2022, January 26

It's only been four years since I posted anything to this blog, but I HAVE been sketching and painting throughout that time.  I hope you enjoy seeing some of these works from that time period.  It will take a few posts to give even a small sampling of the 270 images I've saved to my computer since then, never mind the majority which never go beyond the sketch books!

A Flicker of the Heart-  Two Common Flickers star in this Valentine gift for one of two sister students I was tutoring at the time.  Acrylic on canvas.

A Hearty Lunch-  A young Northern Cardinal and her mother share lunch.  A V-Day gift for the other sister.  Acrylic on canvas.

 

Islanders Meet Highlanders- This group of wedding partiers are from a Jamaican heritage and were at a wedding in the Cape Breton highlands in Nova Scotia.  Acrylic on canvas.

Fair Trade- A congratulatory card for a friend whose Song for the Mira won a folk music hall of fame accolade.  The chorous includes the line "I'll trade you ten of your cities for Marion Bridge and the pleasure it brings."  See if you can figure out the cities! 😉 Acrylic on paper.

Another wedding program cover.  You can see it took place in the Canadian Rockies in British Columbia.  The couple wanted wanted something reminiscent of the old Canadian Pacific Railway posters which I tried to parody.  The colourful logo at the bottom is my adaptation of the paintjob on the old CPR locomotives.  I sent them the original artwork which, at last report was hanging in their home in Karachi, Pakistan. Acrylic on birch panel,

No Goalie!  Sometimes, when a few kids get together for "street hockey", there's only enough for two on two.  A couple of lumps of snow or a pair of boots make goal posts and there's no goal tender, the "goalie".  This street, Merkel Place, is in the Hydrostone neighbourhood of Halifax, Canada's first planned community, built after the devastating explosion in the harbour on December 06, 1917.  A gift for some friends in Ireland who lived on that street one year while teaching at St Mary's University in the city.  Acrylic on birch panel, if I remember correctly.

Sketch of the painting above.  It's often helpful to do a small full colour sketch before tackling a painting.  Here's the one for "No Goalie"   Acrylic on paper.

The "Little Prince" Visits the Big Apple.  This little fellow was six and at the Lincoln Center in New York City to see his grandmother direct a choral production.  He wore a snappy blue suit, but he reminded me of Antoine de St. Exupéry's little hero so I gave him his outfit and name.  Acrylic on birch panel.

DR. A. Retires.  And here's the Little Prince's "Nana".  When she retired from the University of Toronto she had the honour of carrying the mace to Convocation Hall.  I couldn't let that go by without a fun sketch.  Acrylic on paper

Allo, Allo, Allo.  The Little Prince isn't always on his best behaviour.  Once, while suspended from "screen privileges", his auntie who was visiting from London, England, caught him sneaking a peek at his sister's iPad.  The auntie was given this cartoon to take back to Blighty.  acrylic on paper.

Jordan Bennett, the renowned and talented Mi'kmaw indigenous artist came to speak to our group of guides at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia one day.  I sketched him as he spoke and later gave this to the gallery's indigenous art coordinator for Christmas.  Ink on paer.

Seumas and Iain, two world-leading experts in the Gaelic culture of Nova Scotia, on two occasions participating in a milling frolic, fulling newly woven cloth while singing Gaelic work songs.  The watercolour was for Seumas and the acrylic on birch panel for Iain, the man with the long sideburns.

LW Portrait.  LW is a star collaborative pianist here in Nova Scotia.  I painted her portrait as a gift to her and a souvenir of Choir Camp in the Annapolis Valley.  As luck would have it, the background scene which I randomly created, reminded her of her home in Saskatchewan.  The hinges are from her church in Halifax.

OK, Just one more Hand.  A late night crowd at Choir Camp.  Inveterate bridge players.  One of them asked for the sketch and got it. 😀

CB Unites the Choristers.  CB, is a multi-Grammy award winning who shares so much talent when he has come to NS choir camp.  Some altos work with him in this scratchy sketch.

Yoga Starts the day at Choir Camp.  Every morning begins before breakfast with yoga outdoors, under the towering hemlocks at choir camp. Another quick sketch.

BP Rallies the Sopranos.  BP is a wonderful soprano and a respected section leader at choir camp.  Here she is helping rearrange the seating before afternoon rehearsal.  Acrylic on paper.

PF, Coffee is a priority.  This talented chorister and retired math professor, PF, showed up at a choir camp meeting armed with his coffee.  It's all about getting your priorities set out.  Acrylic on Paper.

Three Wheeler-  In normal years, summer brings the NS British Car Club show with neat, old rigs like this three wheeler.  Acrylic on paper.

