Surprise Visitor

The thing I miss the most about running my little summer porch gallery is surprise visitors from customers.  But yesterday, the stars aligned... after a busy morning of driving around and completing errands in Westport and downtown Kingston, I arrived home just in time for a surprise visit from a new friend and loyal customer.  

She was in the area and was curious to see what I had in my gallery as they had bought a cottage and she wanted some of my art to decorate.  I didn't open my Gallery at the Porch Door officially this year, as we are selling our house, but unofficially it is still set up for anyone that wants to see my recent work.  

What a joy for me then, when someone loves my art enough to make time to stop in and see whats fresh off the easel.  It made me just so darn happy!...not only because I sold these two paintings, but because it's so wonderful to connect.  Yay!... for surprise visitors.

Saturday Morning, Toy Store

Saturday Morning, Toy Store
oil on panel, 9 x 12

yours truly

Two weeks ago was Princess Street Promenade in downtown Kingston. Traffic is blockaded on the main shopping street, and foot traffic takes over.  Shops have special displays and activities; all in all, it's a rather festive atmosphere.
As a novelty, I was asked if I would paint 'en plein air' in front of Kingston Frameworks for a few hours. I was happy to oblige.  They had set up a tent for me so I didn't have to sit in the broiling sun; nice because Ontario has been HOT HOT HOT this summer!
  

'Billise' supply the tunes

Live music kicked off near me on the sidewalk by the wonderful Billise (Elise & Bill Bosworth). The joyful tunes really got me in the mood and before long, my brush was swinging to the tunes too.

The view of the toy shop across the street caught my attention...on the sidewalk children participated in activities in front of the toy store, I think they even served a children's breakfast.  I wasn't the least bit surprised to spy several 'Elsa's' from the movie Frozen among them:)  The festive atmosphere and primary colours were fun to do in this genre scene. "What is genre?"  - ordinary people doing ordinary things

Playtime

Play - oil on board - 30x30

Having a stretch of time without deadlines and commitments has been fun for experimenting with different ideas and process. I've been fooling around a bit with mixed media...getting the idea down quickly in acrylic, then switching into oils for surface quality and a texture(which you cant see in this photo).  The goal I had in mind was to keep the marks fresh, airy and spontaneous; like a child's outlook on the world.
As far as subjects go, I used to do many paintings of children in watercolor while my children were growing up.  At that time, and as a young mother it was important to me to bear witness to the little moments of discovery that only children make you notice. I haven't painted children for a long, long time, but recently a visit with my grandaughter whet my appetite to give the subject another go in oils. It was fun!

Studio work... and old canvas' get a makeover...

Pond - oil on board - 12 x 16 - $450
available at Gallery on Gore, Perth, ON

So I finished this oil on gessoboard painting a few weeks ago. As you can see from the 'in progress' shot a few posts back, I did do a fairly major re-jig of the composition. It wasn't sitting right with me.  Now I feel it 'reads', allowing the eye to wander through the painting in a more tranquil pleasing way. 

First decisions when I begin a painting are never written in stone for me.  I like to sit back; give it some 'mantel time', work out what the painting needs/ is asking me for.  The ability to be able to change my mind, follow a different direction than perhaps my first impulse is very satisfying.  A way for something stale to become fresh again.  Speaking of old becoming new again...

varnish removal is an outside project

scraping down the lumpy impasto bits
VERY carefully, dont want to cut the canvas

this morning, I removed the varnish from some older works.  So liberating!  There is something so freeing about utilizing a canvas that has sat around annoying me for too long!  This work needs to be done outside, as a rag soaked with Gamsol has a lot of fumes, even if you cant smell the odourless mineral spirit.  After removing the old varnish, I gave the canvas a light sanding, then scraped down lumpy paint bits carefully with a blade. 

unbleached titanium acrylic covers the old title

One thing I used to do was write the title of the work on the back of my canvas after completing them.  However I have now learned this is NOT a good idea, especially if the work eventually gets a re-work and becomes something entirely different!  How do I get rid of the old title?  A little canvas coloured (unbleached  titanium) acrylic paint does the trick applied thickly with a palette knife on the back of the canvas.   I now write the titles in PENCIL along the top canvas covered stretcher frame, so that I can erase it down the road if I decide to recycle a canvas like this.

Recycling old canvas's in this way seems to work fine for oil impasto methods because the 'fat over lean' rule can still be followed on the new work.   However, it DOES NOT allow smooth thin oil washes...if I'm going to be working that way, I usually reach for a pristine new canvas!

