I am Moving

Because I can

not eliminate these ^%#****widgets

which cover my posts, 

I have set up a new blog HERE 

In doing so, I have lost all of my followers!

I so appreciate my followers, 

and am hoping that you

will take the time to sign back on, 

 

as well as bookmark,

my new blog!

Thank you!

commission

Not my usual seasonal serving, especially in the grey light of November and, lately,  especially coming from me!

to everything there is a season

oil on canvas, 30x40in

This is the commission that I started at the beginning of summer (mentioned in my post here) and completed only a few weeks ago. A lot of time has lapsed between sessions and with family illness pervading I had to put it aside. It would not have been fair to my client had I pushed myself when my heart wasn't in it. I am very happy with it now (although still can’t manage to adjust colours to my liking on the monitor) The client came to the gallery today to pick it up and of course I was nervous re his response –he was happy! All is good.

Today I also sold my new painting (October, Liah’s View) that was barely dry. What a contrast in work compared to the garden above- I have really been questioning my direction lately and feeling pretty unsure re current work and where I am heading so this perked me up a wee bit...

Open Studio 'LIVE'

I haven't posted in awhile--busy with art submissions etc-  

A lot of my time has been taken up with creating an online Art Auction, with portion of proceeds  to McNally House Hospice. I still haven't worked out all the kinks, but for a sneak preview click HERE    

I will also be raffling off paintings--this is one .

November, a walk after Guinn, oil on canvas, 16x20in

Liah's View

Recently we had guests staying over so had to spend some time in my daughter’s old room. I had forgotten how breathtaking the view was from her window, no matter the season. When my guests left and the right days came (yesterday/today) I lugged all of my painting gear upstairs…interesting how inspiration can just come on the fly—but how long has it really been there? It was an insightful state of catharsis to be in as she was everywhere..

October (Liah's View)

oil on canvas

30x30in, 2010

SOLD

~

I've always liked the strong contrasts of black vertical lines-in this case the tree trunks, juxtaposed against the bright yellows of textured leaves when the light hits just-so. Things move in a really melodic way, especially with a consistent breeze--such was today--a good one to accompany with paint.

October

oil on canvas

12x24in, 2010

available

*

Highland Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving, Canada!

Between reading Hebridean tales by Lillian Beckwith and inspired by  a wonderfully written blog by accomplished painter Caroline Simmill and this being Thanksgiving, the Scottish highlands have been with me all day! 

Two years ago I traveled to the north west coast of Scotland for the first time and spent Thanksgiving with my daughter in an extremely remote croft (did I mention remote?) off a one-track road and on top of the sea. 

I painted over my July vineyard because it was too tight and contrived--then I painted over THAT painting (a few posts ago) because it was too dark and muddy--I've mentioned in previous posts that I like to paint over old work, but I have to be careful as the  pigments of the previous under-paintings can affect the top colours--and not always in a good way..
.
I am much happier with this image.

October
oil on canvas
18x24in, 2010
available

^

This is another plein air work rendered last October that I put away. Because the premise of my work is about documenting the seasons and climate change, if I start a painting in a certain month and don't have the opportunity to finish in the same month with the same weather, I put it away until the following year. This was painted at the END of October 2009--on my walks in the field the colours are the same NOW, mid October, so we are definably early in the changing of the seasons in the land.

October, Greenbelt Disaster
oil on canvas
18x24in, available

For those of you that have inquired re my titles that include 'Greenbelt Disaster'

'The ‘Greenbelt Disaster’ series transpired after I caught sight of a hand painted sign of the same name propped up on the back of a tractor. The tractor was parked on the service road near Niagara’s QEW for all to see and behind it was a smouldering vineyard. It was a protest from local growers, whose vineyards and orchards were destroyed or left to go fallow because they could no longer afford to farm them. Since, I have visited and interviewed some of these growers and organizations and this series of paintings is a culmination of that investigation.' To read more please visit: This Land is our Land

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Kama & Canadian Balsam

I’ve always found the technical aspect of painting with oil to be an intriguing challenge. It’s important to know the components and strengths of pigments as they interact with each other long after the painting is dry—so it is integral to use the highest standard of oil paint and mediums and I have a few favourites. The more expensive are the highly pigmented paints - Old Holland, Williamsburg and Michael Harding—beautiful beautiful beautiful..and worth every penny- from consistency, handling and saturation. I think it’s important to invest in good quality pigments, but I have found that M Graham Paints and mediums are cost effective and bound with walnut oil allowing for brilliant refractive qualities.