Triumph TR-4  Another car spotted at the Nova Scotia British Car club show of 2017.  Acrylic on paper

Woman with Blonde hair-  I sometimes try to beat the clock while sketching.  You can see this sketch took ten minutes.  I can't remember who the woman was in the photo.

Louis Muhlstock-  Another ten-minute sketch.  It's safe to give this man's name as he is long gone, but was a famous artist and one of the Beaver Hall Group back in 1920s Montréal.  It's my quick version of a portrait of him as done by Lilias Torrance Newton, Canada's foremost portrait artist of the early 20th century and the first Canadian to be commissioned to paint a reigning monarch (QE II)  Her version is better!.  Acrylic on paper

L.A, Cape Breton Fiddler-  L.A. is a well-known fiddler and fiddle teacher, now living in Halifax.  I snapped a picture of her at a book launch by a piper friend and then sketched her as if standing near Cap Rouge on the famous Cabot Trail in Cape Breton.  She's from Sydney Mines, but "her people" were Acadians from that other side of the island near Chéticamp and Cap Rouge.  I gave it to her later a square dance where she was cracking out some great tunes, as always.  Charcoal on paper.

Fidel Castro- The late Cuban revolutionary and president-almost-for-life.  I gave this to a Cuban friend, but I don't know if he was a fan of Fidel or not.  Acrylic on paper.

Susan Turnbull Retires.  This nurse, ST, is a style-conscious woman who nursed with my wife at the Victoria General Hospital in Halifax, NS.  Can you spot the VGH logo?  ST's parents were deaf and she grew up speaking to them in sign language, so  I put her right hand in the American Sign Language symbol for "Bye-Bye."  Her age and retirement date are also hidden in the image.  Acrylic on paper.

Well, that's a few for now.  I'll get back at this a lot sooner that the four year gap since the last one.  

2016 and 2017 Artworks - Part Three of Three

Here we are at part three of my update of art since February 2016 which is where I left off.  Earlier today I posted two groups of paintings, work in alphabetical order through my "Paintings by Me" file on my little MacBook.  They are also now up on this blog.  So here's what I expect will be the final post in this group and will show the last of what I feel is worth seeing from the last two years.  If you don't see a recent work here, that you have seen by me- it probably isn't here because I didn't want to post too much of any one theme, but rather a varied sampling.  So here we go...


Urban Sketchers-  I've mentioned the Urban Sketching group which we had last summer.  Here are a few of the happy artists down at the waterfront of Halifax harbour, just as one of the pilot boats of the Atlantic Pilotage Authority heads out.  This is a great activity for a few people to do together, especially those who, for one reason or another, don't like to sit out in public sketching on their own.  Ink and felt marker on sketch paper.

Sunday Surfers-  This crowd of computer guys were at the Halifax Public Library when Our Urban Sketching group was.  Ink and felt marker on sketch paper.

Watching the Wedding- The last two posts have shown a few people at wedding in Inverness, Cape Breton.  There were people there from far and near.  This lady's beautiful South Asian features made her stand out among the faces so I couldn't resist the urge to sketch her.  Ink on sketch paper.

Tattoo piper at rest-  In 2016 I sang in the choir of the Royal Nova Scotia Tattoo.  Like any big show, the rehearsals included a lot of sitting around while other people practiced their acts.  These sketches are very hasty, but I think they're good examples of quickly trying to catch people who are going about their business or just standing around.  Ink and felt marker on sketch paper.

Tattoo tubas- Same story and materials as the sketch above.

Man with the Mace-  Here's a drum major from a Canadian Forces Army Reserve band chilling between rehearsal at the RNS Tattoo.  Ink and felt marker on sketch paper.

Seinneadair Shios-  The Gaelic title I scribbled on this sketch means "A Singer Down"  One of our trusty basses, who has been singing in the Tattoo choir for more than thirty years, was feeling a bit under the weather.  Luckily the Royal Canadian Navy medics were always on hand and "Ready, aye Ready".  Ink and felt marker on sketch paper.

Uniacke House  (Plein air)-  The summer before last I got out a few times with some plein air artists and tried my hand at that.  It's quite a different challenge for sure.  This historic  house is in Mount Uniacke about a half hour outside of Dartmouth, NS.  Acrylic on birch panel.

Shad Bay (Plein air) - Another plein air with the same group.  This is out along the coast, south of Halifax, near Peggy's Cove, NS.  Acrylic on canvas, if I'm not mistaken.  If not, it was on a birch panel.

Self Portrait with my Brother on my First Communion-  OK, this wasn't last year, although that's when I did the painting.  Wasn't I handsome!  😌 It's an acrylic on canvas and was done from an old black and white photo. 

Self Portrait from acrylic portrait course-  Hmm, that's whole story.  This was at my birthday party and I was nose-to-nose with a blind friend who was a really great story teller.  So, it really brings back good memories.  Acrylic on masonite.

