Three Trees

We already have snow on the ground but you still can see some of the tall grasses and growies sticking up out of the snow along the tree line.

It won't be long before they are bent down before the winter winds and completely covered by the snow an ice where only the trees are standing up out of the snow and very thing else is a study in white.














This is an original 4-3/4" x 6-3/4" pen and ink drawing and when framed will be available for $65.00.

Homeward Bound

It seems that this month I am working on a number of paintings with boats and ships in them. So I will continue on today with this theme.

I pulled this painting out and decided to work on the waves to finish the water.













After setting it up and glancing at it for a couple of hours while I worked on various sketches I thought nothing more needed to be added to the painting and went ahead and signed it.

This framed, original 12" x 21-1/2" watercolour painting is available for $485.00.

Dixon Cove Wreck I - Revisited

After working on the companion piece to this wreck I felt it needed a little more work and I rather liked the "rust" I put on the Dixon Cove Wreck II (see post on 27 Nov 2012).














There had been a spot in the sky that I really didn't like so I repainted the sky to remove it (see post 23 Apr 2012). Next I put a wash of burnt sienna over the wreck to give it a similar look to what you actually see of it in real life.














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

Dixon Cove Wreck II

Back in April I was at a workshop with Frances Ferdinands (see posts on 21 and 23 April 2012) and had enjoyed doing the mixed media collages featuring wrecks so much that I have decided to do a couple more of them.

Many stories abound about the two Dixon Cove wrecks. There is a version that maintains one of the ships was a Cayman-owned vessel run aground intentionally for insurance. Another colourful story that keeps coming up is that the ships were involved in the Nicaraguan revolution, and then abandoned.

Perhaps one day I will find the true story, I will just have to keep digging every time I go to Roatan to dive.














I added a wash of burnt sienna over the image of the wreck to give it a rusted appearance.

This 8" x 10" mixed media collage painting is of the other wreck in Dixon Cove, Roatan . I have photographed both of these wrecks many times. This painting when framed will be available for $150.00.

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

Downhill

Ron and Christine had gone skiing yesterday at Devil's Elbow in Bethany and I thought it fitting to paint a couple of downhill skiers.

I painted both pieces at the same time.

For the background I used French ultramarine blue for the sky and added a little alizarin crimson to give a warm feel to the snow.

Before I set each piece aside to dry I sprinkled a little salt onto the paper to create "snowflakes".


Downhill Doubles

Once the paint was dry I brushed off any excess salt remaining on the paper.

I lightly drew the slope of the hill and mixed a dark green using French ultramarine blue and raw sienna for the trees.

Using the green mix I added a little burnt sienna and added a few dead tree trunks and the skiers.

Both original paintings are 3-1/4" x 6-1/4" framed watercolours and are available at $95.00 each or the pair for $180.00.

Downhill Duet

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

The Percheron

Today I wanted to work on another horse drawing and since earlier this month I did a Belgian (see post on 06 November 2012); I chose to do another of the more popular draft horses the Percheron.

Going through my files on heavy horses I came across a number of photographs of Gentle Ben a Percheron stallion that I did a head study of last year (see post on 26 January 2011).














I used a number of photographs of him that I had taken from both halter classes and when he was in harness to do this conformation drawing.

This framed original 10" x 11-1/2" graphite pencil drawing is available for $165.00. SOLD

OSWOA - Twin Trees 1

This is a painting I had started earlier this year called Grey Sky 2 (see post on 13 Feb 2012).

On my property at the edge of one of the back fields I used to have a pair of beautiful twin pines. Unfortunately during a wind storm last year one of the pines was unable to survive the force of the wind and fell to the ground broken.

The remaining pine still stands but to me seems to be lonely, as though missing its companion that it had standing beside it for so many years.














I decided to add the pair of pines into the foreground of the painting and changed its name to Twin Trees 1.

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 $40.00and sold unframed.

ACEO - Autumn Colours 7

I wanted to finish at least one of the paintings that had been started earlier this year and I chose this one that was originally called Grey Sky F (see post on 07 July 2012).

Since the sky was already painted I drew in a main tree at the front to give a starting point to where the rest of the trees would be placed.

Next the background trees were indicated as well as a few growies into the foreground paint.

Since the main tree was going to be a maple I renamed the painting Autumn Colours 7.

Using raw sienna I painted in the fields and the grasses at the base of the foreground trees.

Wetting the area for the background trees I painted the leaves using various mixtures of burnt sienna, alizarin crimson and raw sienna.

I made sure to leave some spaces of sky showing through near the tops of the trees.

I wet the paper where the closer tree leaves dropped in lemon yellow and burnt sienna.

Using mixes of French ultramarine blue and burnt sienna the trunks and branches of the larger background trees were painted, as well as a few indistinct branches and trunks into the distant background trees.

The same two colours were used but by adding more blue to make it more of a grey shade were used for painting in the main tree, leaving some areas of the under colours to show through creating the look of bark.

Grasses and other growies were painted into the base of the main tree using raw sienna, burnt sienna and French ultramarine blue.

Using a sponge and various mixtures of cadmium red, cadmium yellow, alizarin crimson and burnt sienna the leaves were put onto the foreground tree.

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 Winsor & Newton paint on 300lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $20.00 and sold unframed.

Birch Tree and Rail Fence

Along one of the side roads I sometimes travel when going to KAGS there is an old birch tree at the entrance to a field.

Most of the time the farmer has the rail gate open but during the winter the farmer puts up the rails across the opening as soon as the snow stays on the ground to prevent snowmobiles from running through the fields.

When I went by on this day you could see that someone had dropped the rails down and taken at least three snowmobiles around the fields and made a mess of the once pristine blanket of snow. Obviously they had no respect for private property.

This original 6" x 8" framed watercolour is available for $95.00.

Emerald Fields

When I look out the upper hall window I see the upper paddock and the first field behind the barn.

I did this little sketch of the fence line and added leaves to turn it from an autumn sketch into a summer drawing.











This original 4-1/2" X 6-1/2” pen and ink drawing when matted and shrink wrapped will be available for $30.00.

Crumpled Paper I and II

Today I wanted to do an old exercise we had to do back in high school to make us see the shades of grey on a white piece of paper.

We took a sheet of white paper and crumpled it up and then placed it on the desk in front of us and with graphite pencil had to give it shape and dimension without putting a dark background behind it to give it an outline.














Crumpled Paper I

It was an interesting exercise with only a shadow to ground it and a very slight amount of background shading on one side of the drawing.














Crumpled Paper II

Each of these original 9" x 12" graphite pencil drawings when matted and shrink wrapped will be available for $50.00 each.

Fantasy Car

I haven't done a mechanical drawing in quite a while, much less did pointillism (stippling) in pen and ink in years. Since I had some time to work on a drawing today, I decided to create a sporty looking car.

I am inclined to doubt this design will ever be mass produced and it certainly would not be practical for me to own with all the snow we get here and the rough country roads; but it was fun to play.








This original 5" x 12" pen and ink drawing when matted and shrink wrapped will be available for $75.00.

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

Paradise I

This is another sketch I did while relaxing on the beach in Cuba of a beach house in among the palm trees. The boat dock had been pretty much torn apart by one of the hurricanes that had gone through the island, leaving only some of the posts to mark where the dock had been.











I could get used to living in the Caribbean. The last time we were in Aruba we had looked at property on the east shore of the island.

This 7-1/4" x 12" original pen and ink drawing when framed will be available for $150.00.

Sand Dune I

I enjoy going into the Caribbean, everyone is on "island time" and life there is so much more relaxed.

When Ron and I are there we often walk for miles along the white sand beaches and this is a scene we came across while in Cuba.













I look forward to going back to the islands sometime in the New Year depending on Ron's schedule.

This original 4-1/2" x 6-1/2" pen and ink drawing when framed will be available for $95.00.

Bufflehead Duck

Today I had the opportunity to work from a stuffed mount that one of the wood carvers loaned to a friend. Needless to say I wasn't going to pass up the chance at being close to a Bufflehead Duck.














This original 9" x 12" graphite pencil drawing is available, matted and shrink wrapped for $75.00. SOLD

Moses - after Nicholas Hornyansky

While I was still in high school I became interested in the aquatints created by Nicholas Hornyansky and I am fortunate to have been able to purchase a couple of them over the years.

He was born in Budapest, Hungary in 1896 and by the time he was 12 he worked as a colour mixer in his father's printing office.

Hornyansky studied in Budapest at the Academy of Fine Arts and after he graduated he did post graduate studies in Antwerp, Munich, Paris and Vienna and became an accomplished portrait painter.

He later went to Belgium and studied landscape painting in the School of Franz Hens. By then he had held a number of one man shows in Antwerp and Brussels.

He later travelled to England where his portraiture earned him several commissions in London before he went to Paris where he studied colour aquatint printmaking and etching.

Hornyansky immigrated to Canada and settled in Toronto, Ontario in 1929 and became a Canadian citizen in 1934. He remained based in Toronto, but travelled extensively from coast to coast throughout both Canada and the USA.

Hornyansky first exhibited his figure paintings, in Toronto.

He exhibited regularly with and became a member of the Ontario Society of Artists and the Royal Canadian Academy (1934 elected Associate Member), the Society of Canadian Painters, Etchers and Engravers (1929 elected Member) and the Canadian Society of Graphic Art.

Moses - Sketch by Nicholas Hornyansky

He was a member of many American art associations including the American Color Print Society (Philadelphia), the California Printmakers, the Philadelphia Society of Etchers and was also a Life Fellow of the International institute of Arts and Letters.

