#2989 "Winter Sanctuary"

#2989 "Winter Sanctuary" 
48 X 36 inches.
Started at noon on Thursday, December 4th, 2025

I received a high-priority work order for a large winter scene to be placed in the art display rotation of our home. An inspirational scene packed full of memories immediately came to mind. 

Our young family frequented the Tecumseth Pine Conservation Area west of Schomberg, Ontario. The pine plantation was a terrific place to be surrounded by nature and out of the wind. There was one steep hill that we liked to toboggan down. The kids and I had a riot sliding down that precipitous slope just in our snow suits.  The boot prints in the show headed up that hill are in direct relationship to our fun sliding down. 

#0208 "Shadows - Too"

#0208 "Shadows - Too" was completed on an 18 by 14 inch canvas in the winter of 1989, based on that pine-covered slope. My Studio was a three-foot square tucked under the basement stairs back then.  I thought it would be a wonderful subject to turn into a much larger canvas; actually, 6.8 times larger with dimensions of 4 by 3 feet. The goal was to make it even better. The bare bones of the painting were strong. The zen needed to be preserved as well. I thought I could enhance the colours of the snow and the texture of the painted surface. It would be fun, win or lose!

The backlit tree trunks were dark. The shadows diverged as they poured down the undulating snow surface. There were a lot of different elements to play with, providing many different possible solutions. Art is never just about the brush strokes. 

#0208 "Shadows - Too" is not included in my Fine Art America portfolio (yet). I did not own a camera capable of taking an adequate image back then. The original sold fast, and life was so very busy! 

What were my excuses? Meteorology was keeping me very involved as I was still learning from the atmosphere. I was developing new applications of remote sensing data, both satellite and radar. Performance measurement was also very important, trying to prove beyond any doubt the value of quality weather forecasts to the Canadian economy. I hoped that such information might be of importance in negotiations to increase the meagre and decreasing funds devoted to environmental sciences. There was an economic war being waged against Canadian science. Truth is only tolerated when it serves those in power, and the politicians of the day had been bought by big oil. Atmospheric carbon levels also continued to rise dramatically, and the impacts were bound to be noticeable in the 1990s. This was all important science!

I was also busy with PowerPoint presentations on the Art and Science of Tom Thomson, Severe Convection, CANWARN and Climate Change. If that wasn't enough, my family was contemplating building Watershed Farm on the 12th Concession of King Township. That big project got going in the early spring of 1993. Life was exciting, full of challenges, and some things just didn't get done. Anyway, that's my story. It is all true, and I will stick to it. 

For this and much more art, click on Pixels or go straight to the Collections. Here is the new Wet Paint 2024 Collection. Thank you for reading, and stay well!

Warmest regards, and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick