In the news

I've been having fun this week, in advance of the SuperBowl American Football championship game tonight, following all the "Superb Owl" memes on social media. This annual trend began because of reports several years ago that typing errors had led to a spike in online searches for "superb owl" rather than the intended "Super Bowl".

"Instead of Super Bowl information, one small typo later and your search results are filled with owl content instead.
And we’d like to encourage you to lean into the error.
Because owls truly are “superb.” 
These birds are a far cry from football, but over the years the trend has gained significant popularity.
So much so, that many people flood the internet with photos of owls before the Super Bowl each year. (And you know what a gathering of owls is called, right? A parliament.)
This internet phenomenon puts these feathery creatures in the spotlight, which ultimately aids awareness, said Matt Williams, director of conservation with the Indiana chapter of The Nature Conservancy.
“I say anything that helps get the message out about the importance of conservation is a good thing”
"Owl photos are flooding the internet ahead of the Super Bowl. Here’s why", by Megan Marples, CNN, 09 Feb 2024

So in honour of the 2024 SuperBowl tonight, here's my favourite watercolour sketch of an owl; one I painted last year.
Happy Superb Owl day to you, wherever you are!

My Art Despite Pain initiative, for chronic pain awareness, has led to some unexpected outcomes since it began in 2021.
Last year #ArtDespitePain was profiled in a two-page feature in a national healthcare magazine, and in the newsletter of a national pain science organization. Then my series of daily watercolour *pain*tings in September, for International Pain Awareness Month, was highlighted by the same organization.

But nothing has been quite so extraordinary as today's unexpected result of my Art Despite Pain activities; being asked to participate in a TV show!
I spent the morning being filmed for an episode of a documentary series at Pixcom, an award-winning Montreal-based production company.

This episode is on chronic pain, for the television series You Can't Ask That; winner of the 2021 Canadian Screen Award for Best Factual Series (CBC; Productions Pixcom Inc.; Producers: Izabel Chevrier, Nicola Merola, Charles Lafortune, Sylvie Desrochers, and Jacquelin Bouchard). Via ReelScreen.com

It's "a documentary series that confronts prejudices and breaks down taboos in our society in an authentic and relatable way...
As each episode features a variety of people who have faced similar challenges, the audience is given a better understanding of the range of experiences these individuals have faced...
Every episode of You Can't Ask That features individuals who sit in front of a camera and candidly answer questions submitted by an anonymous public.
Looking directly down the camera lens, the answers may be funny, serious or sad, but they are delivered honestly and candidly." Via AMI tv

"As each episode features one specific disability, but a variety of people, the audience is given a better understanding of the range of experiences these individuals have faced.
Answers are intercut from one protagonist to another as the editing highlights effective comparisons between different stories and perspectives." Via Pixcom.com

Season 2 of You Can't Ask That "was filmed in Montreal and Toronto in winter 2019, and is produced by Pixcom Productions for CBC in association with AMI." Via cbc.ca

There was then a break due to the pandemic, with Season 3 scheduled to air in the early spring of 2024.
This Season of the series will include the episode filmed today, on chronic pain, for which we'll hopefully start seeing some trailers and outakes by the end of this month.

It's absolutely incredible that my Art Despite Pain initiative has led to my participation in this television series, so I'm thankful that I set aside the doubts I had at the outset - and simply 'went with my gut' on this. There's no financial benefit, no advertising or promotion in Art Despite Pain; it's meant purely to increase awareness of pain conditions and persistent pain.
And I can't think of a better way to raise awareness than to have chronic pain featured in an episode of this award-winning TV series.

"You Can’t Ask asks the misunderstood, judged, or stigmatised people in society, the questions you've always wanted to know the answers to.
It's about breaking down stereotypes and offering genuine insight into the lives of people who live with labels." Via CBC Gem; gem.cbc.ca

Best of all, the "show's format is simple: naive, bold and/or uncomfortable questions are posed and responses — given direct to camera — are raw, enlightening and often surprising.
Audacious, touching and funny, this series is guaranteed to challenge everyone’s assumptions about life with a disability." Via CBC Radio-Canada: solutionsmedia.cbcrc.ca

I'll post details and links here, once the episode on chronic pain and the rest of Season 3 are available for online viewing.
As they say; "Stay tuned for more information"!

My favourite recent art news story isn't from a gallery or museum, but rather about a local university-hospital centre:

"Matisse, Hockney and Picasso are names you expect to see on gallery or museum walls in Montreal, not where doctors are hard at work.
"It is one of the largest public collections in Quebec, especially for a hospital," said Alexandra Kirsh, McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) RBC Art and Heritage Centre Curator.
The MUHC Foundation owns approximately two thousand art pieces and medical objects.
The collection is then given to the MUHC hospital and distributed throughout the Glen site.
There are pieces dating back to the hospital's foundation in 1821.
"It's very important for us to provide a healing environment that is peaceful, and it is demonstrated that art actually contributes to reducing stress, reducing pain," said MUHC Foundation president and CEO Marie-Helene Laramee."

