It’s another new month today which puts us at the beginning of the end of winter right in the middle of another snowstorm.
I didn’t get to do a lot of painting last month, the Studio kept calling but instead of answering the enticing voice of the blank white paper I ignored it for the melancholy moan of the “business” end of trying to be an artist. Apparently my paintings will not mat, frame, wire and label themselves. No matter how long I leave them bull- clipped to the design board they simply won’t magically make themselves presentable and ready to hang on the gallery wall. And since I have not yet figured out how to paint to a standard pre-cut mat size I needed to learn how to cut mats. It’s really not my favourite thing; floors get washed, laundry gets done, even vacuuming and dusting gets done in my effort to procrastinate the cutting of mats. It’s a skill with a steep learning curve; there is maths involved. Youtube to the rescue!
After the mat is cut I need to layer the painting between glass and backing in the frame and force metal shims around the back edge to keep everything snug. My fingertips always seem to get pinched at least once per frame and if I have to pull the shims out they ping about 4 feet up in the air and bounce under the table, always just out of reach as I crawl about on my hands and knees. When the last shim is in and the wire is stretched and secured I turn the piece over to admire my efforts and inevitably there in the top right corner is a speck of dust under the glass. So far I’ve only cracked 2 pieces of glass while framing but my mentors Hiebert and Karen at the Artisan Gallery have been able to cut new ones for me while offering invaluable advice and encouragement in my framing endeavours.
My friend Mike OLeary and I have bantered about for a few years that we should do a show together. Last December the opportunity to apply to the Mission Arts Council for a 3 week exhibit in April at the Rock Family Gallery presented itself. The timing was perfect. Mike also paints in watercolour but our styles are very different; I use bold jewel tones compared to his earthtone washes; Mike is very detail focused, sometimes putting hundreds of hours into a single piece using a pointillism style compared to my broad loose abstract strokes.
My subjects are most often seascapes full of movement where Mikes evoke stillness and calm.
Show prep is in full swing. I have 2 dozen works ready to submit at this point; we’ll see how many actually qualify. It’s still 6 weeks away but I’m starting to get excited.
Devon has kept me on task with the blogs and website and Print of the Month notices and posting photos of the paintings that are matted and framed. She continues to add more to our Store, including sets of Art Cards this week. Devon also designed the poster for our Show (below.)
***If you see an Original painting on my website this month that you would like to purchase before April 6th I will offer a 15% discount off the listed price.