Ocean "Really" Limited- A parody of Alex Colville's famous painting "Ocean Limited" in the collection of the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia.  Google his name to see the original.  This was my response to last year's International Self Portrait Day.  It was a lot of fun to compose and paint.  People often comment on how the figure in Colville's painting seems to be floating.  I thought I'd solve the mystery.  Acrylic on canvas.

That ought to do it for now.  I'll try not to go so long next time before I submit another post, but I hope you enjoy having a look at these works.  I know I enjoyed painting them.

Best wishes,  -Joe

2016 and 2017 Artworks - Part two of Three

Since it's been almost two years since I had uploaded any new art, it looks like it will take a few posts to give a good sample of what has been produced over that time.  Here's the second installation.

Kiwi keeper-  This commission went to New Zealand.  The farmer shown here was a friend of some Nova Scotians and they wanted it for his family.  Among other things he used to adopt "rescue" dogs of just about any breed and train them to the level of champion sheep dogs and compete with them around the country.  That's a famous NZ volcano in the background, but the name escapes me.  I showed it to a fellow artist and they recognized it.  Acrylic on birch gallery panel.

Arriving at McGill- This is another commission for the lady in Toronto.  Her husband is a graduate of McGill, a prestigious university in Montreal.  So I was flattered to be asked to paint this avenue, I think it's called McGill College Avenue, which leads up to the campus in the heart of the city and just below the royal mountain that gives the city its name.  Acrylic on canvas.

Mystery lady-  I have no idea who this beautiful woman is.  I was taking an acrylic portraiture course at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University in 2016 and her photo was among a dozen on a table in the studio.  Our instructor told us, "pick a photo and paint a portrait of that person".    I changed her hairstyle, changed the background to this neutral colour array and took off her 1980's padded shoulder blouse, being careful not to expose anything she hadn't already done!  It's on canvas and really spiffs up our basement wall since I didn't have a patron for it.

Downhill all the Way- And now, for something completely different, to quote Monty Python, a Red-breasted nuthatch doing its characteristic thing, searching a tree trunk for food from top to bottom.  Acrylic on canvas.

Everyone was there!  Yet another guest at that wedding in Inverness, Cape Breton as reported in my last post.  A quick sketch of my sister-in-law, RG, in ink on sketch paper.

A Son is Born to Us-  Yes, the famous quote from the prophet Isaiah, since this is our son, RAM, and it's from a photo of him on Christmas day, 2016, on the beach at Lawrencetown, NS.  It was 15C that day and he and his sister both got it the ocean for a good few minutes of a swim.  The sun was just setting as he squinted off to the westward.  Acrylic on canvas.

Theodore Tugboat and HMCS Sackville- The popular children's TV show about this little tugboat and his friends was based here in Halifax harbour and there's a small tugboat made to look just like him, which takes tourists out and about on the harbour.  Alongside Theodore is HMCS Sackville, the last surviving example of the small Royal Canadian Navy ships which maintained the lifeline to Europe during the second world war.  My dad sailed on three ships like Sackville for five years of the war.  This is another of the sketches done in the wonderful company of the (now non-operational) urban sketching group.  Ink and felt marker on sketch paper.

Well, I'm off to a life drawing session so I should be able to wrap this up with one more installment of 2016-2017's art output.

Best wishes,  - Joe

2016 and 2017 Artworks - Part One of Three

Steppin' 'er Off- Some musicians and dancers at the 60th Broad Cove Scottish Concert in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.  The three women in the centre are all sisters.  Watercolour on multi-media sketch paper.

 A Grinning Gopher-  This pretty young lady, AO'K, was one of the hard working helpers at the Nova Scotia Choral Federation choir camp in 2016 and 2017.  That's the rehearsal hall behind her.  The young workers are called Gophers and they keep the camp running smoothly and smiling.  Acrylic on Birch panel.

Ceitidh Maggie is Home Today- This was a group of people in Broad Cove having a community event- a walk through Broad Cove Marsh and a visit at each farm along the way.  This now-abandoned home backs right onto the Gulf of St Lawrence and will probably sail away before too long.  Watercolour.

Taigh Mor nan Uinneag-  This view of Broad Cove is around the corner from Ceitidh Maggie's house and looking back toward the village of Inverness. Acrylic on multi-media sketch paper.

A Highland Quickstep-  Here are those same walkers as they passed by St Margaret of Scotland Church in Broad Cove.  One of the parishioners thought to bring his pipes and got them underway with a blast.   Ink and felt marker on multi media sketch paper.

GG Grabbing a Cool One-  On that same busy weekend lots of volunteers work to put on the 60th Annual Broad Cove Scottish Concert.  Here's GG, who keeps fit running marathons, fetching a can of pop for a customer.  Watercolour on multimedia sketch paper.

