Belleville Art Association Studio and Gallery

Don't forget to check out the cozy and Christmassy Belleville Art Association Gallery at 392 Front Street, Belleville for last minute Christmas gifts. Warm up at the fireplace! Last shopping day before Christmas is Tuesday, 23rd December, 11 am to 5 pm.

We have hand made gifts done by local artists from $5 or less, including hand decorated and signed glass Xmas tree balls, angels, stained glass and original miniature paintings from $10 to $25.

Tweed Artist and Artisans Xmas sale

Sorry I haven't posted for a while. I was away on a trip to London, England. London is great at Xmas time and of course not complete without a trip to Harrods in Knightsbridge. It has been beautifully renovated by its Egyptian owner with an Egyptian theme. There are huge gold Tutan Carmun's ( I don't know how to spell this) and Sphynxes. Fortunately, the famous food hall is still more or less the same as I remembered it - I lived in london until I was thirty. The servers still wear their straw boaters. There were no signs of the recession as Gucci and Prada handbags were selling in the thousands of dollars!

Back to Tweed, Ontario where we put on a nice gift sale to raise money for the Tweed Heritage Centre, an old house renovated to house a museum and art gallery. I have a couple of pictures in the permanent collection there.

I made some small hand-felted "paintings" which sold quite well for about $25 each. Of course, hand-made original soaps and beeswax candles were the most popular items.

Here is one of my small fibreart pieces:

Wilma Alexander

Some very sad news: Wilma Alexander, a Belleville artist and author of several children's books has died at the age of 84. She was not ill for very long with liver cancer and died without pain.
I was priveleged to have known this wonderful woman and painted with her for much of the last seven years, and so attended her funeral yesterday.

Her grandson played some beautiful piano music including the Moonlight Sonata, Beethoven's Fur Elise and Starry, Starry night. Some of her paintings were on display so it was not only a memorial service, it was an art show and piano recital as well! There was even a large tray of assorted chocolates because Wilma loved chocolate.

There were eulogy tributes to her life from family members (her three sons,friends and also representatives from the Belleville Theatre Guild and the Belleville Art Association as well as a group called WOW- Women of Words -a group of published local writers.
Wilma had received several awards and recognitions over the years for her service to the arts community of the Quinte region.
If Wilma would have read this, she probably would have corrected my spelling and grammar! -she was a retired schoolteacher.
She will be greatly missed.

Waterfront gallery and gifts

Today I attended the Grand Opening of Belleville's new Waterfront Gallery and Unique gifts on the beutiful Bay of Quinte in the Belle Harbour complex and Marina 25 Dundas Street W. Belleville. It was a wine and cheese reception with MPP Leona Dumbrowsky making a speech and cutting the red ribbon. (Sorry, no photo).

There were lots of people and the crowd was enthusiastic. Of course, I will modestly say that I have four of my hand felted fibre art pieces in the gallery.

The main attraction was Iragi born internatinal artist Ishrak Sahar. She has some work in the Canadina Museum of Civilization. Acrylic abstracts and semi-abstract watercolours.Also on display were "creatures' made from car parts "Alien versus Predator". These "sculputre" are about six feet high

Art in the Park-Tweed

I'm getting ready for the next outdoor art show which will be held in the Memorial Park in Tweed, right next to Stoco Lake, Sat and Sun Aug 15th and 16th 10.00 am to 4pm.
I am only going to be there on Saturday as I will be a tthe Kingston Women's Art festival in the City Park , Kingston on Sunday -near the University and the statue of John A. McDonald. There is also musci at both events. It is free for the general public. We make donations to women's charities if we make sales.

More on how these shows went at a later date. Hope it doesnt rain! I am taking tarps anda tent to cover up the paintings just in case.

Paintings of Stockdale Mill

I thought I should do a couple of watercolours of Stockdale Mill, as I was there recently and took some photos. I didn't paint these en "Plein Air" this time, due to rain-and more rain-and the rainiest month since record keeping started in Ontario.

Stockdale Mill

I met one of the owners of the newly renovated Stockdale Mill, near Trenton and Frankford, Ontario, at an opening of a Quinte Arts Council Show. She invited me to bring some of my paintings for her to see with a view to putting them in her new art gallery and restaurant. So I took a few along yesterday and she agreed to take them on a commission basis, along with some cards.

