Bernard Tan Conda

Bernard Tan Conda or “Nardy” as his family called him was born in Portsmouth, Virginia on August 3, 1964 to Antonia T. Conda and Orlando M. Conda. He was the second child and is survived by his father and his brother Cesar Conda. Bernard was an artist, who earned a Bachelor of Arts in Fine Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond and a Master of Fine Arts at the University of Oregon in Eugene. Bernard held a variety of jobs — from bicycle delivery to art teacher. He worked at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Norfolk Arts Center, among others. Bernard’s lifelong passion was art. Of the simple pleasures in life, he wrote: “The wake of buttery paint a full brush stroke leaves. The smells of using oil. The kinesthetics of making a mark. Squeezing out and gazing upon amorphous heaps of pigments on a wooden palette.” Bernard’s work has shown at most of the major art centers in the tidewater area, including Peninsula Fine Arts Center, Charles H. Taylor Arts Center and Contemporary Arts Center of Virginia. He also won awards for his work. In 2001, Bernard published a book: “Bernard Conda: Drawings,” which was described as 81 “unsophisticated, coarse, and utterly charming” drawings of figures. Bernard never had children; his paintings were his children which he painstakingly nurtured (his work can be found here: http://condaart.squarespace.com/). Bernard was an introverted extrovert, who had a great sense of humor, a wide smile and a distinctive laugh. He loved to play guitar and sing tunes by The Beatles, John Lennon and Elvis Costello among many others. Bernard loved the outdoors and was a running and bicycle enthusiast. He also enjoyed adventure traveling across America and Europe. He was a die-hard fan of The Dallas Cowboys, watching almost ever single Cowboys game in the last 40 years. He was also a pet-lover, having owned cats and dogs, the most recent being his beloved Pomeranian Emma, who was a great comfort to him. He achieved a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1986 at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond and a Master of Fine Arts in 1992 at the University of Oregon in Eugene. Bernard, who was baptized as a Roman Catholic but lapsed from practicing his faith, rediscovered God at the end of his life and is now in the warm embrace of our Lord Jesus Christ in Heaven. A Graveside service will be held Saturday, May 20th at 1pm at Woodlawn Memorial Gardens.