White Bisons and Music Festivals

White Bison ~ 6" x 6" oil on hardboard panel

For sale starting July 31st on Daily Paintworks

BID HERE

I finally had a whole four hours to paint yesterday! What a concept! In the last month I've had a mural to complete, four farmer's markets to make jewelry and baking for, three different sets of family visiting, three to four days a week at my "regular" job, and volunteering for the Art's Council, plus two kids to take to swimming lessons every day, a cottage to rent out, three specialty cakes this week and a normal household to look after. Wow! Summer! We look forward to it all year, and then it goes by so fast that we feel like we missed all the beautiful weather. 

But a whole four hours to paint by myself, with nobody around, was bliss :)

Here's one of the reasons you haven't seen much of me in the last little while. But I'm done, and proud if I do say so myself! It looks much better in real life...the surrounding cedar walls give the whole thing a bit of an unpleasant yellow tone.

                               

Bella Coola Music Festival Mural 10 ft x 20 ft

(He will be sitting on a piece of crown moulding instead of floating in space when the new door is installed)

The Prince ~ Young bull elk in velvet

The Prince ~ 6" x 6" oil on hardboard panel

This little guy was a challenge from a fan to paint a white elk on a white background. I initially didn't think that I could do him justice, as my thought was that his antlers wouldn't fit. But at this angle, with his new velvet, the proportions worked perfectly.
For sale now on Daily Paintworks ~ Click HERE to bid

24" x 36" oil on canvas ~ Wading Grizzly (title ideas...please?)

I suppose I should have given this one a bit more thought before I posted it, but I can not for the life of me, think of a good title right now. If anyone has any brilliant ideas, please let me know! Lol!

I'm finished!...the paint was still wet when I hung it in the show, but it was definitely a hit with everyone. I was very happy to be finished in time.

This was my first time working with Liquin, using it for what it was meant to do. I tried it once before, on an alla prima painting, and it just frustrated me, so I didn't try it again for a long time. After a bit of research, I realized that it is meant for fine detail work, to help the paint dry faster. It is what enabled me to actually paint layers of fur, and not have to wait for days for it to dry. Previously, I've only used acrylic for wildlife work, but I don't really like acrylic. Let's just say, our personalities clash! So my Liquin discovery is a blessing!

Voila!

PS: I also have quite a few new prints available. This one will be available soon,  at a size of 12" x 18", so check my shop often. Click HERE to check out my available prints on Etsy.

Cheers!

Grizzly Bear portrait and painting demonstration

Too Close and Very Afraid ~ 16" x 20" oil on canvas

$1200.00

It's bear season once again! They'll soon be lumbering down the mountain from their chilly dens to eat the newly blossoming skunk cabbage that is finally starting to bloom. I have yet to see one awake this year, but the sunshine and the promise of a beautiful summer filled with our exotic wildlife inspired me to paint this guy. Here's your chance to have your very own "too close for comfort" encounter with one of the world's most impressive creatures!

BoldBrush Painting Competition Entry- Owl in the Mist

                                  Owl in the Mist ~ 18" X 36" oil on canvas  $1650.00

I've entered this one in the November Bold Brush Competition. If you like it, follow this link here and click on the LIKE button. (This only works if you're a facebook member) It'll help me get a bit more exposure, and possibly get in the FAV 15%...Thanks!

A Fish Story 12" x 12" Limited Edition of only 50

Just $50

BUY NOW

Prints of A Fish Story are now available for only $50!

Owl in the Mist

"Owl in the Mist" 18" x 36" oil on canvas     $1,650.00

This was a really fun painting to do. I started out in acrylic, because I like that you can glaze lots of layers to make convincing mist, but I didn't take the size of the piece into consideration, and I couldn't get a smooth color in the background. The darn acrylic just dries too fast! I really hate painting in acrylic, but it does tend to be better for wildlife...it makes it easier to do all of the finicky detail without having to wait ten years for the paint to dry. Well, I threw up my hands in frustration and dove into this with oils...I mean, literally dove in. I mixed up about a tonne of the gray color and slammed it on with the palette knife, and then switched to big, gobby brushstrokes...it was really fun! So I switched my approach completely. The oil is quite loose instead of super detailed, and I actually love that about it...

Click on this one to make it big... it looks way better:)

Going Fishing

~Going Fishing~  6"x6" oil on Raymar panel  $150.00

Everybody around here is going fishing lately, and the river is thick with fish once again. I hear the Sockeye run is better than it's been in 40 years...unless that's just a "fish story", lol!

 Here's a little guy I whipped off a while ago, who's taking advantage of the surplus...I'll sell him to you in a gorgeous plein aire frame like the ones above for an extra $55...

Prints are available in my etsy shop...here

The Interruption

The Interruption  16" x 20" oil on panel

Well, I've finally posted something! It's been a really long time, and I've missed you:)  I am now volunteering five days a week, to keep our local gallery open. I use it for my studio, and I run a little cafe, so if you're in the area, please stop by for an organic, free trade, delicious espresso drink and biscotti.  Needless to say, I'm pretty busy.  I have been painting up a storm, but my time has been filled with commissions and failures.  Yup, there are definitely a few I'm too embarrassed to show you.  It seems like whenever I finish a really good one, it takes me a while to get my legs back under me so to speak. I guess I'm trying to live up to it, and the pressure is too great, so I screw up. Or something like that...anyways...I'm okay with this one, sort of.   I'm not sure if I like it, but I've learned that I have to let go, and let people decide for themselves before I use it for a frisbee.  

I did something this time that I hardly ever do, and totally messed with the lighting. I originally took the reference photo for this painting in the bright sunlight, it was filtering through the trees from the left, but I really wanted it to tell a story, so I changed the scene to night, and added the campfire.

Well, I hope to be back and posting more often now that my commissions are finished. Hopefully I work through this "sucky period"...The next one is coming along just smashingly, so cross your fingers for me that I don't screw it up!
I also want to give a great big huge thank you to Kirsty over at KirstyGirl for featuring my blog on her blog. She is a wonderfully energetic and creative blogger, with a heart of gold, and I enjoy each and every one of her posts, along with her gorgeous photographs, so go check her out.

Cheers!

Grizzly Bear Portrait

Grizzly Portrait -- 18" x 18" oil on canvas  $1400.00 SOLD

Click on the image to see it bigger.

                                           Proof that I painted it!! LOL!!

I'm really so happy with this one...that happens so rarely. I haven't even posted the last three large paintings I've finished, because I'm disgusted with them.  I got sick of painting wildlife a few years ago, and I also switched from acrylics to oils, loving the "juiciness" of oil paint. I've since attempted a few grizzly paintings in oil, and they were never quite successful. Grizzly pictures are in high demand here, in Bella Coola, since, other than Alaska, we are their playground, literally. It's not uncommon to see them crossing the road, eating the apples from my tree, or fishing on the river bank, making it easy to get good reference photos. They're fairly used to people and aren't generally much of a threat.

At any rate, I sell every grizzly I paint, so I decided to attempt another, and this time, in acrylic. Now I know why most wildlife painters use it. It's so much easier to get the detail, in a much shorter time. I just don't have the patience to wait for oils to dry to do glazing.

Anyways, I'll have archival, limited edition prints available in a 12" x 12" size, so if you're interested, drop me a line.

Cheers!

Grizzly Bear in the River

                                 Grizzly  8"x10" graphite on bristol  $150.00

Soon to be framed, and on display for sale at the Bella Coola Valley Inn Gallery. Framed Price, $200.00.

The Bella Coola Valley, where I live is one of the last wild places on earth. The population is tiny...we have about 1800 people in a stretch of about 60 km, the valley is narrow, lined with glacier fed creeks, and streams filled with salmon, so it is also one of the prime locations for spotting grizzly bears in the wild. While most people on the planet can only hope to see these amazing creatures in the zoo, I have to shuttle my kids inside while they plunder the fruit on my fruit trees and lumber nonchalantly through our yard. People come from all over the world to get a chance to see one. In fact, today I have the great fortune to go on a river drift with my boss, Fraser Koreluk, who owns Coast Mountain Lodge and Kynoch adventures here in Bella Coola. They offer deluxe accommodation, and outdoor adventures, such as eco-tours and Bear viewing tours. I hope we see bears today, so I can get some more reference photos to paint from.

Framing Options

unframed $150.00 framed $200.00

Grizzly Bear Sow and Cubs painting demo

I only decided to make this a demo at this stage...sorry, I didn't get an earlier pic! But this is only about 40 minutes in. The canvas is only 9"x 12". I didn't draw or grid this one at all.  I just eyeballed the main shapes and distances with reference marks, filling in the darkest darks and a vague outline with a rough underpainting of burnt umber thinned with 1/2 mineral spirits and 1/2 walnut oil. I like walnut oil because it doesn't stink like linseed, and from what I've read, it's more stable and non-yellowing. I did a thin coat of burnt umber mixed with a touch of payne's grey for the mother's undercoat, which shows through most of her light overcoat. The cubs have a bit of ultramarine blue mixed with that, as they appeared to be greyer, with less red in their coats. The overcoat on the mom is mostly yellow ochre with a bit of burnt umber and white, with touches of burnt sienna for the redder markings.  The black for her eyes and nose is burnt umber and ultramarine blue, which makes a great black. Much less flat than tube black, which I don't like to use at all, other than for getting some interesting greys.  I've started to wash in the background with a half medium half paint mix of burnt umber, paynes grey, and white, with a bit of terre verte.                                                                                                                

This second stage is at about two hours. I've refined Mom's fur a bit, adding some darker shadows, and I've finished off the cub on the ground and started on the cub on her back. The cubs have a different texture and color of fur, so I'm mixing a bit more blue to the burnt umber, yellow ochre and white mix, to get a greyer color. They're also fuzzy, so I'm using a dabbing technique to capture the look of their fluff. I've refined the background as well, trying to get the look of the tide flat's wet muddy, sand. 

   Patience 9" x 12" oil on canvas  $250.00

And Voila! Finished, in about 3 and a half hours. This one will be for sale at the Bella Coola Valley Inn Gallery, as soon as the paint is dry...probably Friday. Thank you so much to Roy Tennant at www.freelargephotos.com for the reference. Cheers!