Photographer Finds 'Artist in You'

Barrington photographer Robyn Rowles grew up on the West Coast. But after traveling throughout the U.S. and overseas, including a three-year stint in Scotland, she is happy to call Barrington home.

Rowles, who owns Artist In You on Maple Avenue, didn't start out as a photographer. She began working in banking, for First Interstate (later Wells Fargo) and Washington Mutual, before she left the financial world in 2004 to pursue a career in photography.

Rowles said some of her earliest childhood memories are of her dad, Jim Thompson, putting a camera into her hands and teaching her about lenses and lighting.

“My dad was my first mentor," she said. "He was a very keen photography hobbyist, and really enjoyed it.”

Rowles said she didn't realize until she was an adult just how much photography meant to her, but thinking back on her early life “pictures really mattered to me.”

It was while living in Scotland that Rowles opened a fine art gallery and cafe in the New Town area of Edinburgh, and where she also became involved with the Edinburgh Zoo.

The zoo hired Rowles as a photographer to document their journey of adoption in China – one that would likely take several years and, the zoo hoped, result in the opportunity to house Pandas in Edinburgh.

In that capacity, Rowles has traveled to China twice, the first time on a delegation trip about 5 years ago, and most recently at the beginning of this year, where she was photographing the black and white bears for the zoo's marketing and advertising campaigns. They are expecting the Pandas to arrive in September of this year.

In her time in Scotland, Rowles also had the opportunity to meet with Prince Charles and Princess Anne, both of whom are very involved in conservation efforts.

When deciding in 2008 to move back to the East Coast from Scotland, Rowles looked at both East Greenwich and Barrington, mainly due to the high caliber of the schools in both towns. She fell in love with Barrington.

“It's like a resort community here," she said. "It's so charming. I told the realtor 'this is where we want to live'.”

“We” includes kids Brenden, who is 14 and attends Barrington High School, Jacob, who is 12 and attends Barrington Middle School, son Ewan, 3, and daughter Madigan, 1.

Soon after the family's arrival back in the U.S., Rowles began looking around for a business location. She had owned a business in Florida 11 years ago, called Artist in You, and wanted to start something similar in her new home.

Within months, Rowles had secured a great location at 71 Maple Ave., and opened the doors to her new venture in February of 2009.

Artist in You offers classes for children and adults in fine art, photography, ceramics, and crafts, as well as birthday parties (RI Monthly in 2010 voted them Best Party Idea), Mommy and Me classes, and Girls Night Out classes. They're currently accepting registrations for summer camps, all of which culminate in an art show where participants display their work.

As a busy mom of four, Rowles has a lot of respect and affection for her two employees, teacher Leigh Cahners, and Elizabeth Walker, who manages the studio and also teaches a large number of the classes. Rowles, however, still finds time to be in the studio.

“I can be having a bad day, and come in here to work with the kids, and be uplifted,” she said.

“It's never a bad day in here,” Walker chimed in.

Rowles is very happy that her gut instinct of several years ago has worked out so well, and said she looks forward to becoming more involved in the community.

“I love living here, and that my children are settled and happy,” she said.