These last few months I’ve been painting a birds picture for my sister, and then a wild attempt at the vital, expansive tropical forest trees that surround us. Turned into the Tree of Life and this second painting is still in process.
Paintings
News
New studio
I’ve finally have my new studio up and running and it is everything I’ve ever wanted. With a 4 ft x 8 ft board on one wall, it has adjacent shelves for stores and paints plus an area for rolled, archived canvases. The first image is a commission from my husband. A long thin painting of some unusual birds.
The thick-billed seedfinches are sweet and friendly black birds that live in the forest and often hide from our view. After many walks and exploratory hikes to find them, I came back disappointed. Then having started to paint the mother colour we noticed a birds’ nest being built right above our front door. Knowing that the birds would get constantly disturbed by noise, cars and visitors we had imagined that they would leave to find a quieter spot. But they stayed. We saw that the parent bird was a thick-billed seedfinch. An amazing act of grace that they had come to find us. The mother finch stayed sitting on the nest for weeks until we were sure that the eggs must have hatched or gone bad, until one morning my husband took a stepladder near the nest to investigate. Inside he told me there were some dead birds. Horrified I also took a look and saw that one of the birds on the top layer was breathing slowly. Later that day they sat up making wheezing noises and the next day four baby birds were sitting in a cute bunch in the nest being occasionally fed by their parent. Now growing and sitting on twigs close to the nest we see them becoming stronger each day.
Their call is a short, sweet keeoo. The thick bill is the same size as their head and they look cute. So the painting now has a nest in the branches of a tree and attentive seedfinches close by.
Sidney
Out of the blue came the offer to apply one of my paintings to a Utility Box in Sidney, Vancouver Island. The selected painting is very large and has only been exhibited in Victoria once. However the image presented to the Municipality of Sidney showed the spirit of new growth, and is selected for display.
See below for the image and description.
‘IRIS’
Gillian Redwood
The creation of new growth is a miracle, life springing from the mysterious dark earth, reaching towards light and the sun’s warmth. From a seemingly dormant seed or bulb a dynamic change occurs. This painting is a dedication to the spirit of new growth. Out of the dark springs a strong green shoot, proud leaves. Soon delicate, smokey blue iris flowers will emerge. The grace of creation.
In this painting I explore God-given unseen energies, bringing them into focus with spirals of silver and gold.
More from the new series
As the days pass in March, light brings out the best in Victoria. Little bulbs become green shoots, almond blossom bursts out from the trees and the daylight lasts longer. I am working on preparations for my exhibit opening April 3rd, Easter weekend. Today I picked up the flyers and posters which have been printed with gold foil and look great. They are expensive to print but the same cost as going to the dentist and I’d rather have the gold flyers.
In the studio the paintings for the exhibit are now stretched and ready to go. The exhibit will be open for visitors at the weekends through April and I can also arrange personal visits through the week. It’s fantastic having a show at Xchanges as my studio is right next to the Gallery and I can wander in and out to check on the possibilities of display.
This painting is from a sketch at Gonzales beach when the tide was just receding and the warm glow of a setting sun cast pink shadows over the rocks.
The tide retreats leaving eddies and shallow pools where seabirds forage for grubs and skim the water surface searching for food. A Seagull can stir up invertebrates and other small marine life paddling with its feet. Some seabirds use their sense of smell to find food. Around 6pm the light is soft and warm giving a pink glow to the rocks and islands along the shoreline.
I paint with reference to my chalk pastel sketch which contains the basic elements of the scene. Then memory fills in the emotional content, the warmth of the evening, the sounds of the birds as they paddle around and ducks as they quack and dive, the soft pull and push of the waves across the shore.
The snow and after the snow
This morning we have nearly a foot of snow here in James Bay, Victoria. Its beginning to melt which is a shame, wet snow and ice are not so much fun as the new, fluffy, dog-friendly, romp-around kind. It gives everyone a chance to get out and walk while driving looks impossible and I see singles, couples and groups of people out walking the tracks between the drifts. Even in the present dismal political and economic scene it is possible now to get out and have fun.
A painting for the upcoming exhibit titled ‘The Shortest Day’ is taken from a sketch that I’ll include in the show. Artwork that expresses the dark before the light, this piece also holds an element of fun as the raindrops swirl across the canvas and the shadowy red landscape lurks behind.
‘The Shortest Day’ 44 x 48 inches
‘The Shortest Day’ Sketch
My art focus rests on the upcoming show, and in the studio yesterday I was stretching a bright and abundant canvas, the ‘light’ part of my exhibit ‘Triumph of Light’. The final stretching of canvas onto frame is exciting. Its usually the first time that I can see the final artwork and while I have been imagining how the where the edges of the canvas will turn over the sides of the stretcher, it is only now that the painting emerges. In my studio ‘The Apple Tree’ was stretched and finished.
‘The Apple Tree’ stretched in my studio
‘The Apple Tree’ 44 x 48 inches
New Series
After a year of preparation my new series ‘Triumph of Light’ will open this Spring at Xchanges Gallery on Saturday, April 3rd. This will be a major exhibit with 10 large canvases, each accompanied by the initial pastel sketch which was the inspiration for each piece. In the next few weeks I will be posting a few of these paintings with the accompanying sketch.
Below is ‘Panama Flats’ 44 x 52 inches
‘Panama Flats’ Sketch
Peace & Joy this Christmas!
I wish everyone a peaceful Christmas holiday, lots of time to relax and keep warm and happy. Thanks to everyone for your support of my artwork this year. Despite the challenging times, it has been a successful year and I’m very grateful for all the good fortune that has come my way.
Best wishes for Christmas and the New Year!
‘Madonna & Child’ painting by Gillian Redwood
Studio Prints, Paintings & Art Deals
Ready for this weekend I prepared many paintings, prints and special deals.
Orders available online:
High Resolution Prints on Canvas
A Breath of Spring
Gonzales Willows
Ocean
Rocky Point
Visions of Metchosin
Soleil
Ohana
• All paintings have been digitally recorded to exceptional high resolution
• Professional printing by the best art reproduction in Victoria
• Archival inks with UV protection
• Artist personally checks colour match, detail, tonal contrast and the finest print quality
• Choice of a black, white or mirror image around Gallery-wrap
• Canvas stretched with Gallery-wrap on wooden stretcher
• Certificate of Authentication signed by the artist
• Personally wrapped and shipped by the artist
For full information and orders please email:
contact@gillianredwood.com
Available Online…
Orders direct from my studio …
Full details here on Saturday, November 21st ’20.
Bridge Studio Crawl: November 21st & 22nd 2020
This year’s Bridge Studio Crawl will be both online and in-person (in-studio). My new studio will be open from 11am – 4pm on Saturday and Sunday, Nov 21st & 22nd. I’ll have a display of my latest paintings and many discounts available! Xchanges welcomes you to visit and chat with artists in their own studio and see their creative work.
Please take this opportunity to support local artists! Social distancing, one way movement in corridors and other healthy practices will be in place.
These are the venues open:
