A MEMORABLE PLACE

This was a commission that came from a client of Assiniboia Gallery - a request for a painting of a very special place in BC and it would be given as a gift. When I heard the story I was truly honoured they asked if I would consider being the artist to take this project on.

The backstory is that the client and her family were invited by a friend and his family to join them on an annual excursion.

He is a member of the Tahltan First Nation, which is so far north in BC that it's almost in Alaska. Apparently it's a four-day drive from Regina! He still has family there, including his parents, and they have traditional fishing rights along the Stikine River. Each year, he and his wife and children travel home for the salmon run. It goes without saying, it's a very special place to them. The area they have along the river is called “The Three Sisters” and I was asked to paint a view of this place as a thank you gift from the client's family to his parents .

Such a beautiful thing for all: one family sharing their sacred history and cherished land with another family. It's trust and love in action. At least that's how I envisioned it as I painted my heart into this piece.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME

This painting was one year in the making. In March 2021 an email came through my website with the subject title "Query from Australia" and from there a great conversation began.

This client and his family are from Saskatchewan and saw my art in a mutual friend's home when they were in Saskatoon visiting sometime before the pandemic. As we discussed logistics and what they desired in a painting, I zeroed in on words from one email: "... the vision I have is driving on the highway somewhere in Saskatchewan in August and off in the distance there is an old farmhouse that is weathered and abandoned and is in a field of canola and big blue skies."

I could picture it in my mind's eye BUT, never-have-I-ever painted an old building or a gigantic field OR rolled and shipped a canvas in a tube! Here's where this experience becomes a beautiful story.

Good friends rallied to help me pull this off. One drove me all over the countryside around Biggar so that I could get great reference photos of old barns and farmhouses. Similarly, another drove me all around the countryside near Melfort and her family farm, helping me envision a perfect field for the commission. In fact, she actually drove me right through a field! We went off-roading prairie-style! My friends understood my need to experience what I paint, whenever possible. A third friend shared her wealth of knowledge on how to roll and protect a canvas for such a long journey. She even gave me one of her shipping tubes.

My clients were kind and patient during what ended up being the most traumatic year of my life. Their compassion was beautiful and their resolve in wanting me to be the artist who created this piece of “home” for them was humbling.

"No Place Like Home" is dressed in a fabulous frame and resides in Perth, Australia.

FLOATING

Through my website I received an inquiry from a colleague of a former Deputy Minister of Finance for the Government of Saskatchewan. She had seen some of my little Legislature paintings and thought one would make a great gift for him. She said he used to comment daily about how he had the best view in all of Government. His window overlooked the Saskatchewan Legislature Building.

She asked if it would be possible to send some pictures of the view he had from his office and have it recreated in a painting, if I liked one of the options. When I saw the foggy winter scene I got really excited to give it a try. It was a great challenge and an interesting perspective to which I would never otherwise have had access.

WHEREVER WE ARE IS WHERE I WANT TO BE

This special piece was a gift to a beloved partner of 3 years on his 40th birthday.

It was an absolute pleasure to work with Assiniboia Gallery and their client to come up with a plan for a painted memory of a very special trip the couple took to McTavish Lake. I asked her for input on the title and I love what she came up with. Perfect .

I am always so touched when I get a glimpse inside loving relationships and the joy that people find in giving meaningful presents to each other. Things like this are salve to the harder parts of life.

TWILIGHT AT COTTONWOOD

In December 2020, this commission was a Christmas gift from a young man to his girlfriend. It depicts a scene from Cottonwood Park by Lethbridge, one of their favourite walking spots. It was touching that he thought of my art as a way to represent their memories of this special place in a tangible way. In perfect pandemic style, he invited his parents to join him and his girlfriend in a Zoom meeting so they could watch her open the painting. His parents are long-time friends of mine and have always been big supporters of my art.

Happily, his girlfriend loved the painting and recognized the scene right away, which is always a relief on my end.

UPDATE - In September 2022 they got engaged! He took her to this very spot and proposed to her as they stood on this path! Apparently that was his plan all along, even when he commissioned the painting two years before!

A PLACE OF PEACE

In the fall of 2017 I received an email from a well-known glass artist, which was a delight in itself, asking me if I would create a small painting of a scene in northern Saskatchewan. It was to be a gift for a very ill friend who could no longer travel to his beloved cabin in La Ronge. We met at my studio where he showed me some of his lake-inspired photos and I showed him a few I had from my canoeing and painting trip (2013) to La Ronge. He was excited about my Jack Pine photo and my ideas for it as a painting, so that became the plan for the commission.

