doreyme

black+white Angy, oil on canvas, 2006

not a new one, too busy crunching numbers to paint, but one I'm fond of, hanging in a major fan's house. (Angy's fan).

nothing personal against accountants...

but why is our gov't so intent on turning everyone into an accountant every 3 months? I'm referring to the dreaded Goods + Services Tax Harmonized Sales Tax Quebec Sales Tax Humbug!

while kids wait for their fries...

fast food fun gun at one of those mega food stop atrocities scattered along the Toronto-Montreal corridor.

homeward bound, Angy on the 401

Angus, too, watercolour on saunders/waterford paper

Traumatic day for my Angus this day. Some rotten white + brown setter attacked my sweet SPCA boy, not an agressive bone in his body, this morn.  Strange.  This is the 2nd unprovoked attack by a white +brown setter. Last incident my poor Angy, a wee pup at the time, had his face torn open.  In any case,  we survived intact (last time I was here I left with a cast) this last day in Toronto.  Tomorrow back to the sweet Plateau village of Montreal..

pink tree on University St., Toronto, 12x9" watercolour on saunders/waterford paper, 2007

the blobs on the right are cars.  This is what happens when I work on only one watercolour at a time.  I'm too impatient to wait for the paint to dry+ stuff runs together, which I like even tho it looks wonky sometimes.  Photo-realist paintings leave me cold.  Seeing the Varley show reinforced that. Some of his paintings, looked positively psychedelic.  A  vibrant green blob here, a deep cadmium splotch there + all pulled together masterfully...not that I'm remotely comparing myself to Varley... after show, looked at one of my little portraits hanging on my friends wall + almost burst into tears.

+ over at Queen's Park, the ROM's new addition

by architect Daniel Libeskind (the designer of the Jewish Museum in Berlin and the future World Trade Center in New York) has designed a building for several new galleries on and around the existing buildings -- an ultramodern edifice termed "The Crystal," with slanting walls and metal cladding.  Pretty amazing looking building, swarming with worker bees.

...checked out the Gladstone Hotel

what a cool hotel.  Art everywhere.  Rooms designed by artists.  Artists staying there.  Artists working there.  Artists eating/drinking there.   In midst of gallery area on Queen St. Would Montreal had a place like this.  Ultra cool + friendly, too.  Not art-chic rude+snotty check it out

at the Varley Art Gallery in Markham...

went to see the 87 portraits. Wow, could this man paint.  Always loved his necks.  Long, strong, sculpted necks. at the Varley Gallery

angus, watercolour on saunders/waterford paper 13.5x7.5

Beach couple, 12x9", saunders/waterford paper, 2007

enjoying the sun together.

this is what smog looks like

from Toronto Island, beside the "bathing suits optional" beach, looking over towards Hamilton.

Pansies, 5.5x15", watercolour on waterford paper, 2007

okay, still haven't had the time to figure out how to photograph long, thin works...so imagine these 2 side by side...minus the overlap...

tweet tweet

the neons + signage in general in TO

are spectacular, vintage -- in contrast with Montreal, where much or most of the signage is relatively new, due to the language laws + vigilant language police enforcing french signs.

more elvi in TO

got this heartbreaking e-mail from a friend overseas....

+ a picture of the missing 4yr old. "Please read this message and pass it on!!!!!!!!! As you are aware my niece, Madeleine, is still missing and I am asking everyone I know to send this as a chain letter i.e. you send it to everyone you know and ask them to do the same, as the story is only being covered inBritain, Eire and Portugal. We don't believe that she is in Portugal anymore and need to get her picture and the story across Europe as quickly as possible. Suggestions are welcome.  Phil McCann"  Other bloggers, pass it on.

Long Hydrangea, 11x30", watercolour on saunders waterford paper, 2007

+ bottom image, a close up of part of it, sort of.  This is a long + thin watercolour, rather japanese-y + difficult to photograph.  It is meant to be framed, or mounted, the pencil border about 1.4" all around just discernible in photo.  Am not entirely displeased with it + others I did this Victoria weekend Monday in Toronto, where they seem to take this day quite seriously. Fireworks + crackers all day + night, much to dogs' displeasure.

elvis eyes, dog tiny size

local boys make good

sanchez brothers a photo I took of the Sanchez brothers (Montrealers)-- "Between Life and Death" -- a hologram...

"In their latest collaboration, the Sanchez brothers have created the scene of a bus accident in which a passenger’s near-death experience is projected within the bus as a hologram. The holographic technology used in this installation allows viewers to achieve a unique intimacy with a near-death experience. Based on several true accounts, this project seeks to create an honest depiction of a sacred moment in which life and death are a breath apart."to see really impressive work
 

May 16'/07, also a tradition

going back to my first camera+ drinking age.  Self portraits in bar washroom mirrors.

Oil pastel on cardboard...20 years ago...

how some things don't change.  Found this one  on my computer today in some random misc file. A pastel, on cardboard.  Shoes, text, loosely rendered...

waiting in the waiting room, 12x9, watercolour on saunders waterford paper

blue fleurs watercolour on fabriano paper,10.5x13.5"

the blue flowers, still in bloom.

hydrangea #2, 10.x13.5 watercolours on fabriano paper

the big

my friend got royally kissed by Lady Luck + all is clear + what a wonderful birthday present for me today, born so many years ago at 11:55 am in a small city nestled in the alps.