For the past year I have been using KAMA oil paint and mediums. They are ground by hand in an artist run store out of Montreal and they not only offer excellent paint—in unique colours like ‘hemoglobin’-but also powdered pigment and all the fixings if you are inclined to make your own. They are brilliant—also using walnut oil as binder but they are a lot ‘drier’ than M Graham. I really like experimenting with mediums and reading Marc Dalessio's blog led me on a hunt for Canadian Balsam— and I found it at KAMA! It’s very expensive but after investigating it I just HAD to try it.

Today I mixed my medium by using 1 part sun-thickened linseed oil, 1 part solvent and 1 part Canadian Balsam. I work very thin and lay in using only turps and a little alkyd to speed up the drying—as I lay in thicker passages I add the medium. The Balsam moves the paint beautifully—very fluid. Canadian Balsam is a sap from fir trees, used to improve adhe­sion from one paint layer to another and impart a silky smooth qual­ity to the paint. It is supposed to be clearer than other balsams and leave a refractive sheen..will find out when this little painting dries.

October

oil in canvas

9x12in, 2010
available

*

'I know the year is dying, Soon the summer will be dead.
I can trace it in the flying, Of the black crows overhead;
I can hear it in the rustle Of the dead leaves as I pass,
And the south wind's plaintive sighing Through the dry and withered grass.

Ah, 'tis then I love to wander, Wander idly and alone,
Listening to the solemn music Of sweet nature's undertone;
Wrapt in thoughts I cannot utter, Dreams my tongue cannot express,
Dreams that match the autumn's sadness In their longing tenderness.'
- Mortimer Crane Brown

October, Thinking of You

oil on canvas

12x12in, SOLD


*

Today was a very changeable day. The wind was throwing leaves from the trees and the sky was trying to catch them.

September, Letting Go

oil on canvas

14x30in, 2010

available

*

The painting below is from an island location on Lake Huron. I had the opportunity to stay and paint for a week in exchange for the client selecting 2 paintings as a birthday gift for his wife. (very romantic as it was her family's summer getaway growing up).

There are no cars on the island and not many people about in September so it was an ideal setting for an artist. I was able to paint undisturbed most of the time and managed to render 7 plein air works of various sizes. The downside to being on an island however was transporting these wet canvases, luggage and 2 large dogs to the mainland in a wee motor boat. We were holding the paintings over our heads and almost made it to the other side when the boat ran out of gas….

September, A Time to Keep

oil on canvas

18x24in, SOLD


^

Personally I find my work is in continuous cycle—cycle of growth, harvest, then dormancy. September for me is bittersweet—a month visually stunning but symbolic of what is looming. Depicted below is a turbulent work—artistically faulted in the traditional sense —but no apologies—it is what it is, felt good to get it out.

The other evening my students and I painted out in the back field. Sadly-or not- the light this time of year goes very quickly and we were painting into the dark. Next week we will work on two canvases-one will be reserved exclusively for some night painting. A good challenge and we’ll prime the canvas blue/black I think. The colour temperature this year is so warm that this compliment should work when juxtaposed against the cool dark under-painting.

This small painting is from our excursion and another that has has been painted over a few unsuccessful works-I like the texture of the under-painting.

September, Remains of the Day

oil on canvas
9x12in, 2010
available

On grey days or in winter I love nothing more than to be in the studio working on larger paintings—time to stand back, contemplate, change course..but today a break was needed –the day was too beautiful! I couldn’t help but indulge myself. With very little time I still managed to sneak out at 5PM, climb the hill, feel the sun on my face and paint. I will have to re-shoot tomorrow after I pick out the wee bits of grasses and what looks to be hair of dog.

September
oil on canvas
9x12in, 2010
available

*

Today on my hike I was astounded at the vastness of yellow. The fields and fallow vineyards are carpeted with goldenrod.

The painting below was rendered at the end of September –last year. It was one that came together beautifully and I am happy with the composition, movement and brushwork. More importantly, the experience of painting it as I know this subject intimately. When I moved here the vineyard was nurtured and harvested but five years ago was left to go fallow.

The posts and vines are still firmly rooted in the earth—even though there is no wire to hold them up… when I am really struggling with my work, this painting helps me get through..

