1996: The Location Painter

 

When I began watercolour painting in 1989 I focused mainly on flower paintings with the occasional imaginary landscape, culminating in a large number of works painted in 1993. The years that followed brought about many changes including a move to London Ontario, starting my undergraduate BSc degree at the University of Western Ontario, and experimenting with different painting styles in 1995. One painting that stood out from that period of time, inspired by the conflicts and connections with my school and my hobby, was Science V. Art. It is a dark and introspective painting, more so than the previous care-free flowers and imaginary landscapes. As I experimented with styles and tones, I also began making landscapes from photographs using a highly realistic approach. I was no doubt homesick, this scene was a photo from one of the many lines in rural Ontario. 

Bolton Lines and Signs. 5 x 7" cold press, watercolour, 1995 (No. 0990)

 

 

As my confidence grew, so did my ambition. I knew about Claude Monet and the impressionist painters, and of course the group of Seven plus Tom Thompson from some 1992 studies. So began 1996, when in the midst of a very cold winter, I decided it was time to start painting en plein air (on location). I packed up some canned peaches in a bag, my paints with some salt in the water, and headed out to a park in London Ontario, it was early March and the snow was still there.  I even wrote the temperature -10 Celsius! There were quite a few paintings from this era, for example the mallard ducks near the river I previously posted. 

London, Eating Peaches, 5 x 7" cold press, watercolour, 1996 (No. 0712) 

As the first academic year drew to a close in April, I packed up and took the train back to Bolton on one of my many trips back and forth to visit Mom and Dad, who picked me up at the train station all those years! I worked a summer job doing gardens and use the family car to tour around Bolton. In this painting, the scene was painted on location in Bolton on the south hill looking into the valley. Most of the 96 paintings were dated carefully, this one even has the year on the front using a rare interlock initial that I probably applied afterwards.

Bolton Valley View with Trees. 5 x 7" cold press, watercolour, 1996 (No. 0282) 

 

 

This scene was a painting and art trip I took out to Kleinburg where the McMichael Art Collection is located, it houses the group of seven and Tom Thompson paintings which I also viewed. The tonal greens, and shimmering light and shadows on the barns is particularly effective, I must have been really inspired!

Kleinburg Barns, 5 x 7" cold press, watercolour, 1996 (No. 210)

In all, I catalogued 85 paintings from 1996, mostly done on location in and around London, Bolton, Toronto, Collingwood, Creemore, and rural Caledon. I also attended an arts and craft show in 1996 where I didn't sell anything but made some cool paintings. Over the next few years I would continue doing location paintings in Ontario, Quebec, and I expanded my hobby globally, doing landscape paintings in the USA and Europe. I will do more blogs like this from time to time. A blog-autobiography of sorts, focusing on key years of the hobby.