Nicholas Williams

Bush Bridge, Tsuius Creek Tributary

2011-05-06T13:55:00.000-07:00

Here's a big one for you. I finally proved to myself that a canvas this size is no more work than a 18 X 24". Also working from a rolling chair and a more stable easel really helps, and is a lot easier on the back. This is my first blog post since Christmas and my first from the new place on Linden Ave. Having a dedicated room for a studio is is a big deal--a really, really big deal. I'm hoping for a huge spike in my creativity and productivity in the new place (and can feel it coming on). It's really quiet, too, with lots of good natural light from the east. With the artificial lights I have, I can control things perfectly. It's gonna be great in here! It's nice to be able to hear the birds and enjoy the morning sun. A calm and nurturing environment to live and work in.

"Bush Bridge (Tsuius Cr. Trib.)" Oil on Canvas 24 X 30"

I clambered my way over huge slippery rocks to take this picture. No broken legs, but it was close! It was a drizzly overcast day, full of rich intense colours and smells. We were on a fishing trip last June "back in the Valley" with Dad. This is on the other side of Mabel Lake. What a pretty little creek! I don't even know if it has a name. Pure sweet tooth-cracking cold water coming off some snowfield higher up, stepping pool by luminous pool down into the larger stream. The life-blood of our planet.

I don't mean (or want), in this context, to pretend I am making an "environmental statement" here with an ugly concrete bridge spanning the entire painting. But art works on contrasts, and I really enjoyed painting that part, too. From a painterly perspective, I think the bits that gratify me most are the forground rocks, the water and the Thimbleberry bush on the left. I have taken to drawing exclusively in blue and assembling the drawing bit by bit, since it is so critical to the final result. I don't make every decision consciously and deliberately, but I have found it helpful to just get it on and analyze later. With my thin, finely worked strokes, the blue drawing often shows through, contribution to the overall thing, which is fine. My palette is predominantly blue, but so is God's.

Shortliner, Kelowna Pacific

2011-01-24T02:07:00.000-08:00

"Shortliner" 16 x20" Oil on Canvas.

Took the photo at Monte Creek last year on a trip back to the valley with Belle. There was this beautiful sky-blue locomotive sitting there on the siding. I'm pretty happy with this painting--it gets better the more I look at it. As a man of my times (yuk yuk), I'm increasingly influenced by how the camera has changed the way we (I) look at things. Notice in out-of focus foreground (something I have been instinctively doing since the late '90s) and the the way the light erodes and cuts into some of the edges of the darker masses. On first glance is would seem that this images is fairly realistic--that is the initial impression one gets, as with a lot of my work.

The best bits came the easiest as usual. Not bad after not having painted for 6 months.

It's an Electro-Motive Dynamics (EMD) loci, probably sold to Kelowna Pacific by CN and repainted. It warms my heart that these shortline companies are still viable and making a solid go of it. It not only keeps trucks off the road--a lot of trucks--but also contributes to the economy and helps keep our regions what they are.

Esme, Goddess of Sleep

2011-01-24T01:51:00.000-08:00

"Esmeralda, Goddess of Sleep" 11 x 14" Watercolour and pencil on paper.

My brain is turning to mush. My wife's teddybear-hugging habit is corrupting me and making me soft. But why not eh? These are good bears, so after finding the first one, and buying him for my wife after a hospital stay, I went back and bought the last two. Have not seen better bears before or since. They are anatomically correct in the classic teddy sense, have beans in their bums to make them sit proper, and have the cutest, most delicate little snouts. And there certainly is a powerful kinda drowsy pull to them. An unparalleled aid for sleep. We have kept Dudley and Esme, and sent Rupert to live with Mommy and Daddy in the Okanagan. I must admit that insomnia is not as much an issue when Dudders is near. It's delightfully daft.

So this is really more of a portrait than a still life. Bears do have a certain plastic quality to them, but there are also fuzzy, which makes it hard. Maybe someone will want this as a gift for a grandchild?

Square Flowers

2011-01-24T01:37:00.000-08:00

"Roses and Gesso" 11 x 14" Water colour and pencil on paper.

I need advice on lighting from some of you photog types out there. Obviously all those colours in the upper left do not belong--it's supposed to be blank paper. It's too big to scan so I had to snap it, but even scanning makes the paper coloured or toned. No worries, though. The blog here is just to give you an idea.. Would be nice to have some better shots for my portfolio, though.

Cubism is great, because it frees me from "the tyranny of nature" and reverses the process, in that, instead of finding the abstract in a literal image, I anchor or introduce the literal into an otherwise completely abstract image. As usual, a fun and tenious way to paint, and with the usual good results.

Freighter Four

2010-05-16T22:15:00.000-07:00

Another in the ongoing series of little-guy 14 X 18 inchers. This one is amongst my best recent paintings--I'm very happy with the crunchy sky, the dramatic effect of the light, and the total control of tonalities. the clouds really do seem to be lifting off the mountains (a departure from the photo). Best of all, it just fell off the brush.

Priming Day

2010-05-16T21:48:00.000-07:00

In the tradition of the craft of painting, I mix and apply my own primer (gesso) to canvas I buy in rolls and stretch myself. I use a mixture of calcium carbonate (chalk) and polyvinyl acetate (PVA) glue, thinned to the right consistency with water and coloured with a little pigment for a pale cream ground.

Reasons? (Besides keeping the tradition alive and a certain DIY coolness):

It is fun to be involved in the painting process right from the get-go. I create the total object.
It is a bit cheaper.
It allows me total control of the substrate; the colour, tooth, and absorbency of the ground all are huge factors in the final outcome for me.
I find commercially-primed canvas too sterile white and smooth, and stifle creativity, since how I paint is sometimes more important than what I paint.

Some day I'll get unlazy and post some pix of the step-by-step. To me, using ready-primed canvas would be a bit like using some sort of MS template to "design" a website. After awhile, the world looks the same. It's part of what sets me apart from all the hacks and wannabes--that, the fact that I can actually draw. Painting should not be a lifestyle choice, but a total commitment.

Its part of my whole philosophy towards life, I guess. I am a cyclist, and not only can I fix my own flats, but I build my own wheels. You can either accept the spoon feeding society offers--which requires a lot less effort, but makes you dependent--or you can do your own thing. That takes observation, research and elbow-grease.

Go forth and do thou likewise.

Arbutus, the Strawberry Tree

2010-05-01T13:50:00.000-07:00

Well, in retrospect, maybe this one is not 100% finished, but I'm posting it here because this blog has fallen off the map (and needs to get back on), and I have some more stuff coming. I'm painting again, and feeling a general surge in motivation, which is very refreshing.

I'm a bit concerned that my style is staying too realistic, too tight. But a closer look at the above will indicate that I can let things get beautifully fuzzy and sideways at a moments notice. I am particularly gratified by the out-of-focus foreground (a favourite and often unconscious device of mine) and the way the top parts of the tree are chunky and unfinished. I also totally spaced on carrying that one branch through into the canopy. I am beginning to understand why Cezanne's pictures look the way they do; his focus was so complete, he often didn't see what he was missing.

I find that the 22 X 28" format is perfect for big trees. I have a few more up my sleeve, still.

Loving the colour-matching capabilities of my new MacBook. Every painter should have one. Yeah, that's a shameless plug for Steve and the gang at A-Company.

Like Archeology

2010-02-23T11:47:00.000-08:00

Here's another painting done over a spoilt canvas. I'm learning not to throw anything away, especially anything with good impasto! In this image it seems to be both sunning and raining, and that is at odds with the extremely non-atmosphereic handling of the landscape itself. Diagonals seem to create depth, but the colour and uniform tones force the planes back into two-dimensional alignment. The tops of the poles (conveniently aligned with the underlying impasto) travel across depth and into the ditch shadow at far left, but the shadow on the road shoots the eye back into the center of the painting, up the road sign and back up into the sky. the whole thing would start to shudder apart like an unbalanced motor were it not for the very strong structure of parallel lines. But the square formed by the two closest poles, the road shadow and the incline of the road grade is tilted and offset, further contributing to the elliptical movement. Only the horizontals in the earth and sky provide some stability.

Great cities are often built on ruins. It's often the successive layers that make them so interesting.

Couldn't quite get the colour right in the photo--it's a lot fresher feeling real-time. But this gives you a taste, anyway.

Working on a cool project with good friend of mine--designing his tattoo! Will post pixs as it develops. Just enjoying some time off here, too, after working 7 days a week for a couple of months.

Gotta get some painting done here before 2:00 so should go do that.

Art Happens

2009-11-21T18:44:00.000-08:00

"Still Life with Apples and Cello" 24 X 24" Oil on Canvas.

Derek Houston's cello again--which he needs to come and get! With the lack of room around here... . But in the meantime, I am getting some more material out of it. A wobbly, not-too-realistic still life, with a nod to Matisse. Maybe even a little Fauve. A good platform for all kinds of colour improvisation and some of my signature dry-brush overpainting. I incorporated such mundane objects as a waterbottle and several plastic bags. Those of you from work looking at this, you will see that the cardboard boxes are Tena boxes. I left just enough logo showing for that. They are great for storage!

High Noon

2009-11-21T15:38:00.001-08:00

Yup, you know where this is. It's not that I have a one-track mind so much as I really love the place, and find the landscape there exactly the vehicle for the emotions I want to project.

"High Noon, Douglas Lake" 18 X 24" Oil on Canvas

Pretty easy to pick out the repeated rhythms and diagonals, so I'll leave you to it. I took the photo the same day I took the photo of the first Big Pine. The composition for this one was already all there, so it was fun piece to do since I didn't have to burn too many braincells getting it together. Sometimes I need to do a simpler piece to unwind. But this one is still pretty dramatic in its own quiet way. It's full of fresh, clean air--unlike my life right now. Wish fulfillment, I guess. I paint what I need.

After Ten Years, a Self Portrait

2009-11-21T15:29:00.000-08:00

"Self Portrait 2009" 18 X 20" Oil on canvas.

Well, I took the photo for this back in 2007, but all that has changed since then is a few more wrinkles and gray hairs, I guess. I'm as happy with the likeness as I am with the picture itself. Lots of subtle poetry, and even the shadows are packed with colour.

From the Show

2009-10-12T21:36:00.001-07:00

Video of the show and interview with me
by Efren Quiroz
on youTube

Life is a blank wall sometimes.

The show, hung.
Miriam has an infallible sense of what goes where, for which I am thankful.

It was a whole day's work, getting it up.

My big piece with the paint still wet.

It wasn't just good art you missed... .

Me and the wifey.

VICTORIA REVISITED [the other side] runs until October 22.
See you down there!

All photos (c) the artist's wife and Miriam Mulhall.

Please Come to Our Show

2009-09-08T16:30:00.001-07:00

A Bigger Big Pine

2009-07-21T16:18:00.000-07:00

"Big Pine, Early Spring"
22 X 28" Oil on Canvas

I think the Williams family needs to adopt this tree as our clan crest.

Here it is again, with many of the same compositional devices, but with more road, more sky, and a lot more blue. I wanted, above all, to get the effect of the intense blue of the sky and how it bleeds into and dissolves the outlines of the tree. I'm not an Impressionist. I'm not interested in flux, in impermanent lighting conditions. However, actual optical effects do interest me--but more in the tradition of Vermeer (Using the digital camera, rather than the camera obscura. Hey, I'm a man of my times, as he was.)

I also expanded on the device of the lines of the foreground running through into the sky, tree and background. I copy the tones found in nature, my draftsmanship is accurate, and I use both aerial and linear perspective, but, under no circumstances will I sacrifice the integrity of the picture-plane. It's a two-dimensional surface, period. I don't put holes in people's walls.

Interestingly, the tree itself is not that much bigger than the last attempt, even though the canvas is four inches larger in both dimensions. I may have to go radically big to get the full monumentallity of this tree. It's not over yet!

Springtime in the South

2009-07-03T09:21:00.001-07:00

"Apricot Orchard, Osoyoos"
24 X 30" Oil on Canvas.

My good wife found this one, from the balcony of the care home my grandfather lives in. She has a pretty good eye for what I need, and relates emotionally to art, even though she is not artistically inclined (she claims). Well emotional reaction is what art is all about, and she has that part dialed.

I've been wanting to paint this subject matter for ages, and hear it is. Van Gogh famously tackled this subject, but my treatment here is more Cezanne. Well, I was born in the Okanagan, so I don't have much excuse not to tackle the subject.

Unusually for me, no sky is showing, only the rising sagebrush hills. The slightly askew horizontal and vertical axis, the unified tonalities, and the treatment of both the tree-trunks and branches, as well as the white house, all give a stiff nod to Uncle Paul. This is because my aim is the same as his--to unify the picture-plane and compress the internal pictorial space. It's a 2-D surface, and I want to keep it as such. Buit if the volume of the house and the planes of the background, orchard and foreground where all parallel to the picture-plane, it would loose its internal dynamism and become a bit boring. So it is in the space between static and dynamic that the picture makes its home in the eye.

You'll notice one obvious device in the vertical of the telephone pole which is continued into the foreground tree-brace. This exists in the photo, and is simply emphasized there.

I gave the canvas a light reddish-brow wash after the drawing was done to keep the canvas from glaring through. You can see how I use it in this detail shot. The field behind the house is the ground itself. This also helps create the feeling of overcast light.

The far background/ top looks contrived, but that also was in the photo, just harnessed by me to allow a circular motion against the top and keep the horizontals from running out so badly.