Look for works in the video by David Hockey on a pale gray wall, by Henri Matisse on a yellow one, by Pablo Picasso (appropriately) on blue, and much more! The images in this post are 'fuzzy' as they're screenshots of moving video - to encourage you to go view the actual footage.

As a local emerging artist and CRPS rare disease patient who uses artwork to raise awareness of chronic pain, through my Art Despite Pain [#ArtDespitePain] initiative, I was happy that this piece mentions research showing that art can reduce stress and pain - even within hospital environments.

A link to the video and written report, by Videojournalist Olivia O'Malley for CTV News Montreal (Anchored by Mutsumi Takahashi), are available at:
https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/the-muhc-is-home-to-one-of-the-largest-public-art-collections-in-quebec-1.6717737

If you've subscribed to my seasonal newsletter, Studio Scenes, the winter edition should be landing in your inbox right about now. If you haven't received it yet, check your "junk" or "spam" folder.

Although I try to send these within about a week of each Equinox or Solstice, the winter edition generally isn't released until after the holiday period - in any case, who has the time to read an eNewsletter during the festive period?

Best described as a backstage pass to my art studio, Studio Scenes provides a bit more detail than what's possible in social media or even here on the website. It's a glimpse behind-the-scenes, with photos, and an opportunity to read about the inspirations for my current artworks. The newsletter mentions which art books, magazines, and articles I’m reading, along with information about upcoming exhibitions and events.

The winter 2024 edition of Studio Scenes gave a hint that there's some big news coming, but I can't yell you quite yet what that is... so stay tuned!

In the meantime, I'm continuing my January sketch-a-day challenge, completing one pencil sketch each day of an item inside my home. Still life objects are fairly unusual subjects for me,  but make excellent practice for honing observational skills - which are important for my preferred landscapes, florals, and wildlife scenes.

I'll admit that I'm finding plenty of natural objects or even wildlife-related items around my home, to sketch. Like this beautiful feather, from a Red-tailed hawk that I had stopped to observe while cycling this past summer. I call it my feather-treasure,  and carefully followed the instructions to clean it - with repeated stints in the feeezer, to preserve it safely.

This is my first attempt at sketching a feather, and I'm quite happy with it.

This is another of my daily sketches, as part of my January self-challenge to start the year with a creative boost.
Hopefully this looks more like an antique-style plush fox than a teddy bear!
And yes, the ears on this furry fox really are that lopsided.
I've realized fairly quickly - from doing these daily sketches - that many of the antique or antique-style items in my home are really quite 'lumpy' and asymmetrical.
It makes them hard to capture believably in just lines, in pencil sketches, but it's also part of their charm.
My inspiration for the sketch I'm posting today, and for bringing home this little fox many years ago, was the Fox in "The Little Prince"; the marvelous book written by French military pilot Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.
It was the Fox who spoke some of my favourite lines in this book:
"On ne voit bien qu'avec le coeur.
L'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux."
    or
"One sees clearly only with the heart.
What is essential is invisible to the eye."

Many people who aren't painters imagine that the most important part of a painting is its colour scheme.
Which colours to use, though, is often the easiest decision to make when planning a new painting.
What's truly crucial, even for abstract or non-representational work, are the choices of composition & values - the areas of dark, mid-toned, and light areas in a painting.
The values are what create a pattern or rhythm in an artwork, what leads thevete around a composition.
So I like to think of my initial composition, often sketched direction onto my watercolour paper, as the foundation of a representational painting.
The values are the wall studs, ceiling beams, roof trusses, and other supporting structures that will make the scene real - to make a two-dimensional work seem believable, as a representation of a three-dimensional space.
The pigment colours I choose at that point are almost irrelevant, as long as the values - the areas of dark, pale, and in-between - are fairly accurate.
That's why it's so important for me to practice basic sketching, even if my goal is to paint loose or impressionistic watercolours... to train my brain to 'see' the light and dark areas of a subject or scene.
These quick-draw sketches also help me to more quickly capturing scenes when I'm painting en plein-air (outside).
An easy, or at least convenient, way to improve one's basic sketching skills is to get into the habit of sketching something every day.
During the warmer months, I never have to think about doing daily sketches, as I'm out plein-air sketching every day for fun and as on-site preparation for my plein-air paintings - usually off the back of my bicycle.
Once the weather gets too cold for me to sketch outdoors, though, I start forgetting to sketch something each day.
Then there's the busyness leading up to (Canadian) Thanksgiving, Halloween, and the winter holidays, so by the time New Year's Day rolls around I'll often realize that I haven't done a daily sketch in weeks.
So I now have something of a repeating New Year's challenge, from the first day of each year; to get back into the habit of daily sketching.
These are some of my first daily sketches from this year, that force me to use my CRPS-affected right hand and arm - and to apply the brain-plasticity aspects of seeing and sketching, as part of my pain-management plan for neuropathic chronic pain.
It's also rather relaxing to focus on something - other than a phone, tablet, or computer screen - for a little while each day.
Have YOU sketched something today?

