"If Only You Listen" is from my Underlying Substance Series.

This pastel was done on Sennelier's La Carte Pastel. I chose this surface due to it's sand-like qualities, allowing for some of the surface to act specifically as the shoreline to bring in texture to this painting. The inspiration for the scene was drawn from a photo I had taken in the late 1990's on a hot, humid August summer day driving back home through Cow Bay, NS.

It was such a gorgeous day and my husband and I decided to pack a picnic and head out to the eastern shore. On our way back home, we drove the back roads to enjoy the coastal scenery. As we were passing by Cow Bay, I commented how still everything was. When I got out of the car to take some photos I realized how quiet it was, but for the faint sounds of birds calling out in the distance, dragonflies buzzing along in the heat and bees humming from flower to flower. This was the Underlying Substance.

"Room for Subtlety" is a soft pastel on black Canson Mi-Teints. I chose black because I feel it makes pastel colours sing.

This painting was created as an exercise in using a minimal palette. I was being challenged in class by Nancy Slaght to create an artwork using a very limited palette. The reference photo I used was one I had taken many years prior of the peninsula at the Sooke Harbour House. The photo was taken from Whiffin Spit.

Creating this work was a challenge as I'd not done anything so restrictive prior to this. It took me some time to settle into it, feeling my way in remembering the idyllic peaceful day it was when I had walked Whiffin Spit and captured the photo.

I have much gratitude to Nancy for the many ways she pushed me to open up, challenged me with my skills and supported me in my artistic development while working with soft pastels. There is always room for subtlety.

"Surround Yourself" is the result of the Beach Art 2024 En Plein Air at Whiffin Spit.

Most often, scenes are captured in artwork that reflect the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the coast line, sunsets and the peninsula view of Sooke Harbour House. What about the view from inside the spit?

I began this painting with an undercoat of silver to give reflection in the finished painting. It started out in abstract, though as the painting progressed, it became more impressionistic. Impasto is a part of this creation, as texture is an important element of how I paint.

Surrounding yourself in nature can provide a sense of peace and tranquility, of belonging to something greater than oneself. Grounding oneself and bathing in the negative ions helps to balance our body, mind and soul.

"Washed Out" was created for the Poetics Art Show in response to the poem "Washed Out". This poem inspired me immediately with it's vivid description of the winter elephant fog. I felt compelled to paint it.

My vision was to create a larger work that would provide the space to show the expanse of the scene, viewed from higher up in elevation, looking out to an enveloped harbour. I used a minimal palette, encouraged texture and tonality to suggest the land and sea which is blurred in the fog, and is mostly accomplished using palette knifes. Sparse accents of colour complete the image.

I drew from my personal experiences of being on our sailboat, finding ourselves completely enveloped by dense fog, only being able to see the sea next to our hull through a silvery veil.

I hope to give views the opportunity to immerse themselves in the delicate suggestions of this harbour scene and find their own journey within it, imparting a sense of peace, calm, quietude and contemplation that winter fog affords us.

What do you see?