All pink and green. it was fun to paint a lot of some colours I don't use a lot of otherwise.

Christ Church Cathedral

2009-07-03T09:19:00.001-07:00

"Christ Church Cathedral" 18 x 24" Oil on Canvas.

In the spirit of innovation, and to continue with the promise I made myself a few posts ago, here is Christ Church Cathedral under a sultry summer sky, painted fast and loose. The painting underneath (turned on its side) provides a textural and tonal base. I'm all about having fun and not copying to strictly with this one. Yet the tones and details I include are just enough to firmly place it, looking south down Quadra St. The cars, cube-van, streetlight, and London Drugs sign--it's all there, but I make you work for it.

I'm becoming fixated with this old building.

Scintillating like a fire opal, I once again make the sky the focal point with successive overpaintings, deliberately building up the impasto. Well, the focal point is really the tower, and its contrast with the burning summer sky.

Mmmmm. Ice cream for the eye.

Douglas Lake Revisited--In Person

2009-07-02T18:32:00.000-07:00

Open Range, Douglas Lake. Oil on Canvas. 22 X 28"

Going back to the Okanagan with my Dad and my new bride for a honeymoon, we took the obvious "shortcut" of the Douglas Lake Road, just down the #5 from Merritt.

Well, well. The Big Tree is still there! As it has been for about 200 years. And as we hope it will be for another 200. Such a relief to come around the corner and find it here. We were all a bit apprehensive, what with all the beetle-kill on that mountain... .

I took a print of my painting of it to my 95-year-old grandfather in Osoyoos. We told him that we had gone up through Douglas Lake, and he immediately said, "Yeah there's a really big pine tree near the summit on that road... ." And I said "Boy, have I got a surprise for you!" Some things just work out.

While we were up there I got a couple of really good shots from different angles of the Tree, and I hope to be working them up over the winter, if not sooner.

But for now, here is a seemingly plain piece of just rangeland and sky. I tried to copy the shapes of the clouds fairly exactly (although I may have overworked them a bit) and increased the amount opf colour in the photo. It was shot through the dusty window of a Honda minivan. I picked out a few subtly repeating curves, too. It was hard to paint that much drab tone; the dead grass and leafless trees of early spring.

Mt. Doug Remix

2009-05-12T08:44:00.000-07:00

"Mt. Douglas, Late Evening" 18 X 24" Oil on Canvas.

As per my post of 12/03/09, here is an attempt to push things sideways a little it a more painterly way. I wanted to use all the elements of "pure painting" while still holding firmly onto the motif. I was much more concerned with the overall effect and the surface quality of the paint than with anything else. Things seem to harmonize pretty well, although I may take another poke at it sometime, to bring some of the compositional elements into a tighter alignment. Or not. The trick is knowing when to stop.

There's a pound of paint on this one--probably 5 coats on the sky. There's an almost-finished painting underneath, and, instead of throwing it out, I used all that frustration and thick texture underneath to contribute to the new image. I also wanted to leave lots of evidence of the struggle to create a tense and edgy painting of a serene subject.

Beauty is born from the inner struggle.

Open form and open colour both interest me. If I can only let my guard down long enough to allow it to happen.

Living Between Earth and Sky

2009-03-30T16:36:00.000-07:00

"Houses, Harling Point" 14 X 18" Oil on canvas.

Since I moved to Victoria in 2004, I have been wanting to have a crack at painting Harling Point. Perhaps not the most dramatic place in Victoria, it is, nonetheless, one of the most interesting. The Chinese Cemetery is located there as well as two different geological massive of rock (which can be seen in here).

It's an open and elemental kind of place. I don't show the ocean in this image, but it is off to the left. On a sunny day, the four Platonic elements (air, fire, water and earth) are there in abundance.

These older cottage-like houses on Penzance Rd seem compressed between the rocks and the sky.

Not the easy painting I thought it would be. I cut it down from a larger original, being dissatisfied with the mass of irrelevant detail in the rocks, and the too-obvious composition. The result of the trimming is an image that is a little more precarious and tense.

I overpainted the sky several times, finally settling for more tonal and chromatic drama with the dry-brushed pale lemony green near the horizon. All the impasto of the previous workings add to the effect, the contrasts creating a better balance with the masses of windblown pines on the right.

I think I successfully introduced an airy feel here with my loose brushwork and treatment (or neglect of) the edges of things.

Just in Time for Spring

2009-03-30T15:48:00.000-07:00

"Spring, Camosun College" 18 X 24" Oil on Canvas.

Phew! What a job this one was. I shot the photo at exactly this time last year on a beautiful golden evening. I had been hiking around Mt. Tolmie, and brought some good field sketches back with me. The light of early evening can be truly incredible, and I will probably spend the rest of my painting life diligently chasing it with a brush. Coming home through the backstreets, I took about a dozen photos of this, standing in the middle of the road to frame it properly.

Besides the light on the interesting architecture and the great diversity and richness of colour, it was the leaning pole at left that intrigued me, which creates a tension with the verticals of the building.

I have been accused at various times of being a Realist, or an Impressionist, but those are both superficial assessments. (I'm too loose and happy for a Realist, and too structured and methodical for an Impressionist.)

Compositionally, this one is a study in opposing diagonals--which are essential in establishing pictorial depth. So that this depth does not get out of control, I employ several devices to preserve the integrity of the 2-D picture plane (as in Cezanne). The Impressionists taught me that to create light, one needs to use colour ,and to create internal unity, break up colour--but that's about it. I really don't care about atmosphere and the effects of weather, other than how they contribute to the composition. Low light or falling rain are useful only for the diagonals they create, and how they contribute to the picture. I'm not interested in "capturing" anything, really, but finding devices in the image to project emotion for me.

There were passages that really frustrated me, but plenty here simply fell off the brush. I am learning to anticipate the overpainting I will do in the latter stages and this is allowing me to proceed more intelligently in the early stages. The underdrawing is done in blue and violet and then I did a light wash of red-brown over everything before starting with the body colour. The blue creates some fascinating edge effects.

It's funny how a painting gets smaller the more detail I try to pack into it. And, since the devil was very much in the details, here are a few close-ups for you of some of the finer bits.

A shout out to Nona, the scheduler at work, for all her encouragement, and for spreading the word.

Rothko Remixed

2009-03-12T19:08:00.001-07:00

"No.2 (After Rothko)" Oil on Canvas, 36 X 48".

It pulses with a strange power, like a good Rothko should. But, of course, it is only a Williams, so the emotion is mine. I've been more than a little frustrated this last week over the progress of my (usual) literal oils, and so, for a needed change, I decided to scratch a log-standing itch by duplicating Mark Rothko's style in a proper big abstract canvas.

Spotlighting brings out a bit of the meditative power... . Lighting was super-critical to Uncle Mark, and you can see why by comparing the above two photos.

A bit small by normal Rothko standards, but big enough to overwhelm my meager studio infrastructure.

And yet, strangely enough, it does not overwhelm my meager apartment walls. But it does create a palpable "presence" in the room. I can feel it even when my back is turned. It is as Rothko would have wished. I distinctly remember my first, and only, experience with an original Rothko at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, which was also my first real experience with abstract art. I came away that day with a book on Renoir, stoked to have seen several Impressionist paintings. But I've long since forgotten Renoir and the Impressionists. Yet Rothko has always been THERE in my subconscious, smoldering away like a burning root, waiting to set a whole forest on fire.

I have duplicated his actual working methods fairly closely, using multiple overlapping layers of radically thinned-out paint and attempted to keep my brushwork and gestures Rothko-esque. My only departure, in fact, is that I have used my 3 Colour System, but with Manganese Blue, rather than the usual Winsor Blue which I use most frequently now.

Not sure where my art is heading after this, but it looks set to be an interesting ride. I feel at a cross-roads. I have created something today that radiates emotion, and that is what I've been after all along.

As an important, closely related footnote, yesterday I discovered the website of Edward Epp, and been kinda blown away with it. He reminds me of Deibenkorn and deStael combined, both of whom I love. His output is within the European and Abstract Expressionist vein, but he paints my Province and my country.

Maybe that is the kind of direction I need to go in; the direction I started on with "Freighter" back in '07. Epp has been tackling that subject, too, I see... .

So for lunch: bagel and cream cheese with lox. Part of the traditional Jewish diet. Thinking of you, Uncle Mark.

Essential Beverages

2009-03-12T18:57:00.000-07:00

"Teacup and Beerbottle" 10 X 14" Watercolour on Paper.

Representing both of my favourite diuretics :) this images is essentially a compositional investigation. The curves in my new teacup (thanks Angela!) got the thing started, and from there it was a combination of planning and improvisation. Making art should be fun.

LIFE DRAWING SESSIONS

2009-02-25T19:10:00.000-08:00

WHERE: COLLECTIVE WORKS GALLERY,
1311 GLADSTONE AVE

WHEN: THE FIRST and LAST SUNDAY OF THE MONTH

TIME: 7;30 P.M TO 9;30 PM

COST: Members Fee. $10.00 PER SESSION DROP IN

Books of Tickets: 6 FOR 50.00 (expire date June 30th,2009)

The Collective Works Gallery will be holding life drawing sessions twice a month on the first and last Sunday of the month. The two hour model sessions will be with both male and female figures. The majority of the sessions will be the undraped model, with periodically a draped model. 1 & 3 minute poses, and long poses. The human figure comes in many shapes, ages, and sizes; we will strive to represent this variety in the human form. Bring your own easel and drawing materials,chairs are provided. Come and let your muse play with us.

Facilitators: Marnie Miiller and PJ Kelly

Vital Signs

2009-02-18T17:55:00.001-08:00

At press time, this is the first crocus of spring. That I know of. Summit Park always seems to have the first. I shared a meadow with some chickadees there yesterday, and had a quiet pipe with some tea.

Dark Industrial Underbelly

2009-02-18T17:18:00.000-08:00

"Rock Bay", 16 X 20", Oil on Canvas.
Here is a subject I have been wanting to tackle for some time. Not to make a social or environmental statement (I'm an artist, not a journalist), but for the sheer visual interest of it. Can something so ugly be made into something beautiful? Such built landscapes do have a certain structure and blunt purpose.

So I painted it as a tonal study. This is part of the Victoria that the tourists aren't shown. I'm glad, too, that Victoria has a real and edgy side.

Loving the new camera. I didn't have to colour-correct this photo at all. Another helpful factor is that I have now got two 50 watt halogens shining on my easel, so I am painting under gallery lighting, and so my photos turn out better too.

Cello Study

2009-01-20T19:22:00.000-08:00

"Cello Study" Watercolour and white gouache on paper. 10 X 14.

It's strange how such a small work can take so long, but still be so satisfying. If this would have been an oil, I would have lost interest in it 3/4 of the way through. The cool thing with this medium is that I can pick it up and put it down at a moment's notice. It is not the production that painting in oils can be.

I'm pretty happy with this one, as it is a little more structured than the last cubist cello watercolour. My intention was to get a diagonal music-like rhythm going, and preserve some of the more literal aspects of the motif.

I'm also happy with how the planes meld and separate alternately. It was a fun painting to do.

After the Rain

2008-11-30T20:30:00.000-08:00

"After the Rain, Boundary Bay" Oil on Canvas. 18 X 24"

There is an ecstasy to be found in solitude, a strange solace in absence. The theme of this piece is loneliness, but not despair.

The photo here really pales beside the original, in this case more than others. The colours are extraordinarily rich and pure, since I use undiluted colour to get the darkest tones. Besides blue and grey, violet is the unifying hue, since it pulls together the middle two-thirds. This prevents the image from splitting into strict thirds between top and bottom. In the original, you will notice, only under bright lighting, that there is pure untinted violet forming the darkest bits under the blackberry bush at the foot of the main power pole. This is an essential touch, given the stark tonal contrasts between the main zones.

Another way I bring the zones into unity, and the entire thing into reconciliation with the picture-plane is with interlocking compositional lines. There are two main diagonals, one running through the main poles, and the other passing from the bottom left of the sky into the blackberry bush. These two interlock with the two horizontal strokes of warm, bright green, one under the line of distant trees between the main poles, and the other under the bush, continuing into the road. Two "ghost planes" interlocking, if you will. Focusing on this, you can literally feel the image pulling itself flat out of space.

A strong internal tension is created by setting off the angles of the poles against the calm horizontals of the earth and sky, and the contrast they make against the rigid verticals of the edges of the picture plane. The angles of the poles are quite true to life, though. A "found" poem, and not sitorted, as one may at first suppose.

There is some other subtle poetry in this piece I find particularly pleasing, but I'll let you spend some time on it ;). I've already largely let the cat out of the bag--all but the tail, in fact.

I had started with the top of the sky too pale and blue, and thought I might have to wait a week to repaint. But I overpainted wet-into-wet with a darker grey and got the exact effect I wanted: the bottom of a raincloud lifting off. Nice to nail it like that.

"Alone on a train aimless in wander,
An outdated map crumpled in my pocket.
But I didn't care where I was going,
'Cause they're all different words for the same place.

The coast disappeared when the sea drowned the sun,
And I knew no words to share with anyone... ."
--Death Cab For Cutie

Funny how, on the surface, what may be taken for undramatic scenery, can have the most to offer. The pic for this painting was shot just up the shore from "Farm in Delta".

And that is the same raincloud lifting off.

Who obtains this, obtains a masterpiece.

Painting an Epic

2008-11-30T14:45:00.000-08:00

"Mountain Music" (A whole lotta) Oil on Canvas. 24 X 30" July-November, 2008.

