#3017 "Singleton Turbulent Stratocumulus April Sunset"

#3017 "Singleton Turbulent Stratocumulus April Sunset"
20 X 24 (inches). Started Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026

The sunset on Sunday, April 19th, 2026, was simply awesome. It was 7:37 in the evening, and we bathed in the twilight colours amid the ballet of clouds tumbling along in the northwesterly winds. Backlit clouds can appear very different depending on their optical thickness. The cold front had passed through in the morning with a trace of snow. Chilly northwesterly winds heralded the approach of clearing skies associated with the high-pressure area. Those cloud streets of turbulent stratocumulus would set with the sun. 

The cloud streets follow the wind and are not necessarily straight lines, obeying the influences of a varying terrain and somewhat chaotic convection. Other data sources can reveal the finer details. It is not essential to know the science to embrace the sunset, but as a meteorologist, I have always enjoyed digging deeper to appreciate the fundamental truths of nature's light show. The Nighttime Microphysics RGB (lower left) reveals subtle details of upslope and downslope flows. The ENVI (ENhanced VIsible Project of the early 1980s (lower right) was an effort to reveal important information in the sunrise and sunset horizons. Satellite data was very new then, and I realized that the details of the weather could be revealed if one only enhanced the raw signal to witness them. I got a lot of "push-back". 

3D Water Vapour (WV) imagery mentioned in the following graphic was my dream since I first used water vapour imagery to solve operational forecast challenges in the mid 1980s. I could "see" the meteorological processes at work on the grainy, flat, black and white satellite imagery, but had to do a lot of hand waving to explain the patterns to others. Not everyone believed me... Others did not even care. 

With WV imagery, cold water vapour surfaces are very icy and high in the atmosphere. Warm and dry surfaces are very low in the atmosphere. If we could just display the “temperature” of the WV imagery along a vertical axis, we could see three-dimensional shapes that closely approximate the adiabatic (constant energy) surfaces that atmospheric conveyor belts (the weather) prefer to follow. 

I shared these visions with my co-workers at COMET in Boulder, Colorado. It may have taken a couple of hours, but my friends had the tools and in 2011 produced the first 3D WV image ever (graphic to the right). When presented with a challenge, my COMET friends didn’t ask “why” or "how much it might cost". The response was always “why not!” We worked together toward making the product a reality. There were no obstacles – only challenges to overcome. The first 3D WV Animation can be seen here. I officially retired in 2012 and then again in 2020 with COVID. I had continued my research and presentations with COMET and NOMEK (EUMETSAT) until all support from EC completely dried up. In reality, a meteorologist never really retires, as we live in the laboratory 24/7. 

The following graphic describes some of the reasons that this sunset was translated into oils. Pictures can be worth thousands of words and a lot of hand-waving. 

The light can stream through the clouds, making some of those wisps of moisture brilliant and alive with light. Thicker cloud elements can block that light, so they appear dark in their central masses and look foreboding with the approaching night. The dark elements are haloed by the bright light that penetrates through the wispy cloud edges. 

The colours are a mix of blues and purples. I used all of the pigments at my disposal. The challenge of bringing the clouds to life while staying true to the meteorology was worth taking on. 

Meanwhile, the surface of Singleton Lake was streaked by Langmuir streaks shaped by the winds that stirred the sky. The atmospheric ocean is just another fluid, like the waters of the lake and the oils on my palette. 

The brushwork also had to be painterly. The following collage includes a few of the steps on this particular journey. 

Studio paintings can take weeks or even months to complete, in sharp contrast to the fifteen minutes to an hour devoted to plein air impressions. I much prefer to be outside, surrounded by the inspiration, but the comforts and music found in the Studio can be seductive as well. There are no biting bugs in the Studio. I have yet to freeze my hands with the wood stove on. 

In either situation, the painting is another step on my artistic journey. No one knows quite where that trek will lead or when it might end. The goal is to enjoy the ride and always strive for your very best in your own eyes. Every day and every painting is a gift just waiting to be discovered. 

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

Warmest regards, and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick  

#3016 "Singleton Pioneer Garden Shed"

#3016 "Singleton Pioneer Garden Shed"
11 X 14 (inches).
Started Sunday, April 19th, 2026

This painting completes the pioneer trilogy inspired by a stroll around the Singleton Pioneer Barn on Groundhog Day 2026. The triplets include this painting as well as #2997 "Singleton Pioneer Cedar Rail Coral" and #2998 "Singleton Split Cedar Fence". Together, they tell a story that was written only a century ago, when people lived more in harmony with nature and the land. Much has changed, but not for the better, as governments roll back hard-won environmental laws and "stomp on nature" for personal profit. 

Captain Justus Sherwood was sent by the governor of Quebec in 1783 to scout out potential locations for settling Loyalist refugees from the American War of Independence  (1775 – 1783). Sherwood dismissed the forty-mile stretch of terrain north of the Thousand Islands between Elizabethtown and Kingston as "exceedingly bad, being a constant succession of stoney ledges and sunken swamps, altogether unfit for cultivation....". 

Sherwood's fellow officer, Lieutenant Gershom French, led by First Nations guides, travelled up the Ottawa River that same summer. They explored the Rideau River to its headwaters, and then portaged to scout the possibilities for settlement along the Gananoque River. They would have paddled through Singleton Lake right past our home. His conclusion was equally bleak: "From our entrance in the River Gananoncoui (near Lyndhurst/Furnace Falls) to its fall into the St. Lawrence, I did not discover as much good land conveniently situated as would serve one Farmer." 

Such were the 1783 descriptions of where we would call home in 2006. The explorers could not see the true nature of the landscape. 