He exhibited widely throughout North America and internationally; and received numerous awards for his work becoming recognized as an award winning Canadian artist and printmaker.

Nicholas Hornyansky made major contributions to the advancement of printmaking in Canada and he taught metal plate media at the Ontario College of Arts from 1945 to 1958.

He also developed a very unique style of his own using a single pull, positive approach aquatint process.

Hornyansky is best known for his colourful aquatint etchings, which cannot be mistaken for the works of any other artist, are of the rural scenery, historic sites and the architecture of Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes and are unmatched anywhere in North America.

Hornyansky’s works are represented in many major public collections throughout the world, including the Royal Ontario Museum, the National Gallery of Canada, the Musée Plantyn in Antwerp, the National Print Collection at the Library of Congress, the New Mexico Museum of Art in Santa Fe and the Pennsylvania Museum of Art, in USA, etc.

Moses - after Nicholas Hornyansky

This 10" x 14" carved leather image is my attempt at reproducing Moses created by Nicholas Hornyansky.

Thank you for coming to look at my artwork.

Chinese Lanterns

Winter is not far off and the days are getting shorter and colder and I decided to paint one of my favourite plants from my childhood.

I have always liked the Chinese Lantern plant (Physalis alkekengi) with their bright orange pods which look like some of the traditional Chinese lanterns in shape and even have a texture similar to paper.

It is also known as Bladder Cherry, Japanese Lantern, Strawberry Tomato and Winter Cherry.

This popular ornamental plant has white flowers, which form into green pods in late summer and by the end of the growing season in September to October depending on the zone in which they are planted they change to their characteristic bright pumpkin orange or darker red orange colour, with each of the pods containing a berry with seeds.

It is at this time that the plant can be harvested. They are cut at ground level, the leaves are stripped off, then the entire plant is suspend upside down to dry in a cool dark place with good ventilation for a couple of weeks.

However, this beautiful perennial does have a down side in that some parts of the plant are poisonous if ingested and they are subject to many plant diseases and attract a variety of insect pests which like to munch away at them.

It is also highly invasive with its wide-spreading root system sending up new shoots some distance away from where it was originally planted. This was something I had never realized, but then where my Mom planted them was inside a small filled in concrete fish pond where the roots could not escape and spread.

I would like to thank Mrs. Heather Grant of Lakefield, Ontario on her purchase of this original 1-3/4" x 5-3/4” watercolour painting for her art collection.

Thistle in the Snow

It won't be long before we have deep snow on the ground and will only see the tops of many of the dried weeds in the fields.

There are many Scotch thistles in the infield of the track beside the house. I leave them and the milkweed to provide food for the goldfinch and for the monarch butterfly caterpillars.









I had started this painting a couple of years ago along with Thistle in the Snow (see posting on 15 March 2010). It is of the same thistle just taken from opposite sides.

This 5" x 12" original, framed watercolour is available for $195.00.

Spring Birch

Birches are one of my favourite trees and they are a striking tree no matter what the season. In this instance I decided to paint a spring birch when the leaves are just coming out after a long dormant winter.

While autumn is probably the most beautiful season, spring is a time of rebirth and of new growth; a time of promise.

This original 5-1/2" x 7-1/2" framed watercolour is available for $95.00.

Along the Lake

Today we had the AGM (Annual General Meeting) at KAGS and with the elections and all the extra things that were on the agenda to be discussed the meeting ran later than usual.

However there was a bright side to this in that while going through Bridgenorth there were a couple of sailboats still out on the lake running before the wind.














I stopped and made a few quick sketches and took some reference photographs and after supper I wanted to paint what I saw and this was the result.

This original framed 5-1/2" x 7-1/2" watercolour is available for $95.00. SOLD

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

OSWOA - Dawn Silhouette 3

Today I was painting with the Lakefield Creative Guild and decided to work on a couple of small pieces that were almost finished (see post on 26 Dec 11).

This painting needed the branches added to the trees and I also added in a few dead tree trunks. The shoreline needed to be a little more defined and I changed the colour of the water slightly. While the paint was still wet I added reflections into the water.

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.

ACEO - Reeds 4

I wanted to work on the three paintings of reeds that I started last month (see posting on 30 October 2012).

I worked on the first one putting the cattails in place and then adding the stocks to ground them.

Next using a variety of different greens, details were added to the leaves of the rushes.

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 300lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $20.00 and sold unframed.

Delicate Beauty

This is painting I had started last year and all that need to be completed on it was the flowers and their stems.

Using various mixtures of French ultramarine blue, Antwerp blue and alizarin crimson each of the blooms were carefully painted giving them shape.

The stamens were a mix of cadmium yellow and burnt sienna.

Lastly the leaves and stems were added using mixtures of raw sienna, burnt sienna and Antwerp blue.