Here is the largest easel painting I have done to date. And the one I have worked longest and hardest on.

Certainly not the most daring composition, but visually one of the most ambitious I have undertaken. The difficult parts came easy and the easy parts came hard. Just getting a photo of this thing was hard, given my current lighting sitch in the studio--which badly needs addressing.

In it, I think I have managed to harmonize all the major planes with the picture-plane itself, blanace it visually, and get all the various bits talking to each other and holding hands.

This makes a positive, joyful statement about the glory and beauty of the physical world, and how the spiritual might shine through that world, and speak to us.

I would point out several things I particularly like:

In the sky and the hills, I have painted several different times of the day, adding to the idea of synchronicity that underlies cubism. I don't think this has been done before--at least the idea is original and comes straight from my yeasty old brain.
The curves and shapes of the figure are repeated in the landscape. No new idea in Post-Impressionism, but not too obvious right off in this picture.
The whole thing opens like a flower from the bottom center. "Growing from the roots of the world". There are three coloured spheres in the bottom third, representing the three primary colours, and the Cosmic, um, other stuff... .
Things are just abstract enough to allow a certain capriciousness, but still hold their literal signposts well. I'm particularly happy with the potted plant and the gramophone.
The planes are logically arranges in spacial progression, but maintain the 2-dimensionality of the picture surface.
The heavy overpainting actually contributes to the physicality of the thing, which is gratifying. You can see the evidence of the battle!

The drawing I took the image from, done in the same session as the drawing for "Sea Music", and with the same model (Ava). I assumed, or was hoping , that I would have the same success as "Sea Music", which was almost effortless to paint and still stands as my best figurative works to date (and one of my best oils, period). The muse is fickle, and often punishes glibness.

Stage 1, the underdrawing. I thought I had the composition fairly well planned... . You can see the difficulty already emerging of the piece being too heavy to the right. Placing the figure dead-center didn't help, either. The pyramidal/ diamond foundation of the composition, is of course, not new in Western Art, and signals that I wanted this one to be monumental.

After the first three reworkings. I called my good friend and colleague, Sheedo Shirazi over, whose sense of the picture I have come to trust implicitly. She suggested some major and fundamental changes, which were all directly incorporated into the final version at the top of this post. I knew it was a matter of balance, but couldn't see the forest for the trees, and was getting tired of throwing paint at it! She put me straight, suggesting the plant motif for the right, and moving the gramophone to the left. This photo shows me just rubbing some thinned-out white over the areas to be corrected.

Detail of some crunchy bits. There's five layers of paint there, some places. (How does one paint a "cubist" apple?)

I'm very happy with the colour nuances and the distribution of planes in this part. You can just see the old black vinyl peaking out there. Much of this part just happened. The gramophone image here has kinda morphed into some strange, beautiful snake-like, flowering almost sexual symbol for me. Sometimes, the thing paints itself and suggests what it wants as it develops.

So much of this one just happened, after the planning went sideways. All this goes to prove that I am not as left-brain as some people suspect, and that I can surprise myself with my own persistence!

Image-Dump

2008-11-29T20:22:00.000-08:00

Well, here I am down to working 2-3 days a week at the day-job, and I'm sick with a really bad stomach bug, and probably will be for a few more days. So no workie. (I caught it at one of the two care-homes I work at, and am in self-imposed quarantine, so don't any of you be coming over!)

But, if I can successfully fight off the impulse to spend all day in bed, I'll be at the easel. And that is what I did today, finishing two long-dragged-on oils. Biggies, too.

I have another dandy to finish that'll blow your doors off, of some power poles near Tsawwassen. I'll be posting the first two tomorrow, and the Tsawwassen piece soonish (little finicky thing with the sky to fix).

For now, here are some smaller works that I haven't posted yet. Sort of clearing the mental racks befor some big stuff comes down. I have about a dozen large landscapes in the usual style I would like to work up this winter, some recently shot, others gleaned from the photo archives.

Sometimes I love the view from the ol' apartment. It is not all carbon soot and sirens.

I find 15 or 20 minutes is good enough to get a decent drawing. This is Keith, an aboriginal guy who is all lean muscle.

Spectacular sky, winter, 2007.

Keith again.

"Solve et Coagula"
As above, so below.

Lots of rock behind my block... .

I get bored waiting for food in restaurants, so I draw things.

Still Life at the Gallery

2008-11-05T17:19:00.000-08:00

Well, it was my turn to sit at the Collective Works Gallery the other week, and I had brought along the water colours but was at a loss as to what to paint. I knew I wanted cubism, but didn't feel inspired to do anything in particular. Then I discovered that Deryk had a cello stashed in the back room. Well, well.

I had an apple on me, some notebooks, and then some bloke came in with a bag of bay boughs from his garden. And they all made it in there.

Certainly the most fragmented of my cubist paintings, and the most exacting as far as execution goes. I am also loving painting on the 140lb Arches paper. 100% rag all the time.

There is a definite compression toward the center of the piece. Some of the more striking elements were added as the thing progressed, and not at all planned.

It's not the most rigidly planned image I've done for sure, cubist or otherwise. The center especially is a free-form of associations. Cubism can be as spontaneous or as scientific as you like, I guess, and that is one of the beauties of the paradigm.

"Still Life With Cello"
10X 12" Water Colour & White Gouache

Ran into my neighbour and colleague Caroline on the way home from the mall today after getting this scanned. Nice to have cool people close by.

I have two big honkin' oils close to being finished that I am itching to post here. Patience, patience.... . I also must do a blog posting on No. 5 Gallery, which represents me, and has 5 of my best paintings under contract. This is old news in some respects, but needs some serious air-time on here.

Shout out to all my neglected friends who are reading this.

Snap-lid Jar

2008-10-05T12:53:00.000-07:00

"Snap-Lid Jar" Water colour. 6 X9"

"It's all in your head, jarhand."
--Immaculate Machine

(Yeah, do click on that link and see a cool vid of the song, with footage of my neighbourhood and city. Find art where you can.)

I started this as a more complete still life, but the rest of it went sideways, so this is all I finished of it, and it turned out pretty well. The cubist adventures continue.

"Well, Tom Thompson Came Paddling Past,

2008-09-30T11:33:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty sure it was him.
And he spoke so softly in accordance to the growing of the dim.
He said "Bring on a brand new renaissance
Cause I think I'm ready.
I've been shaking all night long,
But my hands are steady."
--The Tragically Hip "Three Pistols"

Well, it could have been him.... .

An historic photo--me actually doing work! Sketching at Unna Lake.

Thanks Clark for the first photo above, and Kathy, for the second (two of the best I have of myself).

"Spectacle Lake From Pat's Point" 6 X 9" Water colour. Thanks Erin for the scan! Painted the same afternoon I did the Stump piece below. Simple, but effective--a good little study.

Teapot Fixation

2008-09-26T21:36:00.000-07:00

"Teapot and Bottles" 10 X 14" Water colour.

I'm thinking of donating this one to the Gala and Auction, so if you want it, you'll have to buy a ticket and come on out November 27th. See post below and stay tuned for details.

Hot of the brush! It took me as long as an oil.

"Cubism is a highly distinguished art form; a creative art form and not an art of reproduction or interpretation."
- Pierre Reverdy

"Painting is stronger than I am. It makes me do whatever it wants."
- Pablo Picasso

"In fact, art is an enchantment, something mysterious that envelopes us."
- George Braque

"Today it is clear to me that Cubism, at its beginning, was nothing more than a new way of rendering the world."
- Juan Gris

Song of the Paddle

2008-09-26T15:20:00.000-07:00

"Unna Lake" 6 X 10" Water colour on paper.

Well, it's time I got something up on the old blog here. After strong-arming my way through 116 km of some of the most spectacular scenery on the planet, I have some modest little water colours to show for. And actual arm-muscles (sorta).

Towards the end of the trip we had some down-time and I could concentrate on painting for a few hours. I am very happy with the results in spite of the non-dramatic subject matter. The big mountains were mostly in the beginning part of the trip. I'm also starting to wonder if water colour is not more in my future than oils!

Believing as I do in balancing the four Platonic elements (air, fire, water, and earth), I find water colours very soothing, me being a fire sign and all. They seem to cool me down inside.

"Stump, Pat's Point" 6 X 10" Water colour and pencil on paper. In camp on the sixth night. this one has Cezanne written all over it. I crashed in the mouse-garrisoned cabin because I spent so much time that afternoon painting, so did not have time to set up my tarp before dark. (Dan, if you could scan that watercolour I left with you I'll put it up here as well.)

"Beached Kayaks, Birch Camp" 6 X10" Water colour and pencil on paper. That is my kayak and Erin's there on the beach. I just finished drawing it before she went out in it again--to look for moose!

"Art is never finished, but it stops in interesting places."

I fell asleep in the sun just on the other side of that leaning tree before waking up and painting this. Imaging: flat on my back in the sun, hat over my face, bees buzzing, water gently lapping, the smell of grass and lake and trees, hundreds of km from anywhere I may have had to be, sleeping off the drug that is life.

Spending eight days just paddling, camping, laughing and eating was the holiday I needed, so here are some photos as well.

If you of the "Group of 7 " Bowron paddling team would like to submit 1-2 really good photos (and maybe some photos of me), I'd be glad to post them here!

Clark and Kathy Kerr in "The Floating Chuckwagon".
Also one of the faster canoes on the Lake (trust me!).

Happy paddlers :) L-R Dan, Bill, Janice and Erin.

Paradise regained.

Some of the local hills. An art shot. Real mountain weather that day. Isaac Lake.

The best tarp rigging job of the entire trip. Dan thinks I'm the Bucky Fuller of the backwoods.... .
I do prefer a tarp over a tent, but those new free-standing tents sure do go up faster.

Going onto Lanezi Lake after the Caribou River.
Floating through what's left of the earth.

I've only now just stopped waking up at dawn, thinking I am still in camp. Many, many thanks for Dan and Erin for setting this up, and lending me that little yellow kayak. And Bill and Janice and Clark and Kathy for the great company, endless jokes, great food and flat out rockin' good times!

My Sexy Teapot

2008-08-31T16:02:00.000-07:00

I've officially stopped drinking coffee. Never thought I'd live to see the day! But it does my blood-sugar levels no favours to keep on with it. I feel a lot better now, and am really sleeping deeper at nights--I can tell by how much I am dreaming and how much I remember when I wake up, too. So this may also improve my creativity, since my brain gets properly rested. It hasn't been easy, but I'm really enjoying my tea.

So many of my friends don't drink coffee either, so this has been an added incentive. I know that anything I do in the kitchen is easier with the proper infrastructure, so I bought a really good little teapot, and a new electric kettle. The old kettle was a hand-me-down, small and not very efficient. The new one is 2L and so fast at heating the water up, that I actually use it to heat water for pasta etc, since my old stove is so slow. Between the two of them, that is nearly 100 bux in stuff, but I can say it was more than worth the money.

But this new teapot is the thing that delights me most. It is the perfect size, shape and colour and has a stainless steel infuser inside which also fits perfectly into my favourite mug. At 1.33L I can make enough tea for several people at once, or supply myself with 2 mugs of hot tea in the morning and cold tea for the rest of the day.

And a couple of trips to Silk Road for some good organic black tea! Yeee-ooow. That stuff is THE stuff! Fave so far is the Vanilla Plantation, with vanilla essence and bits of bean in it. It makes kicking the coffee habit just a little easier to bear.

"Teapot and Tangerines" 8.5" X 11" Water colour.

"Teapot and Knife" 8.5 X 11" Water colour.
A cubist water colour. The knife turned out particularly well, I think. the faceting is very exact--it really is like seeing it from several different angles at once. Very, very happy with this one, in spite of a few minor mistakes.

Speaking of cubism, I do have another cubist nude on the easel right now, but will not have time to finish it before I leave Sept 2 for a kayaking trip through the Bowron Lakes with Dan and Erin and some of their friends.

I have decided to take the water colours along after all, since they are so meditative for me, and it looks like I will have plenty of time, since we will be spending only 4-6 hours a day on the water.

It'll be great to get the heck outta Dodge for a good spell and away from the pollution (both air and noise) here on Hillside. I'm totally stoked and 98.62% packed. If course I am taking a couple of grams of Vanilla Plantation with me--that part was easy!

It'll be a good material-gathering expedition, too. So expect some strong All-Canadian type outdoor image from me this fall and winter.

I'll be inviting some of the gang over for a dinner at my place when I get back. So stay tune, you of my inner circle.

Peace,
N

Ship out on the Sea.

2008-08-05T16:43:00.000-07:00

There's rockets in the meadow, and ships out on the sea,
The answer's in the forest, it's carved upon a tree:
"John loves Mary--does anyone love me?"
--Gordon Lightfoot

"Freighter 2" 14 X 18" Oil on canvas, as always.

If you recall the freighter I did last year... . Well this is meant to be a kind of continuation of that theme. The other one was a "Handymax bulker" but I have no clue what this is. Some sort of floating brick, I guess. It may be loaded with something lighter, since when they sit lower in the water, they are even more brick-like. Hard to tell stem from stern... .

I slathered on the mountains, and scuffed on the sky. A good little piece, and painted in 1 1/2 sittings. I'm very happy with the simplicity of the image, the paint quality, and the tones. It seems that working this size really helps me nail it on the first shot, for whatever reason. Maybe all those years, being broke, I learned to paint small to save materials, and now the habit is formed... .

(Further online investigation reveals that this is an "Ace" class vehicle carrier, and is high in the water after having delivered its cargo to Vancouver.)

A Matisse Tribute

2008-08-05T16:39:00.000-07:00

"Girl in Brown" 18 X 24"

Most of you know know that I love Uncle Henri, but rarely paint like him. He's not really an influence, it's true, but I admire his preoccupation with design, structure and pictorial harmony, sharing as I do a quite Gallic concern for formal pictorial problems.

I took this from the drawing below, which my friend M.H. was kind enough to sit for. I may not be able to capture all her earthy Persian beauty on canvas (yet), but it's fun to try. I made her look kinda Japanese here, and, as she has a deep affinity for Japanese culture and art, it's appropriate. (M.H. is a pretty incredible and versatile artist in her own right, and if she ever gets her own website up, I'll be posting a link to it here... .)

The colours are not as daring as Matisse, and the textures are all me as well, but I tried to get at his line a bit. I almost wish I had to correct a little more--to make it more like his style during the '20s. but I was happy with the under drawing from the get-go. I did have to re-harmonize the background yellow and a few other bits, and I admit the colour is not one of the strengths of this piece--but I like it a lot.

I'd like to continue to explore the theme of tribute paintings to artists I admire. Seems to be a productive thing for me.

Have been doing a few good figure drawings lately. Life drawing certainly helps. I want to be one of those painters who actually can draw.

At Last - Water Colours!

2008-07-09T12:34:00.000-07:00

"Bill and Joanne's Place" I met them--Bill is an artist--and they gave me a tour. This house was actually ordered as a kit from Sears Roebuck in about 1918. One of my best pictures, period!

"Group of Oaks, Ryan St." One block from here. The trick with water colour is to not put on too much. This one gives the feeling of glaring sunlight. Kinda fauvist.

"House with Red Door, Fernwood" The door and the yellow cedar in front are particularly satisfying bits. I may touch this one up a bit--but not finish it more than it is.

"Peppers and Tomato" Love the loose touches that create the impression of tight form. Nice, eh? I'm really happy with this one.

All small water colours are $180.00, which includes a custom frame. $120 if you just want the artwork as-is.

Some New Drawings

2008-07-09T12:30:00.000-07:00

"Arbutus" Done in the woods behind UVic. Minimalist and abstract.

"Can of Asters" Because the can's bottom is busted, it is leaning toward the window a bit. I was getting all cubist on the stemmy bits, which is cool. Drawn while sitting in Collective Works Gallery.

"Espresso Machine" Delightfully abstract little study, done in a Cafe across from the Vancouver Art Gallery.

"Mike Reading" My tall blond Dutch cousin Mike, I dig his gaunt cheeks and Jesus Christ Superstar haircut. Sketched on the Ferry to Tswassen on the way to Vanhangover for the weekend. thanks to Mike and Simmi for putting me up for the night.

"Mt. Doug seen from Mt. Tolmie" A bit heavier treatment than what I am used to, but a good sketch.

All small drawings are $125 framed. If you want them as-is, it's $65.00.

Or make me a good offer.

Diversifying My Portfolio

2008-06-23T10:39:00.000-07:00

When I get my flatbed scanner sitch sorted, I have a butt-load of drawings (and maybe a few water colours) to post here. Haven't been painting much in oil, but really stoked with the new water colours. I bought the Winsor & Newton Cotman pocket box, removed the cakes that came with it--standard, boring colours--and squeezed my own choices into the pans. I only use the Artists' Quality of course. Same as with the oils. No sense messing about.

I hit a few of the studios on the Art Stroll on Saturday. Some great stuff, and well worth showing up for. One of the main organizers of the event was Deryk Houston, a founding members of Collective Works Gallery. He's a hardworking guy, and very diverse as an artist. I also admire his sense of social and political justice.

Which reminds me that I have a meeting tonight, so I had better get cracking on some stuff.

N

A Weekend of Art

2008-06-17T09:00:00.000-07:00

Fernwood is where it is happening this weekend!

On Friday evening at 7:00pm. Collective Works Gallery is hosting the opening reception of our new group show “Towards the Sun” in celebration of the summer solstice and Fern Fest. Julian and Blair Mulhall will be providing live entertainment throughout the event. Those of you who enjoyed Julian and Blair so much at my birthday celebration will want to hear them play again

I would like to extend an invitation--to Fernwood’s first annual studio tour. There are 21 artists involved who will be opening up their studios to the public on June 21^st and 22^nd (Sat and Sun) 11-4pm. Many members of Collective Works are involved in this. Now is your chance to meet them personally in their studios!

Join us for a glass of wine at Fernwood’s exciting weekend celebrations. Brochures available at the Gallery. More info on www.fernwoodvic.ca

Artist's Statement

2008-06-03T17:18:00.001-07:00

Uniting the Post-Impressionist European tradition with the motifs and sensations of my immediate surroundings, my city and province, I craft unashamedly delightful images full of structure, poetry, and light using only the three primary colours of blue, red, and yellow.
I believe in the vocation of painting; it is something one is called to. Art has been the one joyous golden thread running through my life.

Although self-taught, I believe a strong technical foundation is necessary to communicate emotion effectively. Oil on canvas is and always will be my preferred medium, although the humble graphite pencil drawing will also have a place in my oeuvre. I also work with coloured pencil and watercolour.

My enthusiasm for art history occasionally finds expression in cubism, surrealism, or lyrical abstract expressionism, but no matter what the genre, my style may universally be described as “painterly” since all my work demonstrates a preoccupation with the physical surface.
I believe that art should have a strong and active role in society as a positive, transformative force, discovering, fixing, and preserving beauty and meaning, and inspiring and renewing the human spirit.

Under this fine rain I breathe in the innocence of the world. I feel coloured by the nuances of infinity. At this moment I am one with my picture. We are an iridescent chaos... (Paul Cézanne)

nicholaspaints@shaw.ca + http://paintingblind.blogspot.com + 250.886.6480

And Now For Something Completely Different.....

2008-06-01T20:52:00.000-07:00

"Sea Music" Oil on Canvas, 20 X 24" Thirty-two hundred bux, yup.

Thought I didn't have it in me eh? And that I would never get tired of painting rocks and sky and trees? HA! comin' atcha with a Varley/, Macke/ Gris/ Matisse tribute sorta synthetic cubist nude thing.

Composition on this one is really complex. I actually tried to paint in a few bass and treble clefts. They were both supposed to coil into her left breast, but my intention went sideways there. Too much going on in that area as it is. The musical elements are not too obvious, and I did not take the faceting of the planes too far. It's synthetic cubism, after all.... My favourite local model, Ava, was the model for this, and yes, she does play the ukulele--quite well, too.

I did try to pack in some symbolism--but not all of it erotic ;) The face turned out quite well, and a few of the other bits, really giving the impression of simultaneous viewpoints. The figure came out non-white looking (all hail the dark Goddess), which is satisfying, and is literal enough to be pleasing. The colour has a Macke-esque density and richness. I suppose all those years of looking at and admiring Macke finally trickled out through my brush....

I had to make a few corrections to keep the lines from "running out" on the left side, but I think it holds the wall now, with a good dose of rhythm and visual cohesion.

I pride myself on being able to understand and work within most of the major ISMs of the last 150 years. Maybe one of these days I'll really step out of character and do some surrealism. You never know. I do also have a rather expressionistic self-portrait I should put up here sometime.

No matter what, though, I'll always put out images in bright colours.

Rooflines in Oaklands

2008-05-11T12:28:00.000-07:00

"Rooflines in Oaklands" 18 X 24"
I might rename this one, since "Oaklands" is a somewhat arbitrary designation, basically the strip of neighbourhood between Hillside and Bay, Cook and Shelbourne Streets. Upper Fernwood, if you like. The houses are smaller, less ornate, and 30-40 years newer in some spots--small, interwar houses, unpretentious, homey, contented.

I've lived in this neighbourhood since I moved here 4 years ago, and walked and cycled these streets many times. I guess I feel at home here--it's where I live. The sky has an almost prairie-wide feel to it, tucking right into the trees and snugging down behind the houses. The chimney styles are incredibly diverse and interesting--it's the little details which have slowly taken ahold of my imagination. Friend (and fellow artist) Paul sez I should do a coffee table book on local chimney styles! Hmm. (Scratches stubble.) Maybe I could get some sorta grant to document chimneys in paint....?

I'm fascinated by the interface of earth and sky, the way the light of the sky bleeds around objects, bending contours. the way the blue of the sky pours itself into the shadows. I believe one of the functions of art is to make people stop and look at things they might not notice otherwise.

My gesso,
My last call,
My life is yours, in your gifted hands.
Confetti rainfall and the quite streets,
The beauty is in what you make it,
So get up on your feet,
Because tonight the world turned in me,
Because tonight I don't dare breath.
Oh babe I know, it's alive, and somewhere for us to find tonight,
Chase this light with me.
--Jimmy Eat World.
(Burrowing itself into my head every time I walk or ride through Fernwood, and no-one to sing it to, even though I can hit most of the notes.)

I'm desparately trying to finish a painting of a big Italianate heritage house in Fernwood proper, but it is slow going. I'm a little out of my depth on it and it is a bit out of character for me generally. I know by now not to throw paintings such as that one away so quickly. I'll give it some more time and post it here if it turns out at all.

I'm on a cityscape kick, and will probably be sticking with it for a bit.

Increase the Peace,
Nicholas

"Fernwood & Around" by Al Williams

2008-05-07T12:34:00.000-07:00

Y'all come out to Uncle Al's show, y'hear?

I've really come to appreciate Al's art over the few months I've known him. I would describe his work as clean, fresh, hard-edged and linear. His sense of composition, structure and balance is impeccable, which I deeply admire. He's a contemporary West Coast Artist, and a cool guy to hang out with, too.

Opening this Friday, 7:00 pm at Collective Works, 1311 Gladstone.

You can check his website here.

Iconography!

2008-05-04T22:01:00.000-07:00

I just can't resist posting this, it being Sunday and all:

"We are the Knights of the Lost Queen, Companions to the Beloved: She of red egg and alabaster jar. The Alchemists and Kabalists, the Witches and Magicians are of us. We are the keepers of a Flame far older than the world and we seek it out where we may find it, and breathe it to life with our wit, our humility, our art, and our joy."
- Anthem of the Exiled Princes

"Yet among the mature we do speak of Sophia, though it is not the Sophia of this Aeon or of the Archons, who are doomed to perish. But we speak of the Holy Sophia, secret and hidden, which God decreed before the Aeons for our glory. None of the Archons understood this."
- 1 Corinthians 2:6-8

I wish the above image better reflected the gravity of those words. But that is the way it came out. Was cleaning up the studio/ office/ flat the other day and came across this old project, started many months ago. A cute girl I used to know modelled for it. It came out kinda Japanese-looking face, and as solid as a matryoshka doll. Not very Byzantine, anyway ;) It's all good. So, gonna get me a big old gnarly gilt frame for this one and hang it in the hall.

Brown House, Fernwood

2008-04-25T11:39:00.000-07:00

And now, one of the finest paintings I have done to date:

Brown House, Fernwood 16 X 20" 2008
Yes, it really is brown, but all the blues and violets make it look yellow or orange. OK, I guess it is kinda yellowish. I did, though, muddy the tube yellow with considerable amounts of violet to dull it down.

Extremely gratified with this piece, especially the strict composition with it's rigid framework of horizontals, verticals and diagonals, subtle colour harmonies and sensitive modulations, and overall dry, gritty, matte paint quality.

Because the camera loses so much, I took the trouble of scanning the thing in so I could present the painted surface--and the colours-- a little more accurately.

Here, I think I successfully represented the "twiggy-ness" of overgrown and leafless bushes without having to paint every twig, and the glare of the winter sky with some wet-into-wet paint application. I was heavily inspired by both Cezanne and Pissarro in the handling of the bush/ wall interface, as you can see.

Mmmm, candy! Love those coppery/ mauvey modulations.

All the planes in this piece--maybe even the roof planes--have been aligned with the picture plane (that is, the 2-D actual painted surface). This gives the painting a monumentality and static gravity, in spite of its relatively small size. It holds the wall.

More of the same, please!!

N

Posting Some New Work, Finally

2008-04-25T11:35:00.001-07:00

Road To The Sky 16X 20" 2008
Another painting from my jaunt down the Douglas Lake Road 10 years ago. Not sure about this one.... Maybe a better photo that a painting? The only challenging part was beating the bank at the left into some semblance of order. It always amazes me that the simplest things are the most difficult--like in life, I guess.

Farm in Delta 16 X 20" 2008
I took this shot on the back way to Tsawwassen, riding along the dike--feeling very Dutch! The sun had just started to break through after a morning of rain. I had spent the weekend with Dan and Erin at their cabin on Harrison Lake (see posts from last fall), and had stayed the night with Cousin Nancy and her family. Nancy has a great sense of navigation, and it was she who tipped me off to the possibility of a bike trail around the Hwy 91/ Hwy 10 interchange. So I saved myself some stress and got some cool pix in, thanks to her!

I'm pretty happy with this little piece, especially because I painted the sky in one straight go, the tones are true, and the colour is subtly creative. There is a lot more to the composition than meets the eye at first glance, too. I had to make very few corrections overall, and had some really nifty things take place, just by letting them happen. Notice the two shallow diagonals on the left (one in the sky and one in the field). Also notice the compression formed by the curves in the bottom of the clouds and the curves of the brambles.... It seems to have the sense of depth I was looking for, while still respecting the flatness of the picture plane. Depth is created here by overlapping planes and by diagonal lines once again. The pale blues of the barns push them back into space, but the warm, strong adjacent touches bring them back into plane again. So there is a tension between depth and flatness, although maybe depth finally wins out.

