Westhaven neighborhood, Loyola-Westhaven Park

 

Westhaven is a small neighborhood just south of the train tracks near Loyola Highscool and Loyola Campus where I work. This scene shows a recycling bin and post box in front of the local grocer, City Fruterie, and Harley street in the background. It took some time to work up this scene, I liked the contrast between green and red. To compose the scene, I cut off the horizon line where the road turns instead of showing sky. This focuses the composition on the objects, like a still-life painting on a sidewalk. 

Post box and recycle bin, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, July 2025

 

I will remember painting this scene because I got to meet Cynthia, one of the people who basically helped save this piece of land from development. She was part of a lobby to the local government, and local businesses, not to mention the Loyola School, to avoid development and instead use it for community gardening, and for teaching purposes. Those initiatives were successful and the trees that were planted there, I painted the new trees last month, were part of student efforts to plant and learn about the land. These flowers are also planted by the community near the sidewalk, each time I go by it is more and more beautiful. In the painting, I started by doing the background elements, including the red Corvette at the auto-shop, the stop sign, then finished with the flower garden. It took a lot of careful brush work. So you can see the two different elements together. Funny thing, Cynthia was saying how much trash she and others have removed from the site including toilets on the sidewalk. Feeling slightly guilty about it, I did not mention to her that I painted the toilette back in March, maybe I should have helped clean it up instead! 

Flowers in Loyola-Westhaven park, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, July 2025

 

Lactalis Canada is a milk and dairy producer down on st Jacques street, I have painted the silos several times before. Every so often we get a card in the mail from the company that explains the warning alarm system, if we hear it, we are supposed to close all the windows. Apparently they have some dangerous coolant that would create a hazard if there was an accident. Nothing has ever happened to my knowledge, but it made me wonder why they approved a massive condo development just down the street. 

Lactalis four silos, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, July 2025 

 

The Lactalis structure has the look of a factory that has expanded periodically over the decades. Some of the old construction looks early 20th century, and modern attachments were made to the flanks. In the center, you see this jumble of different constructions, it was a time when they put craft work into the building. Bright maroon shingles, and yellow ochre brick are complemented by arched and circular windows. I changed the signage to my initials PJD... often I do this with signs, or by changing graffiti to be my initials in the painting. 

Lactalis Facade, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, July 2025