Spotlight Gallery: A Visual Love Letter to Ottawa by Watercolour Artist Iya Carson
Ricarda McFalls recently interviewed the artist as she mounted her exhibit at OLT’s Janigan Studio
Ottawa Little Theatre patrons will be captivated this month by Iya Carson’s artistic tribute to Ottawa in honour of the city’s 200th anniversary, “The IN-BETWEEN: A poetic exploration of Ottawa”. Born and educated in Fine Art and Architecture in Russia, Iya worked professionally as an architect and university lecturer. Since immigrating to Canada and eventually making the Ottawa Valley home twenty years ago, Iya has focused on her artistic career, becoming a professional painter and art instructor. She has enthusiastically visited and painted Canada’s most vibrant and iconic scenery and landmarks and founded the Ottawa Valley Art Studio from where she teaches art at all skill levels both online and in person.
Inspired by scenes from Ottawa and its surrounding areas, Iya’s “IN-BETWEEN” exhibit features water-colour paintings primarily rendered in shades of black and white. The effect is highly atmospheric and exudes a certain mystical aura: Was this the “In-between”? My interview sought to learn more about this extraordinary collection and Iya Carson’s artistic journey to this point.
What led you to study art? Who or what inspired or influenced you most?
I feel my pursuit of a career in the Arts was organic, and somehow destined. I have always been an artistic person with a vivid imagination and a strong desire to express myself creatively. I was constantly making things, designing clothing, creating jewelry, sculpting, building toys, drawing, and painting. Art was never just a hobby for me; it was a natural way of seeing and interacting with the world. I was fascinated by the ability of art to tell stories, communicate emotions, and transform ordinary things into something meaningful.
Every day, I feel fortunate to be able to pursue my passion for the arts personally and professionally. Consequently, teaching art and helping inspire others to discover and develop their own artistic voices has become increasingly important to me.
What inspired you to pursue painting this series?
About a year ago, I realized that I was celebrating two decades in Ottawa just as the city was turning two hundred. This convergence of special occasions surrounding my adopted home led me to focus on developing a series of paintings to commemorate both the city and my experience as an immigrant to the area. Ottawa was no longer just the Capital of Canada – it had over time become my home. Over the years, I have developed a deep appreciation for its unique character—the quiet beauty of its neighbourhoods, the changing seasons along its rivers and canal, and the rich history woven into its architecture and streets.
Through this collection, I wanted to celebrate Ottawa’s spirit and tell a visual story of the city through the eyes of someone who has grown alongside it. This series is about attention, about noticing the beauty that exists in ordinary moments and recognizing how landscapes become part of our emotional lives. My hope is that viewers will see familiar places in a new way and reconnect with their own experiences and memories of Ottawa.
Through these paintings, I hope to create a space for contemplation, connection, and wonder.
Tell us more about the theme. What does “IN-BETWEEN” refer to?
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The IN-BETWEEN series explores Ottawa through moments of transition; between seasons, weather, memory, and place. Rather than documenting recognizable landmarks, my paintings seek to capture the subtle emotional atmosphere that exists within the city’s streets, waterways, rural edges, and quiet corners. My work begins with observation but develops through reflection: A snowfall softening the outlines of a familiar neighbourhood, light dissolving into mist along the river, or a solitary figure moving through changing weather becomes an invitation to pause and consider the spaces between certainty and change. These fleeting moments often reveal a deeper sense of connection to place than any fixed image can convey.
In short, IN-BETWEEN offers a quiet reflection on the city not only as a geographic location, but as a living accumulation of experiences, histories, and personal encounters. I have paired each painting with a short poetic text to both extend the visual narrative and to prompt viewers to bring their own memories into the work.
For example, one work that best captures my feelings about Ottawa is “Sparks Street, Between the Footsteps.”
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The story behind the painting is:
“The city dissolves into a hush of rain and motion, buildings stretching like softened memories, footsteps thinning into mist. Sparks Street becomes a corridor of blurred silhouettes and trembling light, a place where edges melt and the ordinary slips into something ungraspable, half-remembered.
Here, the world is neither clear nor lost, but held instead in that fragile space in between, where people drift like echoes and the street breathes with the quiet intimacy of those who pass through without leaving a mark, yet somehow carry the moment with them forever.”
Tell us about your choice of media for this series. When first seeing the collection, I was surprised to learn that you had used water-colours.
As a result of my background in Fine Art and Architecture, I am always interested in the relationship between structure and atmosphere, permanence and impermanence. Working in watercolour allows me to slow down and really look at a place. It also allows me to embrace both control and unpredictability to achieve this effect. Granulating pigments, layered washes, and softened edges create surfaces that echo the shifting nature of memory itself.
How did you first connect with the Ottawa Little Theatre?
I have always loved theatre and have long enjoyed attending live performances. There is something magical about the experience of sharing a story with an audience in real time. When I learned about the Spotlight Gallery, I thought it was a wonderful opportunity to combine two forms of storytelling, visual art and theatre; and to share my work with visitors who already appreciate creativity and culture.