Coming up

For those of you who’ve always wanted to go to Painters at Painter’s Lodge in Campbell River, but have never had the time, this is the year to make that time.

The popular celebration of British Columbia visual art and artists was the brainchild of Bob Wright, founder of the Oak Bay Marine Group. Of all the events his resorts put on, Painters at Painter’s was his favourite.

This year, Painters at Painter’s says goodbye to Bob, who died last month in the midst of preparing for the get-together of artists and art lovers he hosted each year. This is the 19th Painters, and my sixth, since I was inducted in 2008. My presentation this year is called Lies My Eyes Tell Me: A Look at Visual Trickery.  I’ve found some great demonstration material that explains how drawing and painting can easily go wrong – and I provide some solutions to the tricks your eyes play on you.

I’m also moderating a panel of three diverse artists at Painters. One is Pat Martin Bates, known as Lady Print, who studied art in Belgium, Paris and New York. Her Lightbox works, which she started in the 1960s, are marvellous perforated configurations, embossed and layered, and have been called the “first major formal advance in Canadian printmaking.” The second is W. Allan Hancock, whose love for nature is reflected in his high realism paintings of owls, whales, raccoons and other wildlife. My own, somewhat Impressionistic figurative work is different again from what Allan and Pat create. We’ll look at the common ground and differences among us in Many Roads, One Journey.

As usual, I’ll be painting somewhere on the grounds of Painter’s Lodge throughout the weekend, and look forward to chatting with anyone who is interested in how I paint and what I paint. And I’d love to hear what you think of my three pieces in the collective show of all the artists attending Painters. One breaks new stylistic ground for me, one is more than double the size of my usual canvases, and the third is a happy combination of silver leaf and a silvery gilt frame.

Every year, the current artists who belong to the Painters at Painter’s roster vote on a new artist to add to the fold. I’d like to congratulate one of my students, Karen Parsons, who made the short list this year.

Karen also recently entered her first group art show – the Saanich Peninsula Arts and Crafts Society’s show at the Mary Winspear Centre in Sidney. One of her paintings won a Juror’s Choice award – and she sold another of her entries! Way to go, Karen!

And speaking of students, May and June are a whirlwind of classes – some already full, but some still with space if you’d like to sign up. (I also take names for waitlists, just in case someone can’t make it at the last moment.)

May 21-23 (Tuesday through Thursday) – Live and Learn, A Taste of the Figure, at Painter’s Lodge in Campbell River. More details

June 21-23 (Friday through Sunday) – Through Artists’ Eyes: Seeing Yourself as a Work of Art, at my North Saanich studio. More details

June 27-28 (Thursday and Friday) – A Taste of the Figure, at the Coast Collective, Colwood. More details

I’m also having two shows in May and June. The first is at the Old Schoolhouse Gallery in Qualicum Beach from May 21 to June 8. And from June 5 to 16, I’m mounting a one-man show at the Coast Collective, 3221 Heatherbell Road, in Colwood. The opening reception is on Saturday, June 8, from 2 to 4 p.m. – I’d love to see you there.

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