Sweet Treat

Original Oil on Linen 8 x 8

I had so much fun with the first painting of Bartlett pears that I decided to do another. I'm pleased with the glow again, and prefer the looseness of the brushstrokes in this one.


Tonight I'm going to the Artists' Reception for the CNIB Eye Appeal Art Fundraiser, at Crystal Garden. I donated a painting to this worthy cause. As visual artists it's hard to imagine a life with either limited or no sight. I hope the fundraiser is a great success. The artists' event will be an entertaining evening, chatting with many of Victoria's artists.

Sweet Treat

Harvest

Original Oil on Linen 8 x 8

I hope you all had a very Happy Easter with family and friends. After last weekend with the Studio Tour, I was very happy to sit back and relax. I did manage to get a little painting in though.

I saw these Bartlett pears at the store and loved the rosy glow on the gold. They looked so sun kissed. I decided to place them on an old pop crate that I have, and it reminded me of harvest on the farm. For this one I was concentrating on creating the glowing light on the pears, and on brushwork. Trying to keep it loose and say it in less.

Harvest

Oak Bay Artists' Studio Tour

What a wonderful weekend and Studio Tour! The weather was sunny and many very friendly art lovers visited my studio over the two afternoons. One visitor was a great friend who I had lost touch with and hadn't seen in 15 years! I was so excited and busy talking that I forgot to take a picture! This is a photo of me in my dining room with some of my west coast scenes.


These two happy partons said they had just bought a new home and I'm honoured to have my paintings grace their walls.

I asked if people minded if I took some photos and they quickly scattered into other rooms and out of sight, so the following pictures are not animated with viewers, but it gives an idea of the show.

Here's the living room. It was a circle tour of the main floor of the house. Through the living room, dining room, kitchen, hallway and back along to the entrance. Paintings were hung on all the walls throughout. In all there were just over 50 paintings, from 6 x 6 up to 48 x 48.



Where ever there was a small section of wall, I made a grouping of complimentary paintings.

You're now wondering just how many holes I have in my walls. :-) We've put picture rail in the living room and will soon have throughout.


It was a lot of work to prepare for the tour, because I always garden, pot plants, and mega clean, (my family wants to run and hide) but it's always rewarding. The atmosphere is very relaxed and the visitors include other artists who want to ask about my process, art buyers connect, and people who just plain love art, are thrilled with the opportunity to talk to me about my work and inspiration. It's a great well attended community event!

Oak Bay Artists' Studio Tour

Autumn Escape

Acrylic on Textured Canvas 30 x 40 $1200

I've had the busiest couple of months doing lots of organization for shows coming up throughout this year. I've been submitting for entrance into shows, helping to apply for a grant for the Bowker Creek Brush Up Art Show and Sale in August, and I've been varnishing and framing like a crazy woman! As well I've been suffering from Blog Withdrawal and thinking that I'd be forgotten, when two of my blogging buddies, Virginia Floyd and Lorraine Shirkus, sent me kind messages checking in on me. Thanks ladies you really made my day!

This weekend is the Oak Bay Artists' Spring Studio Tour. I've spent the last few weeks preparing for the show by painting this larger version of a smaller piece I did called Country Road. When I completed Country Road I immediately thought that it was an image that could easily be much larger. So I went to a 30 x 40 canvas, and textured it with molding paste. I'm quite happy with the results, and when I compare the two, I prefer the brushstrokes of the smaller piece. But they both have their merits and I feel equally happy with them.

I have just finished hanging my show, and standing back and looking at it, I can honestly say it's my best Studio Tour Show to date. I have over 50 paintings, from 6 x 6 up to 30 x 40, in oils and acrylics, featuring still life and west coast scenes. It is the culmination of one full year of blogging, the goal of which was to push myself to improve my craft. I see so much personal growth as I look at all these paintings. This year I learned to paint with oils (I'm still learning), I experimented a lot with brushwork and edges, and I can definitely see and feel improvement in my craft. I absolutely love that! I also love how great blogging is, as a sharing forum and making friends with artists who I have only met online, but who I feel connected with.

Now that I'm starting my second year of blogging, I'm going to launch a blog project, starting soon (if only the weather would warm up). But first I'll be posting an interview with my good friend, portrait artist Manon Elder, who has an impressive exhibit at the Provincial Museum here in Victoria. I'll look forward to sharing her story with you. Talk to you soon!

Autumn Escape

Naptime

Original Oil on Linen 11 x 14 $275

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It feels like quite a while since I posted. I've been preparing submissions for a variety of shows and events running through the summer, and am still preparing for the Oak Bay Artists' Studio Tour coming up on April 16th and 17th. It's been a very busy time, but I managed to get back to the easel and paint these cute little boats. The Gulf Islands are full of images like this, so I've photographed many boats turned upside down. They always look to me like they've come up on land to take a nap.

Naptime