September, Greenbelt Disaster

oil on canvas

16x20in, 2009

available
^

This morning my Sister lost her beloved cat due to illness..any of us who have experienced this know the heartbreak. It got me to thinking about my dogs –past and present- and how they have grounded me. In reflection there are many paintings—some representative of the subject, but in the case of  my nonconformist dog who went way too young, there are paintings of place—

 September I Miss You the Most

soft pastel, field flowers, encaustic 

18x18in, 2009

Holding On

soft pastel, field flowers, encaustic 

18x20in, 2009

December, Missing Guinn

oil on canvas

30x36in, SOLD

 

Art washes away from the soul 

the dust of everyday life. 

~Pablo Picasso

 

 

September, Remains of the Day

oil on canvas

9x12in, 2010

available

"September fattens on vines.
Roses flake from the wall.
The smoke of harmless fires drifts to my eyes.
This is plenty. This is more than enough."
-  Geoffrey Hill

September

oil on canvas

30x40in, 2009

available

UPCOMING

FALL CLASSES / WORKSHOPS

My Daughter turned 23 today—Happy Birthday Liah! Unfortunately (for me) she is living ‘across the pond’ In her younger years, to earn her keep, she had to model for me….A few excerpts from my ‘Big Girls/Little Girls’ series (excuse the poor photos) 

Mother's Intuition

acrylic on canvas

48x60in, 1999

Man in the Mirror

oil on canvas

36x48in,  1999

The Day Molly got loose and chased Everyone out of the Pool

charcoal/conte

7x12in, 1999

*

“Remember to be gentle with yourself and others. We are all children of chance and none can say why some fields will blossom while others lay brown beneath the August sun.  Kent Nerburn.

August Remains of the Day

oil on canvas
10x30in, available

Sometimes I wish that I were happy just to work in the studio as it sure would make things less cumbersome re hiking and lugging my gear. Alas, I find if I don’t get outside among the bugs, itchy grasses and sudden rain it just doesn’t complete me. I guess I like the challenge of making quick decisions from direct observation and I find I get to that ‘ high’ mentioned in the previous post in no time—mind you I lose it just as quickly, usually because of impatience. Art~making teaches us so much wherever we are.

There is a hill behind my property that I have painted just recently but I have not worked from it in years. Well I climbed it yesterday with my French easel, found a lovely shady location under the old apple tree (image a few posts ago), and I think I will work from there for a few paintings. I like looking downward and beyond and it is very close to my home so I can access it quickly~and vacate it quickly if need be…which is what I did in the image below to escape the storm. It is rendered on top of a few unsuccessful paintings~ I was waiting for an almost rainy day, as I wanted the texture from the old underpaintings to emulate rain.

August

oil on canvas

10x30in, 2010

available

*

A few months ago I was commissioned to paint a ‘wild’ garden. The client has a number of my paintings and loves my style, which always makes it easier—actually I refuse commissions if the interested party is not familiar with my work. I think most of us agree that we put added pressure on ourselves when it comes to a commission. Personally speaking I want to envision and embody what the client ‘sees’ and for them to embrace my response.

As research for this commission I visited a number of gardens for possible paint sites and forwarded these images to the client. In his reply it was clear that he was worried re a disconnect in our ‘vision’. Here I was concerned about representing specific gardens, and did he want a road, or building, in the background etc. In turn, he envisioned a visual smorgasboard of colour, movement, and life through shapes, line, colour and texture and for the culmination to take him to other places-I was so relieved!

Even with carte blanche to ‘go for it’ I still require a starting off point, and I work out what to incorporate and where..So over the last few weeks I have been painting small studies of colour and movement from my own garden, which was liberating because I know it so well. Below is an example. I’ve also been plucking up these sacrificial flowers as reference and my studio is filled with honey jars of individual blossoms. Some wilt faster than others so I really have to coordinate my timing re flower picking and painting!

When I immerse myself into the physicality of painting it is in anticipation of the ‘endorphin’ high-where the painting takes over and transcends. For me the only way to achieve this as well as a meditative state in the studio is through guaranteed big- fat- chunks- of time—time with absolutely no interruptions other than bathroom breaks, food and water. ( I'd be fine in jail if I could bring my paints!) I always begin my workday with a long dog run in the field to inspire me -and to wear them out so I can work work work. I am hoping to have that, and the painting, finished (and approved) soon! Then maybe the air will cool and my schedule will clear and I can get back out for some fresh plein air.

