#1829 "Red Oak Sunrise"

#1829 "Red Oak Sunrise"
10x8 oils on rough panel

My chores were done so I headed out to paint. I seldom leave the property so as a result, I have painted this stand of trees overlooking Jim Day Rapids before. But every day is different. The early morning light on the red oaks is what caught my eye. The little cove was in shadow. The warm sun was on my back. It felt good as I stood looking toward the southwest across the significant current of the rapids. 

The very coarse panel was hard on my brushes. The different texture does add to the effect of the painting though. Maybe the end result is worth the wear and tear on the bristles. 

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Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick

#1830 "Maple Cove"

#1830 "Maple Cove"
8x10 oils on smooth panel

The day was still young when I finished #1829 "Red Oak Sunrise". I try not to over-work paintings now. You can kill the spontaneity with a thousand strokes. I feel the fewer strokes, the better. 

These large soft maples were in decline. The nearest tree has multiple stems and none of them were really healthy. Apparently, the life span of a red maple tree is between 100 and 300 years. A sugar maple tree typically makes it to 300 years, although sugar maples can live up to 400 years. Silver maples may grow fast but only last between 100 and 125 years. The good news is that these trees which must be nearing 300 years of age, were not tall enough to hit the home when they do eventually fall. I did not include the home in the painting. I call that artistic licence. 

This cove is untouched and completely natural. All kinds of creatures use the protected bay for food and shelter. Beavers routinely harvest the smaller trees that I have not wrapped in wire. The shoreline needs some trees to keep the soil and provide shade. 

There was almost no tooth to this smooth panel so I simply laid the oils in thick and heavy and left them to rest. 

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Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick

#1833 "Darlingside"

#1833 "Darlingside"
10x12 inches oils on canvas 

My plein air artist friend Bob and I decided to paint together during the afternoon hours of a late autumn day. 

I stopped into Kehoe Marina where I had painted before (#1592 "Blue Quail"). We have purchased several items from Kehoe Marina and I knew the owners and staff fairly well. We were invited to paint at Darlingside on the shores of the St Lawrence River. I had only paddled past years before (with the strong current) so this was a unique opportunity. Off we went. 

It was a very windy day. The south-westerlies were funnelling down the St Lawrence with gusts to 30 knots and maybe more. The sun felt good on our backs. The wind made it challenging to hold my palette. The brushwork was even a challenge. I used my pinky finger as a small mahl stick to steady the brush.

I wanted a composition that led the eye along the flagstone path to the old general store and the gap between Batterman's Point and the Canadian mainland. The stretch of water is called the Raft Narrows. I included some of the homes and cottages on the north shore of Hill Island and the islands that line that shore. The maple trees along the shoreline also held a lot of character. 

The Darlingside site is located on the St. Lawrence River just east of the Thousand Islands Bridge with a beautiful and protected southern exposure. Thomas Darling (1813-1882) and his wife Janet Findlay (1825-1906) came to the area from Berwick, Scotland in 1837. Mr. Darling began a cordwood business in 1837. At that time, trade in cordwood figured significantly in the economy of the Township. Local residents from as far north as Blue Mountain would bring wood to Darling's depot. In turn, Mr. Darling would supply wood to steamers travelling along the St. Lawrence River.

As his business flourished, Darling recognized the need for a general store. His situation was ideal to serve both those in the Township and the steamers. The general store was opened in 1845. It was closely associated with a barter-and-credit system of trade with the wood business. This type of trade was very common in early Canada. Little cash would change hands, but products, both raw and finished, would.

The Darling family made an important contribution to the history of the Thousand Islands Region. They were pioneers in Upper Canada. They continued their mercantile business into the Railway Era. The family was also prominent politically in township and country government. Since the 1940's, the Darling family has used Darlingside as a summer home. The Kehoe family now owns this beautiful property. 

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Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick

#1931 "Autumn Shore"

#1931 "Autumn Shore"
10x12 inches oils on smooth panel

I was out for a paddle on the morning of October 15th, 2016 in the eastern basin of Singleton Lake. This view was looking northwest across the first marble point which is the terminus of our favourite walking trail.

The brushes and the panel determine a lot about the style of the painting. I was using a large brush on a slippery and smooth panel. Fun! 

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Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick

#0392 "Ginger"

#0392 "Ginger"
11 x 14 inches oils on canvas

This was Ginger stretched out in the shade of the barn in August 1995. He was 10 years old at the time. Ginger was one of the barn cats that came with the abandoned farm on the 12th Concession of King Township. It was mid-afternoon and everything was in shadow. Ginger died of a badly broken leg in 1999 but life was great. 

Watershed Farm 1996

Ginger loved the new amenities of Watershed Farm. The cat door in the barn door allowed him and the others to come and go at will. The food and treats were plentiful and there was always the front porch of the farmhouse to bask on. There were also plenty of mice in the fields. Life was very good indeed. 

