Nancy Bernard warmly refers to her house’s attic as her: “art-ic.”

“There’s always something in the works up there,” Bernard laughed.

It’s her home art studio where many a masterpiece has been created, some of which end up showcased, and winning awards, in the Tillamook County Fair .

“I like to enter art in the fair,” Bernard said. “I encourage my students to enter whether it’s something they did at school or on their own. It’s a way to get your stuff out there for people to see. I love to go and see all the other work.”

Bernard, born and raised in Tillamook, was “drawn” to art as a young student.

“The first experience I remember was the kindergarten teacher holding up my painting of a rainbow with clouds and mountains. She told the class, ‘Look at Nancy’s picture. Isn’t it beautiful,’” Bernard recalled. “That made me think that I might like to continue this.”

At 11, Bernard remembered dabbling in a difficult medium.

“My first oil painting was of a photograph,” she said. “I was encouraged to show it to [a professional artist]. I took it into the studio and it was just shredded.”

Despite the harsh criticism, Bernard proved that art is truly in the eye of the beholder.

“I decided, I’m just going to keep doing it,” she said. “I continued to do more oil paintings and when I got into college I took a watercolor class. I thought, ‘This is going to be a breeze.’ It was really hard. It was one of the hardest mediums I’ve ever worked with. It’s not very forgiving.”

Art continues to be a daily part of Bernard’s life as she pulls inspiration from nature and her loved ones.

“I’ve learned to appreciate all of the variety of art,” she said. “If I see something in an art gallery, I think, ‘Can I do that?’ Then, I try to do something more outside the box even if it fails. Allow yourself to be teachable and try something new.”

Through the years, Bernard has hosted art shows, sold a few paintings, commissioned a couple, and currently has a rotating display of glass windows for sale at Roseanna’s Cafe in Oceanside, OR.

“I don’t think people realize the effort that goes into a piece of art. It’s like your child,” she said. “When I sell a piece, I like to take a picture with the person who bought it because it’s a part of me. When you see someone’s work, value it. They put a lot of time into it.”

While pieces of her artwork hang in others’ homes, her biggest art influence is on the hundreds of students who have passed through her art classroom.

This coming fall will be Bernard’s 36th year teaching with 16 of those being the art teacher at Tillamook Junior High School.

“I enjoy seeing the creativity of my students,” Bernard said. “When kids get excited about art, they value it.  At the end of each trimester, I always ask them what their favorite part of the class was and everyone has a different part.”

Some of her class’s work is permanently on display as murals inside Tillamook Junior High School and an mosaic mural outside TJHS at the front entrance. Others are inside the old Beaver School at Nestucca School District 101 and outside under the fire hall wall next to the school where she taught for several years.

“That’s been really fun to have the kids suggest what mural that they’d like to do,” she said. “I also love being supported by my principals with the projects and curriculum I create.”

Part of the fun of being a fair exhibitor is to inspire her students.

“I try to put something in the fair for my students to find,” Bernard said. “When entering something, it’s risky because you’re putting yourself out there. I know that it takes a lot to put yourself out on display because some people will be critical, but that’s part of learning too.”

At this year’s Tillamook County Fair , keep an eye out for Bernard’s watercolor, "Fern," named after her newest granddaughter, born in March.

The art exhibits are displayed on the second floor of the Main Hall at the Tillamook County Fairgrounds .