August, Remains of the Day

oil on canvas

8x10in, SOLD

*

"Summer's lease hath all too short a date."
- William Shakespeare

August, Remains of the Day

oil on canvas

16x20in, SOLD

*

HAPPY AUGUST

The last few days have seen me holed up inside doing ‘art business’ i.e. the dreaded artist statement/submissions etc—a nightmare- for me at least.  Part of it though was researching other artists and I came across some really inspiring quotes from one of my my  ‘art heroes’  Emily Carr.  So I thought I’d share and have listed them  below.
 Also, an ‘August’ painting rendered a few years ago –the one that ‘got away’ so to speak.. I don’t know about other artists, but there are some paintings I wish I had of hung on to- this is one of them…

August, Remains of the Day

oil on canvas, triptych
36x36in, 2007

SOLD

EMILY CARR QUOTATIONS

How badly I want that nameless thing! First there must be an idea, a feeling... Maybe it was an abstract idea that you've got to find a symbol for, or maybe it was a concrete form that you have to simplify or distort to meet your ends, but that starting point must pervade the whole.”

“The spirit must be felt so intensely that it has power to call others in passing, for it must pass, not stop in the pictures.”

“There are no words, no paints to express all this, only a beautiful dumbness in the soul, life speaking to life.” “

I think that one's art is a growth inside one. I do not think one can explain growth. It is silent and subtle. One does not keep digging up a plant to see how it grows.” “

I was not ready for abstraction. I clung to earth and her dear shapes, her density, her herbage, her juice. I wanted her volume, and I wanted to hear her throb.”

Be careful that you do not write or paint anything that is not your own, that you don't know in your own soul.”

“There is a need to go deeper, to let myself go completely, to enter into the surroundings in the real fellowship of oneness, to lift above the outer shell, out into the depth and wideness where God is the recognized centre and everything is in time with everything, and the key-note is God.”

“Look at the earth crowded with growth, new and old bursting from their strong roots hidden in the silent, live ground, each seed according to its own kind... each one knowing what to do, each one demanding its own rights on the earth... So, artist, you too from the deeps of your soul... let your roots creep forth, gaining strength.”

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I might have mentioned this once or twice but what I find enlightening in painting on open land is that I am in the midst of so very many creatures ‘unseen’ -their continued presence entirely dependent on our land’s eco system.

This is a very old apple tree and has been the focus of many of my works throughout the years. It is host to numerous birds who nest in it and use it for cover in increment weather. The apples are also fodder for deer and yes, sometimes dogs :O. Needless to say, this little hill that it is perched on has been climbed many times by both four and two -legged critters.

July

oil on canvas

36x36in, 2010

available

I worked on this painting last July and put it away with the intention of resuming later in the month. Something about it was really bothering me but I was too close. Today after returning from a walk in the field and seeing all of the thistles in bloom (with yellow finches feeding on them) I thought of the painting. I took it out and after applying and wiping out several times, I just signed it.

July

oil on canvas
20x30in, 2009/10

SOLD

This painting is representative of a body of work that is ongoing- exploring our connection with the seasons of the land and the seasons of our lives. Listed below is a simple but to me so deeply true poem - no matter the denomination or what beliefs one has I think it says it all

July, A Time to Every Purpose Under the Sun

oil on canvas

24x48in, 2009

SOLD

To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the sun:

Today on my walk I had to catch my breath at the site of Queen Anne's lace embellishing the fields. They usually arrive in August and I suppose I didn't think that they, too, would be early.
When I lived in California I was taken aback to learn it was common for florists to have this 'weed' imported- these wild flowers that grow here in abundant splendor and remind us that summer is in full swing.

August, Morning With Queen Anne

acrylic on canvas
12x24in, 2009
SOLD

One thing about living up here on the escarpment--the temperature is always a few degrees lower, which is great in the summer-not so in winter! So even on these sweltering days, the evenings cool down and tonight was accompanied by a refreshing breeze--thankfully no gusts to knock my easel over :X

After a week of no rain and steaming hot weather, relief came yesterday in a day-long downpour. As a result, today's sunshine brought new wild grasses and flowers, my favourite being clover, thistle and chicory. Their vivid and varied patterns and colours, as well as light movement in the breeze, tantalized yellow finches and butterflies. It was a pleasure watching them feed as I painted—nature’s so ALL WAYS in sync!

