Dad's Game - SOLD

Dads' Game was purchased by a member of parliament and used as Christmas cards mailed throughout his constituency. It is an honor and thrill to have this work hanging on Parliament Hill!

Gord's Challenge #1 (NFS)

13x7 acrylic on panel

My dear husband recently asked if I would consider doing a painting of his choice . He then handed me a photo of this aircraft. This is not something I would choose to paint myself, but the Different Strokes From Different Folks challenges have taught me to view anything and everything as having artistic potential.

Flight of Steps - SOLD

                                           8x10 acrylic SOLD

It has been a while since I've been able to participate in the Different Strokes from Different Folks challenges. This subject was a doozie! I was particularly taken with the contrasts: light & dark, lines & circles, as well as the perspective, and immediate sense of movement in the photo. I chose to use a textured 8x10 canvas. In my mind, it added to the sense of motion.

A Reflective Pair SOLD

                                                          6x6 Acrylic on canvas

I'm having a painterly week and it feels wonderful! I wanted to try painting these pears perched on a slab of granite tile to capture some of the elegant reflections they made. I love these pears - I bought the red one just for the curly stem!
Available at Ats Underground, Whitehorse, YT.

Practice Notes - SOLD

6x6 on canvas

Since following the Different Strokes from Different Folks blogspot and the work of Karin Jurick I have been inspired & challenged to try painting people more often. It has been a subject that has intimidated me. This summer, I purposefully set out to capture scenes from everyday life with my camera, thinking of painting potentials. This was from an excursion to Kingston, Ontario.

6x6 acrylic on canvas

Autumn Confetti - SOLD

6x12 acrylic  SOLD


I've been inspired by the colors all around me at this time of year.

Nichol's Locks

                                            10x10 acrylic on canvas panel

This scene was painted at Long Island Locks in Ottawa. It was also one of the few sunny days I've experienced for outdoor painting. It was hard not to chase the sun and to stick to painting quickly.

Strawberry Pickers

6 x 6 acrylic on canvas

This outdoor scene was captured at our local berry farm.

"BLUES MAN"

                                                      9x12 acrylic on canvas  SOLD

This subject was for the latest Different Strokes challenge. When I saw the photograph I thought the fellow looked a bit tired, as if taking a break. The idea "a blues man" popped into my head so I chose to paint in shades of blue adding just a splash of orange and red for contrast. I also tried to be much more loose in my brush work.

"The Piggery"

                                                                6x6 acrylic  SOLD

Finally a successful day for outdoor painting! This charming little building was begging to be painted. What a challenge though! One minute the sun was shining the next dark clouds cast shadows. The wind whipped up and sent this panel flying several times and I even persevered through a rain shower. I'm pleased with the results and can only hope our next outdoor session has a more consistent clime in which to work.

"Summer Still Life"

                                           12 x 16 acrylic on canvas SOLD

Another subject selected for the Different Strokes from Different Folks Challenge. Summer is here!

"Heartland"

                                                     6 x 10 acrylic on canvas  SOLD

My submission for the current Different Strokes from Different Strokes challenge. We were to invent the color for this challenge as the original photo was desaturated. I live in the heart of farmland and this view is pretty familiar. It was fun to create the colors - an excellent exercise. I did some tweaking of the buildings so they wouldn't be smack dab in the center of the painting.

Plein Air Artists 2

5 x 7 acrylic on panel

Here's my second artist captured in a shady garden. I am learning green is a challenging color - there are so many varying shades, cool and warm.

Plein Air Artists 1

                                           5 x 7 acrylic on panel SOLD

This is my first in a series of outdoor scenes capturing some of my fellow artists at work. I haven't done a lot of painting with people in them and decided it was high time to tackle the subject. Working on the paintings of the sculptures has definitely helped my confidence.

"Hitting all the Reds!" - SOLD

12 x 6 acrylic on canvas paper

This is my submission for Karin Jurick's Different Strokes from Different Folks challenge.
This was a hard challenge for me. The subject was totally not something I would choose to paint but I hate to walk away from a challenge. I like to try all kinds of things and painting this street scene was an opportunity to step outside of my preferences; to grow a little more.

Diana Bathing

I enjoyed painting The Companion of Diana so much I decided to try another statue. This one is by Allegrain. This was also a challenge but having done the DSFDF challenge I found this painting much easier to tackle.

12 x 6 acrylic on canvas

"The Rope Swing"

                                                        18 x 26 acrylic on canvas  SOLD

The lake holds a special place in my heart. This sweet spot is no exception. I captured this on a paddle around the lake last year. It was high noon, the sun was brilliant, and as we paddled into this secluded spot the colors morphed magically: from blazing white light to blue and purple shadows. It only lasted a few seconds, until my eyes adjusted but I had to capture that initial moment. This is one of my favorite paintings.

