mermaid by Karen Lancey

Karen Lancey of Metal Mermaid Welding attended the Alberta College of Art and Design and majored in graphic design/ commercial art. She has been a hands-on artist since and began welding unique and beautiful metal art in Victoria 18 years ago.

Living and working in North Saanich she uses recycled metal that is mindfully sculpted into believable and unexpectedly curious characters. She has won numerous awards for her work and constantly challenges herself and her designs to go further. She frequently works with the movie industry and has had many pieces in film.

Karen is primarily inspired by nature and has recently begun integrating humor into her work. She is one of several featured artists published in a book ‘ Metal Workers Along the Salish Sea’ coming out in 2022.

She has a workshop, gallery and garden gallery available to view by appointment.

Metal Mermaid
Artwork by Pauline Olesen

Glass Sculptures by Pauline Olesen

Pauline creates beautiful sculptures for the garden using glass. She has been working with glass as a medium for over 20 years and her glass sculptures blend well with the natural beauty of our area.

Originally she began working with plate glass as an experiment, then coveted color and left the clear glass behind.  For the past few years she has been drawn back to clear glass in an effort to recycle old windows, lessen the landfill burden and test the limits of texture and form.

“Light, shadows, a world filled with colour, captured and expressed in glass. As an artist I want to hold those beautiful moments forever but keep them fresh and surprising. Glass is the medium that allows me to express this and it allows a multidimensional experience as colours spill into shadows.”

dccp creations by Doug Philp

dccp creations specializes in hand-crafted gifts created from reclaimed, repurposed, urban harvested wood.

First picking up carving knives & chisels 10 years ago, Doug is fascinated by the multitude of ways a tree can offer inspiration and comfort.

He prefers to use wood that would otherwise be cast-off, creating one-of-a-kind pieces that reflect the continuing joy a tree can offer.

Pieces show their character and history with natural wood grain, minor imperfections and tool marks. Each piece is a unique tribute to our natural world.

Caring Bird by Doug Philp
Birdlandia birdhouse e1610652309987

Birdlandia by Peter Rassenti

Unique whimsical birdhouses created from
repurposed treasures.

After becoming caretaker at the HCP in 2001, Peter’s fascination with the many birds living in the Centre’s woods, fields and ponds soon evolved into the construction of whimsical birdhouses and suet feeders.

What started out as a creative outlet has turned into a passionate hobby. He enjoys sharing his handiwork, made of scavenged wood and decorative pieces found at second hand stores, with fellow bird lovers to hang in their own backyards.

Inspirational Metal by Roz Stanton

Roz Stanton became interested in metal art in 2006 while trying to find a way to display her fused glass art. She started by designing, cutting, burnishing and bending aluminum into ornate stands that will hold a variety of glass art.

Having accomplished this she was encouraged to adventure into cutting steel.

This became a passion, trying to find ways of manipulating the metal without having to weld it. She now continues to design a line of burnished aluminum as well as rusted metal figures that can be displayed indoors or outdoors.

Roz Stanton metal art
Sue Starkey pottery

2 Crow Studio by Sue Starkey

Sue is another talented local artist who uses a variety of mediums such as paint, clay, silver, found objects and metal to develop and express her ideas. Finding inspiration when immersed in nature, she is particularly fascinated with how nature reclaims what people leave behind.

“I am inspired by what I encounter in nature (colours and textures, places and creatures) and in the objects I find (like rusty tools) and I just really enjoy creating things that align with my spiritual self and sense of fun.”