​Explaining my art in just a few seconds is not easy.  Every artist needs to figure out what is called an “elevator” pitch.  How can I hook someone in a very short period of time so that they will be interested enough to go and check out my paintings?  It is not so easy to do.
 
Part of my challenge is that I like to paint such a variety of themes.  Flowers, birds and still-life’s make the top of my lists…but other topics sneak in randomly.
 
It took me awhile to codify my watercolour flower paintings to I ‘paint summer sunshine all winter long’ (as winter is very long in Yellowknife).  I think that works quite well to explain in a simple way what painting flowers make me feel like.   I am quite happy with that.

​Now birds are relatively new to my painting life and I have yet to come up with that perfect phrase that captures how I feel about painting these amazing creatures.  I love their antics and how sometimes we don't even notice them around us as they go forth creating new life and living their lives.  

Maybe you can help me to find the perfect phrase to explain my bird paintings.  Check out more bird paintings HERE and comment below what strikes you when you first look at them.   
 
Thanks for dropping by.  See you next week Friday.  

​A number of my watercolour flower paintings have collectors who lived far away!   This painting called 'Grandma’s Garden' was transplanted to Nova Scotia!   I love the frame and matting.  I love how each person makes the painting their own with the framing and matting choices. 

​I do my watercolour paintings on 140lb Arches cold press paper which allows the painting to be carefully rolled for shipping.  I can ship paintings anywhere in the world in a tube.  Makes transplanting my watercolour paintings so much simpler.
 
Now the frame that this painting was displayed in is needing to be filled at Visual Effects with another pretty flower painting.  Watch for that in the next few weeks.  Still working on the commission.  Got a bit stuck with it but I have figured my way around it.  

​Below is the step by step process I do to get to the final painting.  I layer very pale washes until the value is correct on each petal.  The lighter the petal the more careful I have to be and often they take more layers to get to where I want them to be.  This painting I did the background last...which is different than I normally do.  But it works. 

Thanks for stopping by.  See you next week. 

A year ago I just took a deep breath and entered two paintings into the Richeson75 Still Life and Floral.  Much to my amazement one of my paintings was juried into the show.  So this year i go over to enter and look what I found!

The letter R is my flower!  Wow.  Wow. Wow.  So amazing. :)  Sometimes being brave has its rewards. 

Lol I entered again this year but I will tell you that I have no expectation to be juried in.  I think last year was just an aberration. 

Thanks for stopping by on a Saturday!  I just had to share and it couldn't wait until Friday. 

We traveled a fair amount in 2018.  The second trip we took last year was to drive from Yellowknife, to the Yukon for Arctic Winter Games meetings (my husbands), then all the way to Tuktoyaktuk and back to Yellowknife. 
 
We stopped the second night in northern BC at the Liard Hot Springs.  Ian is a hot spring kind of guy… me not so much.  My oldest had lent me his 300mm camera lens to use until he came to visit in July and I just walked around looking for birds. 

​I noticed this robin with a beak full of grubs, of course I took some photos. Then it flew to its nest.  So cool.  Because the area is a park there were boardwalks and stairs to protect the flora and fauna.  I just walked up the stairs and was eye level to the nest!  I spent a long time photographing the parents coming and going.  

Sadly, by the time we came through two weeks later the chicks had already fledged.

Thanks for stopping by.  I will be back next Friday!   See you then.