I’ve been having a lot of fun, learning some new painting techniques from teacher extraordinaire Ali Kay! Last week I joined in on her Paint Week, where one of our projects was painting a pumpkin and sunflowers. That painting reminded me of an ode to a pumpkin I wrote a few years ago. I’m re-posting… Continue reading To Pumpkin
I’m sure you’ve heard of Emily Carr, one of Canada’s (and B.C.’s) most famous artists. Carr was born and lived for most of her life in Victoria, B.C. (December 13, 1871 – March 2, 1945). She painted in a loose Post-Impressionistic style, not unlike her contemporaries in the Group of Seven. Favourite subjects were B.C.… Continue reading Emily Carr As I Knew Her – review
The curator of our church’s Inspired Arts Gallery has just hung a new show! “A Christian as Artist” features the work of sixteen artists. Each artist has also contributed a short written statement of how art and their practice of it is an expression of their faith and spirituality. Today I’m sharing my contribution to… Continue reading A Christian as Artist – exhibition
Since leaving Acrylic University, my focus has shifted from acrylic to… ?? There is so much stimulation online—so many things to try, courses to take, interests to pursue that I’m beginning to feel ‘deer in the headlights.’ To still this cacophony, I often I find myself going back to the simple way I started pursuing… Continue reading Waterlily series
I have been noticing lately how some of the things I feel inspired to paint are another expression of poems I have written. Today’s little offering here is one such. I don't sew much any more (I'm way out of practice and my machine needs servicing) but this painting and poem take me back to… Continue reading Sewing notions
A popular activity for artists during the months of good weather is to paint en plein air (French for “in the open air”). My experience and kit for plein air painting are both minimal. But when our art club organized this as a four-hour activity on the property of one of our members yesterday, I… Continue reading Plein Air Adventure
One of the things I’ve found helpful as an artist is to work in series. This takes care of the problem of what to paint (to a degree). A series I’ve enjoyed, and is ongoing, is miniature Canadian landscapes. When I discovered tiny canvases (4 x 4x .5 inches stretched canvases and 4 x 4… Continue reading Miniature Canadian Landscapes
As soon as I heard about the publication of Mary Pratt—A Love Affair with Vision, I knew I wanted it. I put it on last year’s Christmas wish list and lo and behold it ‘mysteriously’ appeared under the tree! Since receiving it I have been savouring it in small bits and finally finished it this… Continue reading Mary Pratt – review
I have discovered a new watercolor instructor! Paul Clark was mentioned by many in a request for favorite teachers on the Watercolor Cards Facebook Group I'm a member of. I decided to check him out and found a great artist who has made hundreds of easy-to-follow videos, available on YouTube (link below). He even has… Continue reading Great watercolor instruction and some bridges
Excitement builds for our art club’s spring exhibition – now just two days away. This past week has also been a busy one with a birthday celebration, out-of-town guests, tonight a concert, and tomorrow lunch out! Anticipating this flurry of activity, I managed to do most of my sale prep before this week. Today I’ll… Continue reading Small Art
Violet Nesdoly 