As I created "A Place of Peace" I thought constantly about this loving friendship and hoped, somehow, this painting would say what sometimes words cannot.

MEMORIES OF JASPER

A gift from a husband to his wife on her birthday. This scene depicts Old Man Mountain near Jasper which is her favourite place and an annual vacation spot for them.

Can you see the profile of the reclining old man? Shapes in mountains get the imagination going the same way shapes in clouds do.

This surprise was well-received. She loved it!

ROSIE GLOW, SKYWALKER COVE

This was a gift from family members to a lovely couple who got engaged at this special place which they call Skywalker Cove on a lake in northern Saskatchewan.

Conversations about this painting were a year in the making. I received several photos from the clients so that I could become familiar with the area and from there I developed a plan for a painting that incorporated interesting elements into one image. I love the rosie tinge - I pictured it matching the flush of happiness on their faces the day they got engaged .

I was touched I was chosen to create this keepsake.

A PLACE OF PEACE

The gesture and meaning behind this request touched me deeply. With permission, here is the backstory.

I received a message in June 2020 from a man asking if I would consider painting a scene of a place with very special meaning for his wife and her family. He explained that she loved my art and he once overheard her telling her sister that someday she hoped to commission me to paint this spot. He thought this would be a perfect gift to surprise her with for their tenth anniversary in August.

You see at least once a year, usually in the lush, green days of summer, they make wonderful memories by walking this trail. It sounds like it has always been a family affair: their family, her parents, siblings, friends - everyone. They all love the beauty and tranquility of this place.

Sadly, her father passed away a few years ago. Now, when they visit, they walk the trail without him. They miss him deeply, but feel his presence in the air. This is where his ashes are spread, returned to nature, and a rock engraved with his name is tucked under a tree.

I am still moved to tears by the compassion and love this husband has for his wife and how he wanted to give her this profoundly meaningful gift so she could have this place with her all year round.

WEKUSKO MORNING

A spectacular view from a family cabin in Manitoba on Wekusko Lake! This lovely commission coincided with my solo show, "From Dusk to Dawn", at Assiniboia Gallery (October 2020). The clients were kind enough to let us include it in the exhibition. They reside in Saskatoon, but try to make the long drive to the lake every summer. It’s a tradition that continues to build special memories with the parents, grandparents and grandchildren.

The clients sent several resource photos and because I completely connected to the imagery, it was an exciting project to take on.

TWILIGHT ON THE GOOSEN FARM

This commission was a gift for a special birthday. It's a view from the house on the family farm. The key was to get the trees and gate to the distant pasture just right so he would recognize it immediately. And he did. 

Here is the text I received after he opened it:

"Omg!!! He loved it sooo much!! Was completely blown away. Raved about it for 15 minutes. He loved the detail, the colours, EVERYTHING!!! He told me the painting was his favourite birthday present he has ever received".

That reaction is why I paint.

DOWNSTREAM

I was asked by an old friend and his wife to do a commission of the Waskesiu River for their daughter. This young woman absolutely loves the river and they thought an original painting of this special place would be the perfect gift to mark her Grade Twelve graduation. 

TO HAVE AND TO HOLD

Wedding season at the Community Hall in Waskesiu!

In August 2022 I received a commission request from a collector who is an avid fan of art, a long-time Waskesiu lover and who knew my parents back in their school days. Her grandson was getting married and she had an idea for a gift.

She requested a painting of a historical national park landmark and the building where all of the nuptial festivities would take place. She thought it would make a very meaningful keepsake. After initially panicking that I couldn't pull off a log building or make it interesting, I agreed to try.

My dad helped gather some good reference photos and after weighing a variety of options, I decided to focus the composition on the entrance of the Community Hall and also play up the light dappling the surrounding landscape.

When I sent her the image of the finished painting, she was beside herself with excitement. She loved it and couldn't wait to gift it to the newlyweds. I’m told they both screamed (in a good way) when it was revealed to them.

A QUIET INTENSITY

"A Quiet Intensity" resulted from an email dialogue with a (semi-famous) gentleman living in Texas, but who grew up in Saskatoon. He was very respectful of the artistic process. He articulated what he loved about a few of my sunset paintings and then left me to create a special piece for him. It was a delight from beginning to end with a tiny glitch in the middle when I got sick and worried I wouldn't be able to finish. All ended well and he loved it.

A PLACE OF LOVE AND MEMORIES

If there is anything positive about Facebook, it’s that sometimes it connects us with friends from long ago, as was the case here.

