Eileen Hearne
Working Boats
December 3, 2025 – January 4, 2026
Upstairs Gallery
Newport Visual Arts Center
Join us for an opening reception:
Thursday, December 11, 4-6pm
Featuring light refreshments, and music by guitarist Brett Hearne
Whimsical acrylic paintings exploring themes of fishermen, boats, harbors, and fish.
Newport’s commercial fishing lifestyle runs deep in Eileen Hearne as is evident in her depictions. Yet, you do not need to be from the coast to appreciate her colorful, playful pallet, and her loose representational style. Hearne has been painting since she was nine years old. She went on to study painting and ceramics at PSU. She continued her painting exploration with instruction from Sandra Roumagoux and her ceramics through her time at Toledo Clayworks where she taught and was a featured exhibiting artist.
To help ensure an enjoyable experience for all, we kindly encourage guests to consider attending fragrance-free in support of those with allergies and sensitivities.
My name is Eileen Hearne and I am a self-taught artist. I also go by the name Zelie. My mom started calling me that when I was about six or seven years old. She liked the name and thought it suited me more, I guess!
My current family and I have been involved in the fishing community since the nineteen seventies. We are involved in commercial fishing. Our boat named LAST STRAW is involved with several fisheries~ groundfish, which includes several species such as petralie , ling cod , sablefish, and rockfish. We also fish for crab, shrimp and pacific whiting. We are also involved ing doing scientific charters with N.O.A.A.
Both of our sons have grown up working on the boat and have learned a lot.
I strive to bring you fresh salt air and a look at the sea and the fishing life. We live here, we work here and we appreciate the fishing community.