The El Mocambo, Toronto

16x16 oil on board

This is one of Toronto's oldest music venues, first opening in the 1800's. Probably one of the most well known venues as well.

I'm still experimenting with a limited palette to create harmony and atmosphere, using Ivory black, viridian, cadmium red, yellow ochre, and ultramarine blue.

The El Mocambo is on Spadina near College.

Curry's Artists' Materials, Dundas St W. Toronto

24x24 Oil on Board

I went back to my limited palette with this painting and used board instead of canvas. Maybe I will never find a definitive palette or surface preference and will always be experimenting with each new subject.

Curry's Art Stores sell supplies in several Canadian cities and have been selling to artists for many years. This Currys is on Dundas Street West, just down the street from the Art Gallery of Ontario and The Ontario College of Art and Design.

Spadina Street Rain

24x24 oil on canvas

I wanted to redo the 12x12 study of this scene that I had previously done. I am still leaving the black tube of paint in the drawer, staying with the palette in the previous posting. This scene is on Spadina Street in Toronto's Chinatown.

Lucky Moose Food Mart, Dundas Street Toronto

24x24 oil on canvas

There were so many exciting things in this image: umbrellas, great reflections, and the lone figure walking down the street. I decided to switch to a more traditional palette and didn't use any black (which I often include). I used ultramarine blue, permanent alizarin, transparent red iron oxide, viridian, yellow ochre, cadmium yellow medium, titanium white.

Rainy Day shopping in Chinatown, Toronto

12x12 oil on canvas

I learned a very important lesson here. ALWAYS PUT EXTRA PRIMER ON A PURCHASED CANVAS. I normally prime and texture my purchased canvas, but being unprepared and in a hurry, decided to go ahead and paint anyway. Paint sinks in a lot, and colors fade and get muddy (much faster). I continued on, learning my lesson every step of the way, and used a knife to get some pure color. Still a little flat and muddy, but not too bad I guess.

This is Spadina on a rainy day in Chinatown. It is a study for a larger canvas (which I will coat and prime with gesso.)

Umbrellas on Spadina

12x12 Oil on Canvas

Trying to achieve harmony in my paintings, I have been using a limited palette and focusing on values. With this painting, I still kept a limited palette but changed to Ultramarine blue, Ivory black, Transparent Oxide Red, Viridain, Cadmium Red, Yellow ochre, cadmium yellow medium, and titanium white. I also wanted to keep it loose, so kept my painting time to three hours.

These fabulous umbrellas and their owners are waiting to cross Spadina on a rainy day in Toronto. 

Spring Meadow-Pleinair

8x10 oil on canvas panel

It is such a great time of year, I decided that I had to get outside to paint. I'm still a bit shy to paint in town or in the city, but with practice, I will get there.

I really enjoy reading Richard Schmid's early book from the seventies called "Richard Schmid Paints Landscapes". This book is difficult to find, and if you find it, it will cost anywhere from $140.00 to $250.00. The copies have even disappeared from our local library. He has such a great no nonsense attitude toward painting. I love his comment on using photography:

"...photography, like wine, must be used with descretion lest it become a crutch. There is no substitutefor working from life and I would discourage anyone from using photos until he has first put in years of painting from life." 

I do most of my work from photographs, but when time permits, I'm hoping to get outside more often.

This little scene is from a path off York Road, outside Dundas.

Toronto Spring

12x20 Oil on Board

What can I say.Its spring and a glorious time of year.

These Victorians are near College Street in Toronto.

College and Spadina

24x24 oil on canvas

I was tempted to call this painting "Yellow Slicker". I liked the bright yellow of this cyclists rain gear and how it accented the painting so nicely.This is a very busy corner where College Street meets Spadina in Toronto. Lots of streetcars, tracks, traffic and people. I went for a more traditional scene in this painting and liked the dark reflections created by the trees.

I kept to a limited palette of ivory black, viridian green, yellow ochre, cadmium red and titanium with the smallest touch of dioxinine purple to add some blue to the distant buildings.

Waiting for a Streetcar, Dundas and Spadina, Toronto

8x8 oil on gallery wrap canvas SOLD

A young woman waits for a Streetcar on Spadina on a rainy day in Toronto.

$135.00 plus delivery

Toronto's Chinatown, Dundas and Huron

24x24 oil on canvas

 The variety of colors and strong reflections are what drew me to this scene. It was these components that made it very difficult. To try to achieve some harmony, I decided to try the limited palette on a larger scale. I used viridian, cad red, yellow ochre, ivory black, titanium white. I cheated a little at the end and added a couple of touches of phthalocyanine green, perfect for street lights and a couple dabs on the brightly lit sign in the background. The whole scene came out quite cool in color, but it does reflect the feel of the day.

