Friday, April 18, 2014

Inspiration


Art is indeed not the bread - but the wine of life. 
Jean Richter


What inspires me to paint?  It could be anything. Light on a hillside. The colour of Fall leaves, children on a beach, a deep unanswerable question within the soul. To paint perhaps to taste the wine, touch the mystery, transcend what is known.  To sip the wine of art is to find that timeless place within. All else falls away.
Many artists have alluded to it. DaVinci talks about when the head, the heart and the spirit are in alignment and creativity seems to flow. Being part of the culture I can fall into the trap of thinking if I only have the right tools, hone my skill, follow the right steps and I will be a better artist. That might be part of it but it is not where the mystery will be found. And it wouldn't be a mystery if I could say where and  how it could be found. Perhaps that is why artist's are considered such an eccentric breed.

My painting will be on display as part of the Spring Beach Studio Tour. Come celebrate Friday evening May 2nd from 6-9 pm and Saturday and Sunday. I am located at 17 Fernwood Park Ave.
For full information about the tour visit www.beachstudiotour.ca.

View these two You Tube videos to get a glimpse of my work and all of the tour:






Thursday, April 3, 2014

Just Ask



Just Ask

Art is neither a Hobby nor a Profession but a way of being.
Frederick Franc



Tree of Life

The Beach Studio Tour is coming up the weekend of  May 2nd and this tour our web site was redesigned. Participants have been asked to answer three questions about our artistic endeavors. I briefly responded to a few of them but realized I could right a short book about some of the questions. Perhaps a short blog will better serve.
I have been an artist from the time I was 11 or 12, painting whenever I could but never really thinking about it. It was just a "way of being". Certain questions get asked often. How long does a painting take?  Do you paint every day? A question guaranteed to annoy -"Is this just a hobby"? Painting is my life, my love and my profession. I teach, exhibit and sell my paintings, and see private clients. A few of us become famous and wealthy but most artists are grateful to pay the bills, but count themselves lucky in so many other ways. Artists give expression to the dreams and vision of a culture as they live admidst it, sometimes slightly apart. Balancing the dreamer and the professional part is often a challenge. An event such as the studio tour takes a lot of organization and hard work. Finding time for the artist part to finish paintings can be the challenge.
Look forward to our 20th anniversary.