Also, some psychology going on, almost behind my back. Hint: I've always wanted to own land. Forever out of reach, I guess.

Birthday Potluck at the Cafe

2008-04-13T19:18:00.000-07:00

Best birthday ever. The big treat was to have all my core group in one room, all talking to each other!! Love you guys. The music was awesome!! The food was too--and only one of my pies got eaten, so I had the other whole one to take home for myself :)

Cousin Nancy came over with her two daughters--and grand-daughter--from Langley, which was really nice. Mike and Ray were there as well, so there was 4 of us cousins. How cool is that!?

Some of my friends have already posted photos on their Facebook pages, but here are a few great shots taken my Miriam Mulhall, wife and mother of the musicians.

Extra special thanks must go to Julian and Blair for the tunes which held us spellbound, Howie for all the very kind logistical support, extra dishes and flat out good vibes. Also to Tammy and Joji for the help with setup, and of course, Miriam for the photos!

And thanks to all who came, brought food, hung out helped with the cleanup and celebrated with me. And thank you all for the kind words on my art.

I can't imagine my life without my friends, and luckily, I don't have to. I sometimes think that my freinds are my greatest asset. They probably are.

I will be posting some new paintings here when I get the chance, which hopefully will be before I leave on a hike of the Juan de Fuca Trail with a friend.

And (huge sigh of relief) the day-job may be sorting itself out in a way that is very suitable to me and my career in art. This is a blessing as well.

What More in the Name of Love?

2008-04-04T10:09:00.000-07:00

Remember the good Doctor, and all those who fight for justice.

Through Clear Air, April 1-30

2008-03-27T13:25:00.000-07:00

At the Cornerstone Cafe, 1301 Gladstone Avenue.

Final Hang List:

Corner of a Sunset 7 X 16”; 1996; $250.00
Hay and Sky 15½ X 17½”; 1997; $495.00
Cattle Country—Wolf Ranch 11 X 13½”; 1997; $375.00
Broken Tree, Botany Bay 14 X 18”; 2006; SOLD
Christ Church Cathedral 18 X 24”; 2007; $550.00
Evening, Gonzales Bay 18 X 24”; 2007; $550.00
Evening, Willows Beach 14 x 18”; 2007; $425.00
Dark Shore Tonquin Beach 14 X 18”; 2007; $425.00
Freighter 14 X 18” 2007; $425.00
Squally Weather, Harrison Lake 11 X 14”; 2007; $350.00
Bend in the Road, Douglas Lake 18 X 24”; 2008; $550.00 SOLD

Big Pine, Douglas Lake

2008-03-09T18:51:00.001-07:00

"Big Pine, Douglas Lake" 18 X 24"

Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention that I have actually been able to get some painting done, even with all the stupid busy-ness around the dayjob, going to openings, trying to start training, being tired, and dating some nice women and stuff.

Hey, let's not forget to paint, now.

So here's the latest. Also from the same bike-blast out to the Nicola region I did ten years ago. This is just up the road from "Bend in the Road, Douglas Lake". I seriously doubt that this tree is still standing, and if it is, it will be dead as a doornail, because of the mountain pine beetle epidemic. Sad to think that my beautiful art is archival, documenting a dying planet. I never wanted it this way.....

I'll post a full compositional breakdown, self-absorbed technical bullshit blurb up here when I get back from the Conference next week. But for now, enjoy the pic. I have something important to do with the last few hours of my weekend--paint!

Be Blessed, All,
N

Another One Sold.

2008-02-28T21:56:00.000-08:00

Well, today was a good day. I got the cheque for "Beached Logs, Harrison Lake" (thanks Brian!), and then got a call from Anne at Collective Works saying that the actual owner of the Orange House, had come in and put a down payment on "Orange House, Fernwood". Well, well. I had remarked to someone that it would be cool if the owner of the house would come in and buy it! The house is only, maybe five blocks away, so the odds were good.

Well, this little gem has found a place in quite a few people's hearts in the time it has hung, so I am glad it is now going to a home where it will be treasured.

A big part of the buzz for me has been that, not only have I been able to sell much more easily than I dreamed possible, and that I am getting respectable prices for my work, but that they are going to "appropriate" people. I mean, when I send my children out into the world, I want them to be properly loved and cared for. Sentimental I know, but it is important to me.

I know these pieces will remain on your walls for many years to come, emitting a powerful sense of calm, joy, and hope. And thank you so much for giving me the chance to actually get paid for doing what I was born to do--which is, sharing this good, solid energy with others. I am deeply honoured.

N.

Photo by Miriam Hulhall, our Treasurer.

Gallery Hours

2008-02-24T21:07:00.000-08:00

We now have hours set for the Collective Works Gallery, which are:

Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays:
11:00am-6:00pm
Fridays and Saturdays:
11:00am-8:00pm
Mondays:
closed

This is what we’ve decided to start with for now. We will gage things as we go along in terms of traffic trends through the week, weekends, etc. Also, we would like to appeal to the Belfry Theater crowd so we will also keep tabs on that to see when plays are on and such.

Collective Works Gallery is Here

2008-02-17T20:53:00.000-08:00

Well dudes and dudettes, was the show a success or what?! For a while there, it was so packed it took a few minutes and quite a few 'Scuse Mes' just to get to the back to get more wine.

And speaking of wine, I vote the bottle of Uncle Al Williams' blackberry wine "Best in Show". I did find my own way home though--just not in a straight line.

At peak time, there must have been about 70 people there--but it felt like 300. It was super-encouraging to see this level of turnout. Huge kudos, props and resounding, hand smarting hi-fives to Anne, Miriam, Sean and all the rest of the unflinchingly dedicated volunteers who pulled this off. We are HERE.

It was huge for me to connect with my peers and collegues. I learnt a lot, talked a lot, and really connected a lot. I hope the freindships I made Friday night will last the rest of my life.

Thanks so much to Joji, Tammy, Cousin Mike, Ruthie, and those cool people Tammy invited (whose names I've forgotten) for coming out to look at the stuff. Love you guys one and all.

An interesting note is that I caught Joji and Tammy looking at my paintings in the photo above. I didn't know they were in the room at the time! And Mike--that was a nice surprise, man.

It was great that there was another piece sold before the show opened, besides my "Beached Logs." Oh, and speaking of selling--"Rising Cloud, Harrison Lake" is now SOLD to my good friend Dan C. I will be very honoured to have one of my canvases hanging in his home.

One of my very best pieces. I am so stoked that Dan has this one, because I know he totally "gets it". What Dr. MacCallum was to Tom Thomson, Dan is to me, in a way. He's the one with the cabin way up on Harrison Lake, and, thanks to his kindness and generosity, I am able to really get out there and look around and feed my creativity with the raw fuel of art--which is Nature.

And now, just for fun a drawing of a Renaissance jam-session. Veronese on fiddle, Titian on bass. I took this drawing from a detail of Paolo Veronese's "Wedding at Cana" from 1563. It is in a book my good freind and sister Roo gave me for Christmas.

The Old Masters rock, eh :) I'm telling you, there is nothing about painting they didn't know. Even abstract artists can learn from them. Mark Rothko did! He made several trips to Itally just to do that.

And, I have another painting of the Douglas Lake area coming down--just slapped on the underdrawing this morning. It will be unique, and I hope, quite eye-catching--although I will not have much time to paint in the next month and a half or so. We'll see.

Very Best to All,
N

Come on Down to the Show, Yo.

2008-02-11T11:18:00.000-08:00

"Stilled" is happening at Collective Works Gallery, the first show of the Gallery, and the first proper group showing of my work. Collective Works is run by and for artists,and you can find our website here.

So come on down to the place this Friday, Feb. 15th, at 7:00 pm for the opening. There'll be the usual wine and snacks, and all the artists on hand to meet and network with. There will be a very broad spectrum of talent there; lots to look at!

The Collective Works Gallery is at 1311 Gladstone Ave. within yards of the Belfry Theater, Fernwood Inn, and The Cornerstone Cafe. You can find a map here.

I will be so delighted to see you there, so come on out to support me and this exciting new cultural initiative in Victoria. This may also be your last chance to purchase "Beached Logs, Harrison Lake" and "Orange House, Fernwood", if you are interested in either. They are my most popular works, and I am offering them both at the lowest possible price(includes the custom frames).

See you Friday night!

>>> As I was posting this reminder out, I got an email from a buyer. "Beached Logs, Harrison Lake" is SOLD to Brian H. This is one of my strongest pieces. It's going to a good home, and I am very happy about that--in addition to selling another piece of course! It'll still be on display there until the show closes March 6th.

Closing the Circle

2008-02-01T14:36:00.000-08:00

Well, I was digging around in the closet the other day, binning some old photos and generally trying to lighten my load, and I came across these pics, taken on my old 35mm compact. A couple of beauties from a bike blast I did through Cache Creek, Merritt and Douglas Lake, back in, say '97. Of course, my ever vigilant eye saw possible paintings--I mean, that is why I took these photos, but had forgotten about them. So I'll be working up a series over the coming months. I have some perfectly iconic images here.

So I got busy last Saturday on this one, and managed to finish it last night. The surface quality and colours are very similar to what I was painting like at that time 10 years ago, and of course, so is the subject matter. This is very gratifying, since I have been longing to return to those days, both aesthetically and technically.

"Bend in the Road, Douglas Lake" 18 X 24"

A few small touch-ups to go, though, and maybe I need to wrangle the clouds a bit, but finished enough to post here. This was shot in indirect natural light, out on the balcony.

I finally got my priming (gesso) situation sorted out now, and that has helped immensely, returning a bit of the old delicacy to things. Also very happy that my 3-colour system can perfectly match what I was doing with the 10-12 colour palette I was using back then.

End of the first session, shot on the easel.

My palette, squeezed out. I like to start nice and neat, 'cause things tend to get messy fast. Even though my system depends so much on mixing, I am pretty concerned with keeping my colours pure... .

The same palette after 5 hours of battle. You can see the crossover I do between green and brown. That area just back of the thumb-hole is for those mixes and gradient colours. I keep the top row for the pure primaries and secondaries.

Upcoming Shows

2008-01-21T22:48:00.001-08:00

People, I am absolutely delighted to announce that I have upcoming shows in great venues:

"Stilled" Feb. 15th. Group Show, Collective Works Gallery, 1311 Gladstone Ave.
"Through Clear Air; Landscapes 1997--2007", April 1--April 30th. Cornerstone Cafe, 1301 Gladstone Ave.
"Illuminations" at Collective Works Gallery, running from April 18th--May 8th.
Solo Show, Pandora Arts Collective, Month of July, #10-1921 Fernwood Rd.(Details TBA)

I am absolutely stoked to be a part of the Collective Works Artists' Association, the not-for-profit group I have recently joined in Fernwood (my neighbourhood of Greater Victoria).

Collective Works Gallery
1311 Gladstone Ave.
Box 5079
Victoria, BC.
V8R-6N3

For a map, click here.

This is a very cool and innovative endeavour by and for artists right in Fernwood, Victoria's Latin Quarter, the Montmartre of the West Coast, a hotbed of creativity, culture, and community values. This is where I'm digging in, folks. Artists, if you are reading this, join up!

For the Feb. 15th show, these 2 pieces have been accepted. If you wanted to buy them, you may be too late, sorry, as they may no longer be around after the show. Of course, you can still buy them if you come to the show, but then you will have to pay the show price as listed. But "Beached Logs, Harrison Lake" will have a custom frame by Greg Snead, so the frame alone is a $180 value right there.
"Orange House, Fernwood" 10X12" Oil on Board. $195.00.
Hoping for some local sales! The house is on Grant St. actually.....

"Beached Logs, Harrison Lake" 18X24" Oil on Canvas. $475.00.

Please come out to look, even if you don't buy. You can always look--and there will be lots to see. It's a bit strange that I have had very few sales to family and friends, even though everyone raves about my work. That is the way my career is supposed to work; selling to family/ friends at a discount. Oh well. When these peices gone, they're gone. We'll soon see if "the art-buying public" are actually out there, chequebooks in hand, or whether they are just another urban myth (like alligators in sewers, or what-have-you).

See you there!

Hangin' With the Pros

2008-01-21T20:46:00.000-08:00

Like a custom suit or dress may make someone feel more professional, successful or self-confident, so too the custom frame.

Professional artist and framer, Greg Snead, who lives close to me here on Hillside, will be getting all my business from now on. The quality of his framing, his great service, and his kind mentoring have already been important to me, and is helping me put my best foot forward for my upcoming shows.

Tastefully chosen stock (I let him) and perfect mitres make me feel like I stole this piece from the National Gallery or something! I'm kinda shocked to see a frame this nice around one of my pieces.

The back of the piece, with the paper cover "to keep bugs out" as Greg says. It looks professional on the back now, too.

Plastic coated heavy-gauge wire, and the usual screw-eye replaced with a two-screw plate ensures that your picture will still be on the wall if The Big One finally hits the Left Coast here. The picture will last as long as the wall does......

And these little plastic thingies will keep the bottom edge of the frame from marking the wall during the inevitable aftershocks.

Seriously, this level of workmanship and attention to detail is a revelation, and a nice match for the artwork. I am stoked to offer Greg Snead's frames for sale with my work.

