#0446 "A Swift Sunrise"

A couple were out for an early morning paddle on Oxtongue Lake. The sun can be blinding during the early morning hours. The "steam" fog rising off the water is typical of late September and October when the water is still very warm but the increasingly long fall nights cause cool drainage winds to flow down off the highlands following the river valleys to the lake. The resulting mist is actually comprised of warm tongues of vapour rising off the water. The wafts of warm vapours are very pleasant on a cool morning. They are almost idyllic to paddle through. Certainly this was a rare moment that most people don't ghetto enjoy. Such an experience is well worth the paddle. I have done this many times.

I wanted to include the Swift name is the title. It has been my experience that the light of dawn and lay on the eastern horizon long before the sun makes a quick ascent above the landscape.

Based on an excellent photo by Henry Georgi that was used in the Swift Canoe and Kayak Catalogue from the mid 1990's and used as a reference with permission. I may have my share of Swift canoes and kayaks but there is perhaps one more that I need. (https://www.swiftcanoe.com/home)

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#0445 "A Mattawa Morning"

A very well heeled Mattawa during the early morning hours makes for a very interesting painting subject. The canoeist was positioned on the kneeling thwart and had the canoe cranked over just right for easy handling. There is no keel on these canoes and they can spin on a dime.

The painting is based on an stunning photo by Henry Georgi (with permission) that was used in the Swift Canoe and Kayak Catalogue (https://www.swiftcanoe.com/home) from the mid 1990's. The sun was very bright and it looked like an idyllic morning on the water - very inspiring.

I have my share of Swift canoes and kayaks. I have been told that I have enough but we all know that the canoeist who dies with the most canoes, wins. You don't actually win anything of course. About a decade later I would purchase a Mattawa canoe constructed by Swift very much like the one in this painting.

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#0444 "Swift Campsite - Two Night"

This scene was used in a Swift Canoe Catalog and referred to as painting reference with permission. Canoe campsites can be the most romantic and tranquil available. There are no screens or Why-Fi. I like them better than the Holiday Inn - plus the food is better. The blazing fire on Precambrian granite sets a mood that is hard to match under a ceiling of stars.

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#0443 "Naja and Friend"

This scene was used in a Swift Canoe Catalogue to promote the Mattawa canoe. I really liked the image and especially the idea of the faithful dog accompanying his master. The love and loyalty of a dog is unmatched. Naja, the graying companion is focused keenly on the observer and is the key to the painting. I was working from a very small image with permission and I worked very hard to make the man look like Bill Swift who was paddling the canoe.

Portraits, especially miniatures, are very difficult and with a slight change in colour or shape or even tone, I changed the image from Elvis to Joe Pesci with a single stroke. I got it close to Bill and decided to quit while it was still a head ... at least until I had a bigger image to work from or even if Bill would sit still long enough for me to capture the likeness.

About a decade after this painting, I purchased a Mattawa. Margaritaville looks exactly like the canoe in the painting. I have my share of Swift canoes and kayaks. I have been told that I have enough but we all know that the canoeist who dies with the most canoes, wins. You don't actually win anything of course.

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#0442 "Swift falls the Night"

A familiar campsite scene ... a group of canoeists enjoying some stories around a campsite miles from everything including Why-Fi. No doubt that some of the stories are actually true. I always liked to tell the Tom Thomson stories or get into climate change or the interesting nature around us. I was not making that stuff up and tired hard to get my facts accurate. The climate change stories were the scariest. These scenes are what really quality memories are made of. They burn into your brain and are always there to fall back on when needed. I do not enjoy getting needles or going to the dentist so instead I go to my happy place in my mind.

The scene was used in a Swift Canoe Catalogue and I was inspired by it with their permission (Bill Swift). I wanted to incorporate the Swift name somewhere in the title and we all know how quickly it gets dark in the woods.

I have my share of Swift canoes and kayaks. I have been told that I have enough but we all know that the canoeist who dies with the most canoes, wins. You don't actually win anything of course.

For this and much more art, click on Pixels. Thank you.

#0808 "Valdy Sunset"

I just finished spending an evening with Valdy and Kathleen at their shared cottage in Southampton. I had dropped off a couple of jars of Chadwick Honey. We watched the sun go down together. Valdy autographed a new CD for Linda and I - I didn't ask but was very appreciative. They wanted me to stay for a late supper but I didn't want to impose. As I was driving away, I couldn't resist the sunset.

Some very nice people helped me to locate the right cottage. It was harder than it should have been to find the old cottage near the tennis club. I had met Valdy earlier in the Library and he had invited me over when I told him the honey story. All of these people are very, very nice! I was spending some time in Southampton as the first artist in residence for the Art School. I had some classes to teach as well as a few presentations. It was quite the experience.

The Southampton sunsets across Lake Huron are fabled and deservedly so. The bands of cirrostratus stretching with the deformation zone were back lit by orange light. All of the shorter wavelengths from the direct beam from the sun had been Rayleigh scattered out of light. The long path of that light through the atmosphere of the Great Lakes creates something very special. The same light reflected off the gentle swells of the inland sea. In this case I just had to paint it.

I used some orange pigments that I purchased from my mentor and friend Mario Airomi dating back to 1967. The paint was still perfect and I use the rich pigment sparingly.

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#2239 "Jim Day Spring Reflections of Winter"

I was out for a March paddle in my canoe. The strong current in Jim Day Rapids swept me along into Long Reach. I did not need to dip my paddle and just enjoyed the ride. There was still lots of snow in the forest and this reflected nicely in the current of Jim Day. The highest water of the spring flood was still to arrive after the melt of the snow pack.

This painting was focused on shapes and colour and of course lots of movement and fun. The otters bristled their whiskers at me and the beavers slapped their tails as I passed. They were not yet used to see boats on the water after the long winter of ice and snow.

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#2238 "Warm Sector Winds"

Strong southerly winds were ushering the stratocumulus across the lake. Turbulent mixing of the moist air mass resulted in uneven and ragged cloud bases and tops. There were several streets of stratocumulus within my view across the lake. I loved them all.

The cold front was on the western horizon but I could only tell that by looking at the radar. The horizon was quite bright but at the time I did not think to classify that as a change of air mass with the cold frontal surface. In any event I love remote sensing. One can see and understand the weather without getting exposed to the very real dangers that the elements can present. For example many people want to see a tornado before they die... but not just before they die. Remote sensing safely allows that.

The cold front went through shortly afterward. The rain became mixed with with snow and the howling winds lulled me to sleep. Life is good.

The light of clouds is elusive but worth the chase. One never knows how a canvas will evolve. I would have loved to do this en plein air but the rain showers and wind were enough to discourage me plus I was already tired from the days efforts of trail building.

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#2237 "Singleton Spring Bedtime Cloud Story"

The bedtime clouds told the story of another spring storm. The lower altostratus deformation zone was already evident on the western horizon.

The higher level cirrostratus deformation zone had already passed us by well to the east of Singleton. The atmosphere relative winds in the warm conveyor belt had created a couple of gravity wave trains in the cloud patterns as well. The patch work pattern in the sky made me think of the cover on the bed.

This is how the sky looked at 8:15 pm and although it was early I intended to rest my weary bones after cutting and clearing trails for the wildlife all day. We built shelters from wood palettes and branches for the smaller critters. These safe havens were spaced every hundred feet or so along the trails. The small creatures are the important base of the food chain but I do not tell them that. I was tired. The rain would mean no outside work or plein air painting for the next day. It would be a studio day.

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