One With the Works-  Still at the Broad Cove Scottish Concert.  A little girl heading back to her family with one of the amazing hot dogs they serve.  Watercolour on multimedia sketch paper.

Sundays are are for Sundaes-  Of course they have ice cream at the concert, too.  Acrylic on something I don't remember!

Sunset Strathspeys-  As usual, there was a gorgeous Last-Sunday-In-July sunset as the BC concert kept on into the evening.  Watercolour.

The Paddies are Comin' to Town-  AB, a retired antique bookseller from Derry was over from Ireland for his niece's wedding so we went for a walk on another salt marsh.  This one is in West Lawrencetown, NS.  I like this ink sketch for the cross hatching I'm trying to learn.

Joyful Jamaicans-  These folks came from Jamaica and Toronto for the same wedding overlooking the lo-o-o-ng beach and the Cabot Links Golf Course in Inverness, Cape Breton.  This is an quick ink sketch with a wash of watercolour.

Flower Girl-  Little two-year-old Z also made an appearance at the same wedding.  She had a moment of doubt going down the aisle and she turned back to be sure Dad was still there.  Watercolour.

West Indies Wedding- This was a commission of another wedding, by a friend of this you couple you see in the middle ground.  It was at a resort in the Bahamas with this fabulous folly as the background.  Acrylic on canvas.

Big Lift Bypass-  OK, OK, yes this parody is a steal from Hokusai's famous woodblock print- The Great Wave at Kanagawa.  We've just had a major refit to one of our Bridges here in Halifax harbour.  It took over two years and people did everything they could to avoid getting stuck on the bridge as the work progressed.  These brave souls are taking their chances on the Dartmouth ferries.  Mount Fuji has become the Angus L. MacDonald bridge.  One of the ferries is named for civil rights activist Viola Desmond.  I did it in acrylics on a birch panel as a tribute to the wonderful Japanese artists who created those woodblock masterpieces.

Lookin' out the Front Door-  This is the view out the front door of my sister's house in one of the older neighbourhoods in Ottawa.  It's an acrylic and I sneaked her intials, ZL, into the wrought iron.  Acrylics on canvas.

Let's go on the Slide!  A park in my sister's neighbourhood, in behind St Francis of Assisi church.  Acrylic on canvas.

Flying Flautist-  EC is a presenter on RTE Radio in Ireland and a wonderful flautist. Ink sketch.

Babe in the Woods- CH, a young nurse who worked with my wife, strolling in the woods.  A commission to hang in one of the clinics at the Victoria General Hospital in Halifax.  Oils on canvas

Look Dad, a big red bus!  Anyone from Ottawa will recognize one of the big, red maple-leaf-decorated city buses rounding the corner at the old Civic Pharmacy on Carling Avenue.  A gift for my brother PDM, since we grew up near here.  Acrylics on canvas.

Disappearing View-  Looking out from the Halifax Public Library as the view changed with a new building rising across the street.  Ink and felt marker on sketch paper.

Shops at Eastern Passage-  A quick sketch done during one of our urban sketch group outings.  Eastern Passage is out near the entrance to Halifax harbour.  No, they don't serve Murphy's stout there.  Artistic license!  Ink and felt marker on sketch paper.

Halibut boat in Eastern Passage-  There are wharves in front of and behind the shops in the above sketch.  Here is a fishing boat at rest for the evening.  We're so lucky here.  This fishing village is only about a ten minute drive (8 km) from our home.  Ink and felt marker on sketch paper.

Wood and wind and water- So goes the title of a Nova Scotia song.  Here's one of our urban sketchers catching a bit of all three.  Ink and felt marker

Halifax Town Clock-  The iconic town clock designed by Queen Victoria's grandfather.  Acrylics on canvas.

Wedding program cover-  I've done a few of these and they're really fun making them special for friends and showing scenes important to them.  This one took place in Broad Cove and the happy couple is shown walking into Broad Cove Marsh.  Watercolour.

 Musical Mind- Dr. JB is a professor of music at a Halifax University and has been  working on a major medieval music manuscript for the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia- The Salzinnes Antiphonal.  Charcoal on paper.

My Own Grampa-  ER lives across the street from us.  Here she is with her grandfather in a charcoal portrait commissioned by her mother.

More Musicians!  Just a sketch from one of my sketchbooks.  It's the singers from the choir of Kings College, Cambridge.   It reminded me of one of their recordings on You Tube.  Check out their job of Only In Sleep.  Ink on paper.

That's it for now.  Since it's almost two years since I've uploaded anything, I've got a scad of things to put op.  I'll try to do some more tomorrow.  -Bye for now, -Joe

Also...If this is your first visit to my blog, don't forget to scroll back up to the top of the page and look at posts from previous years.  -JM