July

oil on canvas
12x24in, 2010

These warm July evenings bring a special yearning for my Daughter, who moved to Ireland a few years ago. Although I usually work from life, the image below was painted from a photograph taken by her just before she flew across the pond. LUMU Liah

July, Remains of the Day

oil on canvas

30x36in, SOLD

What a beautiful afternoon—ideal for a plein air painter I think! The acre of property I live on backs into an open field and my neighbour has let us use it for many years. Beside me is a vineyard, and I had very kind neighbours who let me paint in them undisturbed. Now I have new neighbours who are always out working the property with their assortment of machines –as I write this (at night) they are spraying yet again with pesticide(?). Anyway, they were gone for the day so I set up my easel and painted undisturbed for hours and hours—was wonderful! The field where I painted from had been freshly cut so it smelled DIVINE! The only snag was the wind- whoever invented bungie cords deserves a medal.

July, Greenbelt Disaster

oil on canvas
18x24in, 2010
available

Today was another stifling, sweltering humid day and tonight my student and I really had to push ourselves to get out and paint. As often happens, once we found our way to open sky and started working we felt much better. The air cleared and cooled and it turned into a beautiful evening.

June, Remains of the Day

oil on canvas

6x6in, 2010

available

Yesterday I posted an image that I wasn't sure I was happy with. When I post images it really gets me away from the work, allowing much needed objectivity. Well, I removed the post shortly after as I saw almost immediately what the painting lacked. I worked on it today and am much happier with the outcome.

Time to leave work for a week or so is ideal. Right now I have four paintings on the go and this usually helps me to stand back with a fresh eye if I work on them alternately. Easier said than done--some get in your blood and you just have to stay with them--sometimes regrettably- but worth the sacrifice as they always teach me something.

June

oil on canvas
18x24in, 2010
available

Today I saw a large transport hauling bales of hay. Usually in June the field behind where I live is turned, but so far no hay. I wonder if it is because we have had so much rain. Every year I paint hay bales from this field I know so well. The birds have finished nesting and now the carpet of clover is rolled up to be recycled for livestock bedding and food. The vast size of the round bales provide a perfect place to hide and paint, and I relish in the fresh-cut scent as I am working. Here is a wee oil sketch from last June.

June

oil on canvas
9x12in, 2009

This one's for you Robyn, as per your comment on the earlier post. ( and yes, there is a story..)

Finally, My Hollyhocks!

oil on canvas

24x40in, 2008

private collection

This kind of day—humid, sticky and stifling- can turn into a perfectly pleasant evening and I took advantage. After the usual Saturday chores I headed out around 5PM for the back field and wasn’t disappointed. The air had cooled and freshened and was filled with my favorite a capella bird melodies. 

I think that is what I find most enticing about being in an open field. You know that it is home to so very many creatures but the colours and textures camouflage them so well.

June, Greenbelt Disaster

oil on canvas
12x12in, 2010
available

I didn’t realize how long I was out until the sky really started to churn and I heard thunder nearby. It was a scramble to get my shoes back on, gather my gear, round up the dogs and make my way home- as I write this it still hasn’t rained.

I have been working outside all week on some larger paintings. It is important for me to paint in the same light, so they are not yet finished. For a ‘quick fix’- a wee field painting...

June (Greenbelt Disaster)

oil on canvas

6x6in, 2010

available

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SUMMER PLEIN AIR

The June fields here are a show of pink and green-more so this year because of all the rain. It's a good enough reason to play with rose madder and cadmium yellow light. And, thanks to the rain, the cloud-scapes have been spectacular and ever-changing.

June

oil on canvas

12x24in, 2010

available

Are we not all tied to the seasons and the cycle of harvest, and intimately connected to the turning skies?

June, Remains of the Day

oil on canvas, 30x36in

reserved

June is ‘the door of the year’, the gateway to inner realms. In the goddess calendar the first 12 days of June belong to Hera.
European folklore tells us that: good weather in ‘Flaming June’ is required if there is to be a good harvest; bats flying on a June evening are a sign of hot, dry weather, and if swallows fly near the ground in June it’s a sign of coming rain.

June, Remains of the Day

oil on canvas, 12x36in

SOLD

"I wonder what it would be like to live in a world where it was always June."

- L. M. Montgomery

June ( a pretty good day so far)

oil on canvas

24x24in, 2010, available

Considering the weather here in Niagara, I thought it appropriate to post this little painting.

June, After Rain

oil/ beeswax on panel

8x10in, 2009, SOLD