65 red roses

Last weekend I was at the reception for the unveiling of the collaborative painting "65 Red Roses". This piece was composed from sixty five 8 x 10 panels all done by individual artists from the Federation of Canadian Artists. The finished piece will be auctioned off by Maynards in Vancouver as a fund raiser for Cystic Fibrosis. 400 guests were at the opening - artists media, and many members of the CF society. It was very exciting to be a part of it all. Here you can see Angela Au Hemphill, Michael King and my guy, Alan in my studio assembling all the little paintings. I've also included my rose painting. If you want to see the finished piece, go to www.Web.me.com/angela.au.hemphill/Paintings_65_Red_Roses/Welcome.html. or google "Painting 65 Red Roses".

It's amazing to me how challenging some paintings can be. This one was a fight the whole way. I changed everything over and over until I finally felt I had given it my best shot. The myriad changes were to make it warmer, cooler, more colorful, more neutral, more detail, less detail, trees in, trees out, clouds out, clouds in. The final result: Desolation Isle 24 x 36" acrylic- I need to go lie down for a while!.

Just back last night from a three day workshop in Port Alberni. I had a great time- the group was willing, enthusiastic and fun, the scenery was gorgeous and they treated me very well. I made it out to Long Beach for a few hours and took a bunch of photos but my favorite was one I took in a Port Alberni valley just as the sun was setting. Now I just have to paint it. Skies are a bit of a nemesis for me.

Today was the day to deal with my pond, which has to be emptied every spring and cleaned out. You can see Phin there helping me. The fish go in a bucket and I work all day to empty and refill the pond so they can go back to their home quickly. I also did some landscaping because of the new studio building. Now I have a beautiful view out of both my north facing studio windows.

Just finished this one yesterday- "Nutsford Backroad" 24 x 36" acrylic. It's of an area called Nutsford , near Kamloops BC. I pondered the title for quite a while- sometimes titles are the hardest part. Don't want to be too long-winded, too cute, too sentimental, or too obscure. So I usually end up with something pretty conventional.
Right now, I'm dividing my time between painting, teaching and working in the garden- three things I love.
I have a workshop coming up on beautiful Quadra Island that has a few spots available. May 31st to June 3rd are the dates. Price is $475.00, including lunches and unlimited studio time. The class will be small so there will be lots of individual attention for each participant. More details are available on my website: www.janicerobertson.ca.

I just finished the first really big painting for 2010- "The Bridge" 30 x 40" acrylic. It was a joy to paint because it took me back to that beautiful place where I took the photo.
This painting will be my image for the catalogue for the very popular Painters at Painters event, held in Campbell River, BC every May.

I'm finally getting around to putting some new stuff on the blog. It's been a busy time with the studio open house last weekend. Thanks to all who took the time to drop by- it was great to see everyone.

I'm feeling settled in to the new space now and three new acrylic paintings have been born. "Grimmer Bay"- 24 x 30, "Roses in Winter"- 24 x 30 and "Winterfall II" 12 x 16. Today I plan to start a big one- 30 x 40. Probably will be a river canyon scene- I can't resist those rocks and water!