WIN THIS PAINTING! daffodil #1 6x6 inches oil on cradled wood panel $125 (value) Hello!
I hope you are enjoying your spring so far. I know I am - warmer weather, time spent in the garden and kicking around the soccer ball. May is one of my most favourite months so I decided to share in the May love by painting this flower for you! CONTEST All of the wonderful humans on my mailing list will be entered into a draw for this painting - 'daffodil #1'. You will be entered too, if you join my mailing list... don't worry - I won't spam you everyday. I send out art updates (paintings and thoughts) a few times a month. The winning name will be drawn on Mother's Day, May 14th at noon. Have a wonderful weekend! Enjoy! Let art rule! peace xo michelle
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There are so many reasons why I absolutely love teaching art to kids. The energy, experimentation and excitement that they bring to their art is incredible. This in turn gets me more excited about art. When planning my curriculum, I reflect back to all of the techniques and mediums I've been taught. Teaching some of these mediums gives me a great excuse to revisit my favourites. Last week I introduced linocut printmaking to my spring workshop kids. The last time I picked up a linocut printmaking tool was 1993 when I took a printmaking class at college. More recently I've been admiring and inspired by Prince George artist, Mo Hamilton's gorgeous prints (check out her work at https://mohamilton.net - you will love it).
These art camp kids are amazing. I gave them the creative freedom to draw and cut anything they wanted into their lino blocks. They were not short on ideas. We had an umbrella, a dream catcher, a mountain range, a puffer fish, a nest with eggs, flowers, a horse, a rubber duck, a human... and so many more! With Easter quickly approaching, I created this bunny linocut as an example for them. I inked my little bunny up for the first time with the kids to show them the process. I laid my paper down on that inked up bunny and smoothed the paper across with a spoon. When I slowly pulled that piece of paper back to reveal this bunny, the kids clapped and and wowed with surprise! And as the kids finished their linocuts and began inking and pulling their own papers back, they smiled from ear to ear, so pleased by their amazing creations. Have a wonderful weekend! Enjoy! Let art rule! peace xo michelle Flying down highway 16. The snow is melting, the sun is warm - hello spring. Spring Mountain 6x6 inches oil on canvas SOLD Happy spring, friends! This mountain scene flew by me somewhere on hwy 16 between Northwest Regional Airport in Terrace, BC and Telkwa, BC. The last month of winter always sends me into crazy. An airplane trip away to where the grass is green(er) and flowers are starting to bloom in March was much needed. Now that I'm back in the studio (aka messy living room corner), I'm excited to paint and plan my upcoming youth workshops at Smithers Art Gallery!
I hope you are enjoying springs longer days and warmer weather. Let art rule... peace xo michelle So I attended a digital marketing class for Smithers Art Gallery last week. It was a great reminder of the importance of posting (or blogging - I don't love the word 'blog') and keeping my site 'fresh'. I always have fantastic intention to write here but I always fail to follow through. This course was the kick in the pants I needed to create 'content'. The facilitator suggested that our posts offer you (the reader) advice, information or something to keep you interested. Hmmmmmm... Does what I have to offer interest you? My paintings?!! Hopefully! I adore reading autobiographies and personal posts from others but I've never had the courage to get too personal. The fear of exposure has always kept me from it. I may get there one day but for now I will provide visual content in the form of my paintings, my creative processes, art and written content on what inspires me. Well, here goes: Recently, I've felt creatively confused. I spent October and November painting like a mad woman for Wintergold (an artisan fair) and One of a Kind: A Christmas Gift Shop at Smithers Art Gallery. I had clear direction - painting wild animals in oil paints on wood. They sold well. Much to my surprise, though, this led into painting a ton of custom ordered pet portraits on small 2.25" x 3" wood ornaments. Now that the orders are wrapping up, I've been trying to work out in my head what I want my next series of paintings to be. Landscapes (again), animals (more?!), townscapes, portraits... abstract?! Ack!! To the point that I'm driving myself crazy! So I painted this fox last week for Smithers Art Gallery's members show. This didn't move me any closer to figuring out what I'm going to do next but it did get me painting. And I enjoyed it! I'm thinking creative play is in order and allow the rest to follow. Let art rule... peace xo michelle fox #2
10x8 inches, oil on wood available now at Smithers Art Gallery Happy New Year! I don't know about you, but everything slows down around here in the winter months. Everything gets a little bit quieter. I've been reflecting on my journey and feeling incredibly grateful that it has led me to today. Today I am painting, writing, planning and dreaming. The good times and the shit times have made my today what it is. I am embracing all of it. 2017 will include more opportunities to teach and explore new mediums. I hope your new year is filled with love. peace xo I tried to capture my love of winter light in my latest 6x6 painting. THROUGH THE TREES
6x6 inches oil on canvas SOLD Since January, I've written it a dozen times in my notebook. My first blog post. I hated all of them. Either I spilled too much (risk of feeling exposed) or I shared too little (risk of seeming detached). They weren't 'perfect' in my eyes. If I'm going to write this thing, I have to accept that it won't be perfect and sometimes it might not even make sense. I was never an English major and there might be a ton of grammatical errors. I also have to accept that you might not like what I have to say (for a recovering people pleaser, this is tough). If that's the case, you don't have to read it. I'll mostly be writing about my art. And maybe some other stuff. Done. My first blog post about writing my first blog post.
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May 2017
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