Jane with her published biography in 1997. Image courtesy of Nelson Provincial Museum.
In the 1997 New Year Honours, Jane was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to painting.
Evans died at her home in Nelson in 2012.
A close personal friend of Sally Hunt's, Sally has amassed a considerably amount of Jane's art from the early oil days through to the latter watercolour days, while the Suter Art Gallery in Nelson holds 11 works by Jane, the largest number by the artist in any public collection.
About
Jane Evans
Born in Nelson in 1946, Jane Evans was educated at Nelson College for Girls. She enrolled at the Ilam School of Fine Arts in 1965, and the following year began studying at Waltham Forest Art College in northeast London. However, after the first year she left to pursue a programme of self-education.
Jane was diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus, a debilitating disease affecting the joints and surrounding muscles, with symptoms similar to rheumatoid arthritis, which had an immediate and lifelong impact. She adapted her painting method and media to accommodate her condition. She moved back to New Zealand in late 1967, living first in Christchurch before returning to Nelson in 1971.
Jane in her garden, where she cultivated flowers specially for her painting, 1997. Image Courtesy of Nelson Provincial Museum