Camellia's for mum

Camellia's - oil on canvas - 30 x 30" - $900

"On-wards!"  
That is an expression my mother used all the time!  She would say it after a cup of coffee & the newspaper, while hoisting herself from her chair, she would say it when she jumped out of bed in the mornings; she summoned it loudly and joyfully!  I came to know that it meant she intended to go forward in some way to tackle a project or the day or the next few minutes with renewed vigor.
This painting was languishing in my studio for the past few weeks needing some sort of resolution.  I was all out of ideas for where to go next with it.  I kept procrastinating for two reasons, one was a good one, it needed to dry before I worked into it again, but that only let me off the hook for a week or so...the other reason was I really didn't know what to do next! 
That's when I realized that I was totally missing the point.  Painting is not always about knowing what to do next.  It's about allowing the play to begin, and trusting it's enough,  finding my way for a few more hours or minutes or whatever my heart thinks is right for now.    I squeezed out my paint.  "Onwards!"  I could hear those words plainly in my mind's ear.  It will be my mother's birthday tomorrow, she always liked the fact that she and the Queen were born on the same day (2 years apart).  My mother would have been 92!
 

Emily's grave

Peace - oil on panel 'en plein air' - 9 x 12 - $250

Emily Carr's grave site in the Ross Bay Cemetary is very close to where my daughter Holly lives in Victoria.  

deer wander freely
in the Ross Bay Cemetary

When I was there in March I took these photos of the grave site markers.  She is buried with members of her family there.  It is a peaceful place; and lovely to see the humble little art curiosities and gifts that are frequently left leaning up against her grave.
 



When we were out walking in Victoria along St. James street on Good Friday, we happened across the family home of Emily Carr, where she spent her childhood.  It is a museum now, and it was closed on the day we were there, but the gates were wide open to the property.  Jeff and I were curious and went into the grounds to explore it and peek into the windows.  I enjoyed imagining what it would have been like growing up there.  



As we came around the yard, there was an old grey shed-like building in disrepair quite close to the old house.  We opened the unlocked door to reveal all sorts of artists paraphernalia jammed inside, alongside a small bed-shelf and other items of living.  

inside ' the Elephant'... brushes, photos, etc.

It dawned on me that this was a replica of "The Elephant", which was the nickname that Emily gave to her trailer that she would camp in when out painting in the woods.  I wonder if it was one that was created to be used in the movie 'Winds of Heaven',  perhaps left with the museum to be used for display afterwards.  It seemed odd to me that it was so exposed to the elements;  there was a large hole in the wall next to the open door, where rain and animals could easily have gotten in.  Whatever the reason it was there, it was like finding a treasure, albeit a faux one.
Canada is currently working a new paper bank note that will feature a 'prominant Canadian female figure'...I hope it will be either Emily Carr or another favorite Canadian artist Pegi Nicol McLeod.  

Camellia's - work in progress

work in progress- 30x30 oil on canvas

Camellia's were blooming everywhere in Victoria this past week!  Nice, because I was able to spend a lot of time really looking at them, as well as get heaps of photos.  We just got back from our trip there last night. I so enjoyed being in the temperate climate with so many millions of spring blooms everywhere.  I was thinking about those Camellia's the whole time painting this evening.  Tender flowers with a tendency to expire quickly; the white ones quickly turn brown, then drop.  This is where I'm at now...will be letting it dry for a bit, then let it speak to me again.
  My mother once told me a story about Camellia's on her wedding day.  She was married in Jasper, Alberta and she had ordered her wedding bouquet of (pink) Camellia's from a shop in Edmonton.  When the flowers arrived on the train the morning of the wedding, she was very disappointed to find that they were all wilted; a sorry specimen for a wedding bouquet!  In the end she had to hurriedly replace the bouquet with a bunch of pink roses from a local florist.
 
...that's Teri, me,  Linda & Dave's mum, Julie, last Thursday in Victoria at Butchart Gardens.  Such a special treat.
 

Spring plain air

Finding plain air painting spots by bicycle this week in Victoria.  Spring is full and lush here at the moment. Ross bay cemetery provides a quiet spot with lots of protection from light showers under the shade of a giant cypress tree. Daffodils near a crabapple tree under an overcast skies today.

happy to get started again

new start on the left, 'White Roses' acrylic on right

After weeks of not painting at all, I did get into the studio yesterday after Dave left for a work trip.  It felt good to make a start (one on the left). Yahoo!  Plans are for it to be Camelia's, but we'll see what develops. 

The 'White Roses' next to it, is an acrylic painting I completed in January.  You can see I'm still on a similar theme, but I was hankering to get going with my oils again. I love the softness and subtleness of colour, that oil paint allows me for blending.  Since it's warm enough outside now to open windows, there's no reason not to use my oils.  Although I work with odourless mineral spirits, I'm big on making sure I ventilate when working in oils.  

'Pub Door'  - no more! ha ha

  

I started this one over a previous painting 'Pub Door' that I was sick of looking at. I had showed it several times and it had never had any interest, so figured it had lived a good life.  Besides, I like working on top of an older painting for the dimension it provides as an under-painting.  
Usually I create a warm ground, but this time I picked thalo blue to cover it, wondering if it would aid the subtle white shifts that I wanted. 

Daisy's - SOLD

Happy to say that Gallery on Gore in Perth, Ontario sold my little daisy painting yesterday.  Thanks Johanne! 

30 in 30 challenge day 21

Softly Into Spring - oil on wood - 8 x 8 inch

There's no obvious sunshine in this oil sketch, but the arrangement of organic shapes attracted me to give it a whirl. The Sunny Ways theme is carried in the feeling of hope and promise that thinking about spring always makes me feel. Selected from my resource photos that I took at the Ottawa Tulip Festival.  As I was working on only a small 8x8 it wasn't possible to focus on the flowers themselves, but rather an the overall design and atmosphere. 
Keeping up with the 30 in 30 challenge has proved difficult for me with time away from home this month. However, even if I cant do the lot, I'm feeling good that at least I've cracked on and pushed myself to paint small and often at the times when I can.  This painting is for day 21 of the challenge, but for me it is actually only my 16th little painting in the group. 

Lakeside Theatre

Lakeside Theatre - oil on panel - 9x12 inch

Today's oil sketch is the Thousand Islands Playhouse.  Although it's not an obvious contender to the 'Sunny Ways' theme I have going, I felt it had some relation to it in that the sun is fading in the sky and the evening holds a little excitement about what might be going on at the local waterfront theatre.  I wanted to capture the feeling of warmth and festivity, although I haven't actually added any people into the scene yet. Perhaps I will after this part dries a bit. I think a small 'gathering crowd' might be in order to give focus to the evening atmosphere.

Corner Steps

Corner Steps - oil on panel - 5 x 7 inch

This oil sketch is from the same place as my previous post, but a different angle.  I even used the same palette colours, but because I had a different ground colour on the panel, it has given quite a different light effect, less of a golden light than the previous one. The ground for this one was an ugly shade of naples yellow from Pabeo.  I've never really liked working with Pabeo paints, but have a few in my paint box that I'm trying to use up.  I also struggled with the cerelean blue I was using,  which is a cheap DeSerres brand.  I wont be buying any more of it.  I really love nothing better than Winsor & Newton cerelean blue, it's the creamiest one on the market and the best in my opinion.

Late Summer Afternoon

Late Summer Afternoon- oil on panel- 6x8 inch

Almost didn't think I was going to have time to paint one today, but found some time after dinner.  A totally enjoyable paint listening to (and singing along to!)  Australian folk tunes while immersing myself in the light and shadows falling on these steps. 
Driving through this village (Newburg) in the late afternoon last summer,  the light was just so delicious that I actually pulled over, stopped the car just to drink it in.  Snapped a couple of pics on my phone to remember it by.  That was the inspiration for tonight's subject.  Definately a candidate for my 'Sunny Ways' theme.

Tea with milk

Tea with Milk - oil on panel - 7 x 5 inches

While making myself a cuppa yesterday afternoon, I noticed the light shining through the milk bottle creating fascinating patterns on my little teapot.  Thought it would be a good subject for day #5 of the 30 in 30 challenge.

Sunkissed Kitchen

Sunkissed Kitchen - oil on panel - 6x8 inch

I paid close attention to which neutrals were warm or cool in this study. I began with a fairly limited palette of zingy colours(mostly opaques) and painted over a bright cadmium yellow ground.  The straight lines always give me a little grief, so I used the upside down observation method to paint perspective and get it reasonably accurate. After I had done over half of the tones in the painting upside down, I turned it all right side up again and carried on.  
The photo reference for this was taken last spring, accounting for the warm quality to the light.  

It's quite unlike that today in my kitchen;  that warmth would be very welcome right about now, it was -18 'C outside this morning! Winter has definately arrived!