A Companion for Diana

12 x 6 acrylic on canvas

Here's the acrylic version of Diana - finally finished. Indeed, a big challenge for me. The torn paper approach was a very helpful exercise.

Diana's Companion

Mixed media on paper

This was done for the Different Strokes from Different Folks challenge. The subject was the actual statue of Diana and her Companion. It was a huge challenge for me! I tried painting, sketching, and decided at the last minute to do something I had been wanting to try all along...create an interpretation using torn paper. (much like "newsman" from a previous post). There's something very satisfying about making a mess with paper, glue and paint!

April Crocuses

                                             6x6 acrylic on canvas  SOLD

This little painting was inspired by crocuses appearing in my front garden. Spring has arrived at last! Just about everything has been tried on this work: palette knife, splattering, scrumbling...in the end it is quite textural.

Winter Ribbons

I've jumped out of spring and glimpses of summer from my last paintings to upload this winter picture I've just finished. How fitting that as I was finishing it yesterday it began to snow!
I was so intrigued by the play of the light on the snow in this barnyard scene.

6 x 12 acrylic on canvas  SOLD

Chosen by Split Coast Stampers Inspiration Challenge!

Last week I was contacted by a challenge hostess from Split Coast Stampers and asked if they might access my blogspot to use for an Inspiration Challenge. Of course I said yes! This lovely card was created by Melinda Bell and inspired by my Northern Lights work.
Thanks Split Coast Stampers!

A Certain Slant of Light

                                           10 x 10 acrylic on canvas panel  SOLD

Last summer my husband and I took a paddle around a lake. It was high noon and the contrast in the sheltered coves compared to the exposed land was stunning. Yellows and oranges were humming with life. Purples and blues were zinging out every which way. I just had to paint what I remembered.

Beach Play

                                           6x6 acrylic on canvas  SOLD

This painting is for this week's Different Strokes Challenge hosted by Karin Jurick. The photo subject was a beach scene with several figures in it. I chose to focus in on this little girl.

Florida Rubies

                                                     5x7 acrylic on panel  SOLD

Pink grapefruit are so tasty! They are also fun to paint!

Newsman

I was rummaging in my art supplies when I came across this fellow. This was a 30 min exercise during a drawing workshop I attended in November. We were limited to using newsprint and a glue stick to recreate a picture of a model posing before us. We were only allowed to tear the newsprint as well. The idea behind the exercise was to view light and dark and the varying degrees of shadow and shape. It was a cool exercise.

newsprint collage on paper

A Chair to Curl Up In

                                                              5x7 acrylic on panel SOLD

The spring sunshine has been wonderful! I decided to capture a spot of it found on this chair in my living room.

Vine Ripened

                                                          5x7 acrylic on canvas  SOLD

Just a quick little painting. I had these lovely vine ripened tomatoes sitting on my counter begging to be painted.

Juicy Sushi - Take I

4 x 6 acrylic on canvas paper

Sushi was the given subject for this week's Different Strokes challenge. It was such a fun subject that I tried three different pictures using different mediums. This was the first using acrylics.
I'd like to know which of the three you like?

Juicy Sushi - Take II

4 x 6 pastel on paper

I had a go with chalk pastels for this version. It was my first time using them. They definitely take some getting used to and create a much softer image.

Juicy Sushi - Take III - SOLD

4 x 6 Mixed Media on paper

This is the picture I chose to submit for this week's Different Strokes Challenge hosted by Karin Jurick. differentstrokesfromdifferentfolks.blogspot.com
For this picture I created a block print using white acrylic paint on black paper and layered on color using colored pencils.

Tea for One SOLD

4 x 6 acrylic on panel

This mug took forever to paint! I must have swiped the canvas at least 8 times! Needless to say I'm done with it. Why is it some of the little ones require so much effort and the big ones can just pop out?

I'm a Little Tea Pot - SOLD

8 x 8 acrylic on canvas

I'm trying to loosen my brush strokes and not be so concerned with exact replication. This painting was birthed after a day of intense work on other paintings. I suddenly wanted something totally different to try so I cleaned off my easel, set up this still life and got to it. (I'm trying to decide if this is done or not so I haven't signed it yet). It came together very quickly
So much of my painting journey is an experiment. When a work turns out I'm always pleasantly surprised.

Apples & Silk - SOLD

12 x 12 acrylic on canvas

I tried something new here: painting on a black primed canvas.