Daffodils

We have a number of neighbours on our street who are exceptional gardeners. I, on the other hand, would rather paint flowers than tend them. As mentioned in the previous entry, Kathleen is a great gardener, and these are her daffodils. I started this painting in watercolor, but part way along, I decided to experiment with gouache, which is closely related to watercolor, but is opaque rather than transparent. This means that it is easier to work with, as mistakes can be covered, and its possible to change your mind and alter your course as you go. You sure can't do that with watercolor! I've heard it said that gouache is fun, and it is. Note to self: paint in gouache more often.

Mitzi

Kathleen is our neighbour, and although she has a dog now, years ago she had this beautiful cat, Mitzi. She is a fantastic gardener, and must miss the pond that she had at her previous home. This painting is a tribute to Mitzi, and to that lovely garden hideaway in Vancouver.

Ice Cream

As I was working on the Lemonade painting, I was also putting the finishing touches on a painting that I had started years ago. I'm not sure why it had not been finished, other than it had become a victim of one too many moves, and had for a while gotten lost in the shuffle. Working on the piece reminded me of the hot, humid tourist season in the little town of Bayfield, Ontario, where I had some of my work in a gallery. 

When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade

Life gave us lemons, you might say, in March of 2014. My husband, Art, sustained an injury during a cross town move which led to quadriplegia. He was hospitalized for five months, during which time I sold the home we had just bought, bought a new place in a different city, and completed the move with the help of movers. I stayed with my dad, and visited the hospital nearly every day. Although some artists work out their emotions through painting, for me, it was not a time to paint. I toyed with the idea briefly, of painting wistful nerve endings trying to reconnect, but I had nothing to give. Anyway the contents of my studio were packed away in boxes, like the rest of our stuff, waiting for the start of the 'new normal'. Sometime during the two years when I didn't paint anything at all, I envisioned the composition for the above painting. I knew that whenever I was ready to get back into it, that I would have to paint that first. It is an important piece for me, and very personal. I believe that life is a test; that there are reasons things happen, as horrible as they may be. As God gives me strength, I choose to make lemonade. 

As Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun

Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun, as seen in the lower painting in a self-portrait, was a celebrated and very successful portrait artist. She made a name for herself painting royalty in the 18th and early 19th centuries, Marie Antoinette in particular. In spite of her success, her life was not easy, and her autobiography makes for very interesting reading. I have a fascination for the social history of those times. What was daily life really like? We get just a glimpse of it in novels such as the ones by Jane Austen, and in many contemporary autobiographies. Yet what was common for the ones living in those times would not have been written, even though it would have been extraordinary reading for us.  
I wanted to put myself into a classic portrait, as I had done for others, and was considering who's portrait it would be, when I discovered a book in the library about Vigee Le Brun. Female artists were not common in her time, and her story is compelling, especially for me as an artist. She painted a number of self-portraits, so finding one that she did at an age close to mine became the perfect fit. 
So now that I have read about her life and painted her work, I really can't say that I know what it would have been like to be in her place, but at least I have an idea of what I would have looked like to be in her place. Fascinating stuff for sure. 

Annie With a Pearl Earring

In this classic portrait, I have painted my daughter, Annie, into Jan (Johannes) Vermeer's masterful work, Girl With a Pearl Earring. The original was done in oils, but I have done it in watercolor. To see this painting as a work in progress throughout its many stages, see my Facebook Page, from January 14 to 23. I am looking forward to doing more classic portraits, and sometimes my mind races thinking up the possibilities.

Chiko and Tina

This is the second commission I donated to the Chilliwack SPCA at their annual Paws For a Cause event. It was awarded to Roz Miller for her successful fundraising efforts last year for this worthy cause . Her chihuahua and dachshund, both rescues, posed beautifully for Roz's excellent reference photo, making this portrait a special joy to paint. I really like the high contrast lighting, and the contrasting brilliance on white and black fur. To see this painting in its earlier stages as a work in progress, and Roz receiving this award, see my Facebook Page entries dated from January 7 to January 13. 