Another 1795 survey crew attempting to locate a path for a canal that would avoid the American threat camped at Singleton Lake and produced map Number 4 below for the Gananoque Canal Plan. They referred to the fast current in front of our home as "Jem Dey's Rapids". Luckily, that Gananoque River alternative to the Rideau Canal never got built. How that name of the rapids originated or morphed into "Jim Day Rapids" might never be known. 

The evaluations of the late 1700s missed the reality of the land, which now comprises the Frontenac Arch Biosphere. Singleton Lake is right in the middle of that natural paradise. The Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve designated in 2002. It is one of just 16 biosphere reserves in Canada. The environment and nature of the region are truly unique, and our efforts are all designed to preserve that and even make it better. 

As alluded to above, nature and the environment remain underappreciated and under assault. The Alto high-speed rail project is being pushed through to move people from just a few communities at the "important" ends of the line in Quebec City, Ottawa, and Toronto at speeds up to 300 km/h. The goal is to perhaps save an hour or so of travelling time while callously wasting everything in between. 

Those who might afford to be on that train will only see a blur of destruction. Under the banner of "Nation Building Progress", Alto is Canada’s next budget bomb that will destroy the environment in its path in the process. Shame. Alto must be stopped. The global track record for high-speed projects in North America is bleak. To ignore others' experiences would be foolish, but that is the arrogance of governments and politicians. 

This Alto story reminds me of the Titanic disaster of 1912.  Despite receiving multiple wireless warnings from other vessels about drifting ice, Captain E.J. Smith maintained the ship's high speed (approx. 22 knots) through the night. The Chairman and Managing Director of the White Star Line discussed speeding up with Captain Smith to generate favourable press for arriving early. Careful and timely deliberation is required much more than speed. 

Life in the Alto "fast lane" is not what it is built up to be. One can live much better while really seeing and appreciating if one moves placidly surrounded by nature. 

Jim Day Rapids still looks the same in 2026 as it did 250 years ago. Here is how it looked in 1922.

We purchased the property from Fred's son John in 2006, promising to be good stewards of the land and nature. Promises sealed with a handshake still mean something... I wish we had the resources to steward more land... If my art ever goes viral, that is what I plan to do. 

The following collage depicts some of the steps required to get this story on a canvas. 

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

Warmest regards, and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick  

#3014 "Eastern Phoebe Returns Home"

#3014 "Eastern Phoebe Returns Home" 
11x14 inches. Started Monday, April 13th, 2026.

I could not resist another painting of a bird perched on dried, winter grasses. This image was taken by my friend, John Verburg, a naturalist and terrific photographer. John provides a tremendous source of inspiration that encourages me to paint within the Singleton Studio when conditions outside are not conducive to plein air. It was a very wet week in April, and the Eastern Phoebes had just returned home to Singleton. 

We look for their return every spring. Their cheerful song fills the air as several Phoebe pairs flit around the property. They like to nest on an outdoor speaker hung under the eaves. The speaker is quickly hung when they return, even though we are not quite ready to sit outside in the chill and wet of spring. That speaker can't be actually used until the little birds fledge...

Both the speaker and the pontoon boat were employed in 2026 as nesting sites. The speaker and boat were not used until mid June... Sometimes nature severely restricts our activities, but that is okay. There are many other things to do within the sanctuary.  

As always, I started with the sketch of the bird. The eye is essential to create the bird portrait. Some lighter shades of gray were employed to suggest the details of the facial expression on this Phoebe. The following graphic summarizes just a few of the steps in this artistic journey.

In 1804, the Eastern Phoebe became the first bird to be banded in North America. John James Audubon famously attached silvered thread to an Eastern Phoebe's leg to track its return in successive years. 

The Eastern Phoebe is a plump songbird with a medium-length tail. It appears large-headed for a bird of its size. The head often appears flat on top, but Phoebes sometimes raise the feathers up into a peak. Like most small flycatchers, they have short, thin bills used for catching insects. The eastern phoebe is most easily separated from other flycatchers by its characteristic habit of dipping its tail in a circular motion. 

The Eastern Phoebe is brownish-gray above and off-white below, with a dusky wash to the sides of the breast. The head is typically the darkest part of the upperparts. Birds in fresh fall plumage show faint yellow on the belly and whitish edging on the folded wing feathers. 

They generally perch low in trees or on fencelines. Phoebes are very active, making short flights to capture insects and very often returning to the same perch. They make sharp "peep" calls in addition to their familiar "phoebe" vocalizations. Even when perched, Eastern Phoebes wag their tails down and up frequently. 

Short to medium distance migrant. Eastern Phoebes are among the first migrants to return to their breeding grounds in spring—sometimes as early as March. They migrate south in September–November, finding wintering habitat in the central latitudes of the United States, south to Mexico. 

The use of buildings and bridges for nest sites has allowed the Eastern Phoebe to tolerate the landscape changes made by humans and even expand its range. 

Unlike most birds, Eastern Phoebes often reuse nests in subsequent years—and sometimes Barn Swallows use them in between. In turn, Eastern Phoebes may renovate and use old American Robin or Barn Swallow nests themselves.

The Eastern Phoebe is a loner, rarely coming in contact with other phoebes. Even members of a mated pair do not spend much time together. They may roost together early in pair formation, but even during egg laying, the female frequently chases the male away from her.

The oldest known Eastern Phoebe was at least 10 years, 4 months old. It had been banded in Iowa in 1979 and was found in 1989 in Alberta.

I use art to learn more about nature. One really can absorb the essence of the subject when recording the nuance of every feather. 

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

Warmest regards, and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick