There is a movement afoot to encourage girls to be confident, to believe in themselves. After the last few decades of being told how to dress, how to act, how to look, they are now being encouraged to accept who they are and be proud of their uniqueness. Diversity and individuality are celebrated and I say -- it’s about time!
When a small statue (believed to have been created around 25,000 BCE) was unearthed near Willendorf, Austria it was thought to be a fertility figure or mother goddess symbol. It was named Venus after the Roman goddess of love and ideal beauty.
“Beauty is eternity gazing at itself in a mirror” – Kahlil Gibran.
For two years, the only image facing many of us was in the mirror. With social isolation decreed and the future uncertain, we often revisited our childhood and memories of what once was normal. We remember a time of joy when gathering with family and friends a regular occurrence and seeing happy faces expected. But then as well as now, if you have a compatible cohort, you are indeed blessed.
24" X 24"
oil on canvas
$1150
I am pleased to announce that this painting will be in the 'Artists Choice' Exhibition at the ASA Gallery, #222, 1235 - 26 Ave. SE, Calgary, Alberta from September 1 - October 22, 2022.
In the 1st century BCE, Vitruvius believed that the body’s proportions could be used as a model of natural proportional perfection. In 1490, Leonardo da Vinci drew the male figure perfectly inscribed in a circle and square based on Vitruvius’s words. This image was loved for its beauty and symbolic power. In the 21stcentury, this belief is questionable!
30" x 30"
oil on canvas
$1800
Pleased to announce this painting is in the exhibition "Portraits : Facing the Image" at the Art Gallery of Alberta, 2 Sir Winston Churchill Square, Edmonton from June 25 - August 21, 2022.
The wise woman is often a mentor who passes on insights, gives advice, or teaches skills. She symbolizes wisdom, knowledge & experience. She can be a grandmother, a bag lady or a healer in central Africa. Above all she is beautiful. Each day as I face my image in the mirror, I search for the wise woman I hope to become.
“A beautiful lady is an accident of nature. A beautiful old lady is a work of art” (Louis Nizer).
The Alberta Society of Artists is celebrating 90 years (1931-2021) with a wonderful exhibition featuring Life and Juried Members. The show will be at the ASA Gallery #222, 1235 - 26 Ave. SE in Calgary, on the second floor of the Crossroads Art Centre from December 1, 2021 - February 19, 2022. This painting will be in the exhibition.
Watching
20" x 20"
oil on canvas
$800
They are predicting a high of 35C in my area today so thought I would post some flowers to help you to weather the heat. Enjoy and stay cool!
Also please bookmark this blog. Beginning in July the automatic email notification for blogspot is being discontinued. I will continue to post and will look for a new notification service but until then you will have to remember to check periodically for new posts. Thanks to all who follow my posts. The support is very much appreciated.
One bonus that has come from the pandemic is the many workshops that have been offered online. I've been taking some of them and brushing up on technique by working on smaller studies. Here are a couple of new ones.
Growing up in a small town, employment opportunities for young women are often limited. Some manage to find a way out while others are destined to spend their lives on the inside looking out. And wondering – what could be?
18" x 24"
oil on canvas
$800
Enjoying the sunshine with your best friend – what could be better than that. And when your best friend offers unquestioning love, loyalty and protection your life is perfect!
“If you can spend a perfectly useless afternoon in a perfectly useless manner, you have learned how to live.” – Lin Yutang
18" x 22"
acrylic/oil on canvas
$800
It has been just over a year since we have been able to meet with friends face to face (or side by side). It has been a difficult year for many but has clarified what is really important to each of us. Now with the end almost in sight we can look back in remembrance and forward in anticipation.
“It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that makes happiness.” – Charles H. Spurgeon
18" x 24"
acrylic/oil on canvas
$800
“And in the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter and sharing of pleasures.” – Kahlil Gibran
20" x 24"
acrylic/oil on canvas
$950
Take time to rest and enjoy the good things that life has to offer.
“My advice to you is not to inquire why or whether but just enjoy your ice cream while it is on your plate.” – Thornton Wilder
20" x 24"
acrylic/oil on canvas
$950
Our lives are part of a long continuum of civilization – past, present, future. Learn from the past, enjoy the present, hope for the future!
“Let today embrace the past with remembrance and the future with longing.” – Kahlil Gibran
18" x 24"
acrylic/oil on canvas
$800
Here is an older painting that reminds us of a time when we could travel and congregate in groups. This group of boys was playing on a beach in Thailand little knowing or caring that the world would undergo a huge change in the not too distant future. Life is an opportunity -- enjoy it!
This painting is five or six years old but somehow seemed appropriate to post today since we seem to be on attack from all sides. One hopes that 2021 will evolve to become a time of love and peace!
With most galleries closed and exhibitions cancelled this year, I took the opportunity to play -- mark making, texture and colour mostly. It has been fun and a real learning experience for me so something positive coming out of this. Wishing you all peace, prosperity and above all good health for 2021!
Growing up in the 50s in Central Alberta our entertainment was one local cinema and two local radio stations. Hopalong Cassidy, Roy Rogers and country music were our influences. Once a year we were off to the Stettler Stampede where we watched ‘real’ cowboys at work. This was as close to the Wild West that we would get, and we loved to emulate our heroes.
Summer was a time to gather with friends and family on the shores of nearby Buffalo Lake. Picnics and barbeques were a highlight as they were rare occurrences. I took my first swimming lessons at the lake, but it was so shallow it was impossible to tread water. However, it was still fun to splash in on a hot summer day and, though I may not look happy here, these were indeed, Halcyon Days.
30" x 40"
acrylic/oil on canvas
$2200