The Classic Portrait

Do you admire someone from history? Is there an era that you would like to see yourself in? If you went to a costume party, who would you go as? Recently I got inspired to try painting portraits with a historical twist by putting contemporary people, portrait commissions, into fascinating settings. I love to paint what I see and capture the details, so  it was a thrill to copy the work of an old master into a modern portrait. I see it as a way to honor the original artist, and as a way for my modern subject to honor someone from history. Take Art, my husband, for example. He has a special admiration for Reformation theologian and scholar William Tyndale (1494 - 1536). He chose to be painted into this black and white portrait painted by an unknown artist in the 1530s as a way to pay homage to a great man. Can you see yourself in a classic painting?

Schatzy

Every September, the SPCA in B.C. holds its annual main fund raising event, the popular walkathon Paws for a Cause. While significant funds are raised this way, other volunteer SPCA advocates are busy on their own raising awareness and considerable revenue throughout the year. I was asked by Chilliwack SPCA manager, Ivanna Ferris, if I would donate pet portrait gift certificates as part of the annual award package to this area's two top fundraisers, to be presented at Paws for a Cause. It was, therefore, a privilege to help honor Juanita with this portrait of her sweet little Schatzy. Thank you SPCA for the important work you do, and thank you Juanita and others for helping make this possible.

Garden Tour

Every year in June the Rotary Club of Chilliwack puts on a garden tour featuring especially amazing yards and gardens of area residents. I had a great time getting photo references of roses and all manner of fabulous garden views from about a dozen or so very different gardens. Now I can paint summer gardens all year long if I like. This landscape is taken from a very special property high atop Chilliwack Mountain overlooking the Fraser River. The painting is small for this much detail, only 8x10", and was my second attempt at gouache. It has been such a long time since I painted an outdoor scene, and I was surprised by how similar it looks in style to my watercolour landscapes. This time I painted on cold pressed watercolour paper which I found to be easier to work on than the smooth surfaced mat board that I used on the gouache horse.

Squirty

This horse, called Squirty, is leased and ridden by my sister Elaine who is taking lessons (and doing very well). If he looks at all familiar, scroll down and check out the previous post, which was painted from the same photo. While the last painting was done in gouache, this one was done in watercolour. I wanted to be able to compare the two media with the same image. A couple of changes here, however, is that I chose to include the bridle that I omitted with the gouache, and I gave the background a more realistic colour. The vivid blue of the gouache was intentional, used to bring out the horse's colour. There is a lot more detail in this one, that I wasn't able to get with the gouache, but then I'm new to gouache and have lots to learn.

Gouache

Recently, I started experimenting with a kind of paint new to me, called gouache. It has been around for centuries, but as with casein, was largely overlooked by fine artists when acrylic paint came along a few decades ago.  It could be called opaque watercolour, since it is a very similar product, but has been made to cover or overlap the layer beneath. This painting was my first attempt at gouache (and of a horse), and posed some interesting challenges. Not only would it cover areas needing improvement, but it also inadvertently covered up some of the good parts as well. I found myself loosing my way and having to retrace my steps and redo areas repeatedly. Still, it was a fun experience overall, and I went back to my art store a couple more times to get more colours while their sale continued.
Compare this to the next horse painting.

Colorful Kitten

This kitten went through some interesting stages before completion. I chose the image from a royalty-free photo image site online as I needed a subject to demonstrate my painting ability at an SPCA fund raising event. For some time now, I've been using an under painting technique similar to that used by oil painters, called glazing. I could simply paint this brown and grey kitten brown and grey, but the fur becomes so much richer if I start with other colors first, such as in this case, blues, mauves and pinks. I got some comments from curious onlookers who must have assumed that I had a pretty unique take on reality! In hindsight, I ought to have taken some pictures of the earlier stages to show how very differently this painting started out. 
And then there was that ear, the larger one in the foreground; it seems that every painting teaches me something. Working in a public setting, I was bound to get distracted, and so I did when using a particularly staining green background pigment. Later I saw that the green had seeped into the ear area, and was there forever. This wasn't and area where colorful glazing was going to work.

Lesson 1. Don't use staining pigments when you might get distracted!

I was able to cover the problem with a bleedproof white gouache product, sort of like white-out for artists. I would only use this in emergencies, and don't use it very often, but how great to have it on hand for times like this. I was able to paint over it, and now I can't even tell where the trouble area was.

Lesson 2. Watercolor mistakes CAN be corrected!

Paint and learn, paint and learn...............