True Blue

2008-01-20T20:41:00.000-08:00

If you have been following this blog at all, you know that I have switched exclusively to a 3-colour system. The simplicity of this system allows me to concentrate on spontaneously mixing, and "composing" with colour, rather than hunting amongst 12-15 tube colours and continuously cleaning my brush to ensure colour purity.

My standard three primaries have been Manganese Blue (Hue), Winsor Lemon, and Permanent Rose. This is still the most flexible combination for me, but it only truly works with Winsor & Newton professional-quality colours. Blue is the backbone of my palent. I love all colours, but I have got to have a blue that rings out like a bell, clear and pure as cold fresh air.

Sometimes, though, I need darker darks and harder greys. My standard 3 as above are all a little tonally weak, and thus limits how dark I can mix those darks that I am at last coming to terms with. Even being able to deal visually with heavy darks is something of a major achievement for me. If you saw my work from the mid-'90's, you'd understand what I mean. My eye has preferred (until now) very bright and pale colours. Like Gwen John and Jacques Villon in their late work, I was trying to achieve harmony through tone. Now, it is tonal contrasts which interest me more.

"Pine Bog, Wickaninnish Beach" 18 X 24" So this is my most recent painting with my standard 3 colours. Pretty tonally homogeneous, with blues-riff colours. Bit busy, but quirky compositional stuff going on, and some nice chewy bits, too. I glazed the sky with Mang. Blue and then overpainted the clouds.

"Dark Shore, Tonquin Beach" 14 X18" Painted the rocks in one go, but had to beat the sky to death. What is with my inability to wipe on a good sky in one shot these days?? Painting the sand in wet-into-wet gave it the perfect effect. If you've been there in Tofino after the tide goes out, you'll know what I mean. Must be seen close up. (Eeeek! I am turning into a realist! ;)

This is my newest painting, but using what will now be my "Dark Standard" of Winsor Blue (Green Shade), Winsor Yellow, and Permanent Rose.

I do vary my yellow then as well and sometimes use Winsor Yellow with my "Bright Standard" instead of Winsor Lemon, so the only fixed colour is my red, the Permanent Rose.

The Winsor Blue (Green Shade) was a special order from Winsor & Newton in the UK, and took about 6 months to get here. It is a much stronger tinter (uses more white for the same tonality) than Manganese Blue, being very similar to a true phthalo blue, sharing the same pigment. It sure stains the brushes like a good phthalo!

But mixed with white, as above, you can see that it comes out very similar to Manganese Blue, at least in theory. In practice, however, it seems to lack a little of Manganese Blue's saturation when tinted. But it is very dark out of the tube, and so, when combined with the darker Winsor Yellow, makes for much darker greens, and of course when mixed with Permanent Rose, much darker browns and greys. I can mix something pretty close to black, in fact--at least to the untrained eye.

And, of course you know that I am a paint snob, using only the Winsor & Newton top-of-the-line paint. Previously, I compared whites, and you can see from this demonstration as well the difference using the cheaper linseed oil vehicle makes on brilliance and and brightness. This is after these paints had only 3 months to dry on a sheet of paper. I don't care what any art company will tell you, yellowing oil will, somewhere down the line, take away from the brilliance of your colours, whether you mix them with white or use them straight. And if your white uses linseed oil as well, so much the worse for you. If you are a professional artist, you'll be worried by this, as I am--another reason for using Winsor & Newton. You can also see from the above just how two of the more popular colour lines from Holbein and Gamblin stack up. I might be able to get away with the Holbein, but would not use Gamblin if I was paid to do it. Their Lemon Yellow is just as weak, proportionately, as their Mang. Blue.

I'll be comparing yellows in another post, but that is all the technical ranting I'll do for now.

I'll be working up more paintings like the above, from the blast to Ucluelet and Tofino Dad and I did in December. Real West Coast stuff. I depend on these occasional field-trips to keep me going. Stay tuned!

Life Drawing, Jan. 6

2008-01-11T21:46:00.000-08:00

Went to Life Drawing at Xchanges again with my freind IJ. Artists have been drawing from the live model since at least the Late Rennaissence, and it traditionally forms a large part of an artist's training. Because it's so blazingly difficult! This is where the rubber hits the road. To do this, and do this well is a mark of professionalism, and we all know it. And I'm still not sure how well I do it. It shows up any flaw in technique, skill or focus, and is frustrating enough that I want to keep coming back for more--to conquer it. Nature is a tyrant.

I find the male model much more difficult than the female model--with the 2 sessions I've attended, I've had both. Men lack the smooth line transitions and have delightful blocky masses and sharper angles. 'Course, I like looking at women more :) but humanity is beautiful in most of it's forms, I am coming to realise..... I'm not always proud to be a part of this family of critters, eh? but I'm not above celebrating my species in all its (sometimes hairy-chested, paunchy-@$$ed) glory. Spirit meets matter in all of us.

After, IJ and I hung in a bus-shelter, drank beer, smoked clove cigarettes, and waved at passing cops. IJ is a punk chica, totally cool, and I am honoured to be her collegue and friend. I am also convinced that she is a Metamorphmagus, since she has the ability to change her hair-colour at will.

The greatest blessing in my life is my freinds. How many times do I need to be reminded of this before it finally sinks in??

Family too, you know. I love all my people. So if you are reading this, remember to keep in touch, OK? Because you are my most valuable asset.

Ucluelet Sketchbook

2007-12-19T18:05:00.000-08:00

Canuck Iconography

2007-12-02T19:22:00.000-08:00

"Blackcomb Mountain" 18 X 24" Oil on canvas.
SOLD to DHW for $500, before the paint was even dry.

I think I may end up famous for my ability to capture early evening light. This one is not too bad. Maybe a little too paint-by-numbers, but time will tell. I may have lost sight of my overall intention, but it is a good piece, for sure. A very challenging piece, but painted with a certain amount of bravado.

"Beached Logs, Harrison Lake" 18 X 24" Oil on Canvas.
This one was crazy hard, but I did pull it off. Have had some good comments on it already. I know people will think of Emily Carr, but it was me who found this one, and I have a photo to prove it! It is a matter of what is emblematic around here, so there will be some overlap by default. Harrison Lake is, of course, not the Coast, but there is something about it that suggests the coast. the fact that the lake has seals reinforces that impression.

I had to beat the sky into submission, but I think I am almost happy with it now.

Finishing these two was all the painting I did this weekend, but I am glad to have them done.

New Studio Furniture

2007-12-02T18:53:00.000-08:00

Not willing to spend $100+ on an over-engineered easel at Opus, I decided to make one.

Most commercial easels need two hands to raise and lower the sliders, which means that I have to put my brushes and palette down, which is a pain. Even the ones that you can use one hand on do not work that well. Mose are not very solid and all have limitations. I also wanted an easel to lean against the wall, and everything I have ever seen is free-standing. I don't want a freestanding easel, because it takes up too much room in my flat, and is a pain to transport when I move.

So, being a DIY kinda guy.....

I was walking to the Hardware store though Fernwood yesterday, and got talking to a chap who was doing some renos. The weathered cedar came from him--free! So my studio has some good neighbourhood cred now. Thanks Dave.

I had some other bits lying around. The bicycle seatpost quick-releases as the tighteners on the sliders are a stoke of genius! Thanks to North Park Bike shop for those. I have tested it already, and this system works better than ANYTHING out there! There is a tiny bit of bounce in the thing when I am really going at it. I will reinforce the 1 x4 uprights when I get the chance. But the main problem of 1-hand adjustability has been solved.

Also, when I am pounding on some paint on the far edges of a 20 X24" canvas, I don't end up with the whole deal in my lap.

All good things for $35.

Sunsets and Coffee Cups

2007-11-18T18:02:00.000-08:00

Well, here are two pictures painted with low autumn evening light. One took me 5 sessions and about 15 hours, the other only 2 sessions and about 6 hours. Can you guess which is which?

"Sunset, Willows Beach" 14 X 18" Really Fresh Oil on Canvas.
I started this last night, and finished it today, so no overpainting. I am happy that I am becoming more comfortable with my 3-colour system and finding myself more and more able to handle grays and rich dark areas. 10 years ago I would have never taken this on. I like this little peice. Sometimes, instead of getting all uptight over a larger, carefully planned canvas, I get the best results by just getting in there and slapping it on! I may not retouch this one, even if it needs it.

"Mt. Doug from Hillside". 16 X 20" Oil on Canvas, natch.
I like the intensity in this baby. Like a long blues riff in colour. I did listen to a lot of blues painting this one. I got the light down, and it has a feeling of air. The structure is great, and kinda Cezannesque. I resist atmospheric perspective, but do create a bit of depth through overlapping planes and intersecting horizontal and verticle lines, as in Cezanne. I love the painterlyness of this one and the sometimes illogical bits, like the tree in the forground. Particularily like the bits on the far left. Colour nuances, dry overpainting, vibrations. The horizontal line is a powerline, not a shoreline, as it may look. I did add that little green tree to offset this impression a bit.

Most of all, I like the abstract quality of this peice, and the sheer joy of painting this one (although the final touches were nerve-wracking). It is painted over an underdrawing of a still-life that I bailed on. You can see some of the lines still in the yellow poplar trees. If you have a good monitor, you will be able to see the true intensity of these colours. Or, better yet, come over some time.

"Small Single Americano" Pencil on Paper.
It was cold by the time I got around to drinking it :)

Be kind to other people.
C

Recent Drawings

2007-11-06T21:00:00.000-08:00

A bit discouraged with the painting at the moment. No biggy, just a lack of creative energy. Things are going good in that department, but not as fast as I'd like. Got a big one of Harry Lake, and almost finished a bright 16 X 20 of Mt. Doug from my window, replete with fall colours and all.

But for now, here are some of my most recent drawings. Yes, Caroline, this post is for you :)

"Portrait of J.S.S." Oil on Canvas. 11 X 14" Unfortunately now covered by paint. Spot on the way it was. Why did I not just leave it like that!? Aaargh.

"Self-Portrait" Pencil on bleached tree fibre stuff. 8.5 X 11" My eyes are too large and close together, but this is a pretty good attempt at a self portrait. I just sat down and drew it. It would have been better if I had drawn from life rather than a photo. Life is always better, if the image is static. But the distortion, glasses and tie makes me look like some kind of severe modernist dude. Which I'm not, but I don't mind the emotion of this drawing. And I am proud of the fact that I do know how to tie a Half Windsor (Half Nelson?)

"Rooflines, Hillside" 8.5 X 11" Westall St., on my secret back route to the Mall. Sitting on the curb across the street, looking down somebody's driveway. the chimneys are to scale and in proportion. I have been looking at this one for awhile out of the corner of my eye. I hope I will be doing more like this, and paintings, too. I have been in Victoria for 4 1/2 years now, and am only just starting to see it.

"Coffee Shop Dog" 8.5 X 11" This critter and his twin where hanging out with their owner and entertaining some ladies outside Bean Around the World on Fisgard St. one Sunday. Size of small ponies. I managed to get the shaggy, goofy essence of this one down in about 30 seconds.

"Chess Pieces" 8.5 X 11" Craig, if you are reading this, you gotta know I was thinking of you the whole time!

I think you'll agree that the knight looks rather more an alpaca than a horse.....

Some exciting news today: I am entering a painting in a group show in Fernwood next month. I guy I spoke to in August called me up out of the blue. Has me pencilled in for a full-blown solo show in July. Good times.

'Night,
Nicholas

Painting with Intention

2007-10-29T22:42:00.000-07:00

"Rising Cloud, Harrison Lake" 18 X 24" Oil on Canvas

Chromatically, this newest piece demonstrates the versatility of my 3 colour system. Yup, the same 3 colours as before!

But there is lots going on in this one with composition, and I finally was able to scratch an itch on a tight and structured layout without getting too uptight about it. I shot the photo from a kayak, on the backside of a little island out in Harrison Lake. I saw the painting before I hit the shutter.

I wanted to convey the exhilaration, joy and awe I felt in the face of this. The gate of heaven is everywhere, as Thomas Merton said, and at times like this, I think it swings ajar a bit. I have always considered the act of painting to be an act of worship. This time, it felt like High Mass.

So obviously, I needed to summon just about every tool at my disposal to project this to the viewer. Here is some of what I did intentionally, using some very strong hints from Nature.

So I basically started of with the time-tested grid of thirds, and the center stabilising pyramid. Guys have been using this since at least the Renaissance. So nothing new there. I wanted to lay a strong foundation.

You all know that Cezanne rocks my cage, and that I have been wanting to get at his knack for structure a little more closely, so this was the perfect excuse to establish a strong grid of repeating diagonals, creating rhythm, unity and a lively internal dynamic. painting and music have a lot in common, and I am not the first one to think so! I really did not have to manipulate the image very much to do achieve this.

Movement is really important here, too, because the cloud is rising off the mountain. But I wanted the painting to ascend in every aspect. The verticality of the trees emphasizes that of course, but they are static. Again, nothing new here, but I do not always get to apply all I know. Notably, this technique was used by van Gogh in his later stuff, and from him, Emily Carr, but I wanted to use more subtly, rather than it being the dominating thing.

Kinda like boiling water, this internal movement.

In fact, I tried to instinctively create some upward compression with curved lines in this piece too. The top and bottom of the "boiler", as it were.