This scene is in Toronto's Chinatown on Dundas Street approaching Huron.

Huron and Dundas, Toronto

12x12 oil on canvas

There were lots of rich colors in this area of Dundas Street in Toronto's Chinatown. The challenge here was to maintain the values and the sense of the scene without focusing on all the lovely details which must be merely "suggested".

Richard Schmid's book "The Lanscapes" has finally arrived in the mail. What a treasure.

Rainy Day in Chinatown, Toronto

12x12 oil on stretched  canvas

Whenever I looked at the painting from the previous post, I felt cold and wet. (My intention but still uncomfortable) I wanted something with a little more warmth to it, so I chose a scene that demanded  more color, although I still kept most colors subdued.

This scene is on Spadina near Dundas Street in Toronto's Chinatown. The lights from the stores just glistened on this rainy day.

Stormy Day, Dundas and Spadina

18x18 Oil on Board

I'm still using a limited palette to enhance the greys and moody atmospheric conditions that I'm trying to portray. I liked the Ivory Black, viridian, cadmium red, yellow ochre, titanium white that I used in a previous painting. When I took this photo, it was pretty much a squally day with drenching downpours...just the kind of day that I like. Spadina is a wonderfully busy and eclectic street. It is home to Toronto's Chinatown and close to the Kensington market.
Two streetcars stop at Spadina and Dundas Streets in Toronto Ontario.

Toronto Streetcar and Snow Storm, Queen and University

                                                          

11x14 oil on canvas SOLD

I'm getting ready to do a much larger version of this scene, so I decided to paint it again a little larger, making a few changes along the way. I added more color and a bit more detail. Its always difficult to know how far to go with color and detail, and of course the only way to find out how it looks is to paint it.

Toronto Streetcar, Snow on Queen

8x10 oil on stretched canvas SOLD

The atmospheres and scenes that I choose to paint require the use of gray tones. I have been creating grays using different mixes. For this painting I used ultramarine blue mixed with transparent iron oxide for the main color scheme, and added white, cadmium red, and yellow ochre for highlights.

I purchased James Gurney's book "Color and Light". There is so much info in it, it is mind boggling. In his section on Grays and Neutrals he says "Grays or neutrals are the opposite of intense colors. We sometimes associate grays with blandness or dullness, but they are actually an artist's best friend. More paintings fail because of too much intense color rather than too much gray,"

Passengers board a Toronto streetcar on this blizzardy day.

Spadina and College Rain, Toronto

6x6 oil on board

Spadina is a street full of eclectic stores, wonderful colors, lots of activity, and home to Toronto's Chinatown. This view features the corner of College and Spadina during a downpour in the fall. I am continuing to experiment with color palettes and in this picture I used Viridian, Ivory Black and white for the main background and added cadmium red, yellow ochre, and cadmium yellow as highlights.

 

After my show in July of this year, I chose to devote my time to family responsibilites and my art was set aside. It was an all encompassing path which didn't allow time to pick up a brush along the way, but it was a path that I needed and wanted to take. My beautiful wonderful mother passed away Nov. 20 after a difficult illness. I will cherish every moment I spent with her.

Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition

I will be at the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition this weekend in Booth 262 (white section near the cafe at City Hall.) Please stop by if you are in the area. I would love to meet you.

I have been busy with framing and finishing up some larger pieces, but I will be back with some new postings next week after the show. I'm also looking forward to visiting my fellow bloggers  to see all the work I have missed during the last two weeks.

Heading Home, Union Station, Toronto

24x24 oil on canvas Sold

This is another scene that I was hoping to get finished for the upcoming show. I don't think working under pressure helps creativity. All it does is create stress, but nonetheless, I am still enjoying the intense painting time. I hope to get back to some regular posting after the show.

I did this scene in a 12x12 a while back and wanted to do it on a larger scale. I hoped to keep the main structure of the scene and not work on too many details. When going up in size, its easy to start focusing on details rather than the shapes.

"Suits" head for the Go Train after a day at the office.

Bay Street Rain, Toronto

24x24 oil on canvasSold

There is nothing like an upcoming show to get one motivated. There was a time when I came into the studio, checked mine and other blogs, and procarastinated a "little". Now I come in, pick up a brush, and get going. I have to say that I really enjoy the momentum and the production, even though it is sometimes exhausting. 

I did a similar scene to this a while back, but wanted to revisit it in a square format. My focus this time was the streetcar tracks and cables. I think it is a little darker and drearier, reflecting our weather for the past week.

If you are in Toronto for the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibiation, visit me at booth 262.