mother's day fleurs, 10.5x13.5, watercolour on fabriano paper

mother's day flowers painted while listening to mother's day present new fabulous Feist cd.  + to finish my "tag", 7 things not known or little known about me.  Difficult, as I'm an open book + think my art reveals an awful lot about me.  Okay, #1. pretty innocuous -- English is not my first language.  Couldn't speak a word until grade one.  Okay three words. #2. Angus (woof) actually paints my stuff. #3. I love pickled pigs feet. (mercifully I haven't seen any for sale for at least 15 years).  #4 "Babe" is one of my top ten fave movies. #5. If I ever get "tagged" again, I'll pass. #6. Seeing Dog of Flanders really was one of the most influential events of my life. Behind the heavy blue curtains, a Peter Paul Rubens...my intro to art. #7. In the summer I drive in bare feet.  Whew.  There's a huge thunderstorm in Toronto right now.  Quite hurricane-like earlier.  Not even Angy wanted out. + so back to my book, "Art+fear, Observations on the Perils (+Rewards) of Artmaking." A "must read" I've read + not by Oprah or Heather + none too soon after suffering 2 major disappointments from the art bureaucracy in so many days.  

redplant, watercolour on fabriano paper, 10.5x13.5

sitting outside after the rain on the back porch paintin' the flowers...

Mo

dawn #6: I always enjoy going to Dawn's site + viewing her peaceful, heartfelt art.  And she's so young!

#7 Lastly...jennifer not technically a blog, but a pretty super painter + full disclosure, a relative by marriage. 

So whew.  As for my 7 unknown, or little known things about me...that's going to have to wait until tomorrow.

okay where was I?

#3: tittin insightful, inspirational site.
#4:voCa back to Canada.  Don't always agree with her but she's out there, bringing to attention + focusing on galleries, shows, artists, etc. from other parts of the country...
#5:elin...because she's so generous with her experience, skill + knowledge.

I've been tagged, plus #1 Dr+Broker

Agnes, who has a blog, rich with beautiful work...lines + sidelines has tagged me + I'm to offer up 7 little known or unknown things about me + 7 blogs I find interesting...okay so here goes.  I'll do the easy part first.  Interesting blogs.  I'll probably favour Canadians, cuz, well, it's kind of obvious.

#1: my friend Chris aka Zeke: because he's got a big honest heart + keen interest in encouraging new talent of all stripes + art + Canadian art, Montreal art in general.

#2: another friend, Lisa, the Intrepid Collector , who is a smart + funny ex-New Yorker, now Montrealer art lover/promoter.

Okay, I have to take a break to feed my dog, etc.

Angy gets new toys...

Angy keeps stealing all the TO dogs toys (as he is so fast+sleek+clever) so we bought him some new toys that squeal when mouthed that he just loves.  And now I'm launching my "love+marriage series"...been doing them awhile, actually, but they never looked right.  Took me awhile to get the satisfying format.  Hope I don't get sued.   Also, I got "tagged"..explanation + 7 little known things  about me n + 7 cool blogs coming up.  Dog park awaits.

hydrangea.10.5x13.5", watercolour on fabriano paper, 2007

a plant bought yesterday from a corner grocery store, rich with colourful plants, a common site here in TO. Happy Mother's Day, mothers one + all.

Trees in Bloblaw's parking lot, 10.5x13.5"watercolour on fabriano paper

that first amazing green of the spring, fading fast

out with the old, in with the...

Nikon P5000.  Very cool, compact,10mp  retro looking baby.  Currently resting as battery charges.

TO Brick House, 10.6x13.8", watercolours on Fabriano paper,

a quite typical house Annex side.  TO is so strange.  One house will be spick'n'spankedly renovated + all cute + Victorian + next store there will be a Trailer Park Boys dump with rusting fridge parts on the porch.  Go figger.

in Toronto

the streets are paved with gold.

TO bland building, watercolour, 10.6x13.8

perhaps I've unconsciously bought into the ridiculous rivalry between TO + Montreal + picked a stupenduously banal building to do a sketch of.  Who knows.  It caught my attention.  Perhaps it was on Bathurst st. 
Tomorrow I'm going to march around a bit with Angus, searching for paint worthy TO trees. 

pat pink's vernissage

was apparently well attended by artists + dogs alike.  The forty versions of the envelope theme diverse, witty + colourful...pix of the verni..here

toronto flowers, digital "palette knife painting" (Photoshop)

okay, here I am in TO + I am actually painting, watercolours. Alas, I can't find my ancient, broken camera to take pix of the work.  So here's a photograph I took first day here...digitally altered...photoshopped "palette knife painting" alternative to real painting.  Frankly, I think it's a poor substitute for real thing, but look on the internet + see the proliferation of this stuff...printed onto canvas, gigclees, + people paying way too much money for this stuff.  Bah humbug. 

last one in the series

1 more

1 more

a couple more...watercolours

part3-4 (out of 9), all watercolours

the envelope show, part 1-2

we were given these envelopes. Inside were 8 sheets of kinda crappy drawing paper (if you're used to Arches, etc.) that were hidden for 50 years.  We could do anything we wanted with these sheets.  This is what I did.  I missed the vernissage today for this show + am pretty curious as to what the other 39 artists did with the package.

green face....oil on canvas...

now it TO, so certainly didn't paint this on the 6 hour drive. Painted it the other day in my studio.  But the green of the face is identical to the green, green, green, young, fresh, vital greens I saw along the highway today.  Amazing. Trunks of trees, still black. Most leaves, not.  Just the birches out + they were this amazing green.

off to TO for a spell...

hope to do a travel log, akin to artists doing the continent.  Alas no alps.

the amazing Pat Pink

is curating another show at her gallery. Opens this Sunday, alas, I'm in the show, but won't be able to go to vernissage as I'll be in TO. Pat gave/sent out manila envelopes containing 7-8 pieces of drawing paper in them to 40 artists. The envelopes came from the 50's, 1957...I'll post my contributions on Sunday, when the show starts.

+ now for something completely different...oil on masonite....

very liberating two days of painting...painting "blind"..just responding to the paint, rather than starting with pre-conceived ideas...