For this and much more art, click on Pixels.

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick

#0389 "Tobey !"

 

#389 "Tobey !" 
8x10 inches oils on stretched canvas

One of the Watershed Farm barn cats was the alpha male of the area until the Maine Coon entered the scene as the Queen. 

Watershed Farm Front Entry
A rare occurrence with no Cat on the Mat 

The Queen and the Cat Sauna

However, Tobey embraced the many improvements to the facilities including the cat sauna. Tobey also really enjoyed reclining on the braided front door mat of the addition in the summer of 1995. My Dad built a cat door into the main entrance to the barn and all of the cats could come and go as they pleased. 

Tobey and the Main Coon Jo-Boo never really got along and would have loud discussions about who owned the new porch. For this particular afternoon in March of 1996, the mat on the front porch belonged to Tobey. The sweet contentment of basking in the spring sun was written everywhere in the feline expression. Tobey's claws stretched into the coarse weave of the warm, braided mat spelling out pure contentment. 

People can learn a lot from cats. Cats might even be Zen Masters. Some things that our cats have taught us... 

• Live in the Moment and enjoy it.
• Watch, Listen and Be Aware... that sound could be the vacuum approaching. 
• Make Eye Contact like a firm handshake. Own it.
• Learn to Trust. The hand is really going to just caress your ears and chin.
• Give and Receive Affection and learn how to purr. 
• Explore with extreme curiosity between Long Naps. 
• Look after your health and hygiene. You are never too busy for a good lick and manicure.
• Listen to Your Body and eat simply. 
• Learn to Play More.
• Cough up those fur balls of life, let them go and leave them in the past. 
• Enjoy the Simple Things - food, a place to sleep, love, a sandbox, a cardboard box ...

For this and much more art, click on Pixels.

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick

#0517 "Cat of Many Colours"

#0517 "Cat of Many Colours" 
20x16 oils on canvas from 2001

Tobey, the barn cat that came with the abandoned and derelict farm was relaxing on a stump.  I had placed that perch beside the north wall of the bank barn on the 12th Concession of King Township. The unique wooden pillar was a gift from a good friend of mine and a fellow woodworker - Jack. 

It was mid-afternoon and everything was in shadow. Tobey was a calico cat with many colours woven into its fur. It was the last surviving member of the trio of barn cats from 1993 when we bought the farm. The other members were "Patches", Tobey's sister and "Ginger". Patches died mysteriously in the front field in 1995. Ginger died of a badly broken leg in 1999. There are many predators in the forest even just north of Toronto. Tobey was around 15 years old in this image. 

The title is a play on the stage show "Joseph and the Technicolour Dream Coat" featuring the "coat of many colours".

Watershed Farm March 1993 just before the Storm of the Century
but that is another story... 

With a lot of sweat, the abandoned 25 acres were transformed into Watershed Farm and a sanctuary for nature. The front yard drained into the Holland Marsh and the back hills fed spring water into the Humber. We planted trees with the assistance of another wonderful friend George - tens of thousands on our property and his - every spring. I rode the planter on the back of his tractor - better than any roller coaster I ever rode. We had honey bees, heifers, horses, a large garden full of horseradish, and other delicious vegetables. 

The century barn was also home to lots of critters. People often abandoned their unwanted pets on the gravel concession road and they would find warmth, shelter and a free meal in the barn. Wildlife returned to the growing forest that surrounded the century homestead. With climate change, warm climate species like opossums started to call Watershed Farm home as well. 

Watershed Farm summer 2007
The trees in the front field must be large now

Linda and I won a national land stewardship award in 2006, unaware that any such recognition was possible. 

Dave Brackett, President of Wildlife Habitat Canada
presenting the Countryside Canada Stewardship Award
at the National Library in Ottawa

Like this painting, Watershed Farm left our possession many years ago - this is the best image that I have. But we still have the memories. Our friends Jack, George, Golda, Ray and a host of others respected the land and had a depth of character we will never forget. 

The Oak Ridges Moraine remains under attack by governments and developers who are blinded by greed and are unaware of the value of nature, clean water, and natural landscapes. 

For this and much more art, click on Pixels.

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick

#2730 "February Yellow Winter Sunset"

#2730 "February Yellow Winter Sunset"
5x7 inches oils on canvas

After an extended Christmas holiday, I wanted to play in the oils to get my brushes limbered up again. The yellow sunset was brightly reflected in the open water flowing into Jim Day Rapids. Snow covered the rest of Singleton Lake. Streets of dissipating stratocumulus lined the western horizon. A veil of thin cirrostratus caught the last pink rays of the sun. That's all I needed. 

The image was from 6:30 pm February 4th, 2022 standing beside the red Muskoka chairs. The weather conditions were virtually the same but almost a year apart. 

