Just in before the rain

They say April showers bring may flowers, but this year May showers brought May flowers, and more showers! Actually it only rained a few times recently, today throughout the morning and later afternoon. I got downtown by bike and made a few paintings including this one of the flowering lilac and white shrubs near Place Cartier in Old Montreal. 

Lilac and white shrubs, watercolour 5 x 7" cold press, May 2026

Setting up in the Garden Ramezay I got a view of the condos and ominous sky in the background. I had to paint fast because rain was imminent, and it was time to turn around. I went home after this painting, just getting a little damp along the way. 

Condos Garden Ramezay, watercolour 5 x 7" cold press, May 2026

Viger street around the Convention center is being renovated, they are working on the connection from the metro station to Old Montreal. In the future tourists will have an easier time getting around, and by future I mean like far in the future, they will have hoverboards by then and sidewalks will be obsolete by the time they are finished. As usual I enjoyed painting the signs, they even had a sign covering another sign! It could be a Cindi Lauper song... "Sign after Sign".  

Construction signs Chinatown, watercolour 5 x 7" cold press, May 2026

This construction vehicle parked on Viger street was idle, I just like painting these things from time to time (time after time?). The blue-green tint on the vehicle's glass contrasted with the yellow-green of the convention center in the background. 

Construction clashing greens, watercolour 5 x 7" cold press, May 2026

This was the first painting I did, stopping just in front of Dawson College where they turned part of Maisonneuve street into to a pedestrian lounge area with benches and picnic tables. With a sky like this I should have turned around, but kept going instead and got some decent painting done. From here on out it is going to be sunny and hot. 

Ominous sky Maisonneuve, watercolour 5 x 7" cold press, May 2026