Nellie Powis Evans was born in Tenby in 1875 and after leaving school, taught music in the town.  

She subsequently studied under the artist Edward Joseph Head (painter of The Domino Players, Tenby Museum & Art Gallery collection) and went to Cardiff School of Art where she gained a scholarship and won a silver medal.  

In 1901 she received a National Bronze Medal for a large still-life painting entitled Old Friends and took a course at the Slade School of Art in London.  On returning to Tenby she resumed her photographic career, having started at Tredegar House in Tudor Square where she gained a reputation for general portraiture and photographs of children, taking a studio in St Julian House.

Nellie continued to work as an artist and photographer until she went to live with a niece in Aberystwyth.  There she continued to paint in oils and watercolours until a severe illness compelled her to return to Tenby to live with her sisters. She remained there until her death in 1948.

 In being one of the first women from the area to study art as a profession and go on to make a career out of her talents, ‘Nellie was a pioneer for women in art in more than one respect ‘(Wildgust, 1999).      

Ganed Nellie Powis Evans yn Ninbych-y-pysgod yn 1875 ac ar ôl gadael yr ysgol, bu’n dysgu cerddoriaeth yn y dref.  

Wedi hynny bu’n astudio o dan yr arlunydd Edward Joseph Head (arlunydd The Domino Players , casgliad Amgueddfa ac Oriel Gelf Dinbych-y-pysgod) ac aeth i Ysgol Gelf Caerdydd lle llwyddodd i gael ysgoloriaeth ac ennill medal arian.

Yn 1901 derbyniodd Fedal Efydd Genedlaethol am baentiad mawr bywyd llonydd o’r enw Old Friends, a mynd ar gwrs yn Ysgol Gelf Slade yn Llundain. Ar ôl dychwelyd i Ddinbych-y-pysgod, ailgydiodd yn ei gyrfa mewn ffotograffiaeth, ar ôl dechrau yn Nhŷ Tredegar ar y Sgwâr Tuduraidd lle enillodd enw da am bortreadau cyffredinol a ffotograffau o blant, gan sefydlu stiwdio yn Nhŷ St Julian.

Parhaodd Nellie i weithio fel arlunydd a ffotograffydd tan iddi fynd i fyw gyda’i nith yn Aberystwyth.   Yno, parhaodd i beintio lluniau olew a lluniau dyfrlliw hyd nes i salwch difrifol ei gorfodi i ddychwelyd i Ddinbych-y-pysgod i fyw gyda’i chwiorydd. Ac yn Ninbych-y-pysgod y bu hi byw tan ei marwolaeth ym 1948.

Wrth fod yn un o’r merched cyntaf o’r ardal i astudio celf fel proffesiwn a mynd ymlaen i wneud gyrfa o’i doniau fel arlunydd, roedd Nellie ‘yn arloeswr i fenywod mewn celf mewn mwy nag un ffordd‘ (Wildgust, 1999).