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Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick

#2729 "December Parting of the Stratocumulus"

#2729 "December Parting of the Stratocumulus"
16x20 inches oil on stretched canvas

It had been a chilly and overcast December day. Cloud was sloshing around the Great Lakes like soap suds in the dish sink. The Arctic air soaked up moisture and filled with clouds wherever it rested over the warm and open waters of the lakes. This cloud would drift everywhere the wind took it. In the weather centre, I would use boundary layer deformation zones to predict the inland extent of those cloud banks. It was interesting science although not many people seemed to care. 

Understanding and predicting moisture within the planetary boundary layer requires a grasp of many sciences in addition to meteorology. The prediction of water vapour within the free atmosphere is comparatively easy. Near the earth's surface, countless physical factors come into play: flow curvature, upslope, downslope, surface moisture, surface colour, orientation to and from the sun and the list goes on and on. The time of day and season changes all of these parameters hourly to further complicate the forecast. The incorrect prediction of low cloud is where most forecasts go sour.

The accompanying Night-time Microphysics RGB satellite image, reveals the break in the low clouds 

Low cloud is also a significant weakness of t numerical weather prediction models. I know of meteorologists who refer to stratocumulus as "garbage clouds" probably as a result of the challenges in the correct prediction of moisture near the earth's surface where quantities are always being shared and transformed. I view boundary layer clouds as distinctively challenging and beautiful in that they reveal the physics of the natural world. Sadly, it seems that the art of meteorology is no longer in much demand. I was extremely fortunate to have worked through what I believe was the Golden Age of Meteorological Science. 

Just before sunset, the heavens opened up miraculously along a south-to-north line on the horizon. The light poured through that gap and instantly made the world bright and warm. The northerly breeze which was the outflow from the Arctic high-pressure area was still chilly but was easily countered by the solar radiation. I had to record that moment in oils. It reminded me of the parting of the Red Sea by Moses although I was not there for that. That miraculous separation of that biblical sea explains the title of this painting overlooking Jim Day Rapids and Singleton Lake. 

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Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick

#2728 "November Sunsets of a Cold Fropa"

#2728 "November Sunsets of a Cold Fropa"
16x20 oils on canvas

The cold front was just arriving at the western shore of Singleton Lake at 4:30 pm on the evening of the last day of November 2022. I had been following the progress of this front most of the day. The strong southerly wind would shift rapidly to strong westerlies with the passage of the cold front. "FROPA" is a meteorological abbreviation for frontal passage. The Arctic air mass was cold enough for snowsqualls which started to develop immediately in its wake. 

The wind and the turbulent stratocumulus on the western shores of Singleton looked to be strong northwesterly. The winds and Langmuir streaks over the lake were still out of the southwest. I watched the clouds overhead moving rapidly toward the northeast. Those lines of altocumulus were on the western fringe of the warm conveyor belt. The gravity waves within the altocumulus reveal that the wind within those clouds was strong southerlies. 

The heavy rain provided by the moist flow had just ended moments before at the Singleton Sanctuary. My rain gauge was safely tucked away on winter vacation but a lot of liquid did fall! 

I wanted to accurately but artistically tell the story of this frontal passage in the language of the clouds and wind. 

For this and much more art, click on Pixels.

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick

#2727 "Lyndhurst Creek October Colours"

#2727 "Lyndhurst Creek October Colours"
16x20 by 0.875 inches oils on canvas

I take the time to paddle to Lyndhurst several times a year. The route is about 5 kilometres one way if you do not include the side adventures into the creeks and bays. It is a quiet paddle and one never quite knows what nature you might see. 

I keep track of the location and story behind
each painting, my artistic journey and
catalogue raisonné.
I prefer to tell my own story.

This stand of red oaks and pines is on the western shore of Lyndhurst Creek just north of the exit into the northern bay of Singleton Lake. Most of the oaks were holding on to their leaves but the maples had already lost theirs. Meteorological winter was right around the corner and soo all of the trees would be skeletons of their former selves. 

The varying water levels were etched in the rocks. There is a difference of several feet between the high water levels of spring melt and the drawdown of autumn. 

The paint and brushwork are very thick and textured on this canvas. I was having fun!

For this and much more art, click on Pixels.

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick

#2726 "Quiet Canoe in Jim Day Rapids"

#2726 "Quiet Canoe in Jim Day Rapids"
8x10 by 1.5 inches gallery wrapped canvas - oils

It was a beautiful and quiet Saturday morning at Singleton. This canoeist was doing what I had been thinking of. The water was like glass and it was calling to me. The current streaked the dark reflections of the forest. The gentleman was a fine paddler and knew what he was doing. I thought that it might make an interesting painting. The canoeist was a similar vintage to me with a long, greying, and curly beard. He appeared to be trying out different paddling strokes. He changed the paddling side fairly frequently as well.  

Visible Satellite Imagery

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Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick