December, Nocturne

oil on canvas

8x10, 2009

I suppose it was only a matter of time. I had ventured out to do a series of nocturne paintings a few years ago. It was summer and I painted  hay stacks in the moonlight. Easier said than done. In the warm weather all kinds of creatures come out to play--some unwelcome.  Recently, one of my students, Dora Keogh, a very accomplished plein air artist, went out in the bitter evening cold and rendered some magnificent night paintings, which inspired me to 'weather ' the elements and re-visit the mysterious nuances of night.

available      
purchase here

December, Little Voices in the Air

oil on canvas

6x6in, 2009

Sometimes I think I am nuts!:-) By the time I bundled up-2 pair pants, 2pair socks, small scarf,  wool shawl (double use as I cover the cold chair with it), tackle box with paint gear, canvas, backboard AND 3 bouncy dogs in tow...it was almost dark! But it was the first day that the snow lasted, the sun was warm and I LOVE late light. Yes, my hands and feet were frozen by the time I packed everything up and headed back, but nothing is better (except painting) than coming into a warm house and sitting over a good cup of hot tea to contemplate one's handiwork.

SOLD   

December, Remains of the Day

oil on canvas

 I quite like winter light. The landscape is so open. Bereft of foliage, I find the juxtaposition of dried wild grasses and the structure of trees and vines breathtaking against a wild winter sky. The windier and colder it is, the more dramatic the sky. I head out around 2:30 with a wee sketch book and pastels and make numerous marks of moving sky. Back in the comfort of the studio, I compile and work from there. I don’t understand people who say there is no colour in winter…..

16x20in, available

to purchase, click here

December, Remains of the Day

soft pastel, encaustic on panel
6x8in, 2009
available:$135 each or both for $195
to purchase, click here

September

secret mission series

oil on canvas

16x20in, 2009

This is the last of a commission series I started in September. I had the pleasure of visiting and painting one of the most beautiful regions in Ontario. I can not yet divulge the location as it is a surprise. I was there for a week ( tough job:-), the weather was perfect, ( except for the wind ) and I was able to work pretty well undisturbed --heaven for the plein air painter!

December, Olga's Barn

small gift series

oil on canvas

6x6in, 2009

SOLD

November

oil on canvas

15x20in, 2009

I started this painting at the beginning of November and just finished it up today. The location is the forty mile creek on the escarpment near Beamer conservation area. Upon arrival there was a Great Blue Heron as well as a family of ducks. They quickly dispersed when my dogs came on the scene.

SOLD

November (almost December)

oil on canvas

12x36in, 2009

SOLD

November

(small gift series)
oil on canvas
6x6in, 2009

Today the milkweed stood against the cold wind while I painted it. I love it's shape and texture this time of year. This one still contains seeds. I can't wait to pull them out and let the wind carry them off.

If you find milkweed in the summer, you're likely to find monarch butterflies. They need milkweed to survive. The butterfly lays its eggs on milkweed plants and the larvae eat the leaves. They contain toxins, which don't hurt the caterpillar or butterfly, but they do make the Monarch poisonous to it's predators.

available: $95
to purchase, click here

November

(small gift series)

oil on canvas

6x6in, 2009, available

Today in the thick grey fog and drizzle I came upon this nest very low among the wild grasses . I like to think it is that of a Bobolink, although I've read they usually nest right on the ground.

Bobolinks nest in hayfields and meadows across the northern United States and southern Canada during the summer months of May through early July, and I am happy to say that each year I've had the pleasure of seeing and hearing more and more of them on the Niagara escarpment.

Their song has been vividly described as "a bubbling delirium of ecstatic music that flows from the gifted throat of the bird like sparkling champagne," "a mad, reckless song-fantasia, an outbreak of pent-up, irrepressible glee," and as "a tinkle of fairy music, like the strains of an old Greek harp."

The Bobolink makes one of the longest migrations in the western hemisphere—a round trip of approximately 20,000 km (12,400 miles)! They migrate to the vast grasslands of southwestern Brazil, Paraguay, and northern Argentina to spend the austral spring and summer months of November through March.

November

oil on canvas

9x11in, 2009

SOLD

I've taken to bringing along my painting gear when I head out with my three dogs for their daily run behind my escarpment home. They love this as an hour often turns to three--more time to hunt for mice and chase rabbits and deer while 'Mom' is 'catching' the land with her box of paints.

November, Remains of the Day

oil on canvas

30x40in, 2009

available

No matter the time of year or the time of day, I am forever inspired by the provocative-and evocative- vineyard.

Seasonal Offerings & News

November

(small gift series)

acrylic on canvas

6x6in, 2009

$75

November (almost)

oil on canvas
diptych
10x30in, 2009
available

October, Liah's Tree

acrylic on canvas
12x12in, 2009
available

I almost prefer overcast skies this time of year-the juxtaposition of warm crimson, yellow and orange against the sky's cool mauves and greys..

October

(small gift series)

acrylic on canvas

6x6in, 2009

$75

October

Little Voices in the Air

(small gift series)

acrylic on canvas

6x6in, 2009

$75

As a landscape painter I often feel cursed. This season there are too many saturated colours and vistas and not near enough time or energy to depict them.

October

oil on canvas
12x12in, 2009
available

October
(small gift series)

acrylic on canvas
6x6in, 2009
SOLD

October
(small gift series)

acrylic on canvas
6x6in, 2009
SOLD







I rarely include buildings in my landscapes but since new neighbours have started altering their escarpment farm, I have an overwhelming urge to depict the remaining barns and sheds that I see on my daily walks before they, too, are no more.

"Don't it always seem to go, you don't know what you've got till it's gone" Joni Mitchell

October, Greenbelt Disaster

oil on canvas

10x30in, 2009

available

September, a time to keep

(secret mission series)

oil on canvas

18x24in, 2009

SOLD

September

Sand and Grass

(secret mission series)

oil on canvas

16x20in

2oo9

October
Remains of the Day
(Greenbelt series)

oil on canvas
8x10in, 2009

available

October

oil on canvas

24x36in

2009

available

September at Bloomfields'

(secret mission series)

acrylic on paper
8x11in, 2009

private collection

September

Greenbelt Disaster

JAN YATES, SCA

oil on canvas
20x24in, 2009
available

September

Greenbelt Disaster

oil on canvas

16x20in, 2009

available

September
(secret mission series)

oil on canvas
8x11in, 2009

on hold

September
(secret mission series)

oil on canvas
12x12in, 2009

on hold

September
(secret mission series)

oil on canvas
12x12in, 2009

on hold

September
(secret mission series)

oil on canvas
12x12in, 2009

on hold

September
(secret mission series)

oil on canvas
8x10in, 2009

on hold

September, A Time To Keep

oil on canvas
10x30in, 2009
available

Greenbelt Disaster 2

August

oil on canvas
9x12in, 2009

SOLD

Greenbelt Disaster1

August

oil on canvas
9x12in, 2009
SOLD