This original 5" x 7" framed watercolour is available for $95.00.

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

Season of Change

This is the first in a series of birch trees each featured in one of the four seasons. I started with autumn since it is my favourite time of the year.

I will post each of the other seasons as they are completed.

This original, 5-1/2" x 7-1/2" framed watercolour is available for $95.00.

The Belgian

My Dad started working as a transport driver for Canadian Breweries Limited in 1954, which at that time was owned by E. P. Taylor (who also owned Windfield Farms and was the breeder of Northern Dancer).

In 1969 Canadian Breweries was sold to Rothmans and the name was changed in 1973 to Carling O'Keefe. It was during this time that the Carlsberg Belgian 8 horse hitch was created and my Dad who as a young man had experience from the working as a logger the with draft horses in Quebec and of course spoke fluent French was given the position of transporting the number one show team throughout Ontario and Quebec.














It is because of this connection and having helped on occasion with cleaning the harness and brushing the horses that I will always have a special place in my heart for Belgians.

This original 10" x 12" framed graphite pencil drawing is available for $165.00. SOLD

Birch Trail

While up in Magnetawan last month the cabins were surrounded by mixed forest and one of the trails leading down to the Magnetawan River had many colourful maple, oak and birch trees.














I came across a one of the quick paintings I had started while there of the trail just past the big cottage in which I had stayed. All it needed was the dark marking painted onto the birch trees.

This 5" x 7" framed, original watercolour is available for $95.00.

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 November.

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

Snow Covered Hills

I took Ski Hill Road from Omemee to go to Bethany to visit an art gallery.



















Winter Hills

Ski Hill Road is aptly named as at one time there three different ski resorts on the road; the best known being Devil's Elbow which is currently the only one still in business. Both my daughter and husband go skiing and snowboarding there every winter.

















 
Snowy Hills

Both original 4" x 4-1/2" pen and ink drawings are available matted and shrink wrapped for $25.00 each.

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

Faces Through Time

It is snowing here and I still have to go to the airport to drop off my daughter, her husband and her brother-in-law so they can go to Mexico to attend a wedding. I am not looking forward to this trip.

So I decided I would paint a small abstract in acrylic and try to capture movement on the canvas. I used a limited palette of white, black, Hansa yellow and alizarin crimson.

This small, original 5" x 7" acrylic when framed will be available for $85.00.

I will continue to post the painting I finish each day during the course of the month. I hope you will return often to see the postings.

Confirmed Shows for 2012 and 2013 - November

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.

Kawartha Artists’ Gallery, Peterborough, Ont.
KAGS
28 Oct – 15 Nov Outdoor Painters' Group Show
Opening Reception 28 Oct 12 from 1-4pm.
02-22 Dec 12 & 05-10 Jan 13 Seasonal Delights
Opening Reception 02 Dec 12 from 1-4pm.
27 Jan - 14 Feb 13 Faces and Figures
Opening Reception 27 Jan 13 from 1-4pm.
07 Apr - 02 May 13 Unfolding
Opening Reception 07 Apr 13 from 1-4pm.
23 Jun - 11 Jul 13 Monochrome
Opening Reception 23 Jun 13 from 1-4pm.
15 Sep - 03 Oct 13 Rural Scenes
Opening Reception 15 Sep 13 from 1-4pm.
20-31 Oct 13 Motion in Stillness
Opening Reception 20 Oct 13 from 1-4pm.
03-21 Nov 13 Outdoor Painters' Group Show
Opening Reception 03 Nov 13 from 1-4pm.
08-22 Dec 13 & 05-10 Jan 14 Winter Delights
Opening Reception 08 Dec 13 from 1-4pm.

Algonquin Provincial Park, Whitney, Ont.
Algonquin
03 Nov 12 - 26 Jun 13 Algonquin Palette

The Lindsay Gallery, Lindsay, Ont.
LindsayGallery
20 Nov - 21 Dec Christmas Show
Opening Reception 22 Nov from 7-8:30pm.
30 Jul - 24 Aug 2013 Above and Below the Reef
Opening Reception 01 Aug from 7-8:30pm. 

St Matthews Church, Buckhorn, Ont
BuckhornArtistsGroup
18-20 May 25th Annual Among Friends Art Show
10-18 Aug 23rd Annual Shades of Summer Art Show

Cobourg Waterfront Festival, Cobourg, Ont.
Waterfrontfestival
29 Jun - 01 July The Lions Club Art Show and Sale

MacKelvie Gallery, Keene, Ontario
PioneerVillage
11 Jul - 08 Aug Lang Pioneer Village Museum, Keene, Ont.

Fenelon Falls Fairgrounds, Fenelon Falls, Ont.
KawarthaArtsFestival
31 Aug -01 Sep Kawartha Arts Festival