Forest Pathway

If the weather truly turns out great –I will have a
small installation set up outside to highlight my limited edition artist book “Memories of the Forest”.  It is a mixed media piece comprised of original artwork, photography and text on the themes of war, exile and the concept of “home”.

On a lighter note, there will also be a colourful children’s book available for viewing titled “As The Butterfly Lay in the Grass”, a digital art creation
with original story and text suitable for children under the age of 5.

People have asked me in the past how to hang the outdoor paintings that are painted on birch wood.  I always have a cache of flush mount brackets available to demonstrate and include them in the purchase of the painting.

Putting the finishing touches on a few pieces–hope to see you this weekend!

Artbomb is curated by Andrea Car­son, founder and pub­lisher of one of Canada’s most widely read cul­ture blogs, viewoncanadianart.com.  I highly recommend subscribing in order to keep up to date on the Canadian art scene.

You can also view the complete Black & White Panel series on my website.

The weather is already feeling like May which is highly unusually for this time of year.  I distinctly feel that I should be getting ready for the North Toronto Group of Artists (NTGA) Spring Studio Tour which usually happens in early May –sort of like waking up on a Saturday and realizing that you don’t really have to get up quite yet!   I have been involved with this great group of local artists for the past four years and am planning to convert my backyard into a temporary gallery space with a possible installation piece in the works along with my outdoor paintings. For more details you can check out the NTGA website for the brochure and map details.

I am already taking advantage of the warm weather and painting outdoors again.  I am back at work on my home series and working on three different paintings. I am also beginning some experimentation with polyester plate lithography on the canvas in combination with the paint. Lots of work to do before May comes!

While these works began an exercise in setting limits (given my love of colour) I became involved in the relationship between the the two colours and how they drove my sense of composition rather that deciding on the direction of the composition first–the movement of the paint and the merging of the tonalities dictated what direction to go in. They have an “in the moment” feel and yet are detailed and nuanced at the same time.

View the complete Black & White Panel Series to see for yourself.

three hours on the meaning of a box

metaphorical

literal

virtual

nonsense

present your musings on video by Friday

Stretch your mind, stretch your boundaries but not over the age of 30.…..too late.…need latte now.….

pay bills.….focus on boxes later.……

2012 has just arrived and with it came the usual articles and media discussions on the “best” of 2011 etc. One interesting radio piece (on CBC Radio Q) had an in depth discussion of culture in general and how nothing is new anymore. We are in a cultural rut, so to speak, where nothing original is being created anymore—just a rehashing of old ideas, fashions, music, art –you name it, it has already been thought of and/or done.

One of the most original, inventive eras that the human race has ever experienced is right under our nose/staring us in the face and that is the technological revolution that we are caught up in and we are right in the thick of it. We don’t even yet know or can predict what the full implications of these advances will mean but it has already changed the realms of the social, political and economic on a global scale. It has affected our personal and public lives and changed the way we relate to each other and ourselves. If that is not original I don’t know what is…it is so seismic in scope and predominates everything, that it is no surprise that other aspects of popular culture fade into the background.

Art has always reflected the social, political and economic times of its making and we are seeing the integration and reflection of this technology revolution in digital media, traditional media, photography etc. Just look at the course calendar from OCAD (Ontario College of Art & Design) to see the changes. Incremental shifts in style, culture, music are significant and tell a story but one has to step back from it to recognize the seismic shifts underlying it. Ironicially, the very “rehashing” of old ideas is a necessary process and requires that very originality and inventiveness that created it in the first place. Identifying that kernel of authenticity and viewing it in a different light that makes it relevant to a new audience is vital.

Challenging myself in my studio practice with new techniques, media and ideas is a priority for myself this new year. Sometimes being in a rut simply means a fallow period where significant changes need to be absorbed and considered before the next new art movement, fashion icon appears—and it will certainly appear. But first, get me that latte.…

I have been focusing on my black and white panels this week–out of the fourteen panels I started with I feel I have seven good ones that are now completed.  I have been working on a few groupings with different approaches–one set of three have been poured and manipulated while another grouping has been done in palette knife.  The next grouping grew out of the  idea of scraping back to gain texture and interest in the tonality ranges and will hopefully been done this week…

Since today is Claude Monet’s birthday I thought this was the perfect quote to start the day. I read it last week in a weekly newsletter sent out by  Robert Genn which is always informative. It reminds all of us involved in artistic endeavours that art must come from the soul and even Monet had his tough moments.  This painting is one of my daughter’s favourites (it is so hard to choose just one!)

I leave you with another relevant quote from Mozart that complements this line of thought: “Neither a lofty degree of intelligence nor imagination nor both together go to the making of genius. Love, love, love, that is the soul of genius.”

Two abstract/impressionistic paintingsof the prairies emerged within a week of each other this Fall.  Along with “Sunset Into Night” which was posted in my last blog entry, I also completed “Canola Gold” (40″ x 60″ Acrylic on Canvas) the same week.

The memory of the colour of the spring/summer canola against the clear blue prairie sky was in my mind as the painting took shape.  To see the entire Home Series “Neither Here Nor There” you can view my Home Series Gallery and my Installation Gallery.

— I worked on my cement pad and poured my paints as the squirrels looked at me and the leaves fell down. I completed a forest installation on one aspect of the series last year which was very satisfying. Now I am focusing on the impressionistic idea of prairie

This new painting is 40″ x 60″ and titled “From Sunset Into Night”.

The Yonge Lawrence BIA is promoting Artwalk 2011 where local businesses are partnered with a local artist and their work is displayed for approximately two weeks leading up to the NTGA Fine Art Show.  People can vote for their favorite window through the Young Lawrence BIA website.  Papermarche is displaying my birch series until the end of October.

Birch series at Papermarche