Lakeside Stroll

Lakeside Stroll - oil on panel - 6x8 inch

A stroll by the lake one bright crisp afternoon in early spring seemed to fit the 'Sunny Ways' theme I'm working on in this 30 in 30 challenge.  Click to see other entries in this challenge, there are hundreds!
This little painting is inspired by a snap I took of my daughter Rachel with her dog Asha.  I worked from a black and white photo and tried a blue/orange split complimentary palette.

I like to paint the 30/30 challenge paintings first thing in the morning if I can...in my jammie's while my energy is fresh.

art = apples; teaching art = oranges

Autumn Pasture - oil on panel - SOLD

Over the past couple of years I had started up a nice little flow of teaching one day a week during the fall and winter months in my studio. Teaching in my own studio was way better for me than going out to a school to teach art from, as it meant I didn't have to lug all my equipment back and forth.  But this fall I didn't teach. I felt I needed the time in the fall to catch up with my own work and work on some  larger pieces. 

Autumn Hills 2 - oil on panel - SOLD

Teaching art and art making are two different things entirely.   Not different as in 2 varieties of apples, but more like apples and oranges.  For me, doing my own art means spending time on my own to work it out, think it through, make lots of wrong turns and finally arrive at something that sits right with me.  The whole process of the art making is actually about discovery, so in a way it is like being a student...not a teacher.

As an art teacher, I feel responsible to be able to give 'what I know' to those that are eager to learn. I want to be able to be in the frame of mind to start and work through my process in a comprehensive way.  I think that's why I couldn't teach this year.  With limited time, due to not being able to work over the summer, I wanted to devote all my time to the art making.  So I said no to teaching.

I'm sure I'll say yes again at some point.  I enjoy teaching very much when I'm in the right frame of mind.

Je Suis Paris

'Je Suis Paris' - oil on canvas, 30 x30

The second in a series of large-ish rose paintings I've been tinkering with.  I do love roses; heck, I love flowers!
 
BUT, I was stuck on this one for a few weeks. Today I heard it ask me for something...recent world events whispering in my mind...a  geometric element amid the organic shapes.

Today in Vermont

Fall Colours - 6x8 oil on panel

I'm on the last day of my Vermont interlude, on the road home tomorrow. Lucked in with sunshine for 2 full days and had a great time hiking the forest trails, hanging with girlfriends and painting too. I didn't paint outdoors cuz the wind was crazy, but I was happy to make 8 small panel 'starts' from the comfort of the chalet east facing picture window.  The blue hills create a dynamic contrast against the fall colours. These panels will no doubt evolve a bit more when I get them home to the studio, will probably work into them again.  The colours on some of the trees are gorgeous, though the majority of the leaves have already fallen.

Ride to Work

Ride to Work - oil on canvas 18 x 14"

This painting sprang to life last week.  I was feeling out of ideas of what to paint.  When that happens, I like to go digging in the many folders that contain my own photo resource collection.  I'm not a great photographer, but I can aim and click like the best of them when a light pattern or atmosphere inspires me.  The morning light spoke to me in this one.

original photo, and line sketch for painting

I am a lazy painter. I do not love drawing. I love to paint. BUT, when there is a lot of architectural stuff I do need a guide before I get all excited and lay in the paint.  I cheat.  Yes! I use tracing paper and a sharpie, but I try and keep my copy looser than the actual photo. Basically I grab the main lines and do a quick value sketch.

I stained my canvas with a thin mix of vermilion. Up-scaling the  line sketch with thin alizarin paint onto the canvas (ssshhh, dont tell anyone but I use a light box to do this, because as I said before, I'm impatient, I dont like wasting time drawing, somehow it kills my passion to get to the painting).  

yay! almost painting... but first I'm going to choose my palette.  I mostly choose lively high key pigments... two reasons, I want a light mood to my painting, and I want to play around with colours that I'm less familiar with so I feel like I'm learning something as I go. Learning = more fun!
Here they are:  warm white, indian yellow, cad orange, violet, cobalt teal, cobalt blue, vandyke brown.  I know, I know! wierd, eh?  ha ha.

Blocking in the darker values and lighter values, sets up a push pull kind of thing right from the start.  I like this push- pull, it's what artists refer to as 'a dialogue'.  For me it's the most fun part, because it allows the freedom for interpretation and individuality.  The vermilion creates a nice base for the other colours, as it seems to harmonize them as it glows through the thin paint. 

I begin to analyze the painting...  Here, I felt it might be more interesting with the addition of some life. Like what, I hear you ask.  Maybe a dog walker? Some birds? A pedestrian?  I decide maybe a student on a bicycle...after all, this neighborhood is close to the university, and I'm into bicycles lately. ha ha.

This one is 18 x 14 inches on canvas.