I have also been interested in the way, in photos at least, the sky-colour seems to bleed into edges of things--especially shadow areas in tree tops. For this painting, I drew the trees in as usual, but then painted the sky-colour in further than I normally would, past where I wanted the masses of the trees. Then I used pure Manganese blue, straight out of the tube to paint over the dried sky-colour on the shadow sides. This blue is translucent in its unmixed form, so I effectively created a glaze in the shadow areas of the trees where they meet the sky. It worked well, I think. Although I wouldn't mind not being so freakin' versatile and clever in deference to developing an homogeneous style, it is good to impress myself one in a while with these little innovations :) I am very interested to continue these explorations in perception. I really feel like I am getting some work done then. Visual research, yeah.

But the biggest buzz of this piece for me was that I was totally in the zone for almost the entire thing. I really, really enjoyed seeing this one come off the brush. Yes, sometimes I forgot to eat--and sleep!

All I Can't Leave Behind

2007-10-29T21:05:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I have to make a hard professional call. I figure about 1 in 5 paintings end up in the tip because of some inability to realize my original emotion, or my dissatisfaction with the composition, paint surface or something else. The photo above is probably the worse piture I have painted in a while, and I was incredibly frustrated with it. It will certainly be the worst painting I post on this blog, and I'm only doing so to illustrate a point. I totally stuffed up the island on the left, and after much fiddling with the sky and background, I decided to call it.

But it wasn't all bad. On the right side I think I actually managed to paint the squally rain-and-sun effects of September on Harrison Lake. My first attempt at painting actual weather, anyway. So I got out the ol' utility knife.....

"Squally Weather, Harrison Lake" 11 X 14" Oil on Canvas
I cut it out, slapped a panel on the back, trimmed it, touched up the sky and added my signature, and Tom's my uncle.

The difference between an amateur artist and a professional is that a professional know just how brutally honest he needs to be with himself. Like the Welsh Poet, RS Thomas said about poerty, it is "an essay in applied criticism". The stricter a critic you are of your own work, the better you will paint. 'Nuf said.

CanLit at the Uni

2007-10-17T23:56:00.000-07:00

I went with a beautiful woman tonight to the second of the Massey Lectures, hosted by Paul Kennedy of CBC Radio 1's Ideas, my second favorite radio show next to Randy's Vinyl Tap and The Debaters. Well, some days it really is my #1 favourite show.

What was especially cool is that we wanted to see an exhibit honouring Robin and Sylvia Skelton "The Hold of Our Hands" at the Maltwood Gallery at UVic.

Well, well. There was a supposedly Private Function on, but we went in anyway. And we got to meet Paul Kennedy, the host of Ideas, himself. S. introduced me to Lorna Crozier. Parick Lane was there, too, but I didn't say hi.

The lecture, by Alberto Manguel, was great, and it was a really memorable evening all around :)

Pretty cool.

The Deaf Canvas Listens

2007-10-06T23:39:00.000-07:00

"...one day something happens, the touches seem to 'take', the deaf canvas listens, your words flow and you have done something."--Walter Sickert.

"I wish we could open our eyes to see in all directions at the same time.
Oh what a beautiful view, if you were never aware of what was around you.
And it is true what you said: that I live like a hermit in my own head,
But when the sun shines again, I'll pull the curtains and blinds to let the light in."
--Death Cab for Cutie (Ben Gibbard), Marching Bands of Manhattan

"[Monet] has painted the gleaming iris of the earth. He has painted water.... But now we must give a firmness, a framework, to the evanescence of all things, and to these pictures by Monet."
--Paul Cezanne

Globalisation and the Commodification of Spirituality

2007-09-28T21:08:00.000-07:00

There. Had to start the newest post with a pompous title :) I have been getting some painting in the cracks between trying to work, travelling for work, and taking some holidays.

"Christchurch Cathedral" 18 X 24" Oil on Canvas.
Well, I keep trying to stretch myself--and succeeding. I think I have got the light down.... Lots to like about this piece, I think. And I have finally overcome my fear of greys. Still only 3 colours, baby!

I leaned the thing a little to the left to give the solid, monumental edifice a touch of the precarious. Yup--maybe a social commentary (I'll leave it to you to unpack. Hint: the dumpster also has something to do with it as well.) But the lean to the left also makes for a bit of drama.

Seems as though I can't paint a bad sky, although painting a luminous overcast sky is not as easy as it looks! So I resorted to pointillism. I have also been trying to capture an effect of the light of the sky and how it wraps and bleeds around the edges that meet it. Very happy with the sky-edges in the trees on both sides.

There is actually a strong sunbeam coming from the right of the picture--this is in the photo as well. A chink in the bottom of the cloud, I guess. I took this photo about this time last year.

The focal-point is the street-light on "yield", but it is held in diagonal tension by the yellow tree areas on either side.

I'm really starting to hit a stride with various paint-handling techniques. I may post details of several areas of this piece. You might not be able to see the thick-thin treatments, and the various rubbing/ grinding/ touching/ wiping/ slashing/ feathering of the paint that went on here. This is pointing away from an homogeneous style, in the manner of Monet or Cezanne. But maybe that is my style--a flexible emotion shorthand. We'll see.

And no, I was not inspired by Monet's Rouen Cathedral paintings--which are brilliant, but still look to me as if they are assembled out of multi-colour granola. I like granola.

The underpainting helps to see the subtle interplay of diagonals. I spent about 4 hours on the drawing, and laid it out with a straight-edge. I need to do some more work in front of the live model. Even the Old Masters knew (especially the Old Masters), that drawing naked people helps you paint churches--and everything else in the world.

And now for globalization.....

"Freighter" 14 X 18" Oil on the Usual Stuff.
A fresh little piece, wiped on in an hour. 3 colours again, if you needed to know! This piece always gives me a jolt of delight when it catches the corner of my eye. The tones are spot-on. Shot the pic from the ferry. Simple, dramatic, solid composition. Kinda de Stael, kinda Group of 7.

That creamy orange in the sky and water is actually the ground. Mixed up a big barrel of it--it brings out my famous blues :)

OK, up next--a lily-pond. (automatic associations with Monet again--I can't escape!) And maybe a painting of Harrison Lake. I'll let you all know.

Be Blessed All,
Nicholas

New Drawings

2007-08-30T20:05:00.000-07:00

Here are some of my newest drawings, scanned straight outa the ol' Moleskine.

I draw like I paint, in my own quirky style, but rooted in reality. All these are drawn directly from life.

"Mt. Doug seen from Summit Park" 7.25 X 9.75"Pencil on Paper.

"Jaye Knitting" 7.25 X 9.75" Pencil on Paper.

"Reclining Nude 2" 7.25 X 9.75" Pencil on Paper.

"Limes and Salt" 7.25 X 9.75" Pencil on Paper.

End of Summer--Almost

2007-08-30T19:42:00.000-07:00

Great time with my little sister , Peanut, who came out for a couple of days from AB. It was good to get out with her on bicycles, and share some of the sites around this town.

I did this accidental self-portrait that is kind of arty. Here are a few more good pix from the week, and our official mascot, Burdock.

Best of the Old Stuff

2007-08-12T15:33:00.000-07:00

For those of you who have not seen my older work, here is the best of it. I'll be getting a professional photographer to do these up right soon. I have to colour down now, but the focus needs work.

This period is still the high watermark in my work. Although I did not paint a lot, I made every picture count. I had no money--the canvas is primed thinly with household latex, on whatever scraps of canvas I had. Crazy dimensions, paint put on with absolute love, delicacy and precision.

I'm moving on to bigger work, more diversity, and experimentation. But this period taught me how to see the world with eyes truly my own. The one of the boats started the whole thing. It is still an inspiration, and has a place of honour in my studio.

Enjoy:

"Small Boats--Conway Harbour" 1996. 18.125 X 12.75" Oil on canvas.

Still the huge little canvas when I painted it. How did I do this?? Somebody please tell me! If anyone wants this, well, I need the downpayment on an apartment.....

"Corner of a Sunset" 1996. 7.25 X 16" Oil on Canvas.

-15C. The hill across the highway from my trailer. No money, on welfare, walking home from town. I saw this, then went inside and painted it.

"Cattle Country--Wolf Ranch" 1997, 12.5" X 11.125. Oil on canvas.

This one and the next two were painted from photos I took on a bike blast up to Kamloops and back.

"South Thompson Country" 1997 14.5 X 11.25" Oil on Canvas.

If you squint at the sky in this one, the clouds start to move.... I stopped before finishing the weeds in the foreground. Perfect. This gave me the idea of leaving the foreground out of focus, which I have been using a lot in my most recent stuff.

"Hay and Sky" 1997. 15.5 X 17.5" Oil on canvas.

"Corner Field--Winter 2000" 2000. 8.375 X 15.5"

Oil on canvas. The same field as below, but in winter. Sat outside in the wind and melting snow by the corner of the garden to paint this one.

"Oats and Cloud" 2001. 12.125 X 14.5" Oil on canvas.

Dad had the field reaped the next day or two--I just got it in time. I think I painted this form a photo, but I can't remember.....

"First Cut" 2001. 10 X 13.5"

Sat in the driveway that summer morning with the smell of fresh-cut hay all around me. Lots of pink in this one from the glare, but it is a deliberate device, too. the old Massey bale-wagon on the left. I got the silvery, silky-ness of the knocked-down grass dialled.

I am unofficially changing my name to Nicholas Williams. My "nom de painture". Hopefully this will save all future explanations about the discrepancies between my given name and my signature. Since it is actually the same name, and I need to "brand" myself ;) I'm taking this step. I'll have business cards printed shortly. Lots of my poet friends call themselves what they want (Radar, Strong Cottonwoods, etc., so fair is fair. If you want the full explanation, go here.

OK, now I am going to go paint some more. Next up--some of my best drawings.

Best,
C

I Could Have Told You That.

2007-08-03T09:32:00.000-07:00

Honestly, does this look like a van Gogh?! The treatment of the eyes and nose is very uncharacteristic, I think.

This painting looks like a crazed Gordie Lightfoot or something. It's good, and muddy and kinda van Gogh-esque, but, it's just not him.

I had the opportunity to see 3 van Gogh's in Vancouver this last weekend, as part of the "Monet to Dali" show. It was really good--there were two pieces there I had not seen before. Same goes for the 3 Cezannes. I looked at "The Brook" for a good 1/2 hour.

Got into a life drawing class night before last, and have been doing a lot of drawing generally.

Stay tuned,
Colin

Some New Stuff

2007-07-17T14:42:00.001-07:00

"Christchurch Cathedral from Vancouver Street" 14 X 18" Oil on Canvas.

L-l-love this little piece. 3 colours, baby, and all the mixes are spot-on. Love those coppery greeny-oranges, dark turquoises and strange purply pinks. Yeow! OK, I think the paint-quality could be a little bit tighter. But I did this one in a single shot, with a little bit of retouching, but not much. tho only thing I should not have done is put that white in the foreground. Oh well. I do like to leave some bare canvas in the foreground.

Focus is a conscious consideration for me. I deliberately leave the corners and the foreground of some pieces unfocused/ unfinished. I am not a realist in the strictest sense, but I do this because I want the eye to not get hung up on those bits, but to be drawn into the picture, and stay there--hopefully for more than .003 nanoseconds ;)

I like the contrast of sharp and shallow diagonals, and the repetitions they create, and how the whites step into and then condense into the center.

The details of the tower are a bit sketchy, but it is not the focal point of the thing. Almost by accident, the two shadows on the background "rhyme". Nice. Art happens.

"Ruthie" 14 x 18" Oil on Canvas.

It even looks like her! I am happy with this one in that regard. My friend Ruth is visually impaired, so her face is is grayish, and there is a riot of colour around her as a matter of subtle symbolism. The composition is decent, and there is lots of overpainting that seems to work OK.

I'm not 100% happy with it, though. Ruth's likeness was a bit more accurate in the underpainting. As usual, I can muck it up a bit by putting paint on it. I painted the underdrawing and the face in two sessions. Ruth had a hard time sitting still the second time, though.... the corner of my desk and filing cabinet are not too worked up, and I have left Ruth's sleeve and hands deliberately unfinished. Like Hemingway said, the stuff you leave out is as important as what you keep in. Same applies to painting as to writing.

Ruthie looks a bit sad here, but she has a bright, sunny personality, in spite of ill health and personal tragedy. She's my hero, and this is meant to be a tribute to her.

08/20/07: The more I look at this piece the more I like it. Well done Nicholas (great cheers and hurrahs).

Vids

2007-07-09T09:51:00.000-07:00

Hi Gang,

As soon as I can get some paint to dry around here, I will be posting my latest visual research. A fairly productive weekend in that I have 4 pieces that are waiting a final session. In the meantime, here are some videos that are high in artistic merit, and I think, interest. One funny, the other real.

It's summer in Victoria, and the place is flooded with tourists. Especially America tourists. We love American tourists.

Clash of Cultures. The only thing I have against Muslims, is that, as a non-Muslim, I can't date any of those dark-eyed girls! ;) Still, I wish I had more Muslim friends--because I want what they could contibute to my life. I think that the diferences between us all as humans are so small as to be not worth fighting over. One of the underlying reasons for conflict, is, of course, resources. The global north would be less bastards if they consumed less reasources, and I could go in three different direcctions from there--but this blog is supposed to be about art.

Hey, there is a good question I should adress on this blog! "What can art do to make this world a better place?"

Peace out,
C

Maybe I Can Paint Water

2007-07-02T20:32:00.000-07:00

"Evening, Gonzales Bay"

I need a different/ better camera too. I think to put together a real portfolio, I gotta work this out.