I noticed that Peggy Holcroft also has some paintings on the wall there, including one of the old Mill. Apparently, old mill paintings are popular in this part of the world, which explains why I managed to sell one of Chisholm's Mill recently.

Anyway, check out the Stockdale Mill in a couple of weeks when it officially opens to the public. There will be a restaurant as well. The scenery is great for artists to paint, and the owner, Janet will be giving Yoga lessons and perhaps there will be art lessons as well.

Back from Madoc Art and Music festival

As an exhibitor, it was quite a fun 4 days, but too long! I suggested to the organisers that it should only have been Friday evening, all day Saturday and half of Sunday.
It was a shame that so few people attended despite the lovely weather.
Saturday was a bit better and the music was terrific! The quality of the art work was mostly good as well.
A couple of vendors went home early and disgruntled. They thought the project was too ambitious for being held for the first time in the Madoc area. Perhaps it should have been in a a small park, closer to the downtown area, although they did get the drop in traffic from HWY 7 between Toronto and Ottawa, and some overnight campers. The local Madoc folk did not seem to be the ones attending. Maybe because it was too far for them to walk to. There is also another Art show in the market in a few weeks.

Madoc Art and Music Festival

Tomorrow I am off to Madoc to show my paintings and fibre art at the Madoc Art and Music Festival. It seems like a very ambitious project for the organisers as it is on for 4 days -Thurs July 3rd till Sunday July 6th.

It will be held at the Fair Grounds on Highway 62 just north of Madoc. Come and check it out. I will be in the Old School House.

World famous sculptor, Paul Sheir will be exhibiting, as well as David Crighton, a well known Toronto artist.
I will let you know if it was a success or not at a later date.

Tweed flowerama

Today was Canada Day, so I donned by red and white outfit and headed for the park in Tweed with my paintings and my tent.
It was a lovely sunny day, and it is always pleasant sitting in the park, looking at the lake and the fountain. Best of all I sold a large framed painting of Chisholm's Mill, (see above)
The buyers were very pleased as they lived just round the corner from the view I had painted. BY the way, this is often how you sell paintings - paint something that people can relate to, or has some personal meaning or revives memories for them.
The "Flowerama" is put on to celebrate Canada Day by the Tweed and area horticultural society. There is also a flower show, as well as arts, crafts and plants for sale.

One of my latest watercolours

I am not quite sure why this is, but the photo does not do justice to the original in this case. Perhaps it is because the original was small -about 8ins x 10ins. Any ideas or tips about photographing artwork?

Lilac tea and art show

Along with several other Quinte artists, I was involved in a small art show at Tyendinaga Library in Melrose. Some of the proceeds were given to the "art for literacy" program. This gives children access to extra help with reading etc. during the summer vacation.
The quality of the art was excellent. Cynthia Guthrie did a good job of organising the show, and the library staff donated some wonderful home made cookies, but I had a feeling that most of the visitors had come for the tea and goodies rather than the art show! The same kind of people show up at funerals of people they hardly know just for the free sandwiches. Most people showed little interest in the art, although Joyce Empey-Smith managed to sell a painting, and the rest of us sold a few cards.

Llama had baby

Not really art related, but you might like to know that the llama in the painting had a baby recently. A beautiful, big, black and white girl. She was sold to a couple that had previously bought sheep from us. They bought her to guard their sheep from coyotes and wolves,and so the baby was a bonus! They were delighted. By the way, baby llamas are called "crias" and weigh between 20-35 lbs at birth. They are all long necks and legs.

Workshop at the Belleville Public Library

I was told that attendees really enjoyed my animal painting workshop at the weekend. There were 11 adults, one 12 year-old and a dog named "Maggie"present. Thank you MArg and Dave Ray for bring their Basset hound, Maggie to be the "sitter". The students learned how to draw cats, dogs and horses, and then spent the afternoon painting Maggie s portrait.
I learned that it is impossible to teach and paint at the same time, with the result that my painting did not resemble Maggie in the slightest! I went home and redid it.
Here it is.
Here is a collection of portraits-not finished yet- done by the students.
Many thanks to Susan Holland, curator of the John M Parrott gallery in the Belleville Public Library for letting us use the room.

Mural at the Ramada Inn, Belleville

The Ramada Inn in Belleville asked me and another artist to do a painting on three windows overlooking their pool area (inside). The main reason for this was that they couldn't clean the windows properly on the outside without someone "walking the plank" or getting wet in the pool!
Anyway this is it. They wanted it wash-offable (is that a word?) so we used tempera. However, I don't recommend this as it is difficult not to leave streaks where areas of paint overlap. I think acrylics would have been easier to paint with, but they would have had to scrape it off, if they ever wanted a change or did not like the painting.

The beach scene was chosen to make the pool area feel tropical and warm.

Quinte Arts Council Expressions Show

I just back for the Quinte Arts Council "Expressions" juried annual show. This year it was back at the John M. Parrott gallery at the Belleville Public Library on Pinnacle Street. It was an amazing show and the judge said that much of the work was of international quality. We have some very talented artists in the Quinte region of Ontario. There were 24 pieces by members of our Belleville Art Association. Rita Woodburne, a fellow artist who has a link to this blog, got an honourable mention for her wonderful painting of a white horse. I think this picture is also on her website. Andrew Innis also got an honourable mention for his amazing three dimensional abstract. The juror's choice award went to an amazing photograph of a soaring eagle. Several pieces of art sold in the first hour or so. One of the paintings that was marked with a red dot "sold" was done by one of my former art teachers, Jolyn Grieve. It was a "life" painting of a white girl and an oriental boy sitting facing each other holding hands.

The show is on for a month, so get down to Belleville and see it if you can.

I am ashamed that I did not enter any work myself this year. I usually do, but I must have been just too busy writing this blog!

My animal painting workshop

There is still room in my animal painting workshop to be held May 10th at the Bellevlle Public Library on Pinnacle St. 9.30 - 3.30 p.m. The price is $35 for BAA members or $50 if you are not a member.

YOu can paint or draw in any medium. A quiet dog will be present for an hour or two in the afternoon,but you can paint from your own pet photos if you prefer. Individual help will be given, and there will be a critique at the end of the day.

Contact me at the e-mail address below for more information or to register. Deadline for registarion is May 1st.

Art and glass exhibition in Tweed

On Saturday I was invited to an opening at the Tweed Heritage Centre of the "3 C's" artist. Suzanne Cavers was one of them. She paints interesting abstracts mainly in acrylics, but has recently ventured into watercolours. There were also beautiful, delicate watercolours by an artist (Joni) recently relocated in the area from Arizona. She said that she and her husband preferred Canada to the states and so had decided to move up here. I wonder why?

There was also work by glass artisan, Carol Cavers, from the Kingston area, who etched glass "drawings" on various glass objects.

I think the show is on till the end of the month, so go and check it out.

Animal painting workshop

I thought the cat needed to be brightened up a bit. Hope I didn't spoil it. What do you think?
I will also be teaching a workshop on "Animal Painting and Drawing" to be held at the 3rd Floor, Belleville Public Library, Pinnacle Street, Belleville on May 10th. It will run from 9.30 -3.30 p.m and will be suitable for beginner and intermediate level artists. I am hoping to have a nice, quiet dog volunteer to "sit" for his portrait, but if you prefer, you can paint your own choice of animal from a photoPlease e-mail me for details. It is open to anyone. Costs $35 if you are a Belleville Art Association member or $50 if you are not.

Sustainable Living Symposium 2008

Today, my husband and I attended the 2008 Sustainable Living Symposium at Loyalist College. We were invited by Louise Livingstone, a local reporter and journalist, who was one of the speakers. We went on a tour of an "off the grid" house which had been featured on a David Suzuki program. Amazing place! The owners wanted to build near the Bay of Quinte as they are sailors, but found that they were too far away from the road to get electricity services without payinga fortune, so they made a solar and wind powered house, with straw bale construction. My only objection to the house - it was full of "reproductions" instead of oringinal art! Go buy some real paintings or sculptures folks. They really don't cost much more.

We also attended lectures on how to have an environmentally friendly lawn, and I bought some "old fashioned" seeds to plant in my garden. We also learned about envrionmentally friendly home renovation for older homes - ours was built in the 1880s.
Must go now, as I have to switch off the computer and all the lights!

Finished-maybe

This may be the finished cat picture. I am not sure yet. I have added some more darks and lights and changed the background to have more colours in it, using some of the same colours as in the cat and the skeins of wool.

Had lunch at Bren's -next door to the Belleville Art Association gallery- yesterday. There is a great show of Jolyn Grieve's work on the walls. Impressionistic,almost "group of 7" like landscapes and some great portraits.

I may be doing a "mural" window painting at the Ramada Inn, along with a couple of other local artists. Still negotiating the price! They want a scene with palm trees and beach overlooking the swimming pool. I think I can manage that.

A little more

I have done a bit more painting this morning. Added some more detail and texture to the cat, and put some modelling paste on the wool, then worked on it with a comb to give texture.I had tought of sticking on some real wool! What do you think?
I need to add more depth to the cat with added darks and lights, and I don't quite like the purple wool at the front. It is too bright and distracts you from the main subject - the cat. However, a complementary colour is needed - just not as bright. I may put some brown wool in the top right hand corner to balance the composition better. Maybe add some texture to the background.

Painting in progress

I am not sure if I really want the world to see one of paintings before it is finished, but here is my latest effort. I am calling it "cat nap".
It is acrylic 16 x 12 ins. In acrylics you paint from dark to light, just like with oils. The cat will end up being a lot lighter as I haven't put the light areas in yet. The face need more work and detail,and the shadows in the skeins of wool need definition and deepening, but I don't want to lose the impressionistic style and make it look too much like a photograph. I am not really a fan of photorealism.

I also need to add "hair" to the cat with a fan brush.

Comments please?

Started new painting today

Went to Tweed today to paint with a group of like-minded artist friends. We are using the front room of a chiropracter's office, until he rents it out to better paying folk. It is useful to exchange ideas and tips on each other's work. Here is the painting I finished last time.
I am now working an acrylic painting of a marmalade cat lying on some knitting wool. They love to do that. I will show you this one when its furthur along.

Artsy cafe

I forgot to mention that there is a great little cafe right next to the BAA studio/gallery. Do you mind if I shorten it to BAA? Typing out Belleville Art Association every tme is just too much work! Anyway we are the BAA as in baa baa black sheep, and the Quinte Arts Council is the QAC-as in duck or phony doctor.

Anyway, back to the cafe. It's called Bren's-short for Brenda who cooks great home made soup, desserts and cookies. The walls are covered with local artist's work, and these change every month. It's not open after five as it is mostly a lunch and coffee place. In the summer you can sit out on the patio at the back and watch the Moira river. I like to take out-of-town visitors there for a treat.

New show at the Belleville Art Association studio

We have a new show at the gallery/studio at 392 Front Street, Belleville, Ontario. Its one of the best ones so far! We change the show every month, and there is a theme. This month's theme is "Getting away", or paintings done while on vacations or travels.
The gallery in open 2-5 Tuesdays to Saturdays and is closed Sunday and Monday. Its free so come and visit us!

If you are an artist too, then you are welcome to join. There are membership forms available at the studio and it costs $50 a year to join, plus $10 if you want a website.

Here is the painting I have in the gallery in this show. It's my grandson going up a mountain in the ski lift at Banff. I know he looks like a girl, but that's the way he is!

The Visual Arts in Belleville

Welcome to my first blog post!
I am an artist who works in watercolour, acrylics and hand-felted exotic fibres. I am also a member of both the Belleville Art Association and the Quinte Arts Council

What is the difference between these two organisations?

The Quinte Arts Council is an umbrella organisation for the whole Quinte Region including all the arts. This means theatre, poetry, dance, music as well as visual arts. It publishes a monthly magazine called the Umbrella. These two groups are often confused, but they are separate entities.

The Belleville Art Association is only concerned with the visual arts and has its own member gallery at 392 Front Street, Belleville. It exists to help both newer and esperienced artists increase their skills and sell their work. Visit the website for more information.
Members have their own on-line galleries, and believe me, there are some great paintings!
Actually this area of Eastern Ontario has more artists per square mile than almost anywhere in Canada. Because of the amount of competition, this makes art prices very reasonable.

The Belleville Art Association also has paintings by members hanging in the Ramada Inn in Belleville. This in effect, increases our gallery hanging space.