Peaceful Lake - A Work in Progress

This is a drawing of Chemong Lake just before the inlet where my friend Heather lives.

I have to decide whether I would like to have this painting an early morning scene, an evening scene or sometime during the day.

I will post this painting at a later date once I have made my decision and put in the under painting.

Thank you for looking at my artwork.

Old Birch I

This is a drawing of an old birch tree in one of the lower fields near Snelgrove Brook at the back of the property.


















It did not manage to survive the winter and next month we will take it down and use it for firewood.

This original 4-1/2" x 4-1/2" pen and ink drawing when matted and shrink wrapped will be available for $25.00.

OSWOA - Flowing Colours I

Today I just felt like playing with colour. I used cobalt blue, permanent rose and aureolin for my three primary colours as a base.

Each colour in its pure form was put on the paper starting with the yellow, then the red and finally the blue. The painting was set aside and allowed to dry.

I used burnt sienna as an accent colour to paint in a few lines in order to create a little more movement in the painting. I am pleased with the results and may try this again as a larger painting.

If you would like more information about OSWOA please go to my post on 12 March 2010.

The OSWOA shown here is an original watercolour painting using Artist quality Windsor & Newton paint on 140 lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $40.00 and sold unframed.

ACEO - Forest Reflections 2

I have about 60 acres (24.3 hectares) of wetland and mixed hard and softwood forest on my property with the Snelgrove Brook running through the back portion.

Often the edge of the forest close to the wetland has a lot of water in among the trees which reflects their image back.

If you would like more information about ACEO please go to my post on 11 March 2010.

The ACEO shown here is an original watercolour painting using Artist quality Windsor & Newton paint on 140lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $20.00 and sold unframed.

Stormy Sky I - A Work in Progress

Around this area there is a lot of wetland along the Miller Creek system, which gives a natural habitat for a wide variety of wildlife.

Many kinds of birds abound on the Snelgrove Brook at the back part of my property.












I am amazed at the number of ducks, geese and swans that return to nest every year; together with herons, kingfishers and ospreys that can often be seen hunting for food and the various song birds nesting among the cattails.

This painting is of a heron that frequents a section of the Brook on my property. I saw him one day with a storm rolling in from the east.

I will post this painting when I have finished adding the storm clouds into the sky.

Spring on the Farm I

This is one of the local horse farms and this morning they had a mare with a new born foal out in the front field.

I stopped to take a couple of photographs and do this quick sketch.










Perhaps at a later date I will do a watercolour painting from my sketch.

Spring on the Farm I is an original 3" x 4-1/4" matted and shrink wrapped pen and ink drawing available for $30.00.

By the Window - A Work in Progress

Today I was painting with the Outdoor Painters Group and we had a pot luck lunch at Merriday's home.

There was a vase of flowers by the window just off the kitchen and I liked the way the sun touched the vase of flowers.

Since it was fairly late in the day I decided to do a fairly loose painting to capture what I saw there.

I will post this painting at a later date once it is completed.

Old Barn I

I didn't have much time to work on art today so I thought I would like to finish up this little 3" x 6" pen and ink drawing.

Old Barn I is available, matted and shrink wrapped for $30.00.

Poppies and Fence Post - A Work in Progress

While at the Shades of Summer show I spent some time working on drawings of poppies. This is the finished drawing for a new painting of poppies growing at the base of a fence post.

I saw a scene similar to this along Highway 507 toward the end of June and though t it would make a lovely painting.

I will post this painting at a later date after I put in the background washes of sky and greenery.

St Peter's on-the-Rock - A Work in Progress

I was going through some older photographs and came across pictures that I had taken of  'Church on the Rock' a number of years ago when the Buckhorn Artists' Group had a paint out at Helen's and she took us out in the boat for a tour of the lake.

St. Peter's on-the-Rock Anglican Church is on a small island on Stoney Lake in the Kawartha Lakes tourist area of Ontario.

The Church is open from May to September and this charming place of worship is only accessible by boat.

Once I was satisfied with my drawing of the church I transferred it to my watercolour paper. I then masked out the Church first with white painter's tape rather than liquid frisket as it is all pretty much square shapes and I wanted to draw on the tape where the open door and windows would be so I could match up the reflections in the water.

Using French ultramarine blue I washed in the sky and then brushed a slightly darker mixture into the area of water. While the paint was still wet I lifted some of the reflections of the church with a dry brush.

Since the photographs were taken in September the colours on the deciduous trees had started to change. I put them in fairly softly with various mixtures of French ultramarine blue, raw sienna, burnt sienna and alizarin crimson. Using vertical strokes I put their reflections into the water as well.

With a mixture of burnt sienna and a touch of alizarin crimson I painted in the rock reflections and a couple of rocks that were showing above the water. Adding a little French ultramarine blue to the rock mixture I brushed in the window and door reflections.

Mixing up a dark green from French ultramarine blue and raw sienna I placed in the pine tree reflections before the water area could completely dry. With a slightly stronger mixture I indicated some of the pine trees.

I then removed the tape from the church and started a started putting in some of the dark areas like the roof and windows and with a lighter wash started adding the shadows and various details to the building.

I will post this painting at a later date once I have more of it completed.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and look at the artwork.

Crossing the Stream I

This is a scene I have often observed in the pasture as the horses cross the stream on their way back to the barn.











It is a good sketch for a future painting. I just have to decide on the medium, the season and the colour of the horse.

This is an original 5" x 9” framed, pen and ink painting available for $165.00.

Changing Colour - A Work in Progress

It won't be long before school starts and the trees change from their summer greens to the golds and reds of autumn.

I put in a soft morning sky in pales burnt sienna; it seems to give warmth to the painting.

Background hills were painted in as was the green of the foreground grass and left to dry before the middle ground pine trees were added.

It looked a little too plan with just the pine trees so I used a little China white and added a birch tree. The leaves are cadmium yellow light which is a fairly opaque paint and will cover most other colours.

I am still not happy with this painting and will do some more work on it at a later date and post it once it is completed.

Birch Forest - A Work in Progress

Today I worked with a limited palette of three colours, French ultramarine blue, burnt sienna and raw sienna.

I used pure raw sienna a washed in a background colour across all of the board.

Then adding French ultramarine blue and burnt sienna in various mixtures to the raw sienna I painted in background tree shapes. While the paint was still wet using the end of a brush I scraped out birch tree shapes.

Using various mixtures of French ultramarine blue and burnt sienna I painted in the area that I wanted to have my rocks and then scraped the shape out with a palette knife.

I will post this painting at a later date once I have added the markings on the birch trees and some leaves.

Buckhorn Artists' Group - Update

Today I updated the Buckhorn Artists' Group blog with a few details about what happened during the Shades of Summer Art Show and Sale.

Please go to the site and enjoy pictures of some of the paintings that were exhibited at the show.

Autumn Breeze - A Work in Progress

Today I decided that I would work in acrylic paint and thin it down to use in the same manner as I would a watercolour.

I used a limited palette of French ultramarine blue and burnt sienna. I washed the entire board with a pale mixture of both colours.

Darkening the colour slightly I brushed in some background tree shapes. While the paint was still wet I lightened some areas to create a misty effect.

Adding a little more burnt sienna to the mixture I painted in a few closer tree trunks and again while the paint was still wet removed some areas for the mist.

With a darker thicker mixture of the two colours I painted in a solid layer of colour and using a palette knife I scraped out the rock shapes.

With the same dark mixture I painted in the foreground trees and added a few leaves with various mixtures of burnt sienna and French ultramarine blue.

The painting still needs a little more work and I will post later once it is completed.

Ablaze with Colour - A Work in Progress

Even though it is still summer it won't be long before the leaves start to change colour.

This is an area up near Burleigh Falls that I started in October when a group from KAGS went with Neil Broadfoot to paint the area.

I pulled this sketch out and did a little more work on the background and the water reflections. Some of the trees still need more work and I will post this painting once it is completed.

Thank you for coming to look at my artwork.

OSWOA - Over the Hill 1

This was an exercise in a colour and composition class I took with Neil Broadfoot earlier this year.

For this exercise we created seven pieces with the same beginning and then had to create a painting whether abstract, impressionism or realism.

I turned my first attempt into a landscape of hills going off in the distance from the top of a rock ledge.

After leaving the painting alone for a while, when I came back and looked at it I decided that it was missing something.

I added the two sight seers onto the top of the rock cliff.

If you would like more information about OSWOA please go to my post on 12 March 2010.

The OSWOA shown here is an original watercolour painting using Artist quality Windsor & Newton paint on 300lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $30.00 and sold unframed.

ACEO - Lone Tree 3-4

While sketching out at Burleigh Falls there were a number of old trees that had died over the winter and stood starkly against the sky.

Trees are good to study in the winter to learn the shape and form without the leaves hiding what lies beneath.

Sometimes I will do the underpainting of the tree skeleton and add leaves on top of the branches and change them from winter to spring, summer or fall colours.


Lone Tree 3

If you would like more information about ACEO please go to my post on 11 March 2010.

The ACEO shown here are all original watercolour paintings using Artist quality Windsor & Newton paint on either 140lb. or 300lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. They are priced at $20.00 each and sold unframed.

Lone Tree 4

Today was the final day of the Shades of Summer Art Show in Buckhorn. Dianne Collins sold a painting as well as some small items and small items were purchased from Lorraine Ryan.

Big Country 1

Today is my daughter's wedding day. Fortunately we have a bright and sunny day and the thunder storms they are calling for do not seem to want to appear and darken her day.










This is an original 4-1/4" x 8-1/4" framed pen and ink painting and is available for $145.00.

The art show continues with 8 originals sold from Heather Grant, Irene Smith, Diane Collins, Bonny Windover and Helen Sheppard. Small items were purchased from Tom Young and Diane Collins.

The hours for our show are:
13 Aug 11 - 9:00am - 5:00pm
14 Aug 11 - 12:30pm - 5:00pm

Looking forward to seeing you if you are able to visit our show.

Reflected Beauty - A Work in Progress

I finished transferring the sketch of wild irises reflected into the water along the Snelgrove Brook.

I will post this piece again when I have completed some of the painting.

Today was the rehearsal for my daughter's wedding and the reception was on the Liftlock Boat Cruise. It was a very enjoyable evening and I took many pictures as we went through the locks and along the river.

The art show was a little busier today with Diane Collins selling an original and JoAnne Connell Northey selling pottery. Many small items were purchased from Tom Young, Barbara MacGregor, Bonnie Windover, Lorraine Ryan and Diane Collins.

The hours for our show are:
12 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
13 Aug 11 - 9:00am - 5:00pm
14 Aug 11 - 12:30pm - 5:00pm

Looking forward to seeing you if you are able to visit our show.

Barns in Summer

This is an original 9-1/2" x 11" framed watercolour and is available for $295.00.

This is a painting I started in a workshop with Emil VARGA
(see posting 25 January 11) earlier this year.

The barn board was darkened down more and areas where the barn board was broken or missing were indicated. The shadows on the barns were strengthened to provide a little more contrast and more work was done on the barn discoloured tin on the roofs.

Fence posts were added to the foreground with fencing wire running between them to unite the entire painting.

Today at the art show 3 originals were sold from Barbara McGregor and Diane Collins. Pottery was sold by Jo-Anne Connell Northey and small items from Diane Collins.

The hours for our show are:
11 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
12 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
13 Aug 11 - 9:00am - 5:00pm
14 Aug 11 - 12:30pm - 5:00pm

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and look at the artwork. I hope you will return often.

Fire Coral

To protect the reef you are told not to come in contact with it in any way as the merest touch can kill the delicate corals.

While in Cayo Coco, Cuba a couple of years ago we were warned by the Captain of the catamaran snorkelling tour we were on to be very careful not to come in contact with the fire coral.

Fire coral has the added deterrent, that if you do come in contact with it the intense pain it causes will make you remember your carelessness for anywhere from two days to two weeks.

This is an original 18" x 22" framed acrylic painting and is available for 350.00.

Barbara MacGregor sold an original and Jo-Anne Connell Northey sold pottery.

The hours for our show are:
10 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
11 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
12 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
13 Aug 11 - 9:00am - 5:00pm
14 Aug 11 - 12:30pm - 5:00pm

Looking forward to seeing you if you are able to visit our show.

Spotted Drumfish and Coral

It was at the CoCo View Resort that I first saw a juvenile spotted drumfish and became totally enchanted with them.

These small fish have long dorsal and tail fin as juveniles which as they move brings to mind the striped ribbons rhythmic gymnasts use.

My first spotted drumfish was found on a ledge near an opening in the coral and it slowly moved back and forth across the shelf. I went back each day thereafter to visit with it until I had to return home.














This is an original 24" x 36" framed acrylic painting available for $680.00. SOLD

Today was a very slow day with only fourteen people visiting the show. There were no sales.

The hours for our show are:
09 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
10 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
11 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
12 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
13 Aug 11 -   9:00am - 5:00pm
14 Aug 11 - 12:30pm - 5:00pm

Looking forward to seeing you if you are able to visit our show.

Soft Coral

I am looking forward to going back to Roatan in December for the diving.

We stay at the CoCo View Resort. This will be my fourth time there. The next time I officially become a CoCo Nut member.

I thought working on a couple of reef paintings would be an idea.

Soft Coral is an original 12" x 24" framed acrylic painting and is available for $295.00.

It was a fairly quiet day today. Jo-Anne Connell Northey sold pottery and small items. Small items were also purchased from by Heather Grant and Diane Collins.

The hours for our show are:
08 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
09 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
10 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
11 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
12 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
13 Aug 11 - 9:00am - 5:00pm
14 Aug 11 - 12:30pm - 5:00pm

Looking forward to seeing you if you are able to visit our show.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and enjoy the artwork.

Water Droplets and Horse Eyes

There are many similarities in the way light moves through liquid and through eyes.

With a water droplet light passes through a clear fluid. The point of entry is usually a pin point highlight. The light passes through the water until it meets a solid it cannot pass through in this case a leaf. It is reflected back which gives the lighter reflected light at the bottom of the water droplet.

Even though the water droplet is clear it will still cast a shadow, which is darker than the leaf colour or the colour that the water droplet takes on through its transparency.

With the horse's eye light again passes through the eye and light reflects back which is why on the opposite side of the eye from the highlight there is the lighter area of reflected light.

Eyes are surrounded by upper and lower lids. The upper lid will often cast a shadow over the upper part of the eyeball, and the lower lid will depending on the light source have a slight cast shadow from the eyeball.

I will post both of these small studies at a later date when they are completed.

Today was a rainy day with hard downpours and thunderstorms. Although not many people attended the show Jo-Anne Connell Northey sold pottery and small items were sold by Bonnie Windover.

The hours for our show are:
07 Aug 11 - 12:30pm - 5:00pm
08 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
09 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
10 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
11 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
12 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
13 Aug 11 - 9:00am - 5:00pm
14 Aug 11 - 12:30pm - 5:00pm

Looking forward to seeing you if you are able to visit our show.

Inferno

Inferno is an original 6" x 10” framed watercolour and is available for $165.00.

Today is the first day of the 21st Annual Shades of Summer Show. The show was well attended considering the heat of the day.

An original was sold by Barbara McGregor and pottery by Jo-Anne Connell Northey. Small items were purchased from Diane Collins, Lorraine Ryan and Helen Sheppard.

The hours for our show are:
06 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
07 Aug 11 - 12:30pm - 5:00pm
08 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
09 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
10 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
11 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
12 Aug 11 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
13 Aug 11 - 9:00am - 5:00pm
14 Aug 11 - 12:30pm - 5:00pm

Looking forward to seeing you if you are able to visit our show.

Buckhorn Artists' Group Blog - Show Updates

I have updated the Buckhorn Artists' Group blog with a listing of shows some of the various artists in the Group are exhibiting their work in during the month of August.

If you get a chance come out and visit them at one or all of the shows.

Morning Romp I

I was watching a program on television about training race horses and sketched these horses.

Now I have to go and set up the panels for the 21st Annual Shades of Summer Show.










This is an original 5" x 9” matted and shrink wrapped pen and ink drawing, available for $40.00.

Thank you for coming to look at my artwork and I hope you will return often.

Evening Arrival

Evening Arrival is an original 5-1/2" x 14-1/2” framed watercolour available by contacting the artist for $225.00.

French ultramarine blue and alizarin crimson were the only colours used in this limited palette painting.

Many of the cottagers on the local lakes come up Friday night after work from their homes in the city. Some of them have cottages on the islands and can be seen in the evening taking their supplies for the weekend over by boat.

Confirmed Shows for 2011 - August

This is a listing of confirmed shows that I will be exhibiting my artwork at this year. I will update the list as more shows are added.

St Matthews Church, Buckhorn, Ont.
BuckhornArtistsGroup
06-14 Aug 21st Annual Shades of Summer Art Show

MacKelvie Gallery, Keene, Ont.
PioneerVillage
18 Aug - 06 Oct Lang Pioneer Village Museum, Keene, Ont.

Fenelon Falls Fairgrounds, Fenelon Falls, Ont.
KawarthaArtsFestival
03-04 Sep Kawartha Arts Festival

Peterborough Riverview Park Zoo, Peterborough, Ont.
IPAPO
10 Sep 9th Annual Worldwide Artist Paint Out, International Plein Air Painters Organization

Kawartha Artists’ Gallery, Peterborough, Ont.
KAGS
11-29 Sep Changes
Opening Reception 11 Sep 11 from 1-4pm.
30 Oct – 16 Nov Outdoor Painters' Group Show
Opening Reception 30 Oct 11 from 1-4pm.
04-23 Dec & 02-05 Jan 12 Christmas Show
Opening Reception 04 Dec 11 from 1-4pm.

OSWOA - The Flat Islands

I started this painting with the Outdoor Painters' Group on location on Upper Buckhorn Lake.

The two closest islands are known as "The Flat Islands" because the islands are fairly flat and less than ten feet above the water level. Sometimes in the spring they flood, but the trees and plant life cling tenaciously to the land.

If you would like more information about OSWOA please go to my post on 12 March 2010.

The OSWOA shown here is an original watercolour painting using Artist quality Windsor & Newton paint on 140lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $30.00 and sold unframed.