Soo..... Another uptight easel painting. I think I got the light down, though.

I have been really experimenting with some different stuff lately, and doing some framing. Big sale at Opus, so I scooped some sweet deals!.

And I even have my own point gun--I'm a real man!

Too short a long weekend. I didn't even get drunk of watch the fireworks. What kinda Canadian am I??

Happy Anniversary to Kuzin Ray and his wife Debra. Shout out to them and their gang. They could have gone into the movies but they decided to start a family. Good call.

G'night.
C

Ouch.

2007-06-28T12:27:00.000-07:00

I must admit that there is not much local news what really makes me wince, but this did:
Gallery Burns

This place was owned by a Dutch family, and supported a lot of local talent. To make it worse, their accountant had offices upstairs. At their age, they might not rebuild.

Ashes
More Ashes
And More

Sick. That is a lot of good hard work up in smoke.

C.

Three is all You Need.

2007-06-27T00:00:00.000-07:00

I have worked out a system for using only 3 colours, because, as we all know, any colour can be mixed from those. The printing industry has been doing this for years. So my thing was to choose colours closest to the process colours of Cyan, Magenta, and Yellow (CMYK). And of course, I don't/ won't use black, because it's yucky. Of course, CMYK is used for optical mixing, but....

So for me it is: Manganese Blue, Permanent Rose (Quinacridone Red), and Windsor Lemon. This is not Windsor & Newton's recommended 3 colour system, but what do they know? ;)

The Mang. Blue is actually a copper phthalocyanine pigment, because they discontinued the actual manganese-based pigment due to toxicity and cost. But it is pretty close. The yellow--I just special ordered 4 tubes from the friendly gals at Opus. Had to come all the way from the big warehouse in Old Blighty.

So here is the paintings I have done so far in this system. It's been super fun, and I often wonder why I don't paint exclusively this way.....

"Still Life with Orange and Spoon" This little gem was done back in '96. Still can't do that soft, gritty paint textures anymore. Something to do with brushes and canvas priming. I thought at the time that this one was just an experiment. But now it is a constant inspiration. Not for sale.

"Two Apples" Done late last year. Flirting with realism here. Dad has this piece now.

"Courier Bag" The faithful man-purse in which I pack groceries, tools, paintbox supplies, smoking equipment, clothes, papers, etc. every single day of my boring little life. Custom-ordered from Timbuk 2 in the three colours. It is also the national flag of Romania. Painted really fast, wet-into-wet.

"Island Wine" Has something of a Old-Masters feel (but not execution). This baby needs a big gilt frame and to be hung in an ornate, late Georgian drawing room in James Bay above an old oak sideboard with a pipe rack and a cut-glass carafe :)

"Taste of Asia" Thanks to friend Clau for the Dragon Fruit and pears, and to Anna for the avocados. A bit weak, this piece, but cheerful.

Been working hard today and grinding out to Romanian techno-pop:

"Alo... aalo...
Sunt eu, Picasso
Ti-am dat beep
Si sunt vonic
Dar sa stii, nu-ticer nimic

"Vrei sa pleci
dar nu ma, nu ma iei
nu ma, nu ma iei
nu ma, nu ma, nu ma ieie....."

(&c. With some footage of Bucharesti Otopeni airport.)

Time for bed.

c.

It's a Signature Thing.

2007-06-26T23:34:00.000-07:00

A lot of people ask me why I sign my canvasses "Nicholas".

According to my mom's old 1958 Webster dictionary, Colin is orig. dim. of Nicholas. Believe it.
"Colin Williams" is pretty generic-sounding. I mean, I could be called "Jones" or "Smith" or something....
"C. Williams" or "Colin W" looks dumb in paint.
CMD Williams is equally dumb. And I don't want to be one of those guys who you never know their actual first names: AY Jackson, JEH MacDonald, AJ Casson, JMW Turner. Can you imaging? "Yo CMD, 'sup?" Uh huh.
I am sure there are other Colin Williamses painting today, even in Victoria.
It sounds kinda Dutch, and I'm half Dutch (Frisian actually.)
I've been signing it that way for years.

So there.

C.

I Love Flamenco!!!

2007-06-25T10:27:00.000-07:00

Went on Saturday to a show of friend Tammy's flamenco school. WOW!!! I couldn't believe it. So, so beautiful, emotional, poetic.

Stunning production all around, and Tammy (yellow skirt) is certainly one of the more talented dancers there, IMO. Her transitions are very smooth, her gestures appropriately poetic and graceful--without being grotesque or overly exaggerated. Her timing is also flawless. And she dances with a huge grin on her face. You can see she is all into it, and totally lost in the creative act. Ole, Tammy, and Bravo!

I will be posting future show dates on here one I know about them. More than worth the price of admission. Treat yourself to some poetry in motion. I hear they will be dancing in Centential Square here in Victoria early July. Y'all stay tuned.

Thanks to Steve Switzer for the photos.

To see more go here and here.

C

Whites

2007-06-21T18:52:00.000-07:00

Stevenson wins hands down. This is after 4 months. Talens is good, but pretty stiff, which is great for impasto, but hard to mix with the brush.

What Hangs Above My Toilet

2007-06-21T17:24:00.000-07:00

"Oaks and Phlox" Oil on panel. 10 X 12" 95% En Plein Air. Yeah, baby. 3 colours only, although the drawing was done in Raw Umber.

I like to look at it when I am lounging in the tub ;). Now you know.

I'm gonna go out tonight and paint some more.

Peace,
Colin

Rocks and Trees and Stuff

2007-06-20T23:12:00.000-07:00

Well, I received this very touching email tonight from the wife of another carver I really like. They live "back home in the valley" although of course, Vic is my home now.

Sorry Susan, only members of Blogger can post comments. I set it up that way because I have had a few spam postings back with my old blog. Thanks so much for your email, though. Y'know, my priest (who is an artist too) maintains that art can have the same function as Mass; namely, to integrate the Divine, and make us mindful of that Divinity. (I might note that I am a Gnostic, not a Catholic.) So I am very honoured if my art does that for you. Bob probably finds this too, that the work can take over, the "zone" blocks out all else, and the artist forgets himself, becoming lost in the act of creation. That experience of hightened consciousness is communion with the Infinite, the Unknowable, the superpersonal Consciousness, which some people refer to as God. The artist is a priest, almost, in that sense.

I only wish I could get there more often. But the materiality, the forces of this world crowd in. Some artists use chemical methods to get there, but that to me is a dangerous and ineffective shortcut.

"Now we see through a glass, dimly, then we shall see face-to-face". Trying to keep the windows of the soul clean isn't easy. Holding down a high pressure job and living on the corners of two busy streets doesn't lend much tranquility. Creativity is a fragile thing. As per my last post--maybe the problem is that I need to bush-out for a few weeks. I get very little chance.

Speaking of the bush.....

"Broken Tree, Botany Bay" At the beginning of the West Coast Trail, a broken hemlock tree, right after the last and worse windstorm we had this winter. Emblematic, and somewhat autobiographical. This one started off as kinda "Group of 7", but a subsequent overpainting drybrushing added some nuances. Too much mauve, and kinda unfinished looking--which I like. It was a bit unfinished, I though, but then realised that further work would diminish it. The second painting I did last Oct., when I picked up the brush again.... This one is getting a frame real soon. Photos is a bit gritty. May scan it.

"Hemlock Island, Botany Bay" Just up the trail a few hundred feet. This one I DID beat to death. The rocks are way overworked. I donated it to the Auction at the LTBI's 2007 AGM & Conference in 108 Mile Ranch. It went for $150. Guess logbuilders don't like all that pink :)But it did go to a good home where it will be loved.

I have a hard time handling dark areas. 10 years ago, I never used values this strong. Drink hemlock, baby. Yo. But the composition is bang on.

"Tree Island, Hurricane Ridge" The best landscape I have done recently, by a street. Bad photo, though--this new camera! If you take the boat from Vickyville over Old Briney to Port Angeles WA in Never Never Land, the road starts climbing from the dock--all 33km of it. This is at the summit of the Ridge, which you have to walk up. You can see most of the sky in this photo, and some of the impasto--yeah, I love pink in my skies :)

Sold to Erik and Joan vonNiessen in Salmon Arm. Now I have another reason to visit them ;) I am chuffed to have this hung in their living room, feeding eyes and souls. I actually did paint this from a photo--long ways to drag the painting gear. The day was cloudy, and the glimmer of light was a late addition. This piece approaches the touch of the earlier stuff. Too happy with it. What did I do right??!!

Susan, thank you so much again for the kind words. Give my regards to Bob!

Coming up: "It's a signature thing".

Be Blessed, All,
C

Rudderless in a Sea of Paint

2007-06-20T00:12:00.000-07:00

Worked myself into the ground tonight trying to finish a largish piece, but I am growing increasingly frustrated with all the overpainting and brush-cleaning for these uptight "easel paintings" I think I have to do. There may be a sea-change coming in my work (I hope).

I'm always really happy with the paintings I do from life, whether outside the studio, or in it. There is a freshness there and a pleasing simplicity that I find lacking in these paintings that take me hours and hours and are so carefully thought out.

Working from photos rarely produces something I am happy with, with perhaps the odd exception, like the two seascapes of my first post on here.

One coming post will be about my 3 colour system. This is something I have developed myself, although I got the idea from another artist (whose name I have long forgotten). Maybe I need the discipline of only three colours, and mixing everything--this would really train my eye. I have already limited my palette from the old days, and the 5-6 paintings I have done in 3 colours have all turned out pretty good. But maybe that is also because I have painted them from life as well.

I despair, and I need the oxygen of hope in my own work. I can't go back to the good old days when any time I touched the brush it was magic. There as a series of painting I did in the mid-nineties that have an unreproducible paint quality and overall delicacy and freshness (like "Big Sky--Duck Range"; subject for a coming post). I hope these days will come again, and that I will to continue to innovate....

Anyway.....

Sculpture

2007-06-18T20:55:00.000-07:00

Well, I am not really that happy with this Blogger template, even after my mods to it, but it will have to do for now. I am pretty tired still from yesterday, having ridden my bicycle 80 km in 2.5 hours in cold/ windy/ humid/ hilly conditions.

But I just recieved a freindly email from a sculptor/ carver I hugely like, and I had to let you know about his photos posted on my work website. I was looking at his photos again today, having just gotten the captions coded in. I'm the webmaster at my day job, too.

This man has an incredibly solid and at the same time playful sense of form. I LOVE his simplified volumes and general overall style. I get the same buzz looking at Russell's stuff as any of the great European masters (and like him a lot more than, say Moore or Arp).

Which reminds me--I still need to go finish looking at Rodin at the AGGV. I like Rodin (I guess, if I could actually pronounce his name).

Mr. Adolph is an artist I would like to actually have in my apartment. His small stone pieces are simply delightful.

Think I'm coming down with a cold.

G'nite.

I'm Back

2007-06-18T12:34:00.001-07:00

Hi All, I'm back. I sure don't need to spend more time on this computer, but I do need to get my work out there and seen, and spread the art-love around a little better.

This blog will be focused only on my art, and the art I like. I am planning to give self-critiques of my work, and explanations of intention, and discuss my techniques. Comments and crits from other artist are welcome.

I am surfing a huge wave of creativity right now, for the first time since I started painting, and painting again after a dry spell of about 5 years. So this exciting, and I want to share it.

Of course, (almost) everything is for sale on here. If you really want a piece, email me. Special prices are available for family and friends. This isn't intended as personal creative narcissism, but rather a serious endeavour as a professional artist. I want to make good, lasting art that will actually be hung on walls--and hopefully in museums--to bring lasting enjoyment to people.

To start with here is some recent stuff:

"Lighthouse, Mayne Island" Oil on canvas. 14 X 18". There is a little bit of perspective distortion in this piece compared to the photo (which gives it a bit more drama--some great diagonals going on there), but the tonalities are bang on, and the colours a a bit revved up. The main thing in this one for me was achieving that intensity of blue without glazing--by painting over a cream ground. Duh. Sometimes the best solutions are the simplest. Another thing that was a bit unusual for me was my treatment of the sky--I started off by rubbing pure Manganese Blue over the ground with a bit of medium, then slapped on the same colour in a strong tint over top. From now on, with the odd exception, all my paintings will be done on an off-white ground. Photo was taken from the Ferry to Vancouver.

"The Happy Isles" Oil on Canvas 14 X 18". Title is from an Arthur Lismer painting, and I liked it because it made me think of Psalm 65. I got some remarks from a friend in Romania that it is "not me" being a bit keyed down and not my usual coloured self. But the tones are spot-on, the composition unexpectedly structured and the paint quality fresh--therefore it pleases me. I did it in less than 1 hour, which is fast by my standards. Not a good photo. I will do an entry here sometime about tonalities and my struggles with that. Photo also shot from the ferry. (BC Ferries should buy my stuff! ;)

"Orange House, Fernwood" 10 X 12" Oil on panel. This is one of those delightful pieces that "just happen". I did the sketch outside, and then filled it in back in the studio. After studying the results, I realised that the composition was a lot more structured than I had realized--I didn't stop to analyze it at the time. The substrate was a bit too smooth but I am not displease with the brushwork. Has that "etude" feel. I enjoy the rhythm of diagonals and the tension across the center created by the verticals. the circular motion created by the different elements kinda locks the eye in. I am not letting this one go cheap.

More later--Lots more!

Peace.