Maintenant que l'hiver est officiellement arrivée, je voulais partager une peinture qui reflèt l'atomosphère de la région Ottawa-Gatineau. Le parc Rockliffe à Ottawa est un endroit exceptionnellement populaire auprès des familles pour glisser en toboggan. Je crois que c'était le cas depuis cent ans! Cette peinture capte mon fils et un ami glissant sur des soucoupes colorées en plastique une belle journée. On peut presque sentir l'air doux et fraîs du parc!
You have to admire the lowly sparrow. When most birds have long left the Ottawa-Gatineau region for warmer climes, sparrows stick around and seem to pay little attention to the darkening days and chilling temperatures. Maybe we should name them the national bird instead of the Canada Goose! Anyway, I was attracted by a group of them outside my window and wanted to pay them homage through this painting.
Maybe this is just an after-effect of Halloween, but here's a watercolour that I composed of some ghostly looking trees with bare limbs in late autumn. Watercolour, 15.5 x 12 inches
The kayak is a great way to explore lakes and rivers. In my opinion, it takes a lot less effort to manouever than a canoe and is less tipsy. Plus, its more comfortable to sit inside a kayak than to kneel inside a canoe. This is another painting at Lac Roddick (Bouchette, Quebec) on a day when the sky and water are a brilliant blue and you could spend all day playing on the water. Watercolour, 14 x 11 inches.
Here's another quick sketch with watercolour pencils. It's a scene on part of my property at Lac Roddick (Quebec) with tangled trees and a nasty underbrush making it into a true wilderness.
For those interested in quick sketches, watercolour pencils provide another means to express yourself in a colourful way. Here's an example that I created in minutes. Submitted to ILLUSTRATION FRIDAY under topic 'Quiet'.
Un marais est un endroit idéal pour qu'un héron pratique la chasse. Sur une vielle branche d'un arbre, je n'ai presque pas aperçu le héron qui se perchait silencieusement dans l'ombre. Cette peinture utilise peu de couleurs afin de démontrer la façon dont le héron se mariait à son environnement. Aquarelle, 14 x 11 inches.
Next, I applied a blue wash where the rocks are situated. I also applied some masking fluid to areas of the painting I wanted to protect from washes that I would be applying later.
Taking a large brush, I then applied water to all the area outside the blue and ensured that the paper was evenly wet. Using some Hooker's Green, I applied a fairly even layer to the painting. In some areas where there would be more shadow, I applied a thicker mixture of the paint to the wet surface.
When the paper was dry, I then applied some darker shades to the rocks and trees.
Again wetting the paper in the lake area, I further developed the dark green reflection in the water. In the upper left area, I introduced some Sap Green for cedar trees.
To finish the painting, I used Indigo Blue around the rocks, and some dark Hooker's Green to created small waves in the water.
Watercolour, 15 x 12 inches / Aquarelle, 15 x 12 pouces.
Although its still August and the days are warm, all the same, there's a sense that the end of cottage season is fast approaching. The evenings are becoming cooler and the mist on the lake is heavier in the morning. Before long, we'll be pulling the rowboat out of the water and making preparations for winter. This painting captures a scene on Lac Roddick, Bouchette (Quebec) where this end-of-season feeling is being expressed. Watercolour, 15 x 12 inches.
The Yukon River flows through the city of Whitehorse, Yukon, on its way to the Bering Sea many hundreds of miles away. Its water is crystal clear and fast-moving. This quick sketch was made while I took an early morning walk along the shoreline of the river and marvelled at the beauty of the landscape. Watercolour, 11.5 x 5 inches.
On Sunday July 16, 2006, I exhibited six of my watercolors with other local artists at ART EN DIRECT located in a lovely garden in Aylmer, Quebec at 1195 Mountain Rd. Despite the extreme heat, over 120 visitors came and were very generous with their compliments. The organizers of this event -- Isabelle and Réginald Regout -- were also very generous with their time and their dedication to the arts. ART EN DIRECT continues every second Sunday until mid-October
Early July is the best time to enjoy tiger lilies in the Ottawa-Gatineau region. Their blooms explode with a sharp yellow ochre as their grass-like leaves sway in the breeze. Because they are native to this area, you don't have to water them and feed them like some other imported species. They seem to do nicely either in shaded areas or in full sun. Watercolor, 9 x 12 inches.
A lake, a canoe and a couple of boys. What more to set free the imagination so it can explore real and imaginary worlds. I made a couple of attempts at this picture and prefer my first one which was a little less studied.
Un lac, un canot et deux garçons. Quoi de plus pour libérer l'imagination afin d'explorer les mondes véritables et imaginaires. J'ai tenté de réaliser cette peinture une couple de fois, mais je prefère celle-ci qui était un peu moins étudiée.
One fine morning at the lake, I spied a couple of young ladies fishing from their dock. It didn't look like they were catching anything, but they were having lots of fun. My painting reflects the rich kaleidoscope of the greens of summer.Un beau matin au lac, j'ai trouvé deux jeunes femmes qui pêchaient sur leur quai. Il me semblait qu'elles n'avaient attrappé rien, mais elles sont bien amusées. Ma peinture reflète la richesse et la variété des verts d'été.
On a perfectly still Sunday morning in July, a canoe glides quietly along a marshy bay on Lake Roddick in Bouchette, Quebec. This painting captures the mirror-like calm of the water and the rich greens of summer. Watercolor, 15 x 12 inches.
The Petrie Islands are a sort of oasis on the Ottawa River in the community of Orleans. Besides public beaches, the islands contain walking paths which wind through marshes and small forests. It's enchanting in all seasons. This painting captures a leisurely walk in the early fall. Watercolor, 12 x 15 inches
One of the rites of spring for me used to be taking out a laser or albacore sailboat on the Ottawa River in May. The water was still pretty cold and you didn't want to fall in by accident. This painting captures a scene on the river next to the old boathouse that the sailing club (ONEC) owns. Watercolor, 11 x 15 inches.
This was inspired by a photograph I saw several years ago that captured the image of a couple of young baseball players outside the Ottawa Lynx stadium. I wonder if they're still playing ball? Watercolor, 11 x 15 inches
One of the joys of spring is to enjoy a splash of colorful flowers. Here's a painting of some bluebells that grow in my garden (accompanied by some wayward daisies). Watercolor, 9 x 12 inches.
In January 2005, many great grey owls made their way south into the region of Maniwaki, Quebec, in search of food. Late one afternoon, I spied one resting on a hydro line. When it finally decided to explore the fields, it stretched its large impressive wings and soared majestically. Acrylic, 16 x 20 inches.
Even in a small forest, it's amazing how the snow seems to resist melting. Come April, you'd think that it would all be gone but surprise ... winter still reigns to some extent. This painting captures the transition into early spring in a northern forest. Watercolour, 12 x 15 inches
Behind my property on Lac Roddick near Maniwaki, Quebec, there's a trail sometimes used by snowmobiles. Depending on the weather, you can occasionally walk along it in the depths of winter without snowshoes. The view as seen in this painting is breath-taking. Watercolour, 12 x 15 inches
