I left the house around 8:30am before it started to really heat up here. This is on the Pitt River dyke at the end of Harris Road in Pitt Meadows. 8×10 oil on board, 60 minutes.

I am a little embarrassed to say that I went out painting and forgot my brushes. Ooops.

Not to be deterred I decided to get some palette knife work in. I will have to make a couple adjustments when it dries, but I'll chalk this up to experience and move on. 8×10, oil on board, 40 minutes.

I was able to get in two paintings today. One in the morning (above) and one in the afternoon (below).

Both are at Castle Park in Port Coquitlam. It is a nice little park offering a variety of items one can paint. I'll have to go there when the sun comes to catch some shadows.

I have started on four different canvas paintings of my recent trip to France. Why four? I get easily board with just one. :)

This shows the block in stage for all four. Just laying down colour, getting initial graphical layout and proportions, etc. When this stage dries I'll move into laying in more specific colours and values.

Stay tuned…

Being back painting is great! I took off this morning before work to see what I could find and the result was the above painting. It is a small park that I have never been to before and it had a lot of interesting things happening. I'll have to go back and do a more detailed painting.

Below is the second of the day looking south from Mary Hill Elementary School. There are many forest fires going on in BC right now and all the smoke creates great atmosphere perspective.

If interested, you can buy either for $100. Both are 8×10" oil on board. Just shoot me an email.

My latest landscape in oil. This seems to be a start of my style as I have a complete a few studies that turned out this way as well. All my brush strokes are created with a sweeping motion. We will see how it evolves.

I recently rearranged my studio setup and am finding it much more enjoyable to paint. I really have to get going and complete a few for upcoming shows.

Wow! The unveiling event was fantastic. There was at least 150 people in attendance and the room was just packed.

Artists had paintings hanging on the wall that were lit to perfection. And the energy in the room was really positive.

The presentation to introduce Eva and what the 65 red roses represented was inspiring to say the least. The fact that she has helped so many others with CF will always be a part of her memory.

At the end of the ceremony, the mural was unveiled by all the artists that were in attendance that night. I think there must have been over 40 people on stage to pull the one black cloth off. To see all the paintings in one mural was great. Each painting was distinct and people were taking their time looking over the entire panel.

All in all, it was a great evening.

Read more about the 65 Red Roses Event :: The Auction at Maynards on June 16th :: Eva's Legacy

This is the final rose for the mural. I would have liked my brush strokes to be a little looser in the petals, but for some reason I tightened up when it was time to paint that area.

My alternative painting I had a lot of fun with. I like it so much, it is a toss up between the traditional red rose above and the more abstract rose below.

This marks stage two of the painting. Getting in the darker value at the back has started to make everything come forward a little more. Once the greens are established it should really melt into the background. More later….

I thought I would just show my progress of the rose I am painting for the mural – "65 Red Roses". This is stage 1. Before I proceed this layer needs to dry.

If I have time, I have another idea for a painting that I want to explore. If I do, I'll be posting it here as well.

65 Red Roses is another mural project that I am involved in. This time, not just as an artists but also as a coordinator. This project is the initiative of Angie Au Hemphill, artists and board member of the Federation of Canadian Artists.

Sixty five artist from the FCA are painting one single read rose on an 8×10" panel. These panels will be grouped together into one large mural and presented to the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The mural will be auctioned off and all proceeds will go to the CCFF.

The unveiling of the mural will be on May 15 at Performance Works (map) on Granville Island. Come down and see what it is all about!