Indiana artist Nancy Noel has touched many lives through her sensitive portraits of children, animals and other gentle subjects. Great Day TV did a story on her in 2016.
Nancy passed away in 2020 but her art lives on. Here is a story that was posted recently on Facebook about a woman who posed for Nancy many years ago and how she was reunited with her portrait. Here is the post:
Nancy did not finish this portrait of the "Girl and Shepherd" (Alyssa and Italy). She put the canvas aside and years later, Nancy’s sons found the rolled canvas. They had no idea who the subject was, or how to locate her.
Recently, Alyssa decided to do some searching, and sadly found out that Nancy had passed in 2020. Continuing her search on the internet, she found Noel Studio and contacted us . . . all the pieces fell together and the portrait was reunited with the subjects. We all feel that Nancy had an artful hand in this reunion. Here's the story behind this painting in the subject's own words:
"When I was 6 years old my mom worked with Nancy's horses and foal. I remember when we would come over. We arrived at a big gate that led you to a very long driveway. While driving through the gate there was a large pasture to the right that had llamas or alpacas. To the left was a red barn that had a little fence connected to it and that's where my mom trained the horses.
"The day Nancy took pictures of me and my puppy named Italy, we walked all over the property. She had a wooded area close to her house next to where she had a deck. I think that is where the wicker chair was in the painting. After that we went to the barn and we walked into the tack room and in that room there were stairs on the left side that lead to an attic area with a small window. She also took pictures of me up there.
"When we were going back down the stairs she told me if she could cut a small piece of my hair so she could color match it for the painting. Then she said "I'll cut it in a spot that won't be noticeable" she then took a small piece from the underside of my hair. I think later that day we went back up to the house and she showed me the things she's collected from Africa. When we were outside in the back I remember a pool and she told me if I ever wanted to swim that I could always bring a bathing suit. With the time I spent with Nancy at such a young age she has left an everlasting impression on me. When I think back on how Nancy was as a person, the energy she gave off was so kind, welcoming, and loving." - Alyssa