Porcelain and Pears

Porcelain and Pears   Oil   8 x 10  SOLD

This is another piece from my Eastern Aesthetic series of blue and white porcelain. It was a small work that I painted for my Studio Tour.  It was a popular piece over that weekend, and ended up going to new home. The lovely couple who bought it have taken painting classes from me, so I was very happy that it went to a good home with people I know and enjoy. Our paintings are almost like our pets! 

Porcelain and Pears

Still Life with Pears

Where's the Brie?  8 x 8  Oil  -  Available at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria

Hello everyone! Yes, it's been quite a while since I posted. I'm at a very busy time in my life and I'm choosing what I can fit into each day, so unfortunately posting hasn't made the list lately, but let's see how I do over the next while. I have to say I've missed all of you supportive artists out there, and especially seeing what all of you have been producing. There is so much talent and beautiful artwork on your blogs. I especially want to thank Hilda Muxo who has kindly checked in on me more than once, to make sure everything was okay and to say she missed me. How special is that when we've never formally met?!

This small painting is one of three juried into the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria's Summer Small Works Show. There are over 80 local artists showing in all genre's and styles. It's always a wonderful show well supported by the art lovers of  Victoria.

My husband just retired, and to celebrate we are going on a two month trip including Hong Kong, Australia and Indonesia. I'm just in the process of trying to decide what to take for creating art while I'm there. Because we're going to be moving around and flying quite a bit, I'm thinking ink and watercolour in a sketch pad. I haven't done ink and watercolour in hmmm.....more than 30 years!! But that medium used to be one of my favourite means of artistic expression, so I think I'll try it out.

Still Life with Pears

Red Pears and Hazel Nuts

Red Pears and Hazel Nuts    8 x 8   Oil   SOLD

This is a small still life I completed a while back, and because I had trouble photographing it, I hadn't posted it yet. The colour of the pears came out much brighter and more saturated than in the painting and when I tried to colour correct, it changed the other areas of the painting too dramatically. In any case, the painting in real life was appreciated by someone who attended my recent Studio Tour and it's gone off to a new home. :-)

Red Pears and Hazel Nuts

Bowl of Mandarines

Bowl of Mandarins  Oil on Linen  8 x 8  NFS

I finished this little painting yesterday, and it wasn't until I posted it, that I realized I don't like the dark background. It's too harsh  and cold, with the warm soft colours of the foreground. So I will go back into it and make some changes to the background, and then repost once I've made those changes. I think maybe a subdued wallpaper, or kitchen tiles. Any ideas for the changes?

Bowl of Mandarines

A Krafty Pair

Original Oil on Linen 8 x 8

I have an old cheese box that was apparently used as a mold for making Kraft Cheddar Cheese. It's definitely a muse for me. I've painted it with a number of supporting actors. I also love painting Red Anjou pears, as the colours go from deep rich reds into paler versions with undertones of ochres. These ones were the paler version. I really loved how the light was hitting the top and left side of the box and reflecting off of the pears. I'll be showing this painting and the one below, along with several more still life paintings and some west coast landscapes, at the TD Art Gallery Paint In this Saturday. I'll be demonstrating still life painting and will have a station set up for anyone who would like to take a moment to paint with me. Then I'll hang your painting across the top of my market tent for the remainder of the day, and you can pick it up toward the end of the Paint-In. If you're in the area, I'd love to see you and chat, and of course spend a few minutes painting with you.

I've been having a very hectic life recently and haven't been getting in nearly enough painting time. We have visitors from France for the next month, but I do hope to get in some plein air painting and post those.

A Bunch of Hotties

I'm reposting this one, as the picture is so much better than the first one I posted. I'm sometimes a little photography challenged. In fact, what improved this one is a layer of varnish which brought back all the darks. Oh the challenges we face!

A Krafty Pair

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

Fallen

Original Oil on Canvas 8 x 8 SOLD

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I've been away from painting for a while due to the holidays. I hope you all enjoyed your celebrations with family and friends. We had a wonderful Christmas with all the family in Vancouver, which made it really special. So to get back into things, I decided to choose a subject I was familiar with - Red Anjou Pears, and decided to concentrate on edges and brushwork. After a bit of frustration and feeling it was a too tight, I took a paintbrush and just made some bold strokes and messed some edges, and then I liked it a whole lot more!I'm really pleased with the values of the reflections on the shadow sides of the front and right pears. Those can be tricky, but I think I captured them. So now the dry spell is broken, and for the rest of my time off, I'm going to look forward to painting each day. Please take a moment to say hi because I've missed you!

Fallen

Pear Hug

Original Oil on Linen  8 x 8  $95 

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Merry Christmas Everyone! I didn't have a Partridge in a Pear Tree so I decided to send a little love and do a Pear Hug. I'm having fun playing with these dark backgrounds, and edges. I liked how the pear on the right was almost completely in shadow. These were extremely red pears, giving it a bit of a Christmas feel. The wooden crate is one of my favorite props. It's a vintage pop crate - "Canada Dry". I'll have to try to get more of it into one of these paintings. Have a wonderful holiday season with your families. Talk to you soon!