Alina's First

In keeping with the format of my grandson's portrait, Sylvan's First, I did this smaller (6" x 8") companion piece for his sister, my first granddaughter, Alina Rose. One year old already! Again, I wanted to include myself in the portrait to express more than a close up of this special baby, but rather to emphasize our relationship. An exceptionally good natured child, Alina often lights up a room with her smile, although in this painting, she is much more subdued. This pose is taken from a composite of photos taken by her mother while I was reading a picture book. Either Alina had a serious look of concentration as she studied the new book's illustrations, or I had that awkward look of someone in the middle of saying something! She was nearly 10 months old at the time. 

My Sweet Pie

Of all the pets that I have painted, for nearly 15 years, Friskey was my favorite special friend. I am surprised that it took me this long to finally paint her. She was a close companion especially in that we shared a great love of books, she being an enthusiastic book sitter. This made reading rather awkward, but we did spend a lot of time together in that old wing back chair. She could be counted on to find the best sun beam, and had the most soothing maternal purr. Her son, the orange tabby Orville, has made his way into several of my paintings, including Journeys Through Bookland, and Catnap in China. Doing this painting brought back a lot of memories, and I do miss my old friend, my Sweet Pie.

Jenny

Jenny is our 11 year old rescued greyhound who we have had for three years. A track winner in her day, she can still run faster than most dogs if she wants to. But she doesn't want to. A trip to the off leash dog park will finding her schmoozing with the people, while the other dogs run and play. I had her certified with St Johns Ambulance as a therapy dog, and for a year and a half made we made weekly visits to a seniors home where she was a good fit. She is a senior herself, after all. It is not commonly known what an excellent pet greyhounds make. They are especially quiet, gentle and make few demands of your time. In spite of their reputation as performance athletes, they are not at all high strung, nor do they require huge amounts of exercise. One of the oldest breeds, they have proven their value as a companion to man. If you are interested in learning more about greyhounds, look for books by Cynthia Branigan, such as Adopting the Racing Greyhound.  Her website here tells more. We adopted Jenny from GRA in Ontario.

Seasons of Fruit

As with January Fruit, this painting was several months in the making, nearly spanning all four seasons.  Although I am happy with the results, compared with the one on 300 lb paper, this 140 lb (thinner paper) one took a lot more effort at every stage of the process. Perhaps more beginners would stay with watercolor if they started out on the thicker, easier to use 300 lb paper. A thought.  Both half finished paintings were put aside, however as we embarked on a major cross country move, from Ontario after 15 years back to B.C., my home province. As the dust settles, I find myself returning to painting pets......

January Fruit

In the spirit of experimentation, I decided to do two very similar paintings: the same plate of fruit staged with the same winter sunlight, painted with the same pigments. The big difference would be the paper. Watercolor paper comes in different thicknesses, or weights, and textures. The one I prefer (300 lb cold pressed) costs considerably more than the more commonly used 140 lb. Since I still had a stash of 140 lb tucked away, I though I'd better make an effort to like the stuff enough to use it up at least. How different was it, really, from the other kind? By painting the images at the same time with all things being equal, I would find out. The plan was to paint a little on one, and then while that one was drying, I'd paint a similar passage on the other. It started out that way, but before long this one had taken a strong lead, getting way ahead of the other. Like anything requiring a lot of concentration, I get into the 'zone' and the momentum just carries me along. It would be several months before either painting would be completed, since I was about to have yet another moving experience. This one, by the way, was done on my much preferred 300 lb paper.

Insulators

These are from my collection of old (antique)? electrical insulators. I love the imperfections in the glass, and how they look in a sunny window. Like this. I have about twelve or so, and no two are exactly the same. I chose a pretty complicated subject, what with the crocheted tablecloth silhouetted  behind the glass and all. And yes, it was time consuming! Not the best choice for trying out a new painting surface. Here I have experimented with illustration board instead of my usual watercolor paper. It handled differently, but worked out in the end. But now its back to good old Arches 300 lb 100% cotton rag cold-pressed watercolor paper. It is good to try new things. And its good to come home too. Learn more about the history and value of insulators here.

Ordinary Treasures

Isn't it something how light and shadow can turn the ordinary into something extraordinary? These are the tools in my kitchen, in the pottery jar that holds them at the ready beside my stove. They are common, simple, utilitarian. But look what happens to them when they are given a chance to shine. This is what I love to do as an artist - have the viewer see something simple in a whole new way; a whole new light. I know that I for one, view these tools differently now when I see them in my kitchen. I am reminded of  their moment of glory.