Standing by the River

Standing by the River (Autumn in Algonquin)  / 16" x 20"

“I want to stand by the river in my finest dress. I want to sing, strong and hard, and stomp my feet with a hundred others so that the waters hum with our happiness. I want to dance for the renewal of the world.”

-Robin Wall Kimmerer

This piece was inspired by a remarkable afternoon sitting beside the sparkling flow of the Oxtongue River last Sept during my residency in the park.
The painting will be exhibited as part of a group exhibition at the Algonquin Art Centre entitled "The Spirit of the Group of Seven" which will include original paintings from the Group of Seven in celebration of the 100th anniversary of their first exhibition at OAC. It is such an honour to be part of this show which will be on exhibit from June to October in Algonquin Park.

Falling into Autumn

Falling into Autumn / 24" x 24" / acrylic on prepared panel

Gratitude in Autumn

Accept What Comes from the Silence / 24" x 30" / acrylic on canvas

At no other time (than autumn) does the earth let itself be inhaled in one smell, the ripe earth; in a smell that is in no way inferior to the smell of the sea, bitter where it borders on taste, and more honeysweet where you feel it touching the first sounds. Containing depth within itself, darkness, something of the grave almost. ~Rainer Maria Rilke~

Cascade Forest / 24" x 30" / acrylic on canvas

This has been an extraordinary summer for the artist/gypsy in me. I have never felt so close to the bone of my soul life. I have traveled extensively, inside and out for the past five months. A journey that has peeled away the unnecessary and revealed the essence and interconnectedness of many places, people and things. 

Ten years ago my life was so confused and muddled I didn't think I would ever see clearly again. Today the waters have stilled and are crystal clear. My inner vision is

Preparing for the Inhale

Thanksgiving week-end has given me time to reflect on the gratitude I feel for being alive in this moment in this place and with the people who surround me. 

It has been an ever expanding exhale all summer long and even into the autumn months. I have been walking trails, climbing mountains, swimming in lakes and fully immersed in the outdoors as much as possible.

       

Now it is time to take all that extraverted energy and turn it inward in one long inhale over the winter. All the sights, sounds, smells and textures of the living, breathing earth will find their way into my paintings if I am still enough to hear them.

I can't wait to return to my studio for some quiet, solitary months at the easel processing all the beautiful impressions of the summer and autumn months. 

Every year that goes by my impressions appear to broaden and deepen from within and without. The whole landscape seems numinous to me at times. I often feel as though the natural world is lit up from within and radiating beauty and mystery. The more I paint the more I see and more often than not I feel rich beyond my wildest dreams with all that is there in and around me. Its a mystery I don't even want to know the answer to.

Painting from Inside the Roar of Autumn

This Autumn has been extended for me by traveling South and following the changing colors into New England. It has been a glorious time of replenishment for the senses. 

 I now look forward to a winter of hibernation in my Montreal studio where I will release all these images onto canvas!

 

Fire Forest / 48" x 36" / acrylic on canvas

Forest Incantation / 28" x 22" / acrylic on canvas

This is the Right Place

 

 There are certain geographical places on this spinning globe that resonate more strongly with each individual being than others. The Ausable River is one of those places for me.
The twisted roots embracing the rocks, the ancient rock cliffs, the deep dark pools and the roaring waterfalls all make me ecstatically happy when I am around them.

Blood of the River God

Blood of the River God / 36" x 48" / acrylic on panel board

The Roaring Colors of Autumn

Rocks Listening to the Roar of Autumn 48" x 36"

Becoming Red 48" x 36"

Autumn, excessive in her exuberant expressions of color! Color that screams in ecstatic bursts all around me. I am dangerous on the road, constantly swerving in every direction as wanton displays of crimson surprise me around every corner. Exquisitely sensuous, autumn tumbles into robust colors that smell of earth and eros, nature drops her green mantle of modesty and reveals all her hidden passions in one last visual explosion before the silence of winter descends. I can almost hear the colors roaring like fire around me as I walk through the flaming maple forests of the Laurentian mountains. This is the season that fills me with a passionate lust for life and fills me with a burning desire to paint, paint, paint!

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