Natures Palette

Natures Palette 60 x 48 Oil on Canvas

A new Oil on the easel which is inspired by my walk in nature, always a dependable source of inspiration.

A Midsummer Evening

A midsummer evening  Oil on Canvas  36 x 48 in

My niece Tatianna was married this past August on a beautiful day/evening.  Part of the ceremonies involved a memorial to a friend that passed away suddenly.  This involved lighting a number of Chinese lanterns and setting them adrift in the evening sky, which had an almost full moon suspended on the horizon.  This was followed by an amazing fireworks display and memorable music.  It was a very touching and meaningful occasion and made a deep impression on me.  This painting came of that experience.

Mockingbirds Song

Mockingbirds Song 48x48in Oil on Board

Last spring while out in my backyard I heard the most amazing demonstration of bird song in my life and it made a profound effect on me. For 30 minutes I stood transfixed while this bird sang its heart out, singing two measures and then two more, all completely different and continuously until it flew off.  I noticed that it wasn't a particularly pretty bird, proving that you can't judge a bird by its plumage! Its turns out that it was a mockingbird and I am crossing my fingers that I will hear it again this spring. I'll always remember the details off that evening, things like the light, temperature, the intoxicating scent of the lilacs and wolf willow and all the other sounds permeating my part of the world in those moments.

First Snow

 I'm having an enormous amount of fun with this particular painting.  It has undergone a number of rather drastic changes over the last couple of weeks and there is getting to be quite a build up of oil paint on the board, which is cool with me.  I am calling it First Snow cause it seems to fit (for now). If I have any regrets at this point it would be that I didn't paint it on a 6 foot wide canvas.  Suppose I could call this a study for a larger painting?

What is Art?

I recently came across a wonderful quote by a kindergarten student.  The teacher asked the kids on the first day of class "What is Art?"  Here is one of the responses.

"Art, oh that's when you make something beautiful out of paint or even recycled materials. Sometimes it looks like what's in your head and that's good. Sometimes it doesn't and then you change what's in your head. If it still doesn't look beautiful, you just take a deep breath."

Antonia, age 5

One of my favourite activities in the spring is going to the Mendel Gallery in Saskatoon, SK to view the K-12 Art display.  Although all of the Art is breathtaking I particularly am drawn to the K-3 children's work as it seems to embody all that is good about Art.  I think that many mature artists long to get back to the child in themselves when creating.  The painting above is a somewhat whimsical piece, I leave the definition up to the viewer!