First Painting - Summer 2013

This 8 x 10 painting, titled "Urban Geometry'" was done in early summer. I had seen this view of the overpass where the Don Valley Parkway meets the Gardner Expressway from one of the bike paths that follow the Don River north of Lakeshore several years ago. This summer I went back to find the same view, but was unable to find it due to the fact that the bike path had been diverted in the meantime. To get to this place, I left the path as it crossed some railway tracks (partially seen on the left) and walked up this road until I was satisfied with the scene. Having set up and happily painting for a while a private security car approached up the road and asked what I was doing. I explained and showed him my painting and then said "I am on private property aren't I." He answered yes and then asked how long I thought I was going to be. I replied another 15 mins. and he said "Well I'll be back in a bit and you'll be gone" and drove off. So I finished the painting, packed up and left.

Winter Painting

This was my first (and so far only) winter plein air painting. It was painting on a warm and sunny day in March of last year. I am standing on a frozen pond created by an abandoned beaver dam in a park in Scarborough. So I am at a beaver pond within the city limits of Toronto. The painting below is no great shakes, but the location is pretty amazing so that is why I have a picture of my easel first this time.

Brush with the Highlands IV - The Last Painting

This 8 x 10 was the last (good) painting that I did last at the Brush with the Highlands Plein Air Painting Festival last year. Titled "Down to the Water," it was painted at the back of a farm with the 'water' being actually more of a swamp. But it does look like an inviting road leading to a pleasant body of water.

Here you can see my easel set up with the scene
in front of me.



Sadly the Brush with the Highlands was not held this year as the organizers were unable to continue and so far no one else has taken it over. It's four year existence may be at an end.

Brush with the Highlands 2012 III

Again an 8 x 10 oil painting on panel of a pine tree catching the morning light. Also see below my easel set up before the subject. In order to get the fine lines of
the branches in the light I borrowed a trick from watercolour
and scratched the paint of the panel with the back of the brush.

Brush with the Highlands 2012 II

This 8 x 10 painting was done at the same location as the first (see Brush with the Highlands 2012 below) at the end of the first day but looking in the opposite direction. The location was an old summer camp that is now privately owned and is no longer used as a camp. There was a stream that connected two small bodies of water. The earlier painting was looking south so the light morning sun is on the left,  this is looking north so again the light is coming from the left.

Special Announcement

I am pleased to announce that I am again participating this year's Spring Beach Studio Tour, now in its 20th year. This spring's tour starts Friday evening May 3rd at 6 pm. and runs to Sunday May 5th and offers the work of 25 artists, both residents of the Beach area of Toronto, Ontario as well as guests from other parts of the city and the province.  I am happy, once again, to be hosting a fine Ceramic Artist, Zsuzsa Monostory who maintains a studo at the Glen Williams Mill just outside of Georgetown. For further information you can contact me at 416-694-3277 or go to the tour website: www.beachstudiotour.ca.


            

Brush with the Highlands 2012

This painting, an 8" x 10" oil called "Morning Light" was the first one I did at this past years plein air painting festival in the Haliburton Highlands north of Toronto. The photo on the right is my easel set up in front of the scene.

This popular festival, now in its fourth year, was attended by 40 artists and is a lot of fun for the public and the artists alike and I for one hope that it will continue and grow in the future.

Big Rocks

Another 8 x10 oil on panel painted along the North River outside of the town of Val David in the Laurentiens. In my more recent paintings I have been trying to keep in mind the one thing that struck me when I first saw the scene. This feature, if it is not obvious, is the bright blue reflection in the middle ground. I had fun playing with all the other elements, such as the reflections but they all ended up being less important than the blue patch.

In the next post we will head off to my second year at "Brush with Highlands" a plein air painting weekend in the Haliburton Highlands north of Toronto.

Painting in the Park, Val David

Even though the painting itself is no great shakes, this one was fun!

The North River runs through the village of Val David and there is a small park with an observation deck, picnic tables, etc where people eat lunch, play and enjoy the river. The river bank drops down about six feet so that as I was sitting at the river's edge and painting I was out of sight of the people in the park. At one point I turned around and a boy of perhaps 5-6 years old was intently watching what I was doing. He watched for a long time. An artist friend said that I may have influenced him to be come a painter!

Crossing the North River

This again is an 8 X 10 painting of the North River (or Riviere du Nord) near our cottage in Val David in the Laurentiens. I seemed to have concentrated this year on river views because of the ease with which I could find a good spot; the bike path (formally a train track) follows the river and I could simply jump on my bike and ride until I found something to paint.

It is called "Crossing" the river because of the barely distinguishable figures in the middle of the composition who are in the process of crossing the river using rocks just above a small section of white water.

Sandbar

This little painting (8X10) was done of a small island sitting in the middle of the river. You see my set-up nestled into the riverbank below. Trying to jeep in the shnade as the sun was coming from directly behind me.

Painting in the Laurentiens

This 8x10, called "North River Bend," was the first that I painted while at our cottage in July of last summer. It was a cloudy, cool morning as you can probably tell.

Halton Hills Farm

This was painted near Georgetown, Ontario north of Toronto in the late spring of last year. There was a rise of land up from the road where I pulled over to do the painting. This created an opportunity to have a long foreground with the centre of interest high in the picture. The danger is to split the composition horizontally in the centre which I have barely escaped doing. As I am looking at it and thinking about it I could have pushed the buildings even higher.