When I joined I reconnected with an old classmate who I had known all through school from Kindergarten to Grade 12. She became a huge supporter of my art right away as did her mother. In 2018, she reached out to say that her parents had decided to sell the family cabin at Emma Lake. It was the end of an era for them and it was stirring all kinds of emotions: longing for carefree childhood, grief over saying goodbye to this special place, bittersweet love for a changing family.

She asked if I would consider painting the view from the cabin towards the lake. She had a few photos of the view - a scene the entire family loved. The painting would be a gift for her parents once the cabin was sold.

Getting the shapes right of the strongly silhouetted, backlit trees helped me ensure the scene would be recognizable. Playing up the sparkling water and autumn leaves helped breathe happy energy into the landscape.

Our renewed friendship continues to blossom and I am grateful I was trusted to create this piece for her mom and dad.

*Written in loving memory of Susan R. (July 28, 1939 - July 30, 2021)

SHARED MEMORY

In July 2021, on the day I posted the image of the first completed commission from the Spring Square Foot Show, I immediately received an Insta DM asking about my commissions. After a lovely conversation and studying images she sent in hopes that one might work for a painting, I agreed to work from one of her special photos. It involved mountains in the distance, but otherwise the photo felt very familiar to me.

I appreciated her trust. It was a gift for her sister - a way to record the memory of a trip they took together. Having two sisters myself, I know how very special it is to travel and experience the world with each other.

A DREAM VIEW

This was an honour to paint. The sister of a dear friend, who I have known and loved all the way back to elementary school and who was the MC at my wedding, contacted me about a Christmas gift for him. She wanted to give him and his partner a painting that featured the stunning view from their recently completed dream home. I haven't seen the house or view in person, so I was nervous about getting the elements right and making sure it was recognizable. Thankfully it was.

CLIMB INSIDE THE SUNSET

My client was kind enough to share the intimate details of what this commissioned painting meant to him and his wife.

His best friend’s mother was lost in a tragic car accident; she was was essentially his second mom. Her funeral service took place at the University of Saskatchewan Faculty Club (she was a faculty member and former Dean in the College of Education) and my art happened to be on exhibit at that time. In a quiet moment together after most of the guests had left, he and his friend mused about how my work, in particular a landscape of Waskesiu where they vacationed together, captured the essence of his mom - “graceful, beautiful, larger than life and wide open to the world”.

My client’s wife also had a very strong connection to this special woman and, among many moments, one stands out. On their wedding day, this beautiful mother-figure made sure that the couple frequently paused to fully take in and appreciate the magic of the day. He said it was brilliant advice and this painting will forever remind them of her and the incredible sunset they saw on their wedding night many years ago in central Oregon.

THE JOURNEY

The true love of another beautiful couple came knocking on my door and asked me to do a huge painting for them. It was a challenge for sure- the largest canvas (40x60) I had ever attempted at the time and a subject with which I was not all that comfortable - a road. Their confidence in me helped build my own confidence and motivated me to give it my best shot. Their kindness, patience, enthusiasm, generosity and, most of all, their love story made the experience one I will never forget. It was an honour.

They asked if I could create a painting based on a stunning photo by professional photographer, Les Chelle. Since I use my own resource photos for my work, I wasn't sure I would feel connected enough to someone else's photo, but once I saw the image, it felt like home. A grid road under a prairie sunset was familiar, yet a welcome challenge at a size I had never tackled before. I fully respect the fact that a photographer owns the copyright to their images, as do all artists, so I would only take on the project if Les gave his written consent. Happily for my clients, he did.

What you see in this painting is my interpretation of the professional photo, in combination with ideas from the lovely couple and their vision for this statement piece.

And they are lovely, these two people. They are lovely. When I say I was honoured to be asked to do this for them, I do not say that lightly. I was indeed honoured. I have known him since I was in elementary school; he was a grade ahead of me and a friend of my older sister. He and his wife met around Valentine's Day in 2000, were engaged about two weeks later and married within six months! It was the second marriage for both of them, they each had small children when they met, and together they have a wonderful son. If ever there was a story to prove the existence of soul mates, it would be theirs.

This painting is more than just a country road to them. It symbolizes the road they are traveling together as committed partners in life. It is not perfect; it’s slightly rugged and overgrown, it’s beautiful and vast, it’s intimate and quiet, and it’s long and focused. I hope it brings them years upon years of joy and contemplation. I hope it is all they wanted it to be and I am filled with gratitude that they trusted me to create it for them.