While many other artists have been looking back and sharing their best or favourite paintings of 2023, I decided to share my favourite painting moments or memories of the year.
I quickly noticed that my "Top 5" painting memories are all from plein-air (outdoor) painting, usually off the back of my bicycle and near the water.
These are definitely not my best watercolours of the year, as they're usually studies for eventual larger pieces, but they're the ones I had the most fun painting.
Given that my doctors told me in 2016 that I'd probably never bike again, I view each ride s a gift; instead of bemoaning the fact that I have to stop to rest every 15 or 20 km, I view these pauses as opportunities to appreciate the gorgeous waterfronts, nature parks, and farms within riding distance of my home.
Yet when I began learning to watercolour paint, and to pencil sketch, in 2021 I couldn't even draw a stick-figure. I'd never have imagined that within a couple of years I'd already have won several art awards, nor that my Art Despite Pain initiative - using my paintings and art practice to raise awareness of chronic pain - would have taken off.
It's been a "wild ride", and I've realized recently that so much of it has been because of my actual "wild rides"... on 2 wheels into forests, along streams, through nature parks, and more.
On that note, I'll wish you a year of creating your own happy memories throughout 2024!

At the end of last month I participated in an art therapy workshop, designed for artists (pun intended). This virtual/live event was presented by Montréal-based ELAN, the English Language Arts Network, 

To be clear, the two photos I've posted here are exercises rather than finished artworks.
The first photo was my creation during a "centering exercise", meant to let each of us listen to our bodies and minds - and then identify any immediate needs that seemed to arise during the activity.
My mind and body seemed to be sending me a message to a) get off of ZOOM meetings for the day (which I couldn't do at that point as I had additional ZOOM meeting from 1700 to 1830 for a chronic pain volunteer program) and b) get more sleep.

The second image resulted from a two-step "scribble exercise", in which you add colour to what you "find" or "notice" after you've scribbled in pen or pencil for three minutes - while listening to calming music. What did I "find" in my scribbles?
What I saw were nature scenes, of course! It felt as though my body and mind were telling me to go back into the forest near my home, and walk along the stream there. The art therapist noticed that my duck resembled a child's rubber-duck bath toy much more than an actual duck, so she suggested that a warm bath might be beneficial.

It was an interesting workshop, primarily focused on creative ways to listen to our bodies and to calm our minds. These skills are also important for chronic pain management, so I may well search out similar ideas as tools to help me deal with the multiple symptoms of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) - and to share with chronic pain patients through my volunteer activities and my Art Despite Pain initiative.

I've chosen to post this on the cusp of the holiday period, as a reminder to seek out activities that you find calming and restful. Whether that's chatting with loved ones, crafting, drawing, exercise & sports, painting, reading, sketching, writing, or anything else, I hope you're able to take some time over the holidays to do something just for yourself.

All the best for the holidays, and for 2024!

By mid-December in Montréal we usually have a good layer of snow on the ground, so I'd been planning to try plein-air painting in snow - for the first time - today. Unfortunately Mother Nature had other almost-winter plans, and a wave of wet and mild weather melted our snow overnight. There's even an Environment Canada "rain warning" in effect for Monday, when we'd instead expect "snowfall warnings" in this area.

So I'm hoping for not only a White Christmas this year, but also for mild enough weather for me to attempt plein-air (outdoor) painting with my watercolours. If the weather's too cold, of course, the water I use for painting will freeze. 

Whatever it is that you're hoping for, as spring draws to a close and winter begins, I hope that you get your wish. Happiness and health above all, for you and your loved ones, no matter which holidays you celebrate - or none.

And enjoy this photo I snapped in our yard, while we still had some snow!

Last week, during Miami Art Week, Pantone announced the "Color of the Year" for 2024. The trendiest colour for next year has been named as... "Pantone 13-1023 TCX", or "Peach Fuzz". 
As soon as I saw the colour swatch, I realized that I'd seen this shade just a few days earlier - in the last watercolour that I'd painted!
This colour is described by Pantone as:
"A warm and cozy shade highlighting our desire for togetherness with others or for enjoying a moment of stillness and the feeling of sanctuary this creates ... Peach Fuzz presents a fresh approach to a new softness." ~ From the Pantone website.

I was aiming to express a sense of peacefulness and sun-kissed warmth in my painting, so their description could fit.
Apparently I was just a bit ahead of the curve in creating this now-fashionable shade with my watercolour pigments. Or more likely, this was simply a coincidence.
Either way, enjoy this painting of what I call the "Sentinel" tree. It’s lives in a forest clearing within walking distance of my home, and I walk past it often.