Pear Hug

More Christmas Small Works at the AGGV

Sweet n' Spicey  6 x 6  

A-pear-antly Red  6 x 6

I'm happy to report that my two paintings Three's a Crowd and Tempting, that are part of the Christmas Small Works Show at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, posted November 22, have been sold! So I've been invited to submit two more and these are my new submissions. If you are interested in either of these paintings they are both framed and are $125 each and can be purchased through the AGGV 

 Also, after receiving such kind and supportive comments from you on my last post Ford Cove - Hornby Island, I realized I hadn't told the whole story about this painting. I'm sorry this photo is so dark, but it gives you the idea.

This painting was selected for the Vancouver Island Art Calendar 2009, and was the image for the month of December. The calendar was produced by the Rotary Club to raise funds for their humanitarian program - ShelterBox. These ShelterBoxes are sent into areas where natural disasters etc. have displaced people from their homes. These large green plastic boxes contain a 10 person tent, water filter system, a special portable burner that will operate on any fuel - even paraffin, tools, cooking and eating utensils, school supplies - all of the essentials for a family of 10 to survive for at least 6 months. They have been sent to places like Myanmar, China and Haiti.  I was  very proud and honoured to be part of this fund raiser, and managed to sell enough calendars to fund the purchase of one entire ShelterBox.

An amazing thing about the program is that if you purchase a ShelterBox, you can track it online and know when and where it is sent to aid people in need.

More Christmas Small Works at the AGGV

Christmas Small Works Show at the AGGV

 Three's a Crowd - SOLD

Tempting - SOLD

These two paintings are part of the Christmas Small Works Show at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria. It opened on Friday and if you haven't made it there yet because of the cold snowy weather, do try to make it there soon as there are many wonderful pieces by over 60 of Victoria's well known artists. To view the information on the show click here.

Thanks to everyone who sent their good wishes for the Oak Bay Art Studio Tour that took place this past weekend. We had icy cold weather with high winds at times, but the snow held until today, which came in the form of a white out! So we were very lucky during the weekend. Although we had smaller crowds than usual, those who did come were serious art viewers, who were very interested in the art, my process and inspiration and they were all a pleasure to welcome into my home. So all in all it was a success! I'm taking a few days off to relax after the weekend, and then I'll be back painting and posting again. Talk to you then!

Christmas Small Works Show at the AGGV

A Pear - ently Red

Original Oil Painting on stretched Linen  6 x 6 - SOLD
Currently Showing at the Christmas Small Works Show
Art Gallery of Greater Victoria

 I'm really into painting these rich red Anjou pears.  I love the gorgeous sculptural form of pears and the colour of these Red Anjous is just so inspiring. I think it was faster to paint than it was to name. My two kids were in hysterics coming up with all kinds of crazy names, and finally I had to just stop the madness and I went with my daughters first serious suggestion. It was a fun family moment!

A Pear - ently Red

Tempting

Currently showing at The Art Gallery of Greater Victoria

I just love these Red Anjou pears. The colours and form are so inspiring to paint. I got a bit of glare in the photo but I haven't figured out how to avoid that with the darks in oil paintings yet. If anyone has any tips please let me know.

Tempting

Three's a Crowd

Currently showing at The Art Gallery of Greater Victoria

I haven't done a still life from real life in a few weeks because I've been working on my Beach House series and some landscape pieces. I find painting still life to be a totally different feel from landscapes. It feels quite intense, focusing on the light and form of the objects and trying to see each variation in colour and temperature. It's fun but hard! The photo is a bit darker than the painting because I had to photograph after work and the light wasn't optimal. I tried to lighten it but it became too contrasty. But I think you get the idea. 

Three's a Crowd

Chez Monette

Chez Monette
Acrylic on Exhibition Canvas   24 x 24  $600 + s/h


I'm really pleased to be part of the Autumn Show 2010 in the Victoria Airport Arrivals and Departures Lounge. I received lots of feedback on the last show that featured my Jazz Series. This new show will feature some of my Still Life paintings. I haven't been able to see the shows because I'm not traveling so I don't have authorization to enter the area. Darn!

I enjoy painting the sculptural, sensual forms of pears and I really love painting textiles. In this case the textile was a lace edged linen tablecloth. The embroidery was quite complicated and I thought how am I going to simplify that? So I really squinted the whole time I was painting the lace edge and tried to capture values, rather than trying to recreate the actual pattern of the embroidery. I wasn't sure if it was going to work, and I had one of those 'please don't wreck this painting' moments, but in the end I was really pleased with the effect. So I highly recommend squinting! I'll post another one or two of the Airport paintings over the next few days.

Chez Monette

Red Anjou

Red Anjous   Acrylic on  Linen  $65

I had fun with this little painting. The pears and the fabric were quite close in colour. I was using a daylight painting lamp which made all the colours and nuances looked great. Then I took it out from under the daylight lamp and all the variances in colour disappeared. I had to go back in and really push the highlights so that picture would read properly in regular lighting. It was a learning experience, using a painting lamp while working in evening light.

Red Anjou

Golden Pears

Golden Pears   Acrylic on  Linen  $65

I had a great time painting this little picture. The pears were quite bumpy and full of personality, which showed up well with the lighting. I've just started working on these small paintings, which take about two hours to complete. I'm hoping to work in this format regularly to sharpen my painting skills. 

 

Golden Pears