Afternoon Traffic in Red and Gold

8 x 8 oil on cradled panel

Last minute show details are taking up too much time, so I decided to take some time and paint something fun and small. The reflected sun peaks through buildings and illuminates the afternoon traffic in downtown Toronto. The Streetcar and Co-op taxi made a nice arrangement of reds. I thought I should paint another taxi besides the Beck Taxi that dominates many of my paintings.

Santa's workshop, Hudson's Bay Store, Queen Street

16 x 20 oil on canvas

Every year the One Of A Kind Show in Toronto holds a contest for all artisans and artists to participate in. This year the contest theme was "Santa's Workshop". The entry must be in the artist's style and medium. When deciding what to do, I thought a Toronto scene featuring the spirit of giving would be something that I could work with.

The Hudson't Bay Store on Queen Street always has their windows dressed up for the holidays. I decided to feature these windows with Santa ringing the bell for the Salvation Army donation drive.

Sun After the Snowfall, Yonge Street

24 x 24 oil on board

This has been a difficult painting to work on, so I am going to leave it for a bit before I decide what might need changing/improving.

I don't know what it is about the clarity of the sun after a snowstorm. The air seems clear and the blues in the sky can be stunning. It probably has something to do with the reflections on the white snow. This image is from later in the afternoon as the sun sinks behind buildings in the downtown core of Toronto. Some sunlight makes its way through the buildings to highlight the snow in the foreground.

After the Snow, Queen and McCaul

24 x 24 oil on canvas

It actually snowed a bit today. Not as much as in this scene but lots of flakes coming down. Very unusual for this time of year. It still makes it easier to paint snow scenes.

Streetcars wait at a red light at Queen and McCaul while pedestrians cross the street. The triangle shapes of the Rex hotel are visible on the left.