Architectural Details Blackfriars Estate Condominiums

 This heritage home in a parklike setting along the Thames River was the location for two Gallery Painting Group paint outs this past week. These studies of a couple of the architectural details which caught my eye were done in pen and watersoluable ink, so I could go back in with a wet brush to soften some areas.
The home was originally built in the Italianate style by a man named Kent and later became owned by the Catholic Church and was used by the Bishop and named Blackfriars. The Catholic diocese sold the building a few years ago and it has now been converted into large condos, preserving the original architecture. The gardens are lovely and have statues, terraces, pathways,ponds and fountains. These paint outs will certainly be my inspiration for some paintings in the near future.

Gallery Painting Group: Wild Phlox

 Yesterday the Gallery Painting Group was invited to paint at the home of one of our members. It is a property on Westdelbourne which was called Fern Hill in days past. There are still lovely ferns on the hill where the house is located, but we were there to paint the wild phlox which were blooming in a wooded field down near Dingman Creek.  My first sketch was of  trees and phlox which reminded me of the day a few years ago spent painting in a wood near Turville, U.K., which was full of bluebells. In both cases the weather was perfect

 My second sketch was a closer view of the wild phlox. This sketch and the one above were done in watercolour on paper which had previously been coated with Daniel Smith watercolour ground.

My last was a pen and watercolour done in my sketchbook on paper previously coated with gesso.

plein air watercolour: Thames River Trestle Bridge

Yesterday was my first paint out with the Gallery Painting Group this season. The weather was wonderful and my husband found a wonderful place along the river where we painted. The trestle bridge, which crosses both Oxford Street and the Thames River was an interesting structure with lovely reflections. We were visited from time to time by pairs of Canada geese. It was a peaceful place to paint even though the sound of traffic crossing the Oxford Street bridge was continuous, and the thump thump thump of someone practising tennis against a wooden wall competed with the bird's songs and the geese honking. Occasionally something would jump in the river leaving beautiful patterns of concentric circles. I was unable to spot the circle maker, but just as we had packed up and were leaving, Brian saw a small mouth bass jump, so maybe it was the circle artist.

Anna's encaustic paints

What a great start to our season at Sunset Arts! This weekend we took part in the Grand Bend Studio Tour. The weather was perfect.
One of the gallery members, Anna Koots, demonstrated her encaustic painting just outside our front door. On Sunday, at our back door, a musical group entertained the crowds and us. All of our guests enjoyed the nibbles and the treats from Hayter's . I met so many interesting people and it was great to welcome back customers from previous years.

I'm looking forward to this weekend's studio tour in Grand Bend. Stop by for a visit if you are in Grand Bend. My work will be in Sunset Arts Gallery on 63 River Road during the tour and for the summer too.

Sweet Tea and Memories

Sweet Tea

This watercolour painting is called Sweet Tea. The tea pot shape is the silhouette of a very small tea pot, a salesman's sample of a royal crown derby tea pot, which belonged to my late Aunt Dorothy. The sweet peas are from the pattern on a cup and saucer inherited from my Mom. The black background with the green crescent shape is inspired by the saucer which was black with a white centre. Since the tablecloth is white, I made the centre green, repeating the green from the stems of the sweet peas.
This is a departure from my usual work, being more decorative in nature and certainly not a landscape or city view, or a traditional watercolour, but I enjoyed painting it and the memories of loved ones it engendered.

Busy Day

It was a busy day today. I drove to Grand Bend to pick up the Grand Bend Studio Tour brochures, prepared note cards for Sunset Arts Gallery, delivered the watercolour painting you see to the left to the framer's so it will be ready for the studio tour, finished my tracking sheets for the work which will be in the Lambeth Art Association Show and Sale this weekend, and packaged up the paintings and matted work for the LAA Show. I am now going to relax a little.