Calm Start, 7 x 5", watercolour, May 2010

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Here is another sailboat painting. More from the same beautiful morning last summer. I am experimenting with how the placement of the main subject changes the feeling of the painting. This one differs from the previous one in that I have suggested the waterline with a few light strokes

(lifted out the paint with a clean wet brush) I feel that it settles the boat more in space, as opposed to feeling like the boat is floating without an idea of where the horizon is.

And now for something completely different. I have never painted a picture of a horse before, and thought that as I have access to such wonderful subject matter, I should give it a go.

Jura II, 7 x 5", watercolour, May 25, 2010

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Jura I, 5 x 7", watercolour, May 25, 2010

Jura is a fjord pony, and is my mother's horse. She is a beautiful animal, especially in the early morning sunshine, when she just glows. I am really pleased with how these two sketches turned out and so am going to give the first one to my mother. Surprise Mom!

Sailboat Painting on Ebay.ca ending tomorrow!

Calm Sailboat, 7 x 5", watercolour

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Somehow I missed posting this one here before now. The auction for this will end tomorrow evening at about 9 pm Atlantic time.

It is a picture of one of the sailboats taking part in a race in Annapolis Royal on the Annapolis River. There was just enough wind to fill the sails, and the background was cool and misty. Maybe not a great day for sailing fast, but a good day for painting.

Plein Air at last!

Sand Hills Beach, 10 x 14", watercolour, May 12, 2010

Sand Hills Beach Provincial Park is 5 minutes or so outside of the community of Barrington, on the southern tip of Nova Scotia. The park is not yet open for the season, so I walked in from the highway to find the beach. It took about 10 minutes and was a pleasant walk. Overall, I had less than an hour to paint, but the conditions were wonderful. The sunlight was bright, there was a breeze, but not enough to blow my supplies away, and the view was magnificent.

I hope to get back there in the summer with the kids as the beach is long and very flat. Playing in the incoming tide would be a lot of fun. The sand is a very bright white colour, which is different from the grey or red found closer to home. It reminds me of New River Beach in New Brunswick. Trips to New River were always a highlight of my summer, growing up. That is probably why I still search out beaches and enjoy painting them. It lets me feel again like a kid on a beach in the summer, having a great time.

Variations on a Lighthouse

NS Lighthouse sketch, 5 x 7" watercolour, May 2010

Halifax Lighthouse I sketch, 5 x 7, watercolour, May 2010

Halifax Lighthouse II sketch, 5 x 7", watercolour, May 2010

On a recent trip to Halifax I walked along the boardwalk that runs from the new Farmer's Market (under construction) to the Ferry Terminal. This is a great walk for exploring the city, as you can see the city on one side and the busy harbour other. Halifax is and always has been a seaport city. Looking out from the boardwalk toward the Atlantic Ocean you see George's Island, with the lighthouse I have protrayed above. George's Island was a naval base protecting the harbour from the city's earliest days up until after the Second World War. It is now maintained by Parks Canada, though not open to the public.

(Please forgive the lack of formatting of the pictures above)

Lily Paintings

White Lily II, watercolour, 5 x 7", April 2010

White Tiger, 5 x 7", watercolour, April 2010

Now on ebay.ca, click here to view and bid

The Power of Place, an regional exhibit brought to you by VANS

March Wharf I, 10 x 14 ", watercolour, 2009. $425

Low Tide, High Pilings, 14 x 21", watercolour, 2009. $625

VANS is Visual Arts Nova Scotia and offers exhibits of works by its members, selected by region. This exhibit is from the Southwest regional members, myself included. These are the paintings I am displaying, as they show what identifies Digby to me.

March Wharf shows (what else but!) the wharf, home of the world's largest scallop fleet, with some of that fleet moored in its shelter on a calm March evening. Also the O'Neill's building is the fish plant in town that processes much of the catch. This view is iconic of Digby, as it is what one sees when one drives down the main street.

Low Tide, High Pilings shows the tides for which the Bay of Fundy is famous. I am always amazed when I travel and see the downright puny tides elsewhere. I grew up on the Bay of Fundy and when someone says "tide" I instinctively expect a signifigant drop in the waterlevel. So when I think of home, I think of an ocean that goes up and down, way way down! This painting shows the water at about half tide, but what interested me to paint it was the way that the dark shaded water in the reflections of the piers let me look below the surface of the water. The rest of the water reflects the sky. I found the contrast fascinating. I hope that you do, too!

Silly me, I have written so much about the paintings themselves I almost forgot to tell you where to go see them! The exhibit will be at the Digby Branch of the Western Counties Regional Library on Warwick St in Digby, from May 5 (informal opening at 2 pm) to May 29. After that it will be in Yarmouth for the month of June. (Yarmouth County Museum and Archives, June 2-26, Wine and cheese opening Saturday, June 5 at 2 pm)