MEET OUR TALENTED ARTISTS FOR 2018
Martha Stroud
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We live in a beautiful world that is constantly changing, hard to capture. Clouds move in the sky, the sun goes down, flowers die, winter comes and goes, many of the old barns in this area have been abandoned and are slowly falling to the ground. I am changing too, trying to move from a detailed investigation of a scene to a looser, more emotional reflection of it. Working with palette knives and painting outside have been liberating. I will continue to experiment.
Suzanne Owens
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I use thread and yarn on hand-dyed cloth to portray images of nature in a playful way.
I enjoy trying out new ideas and techniques in a medium which has no rules or boundaries, allowing me to work purely from my imagination. This has developed into an exploration of colour and movement. |
Betty Matthews
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Painting is the happiest way that I have found in which to invest my time. Love of nature – and the river – complete the canvas nicely.
Fraser Radford
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The title for this series of works is Pouring Galaxies. It refers to the method of creating the works, by utilizing a process where I thin out acrylic paint with water then pour the paints onto the raw canvas. The method of pouring allows the paint to blend naturally, and without interruption from myself. The resulting canvases appear ethereal in nature, reminiscent of the photographs taken by the Hubble Space Telescope of various nebulae and galaxies.
The paintings in this series are mainly influenced by the Colour Field/Post-Painterly Abstraction artists of the 1960's like Helen Frankenthaler, Friedel Dzubas, Larry Poons, Jules Olitski, Paul Jenkins, Leon Berkowitz, Sam Gilliam, etc. Colour is the main subject of these works, taking into consideration how the colours combine, through the process of osmosis, the liquefied paint getting absorbed into the weave of the raw, unstretched canvas, blending and layering over one another.
The paintings in this series are mainly influenced by the Colour Field/Post-Painterly Abstraction artists of the 1960's like Helen Frankenthaler, Friedel Dzubas, Larry Poons, Jules Olitski, Paul Jenkins, Leon Berkowitz, Sam Gilliam, etc. Colour is the main subject of these works, taking into consideration how the colours combine, through the process of osmosis, the liquefied paint getting absorbed into the weave of the raw, unstretched canvas, blending and layering over one another.
Kitty Kelly
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Kitty paints because it makes her happy - it is her passion.
France Grice
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Glass is amazing! I still think about whether it is the process or the result that keeps me captivated. The fusing process I use to make my trees is meticulous and involves cutting, crushing, and assembling fragile pieces of glass. The firing of these assembled pieces is relatively simple, but I love the results and the many possibilities it brings. My other main body of work is created by casting glass. These pieces begin as wax sculptures, often inspired by gestures or emotions, which are then surrounded by a refractory mold material which can withstand high temperatures. Once the mold has hardened, I steam away the wax, and then eventually fill the empty space with molten glass. Cast glass is a long and difficult process which yields amazing but also sometimes heartbreaking results. |
Laurie Sponagle
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Representational or abstract, my drawings imply a human presence. The implied essence is the basis for the series Conversations with Time were a full length, frontal “portrait” of an empty chair is arranged as to communicate beyond the confines of the frame – engaging the viewer in “conversation. This contrasts with the actual artist presence in the Abstracts series when the drawn line is rawer and the sequence of the many mark making gestures is more transparent. My other series of Figurative are purposely cropped to become a figurative landscape of a challenging subject and Landscapes are interpretations of my photos taken while on travels & family vacations. |
Holly Dean
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Holly shapes her organic and geometric forms with layers of paint, collage and transfers. Lines and texture weave across her tactile surfaces, concealing, then revealing what came before as she scratches and scrapes. She repeats the process of layering and excavating until her fantastical worlds come to life.
Holly's paintings may be subtle, atmospheric, spacious, dreamlike; or maybe it's a day when they become playful, dramatic, full of mystery and tangles, light spearing through the darkness. — calling to mind the haunting music of Clannad, the lyrical prose of Patricia McKillop’s novels, the richly woven tapestries of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. They are offerings of her inner world — an instinctive reaching out to share the magical serendipity that brings us all together. |
Ingrid Schmidt
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Ingrid received her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from Queen's University and her Fine Arts Diploma from St. Lawrence College in Kingston.
Ingrid paints mainly in oils, watercolour and liquid acrylic in a fresh expressionistic style. The mighty St Lawrence river and the rugged landscape offer constant inspiration. Her large landscapes are distinguished by strong composition, the use of bold colours and gestural brush marks. In her floral paintings she is more interested in capturing the essence of the flower than giving an exact rendering. She is a founding member of the very successful artist run V.A.G.A. Art Gallery (Visual Artists of Gananoque and Area), and an exhibiting member of TIFAA, the Thousand Islands Fine Art Association. |
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Helma Gansen
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The beauty of the the Thousand Islands inspired me to paint. I bought my first canvas in 1999. My training as an interior designer had provided the opportunity to develop sketching skills and to explore different paint media. I have attended many workshops and participated in plein air painting excursions in Canada and the US. As a past member of VAGA, TIARTS and the Rideau Lakes Artist Association I have participated in many art shows. Currently I am a member of TIFAA and the Fort Myers Beach Artist Association,
My preferred medium for landscapes is oil on canvas. I use fluid acrylics, mixed media and collage for more abstract works of art. |
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Pam McKinnon Artist Brockville, ON
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Pam Warren McKinnon, an elected signature member of the Canadian Society of Painters in Watercolour, continually tries to find new ways of seeing the familiar with emphasis on the play of structure, light and colour. She feels the abstract element in images and composition is extremely important. Appealing to the senses she hopes her images will precipitate a concentration that doesn't occur while immersed in the practical affairs of the everyday.
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John Sorensen
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John's background as an architectural antique dealer and passion for ballroom dancing influence his choice of subject matter. He uses the rich warm colours and texture obtained from traditional oil paint to interpret his two primary interests – old room interiors and “ordinary” people dancing or just sharing a quiet moment together.
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Larry Thompson
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Larry Thompson doesn’t remember much of the '60s, but that's only because he was born in the decade, and in Ottawa. However, he grew up in a house full of books with parents who did not recoil at the notion of creativity. He was sixteen years old when he pulled his first printing proof during a high school graphic arts course and thought "Cool!" It took him a long, long time to get there, but ultimately he found his way back to printmaking, graphic design and letterpress printing when in 2005 he bought a 1-ton printing press and a quantity of lead type, establishing Greyweathers Press to create beautiful hand made books, featuring elegantly designed typefaces skillfully arranged on a well-proportioned page, graphic linocuts, wood cuts, wood engravings and handmade bindings. Now he works full-time as a printmaker and engraver working from the Merrickville studio he shares with artist Holly Dean. He finds inspiration and graphic black-and-white possibilities in literature across the spectrum: classical epics, medieval legend, the Romantic poets, 20th century noir, fantasy literature and comic books, just to name a few.
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Belia Brandow
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A contemporary realist painter working primary in oil and acrylic, I find inspiration and beauty of different subjects in the world around me be it a still life, scenery, floral or portraits. I find pleasure working Plein Air, capturing a moment, the light and changing seasons of local scenes. My primary goal is to become the best painter I am capable of being and I am constantly working at honing my skills and growing as an artist. This is a lifelong process as I strive to capture through my unique style honesty, accuracy, strength and sensitivity in my paintings.
Blaise DeLong
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Colour is what my painting is about, and the form it takes arises in a very intuitive way, referencing architecture, landscape and, at times, the figure. I’m interested in layering, balance and edges where planes of colour meet and evidence of previous decisions remains. For me, a painting is successful if at some time in its making I can surprise myself, step aside, and let the act of painting take over.
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