New series inspired from the ceramics/geometric patterns of Morocco and Andalucia

Over the first 3 months of 20125, I have been working on painting using patterns found in ceramics.

 

Marrakech, acrylic on panel, 40 cm x 28 cm x 3 cm,  2025 AVAILABLE

Article in "Sur in English"

Tony Bryant of the Costa del Sol newspaper, Sur in English, put together a fantastic write-up on my installation of tiles. Here is the story.

Instalación de azulejos - terminada

Recien terminamos la instalación de azulejos en Torremolinos. Se quedó muy lindo.

Recently we finished the tile installation in Torremolinos. It turned out beautifully. 

Instalación de arte, Torremolinos, España

Esta semana mi esposa, mi hija y yo hemos estado haciendo una instalación de azulejos abandonados al lado del Camino de la Cantera. La obra mide 3.15 m x 3.15 m. Hemos visto  cabras de montaña. Es un lugar precioso en las montañas detrás de Torremolinos. Tomé inspiración de un patron que encontré en un libro sobre los azulejos de la Alhambra de Granada.

This week my wife, daughter and I have been working on an installation of discarded tiles found at the edge of the Camino de la Cantera. The work measures 3.15 m x 3.15 m. We have seen mountain goats. The location in the mountains behind Torremolinos is beautiful. I took inspiration from a pattern I found in a book on tiles of the Alhambra (Granada).

Thinking of Hundertwasser

Here is my most recent work:

Thinking of Hundertwasser

Mixed media on canvas

90cm x 60cm x 5 cm, 2024, $1100

AVAILABLE

 

Photography shoot at Harbord and Bathurst

 In order to apply for the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition, I need to take either a booth shot or a shot of a collection of work. As I have difficulty lighting an indoor space to shoot artwork, I decided to paper this hoarding on the south side of Harbord. And voila, an instant art gallery. Thank you Alexi and Barbara for your help setting up and shooting this work.

Old Growth Exhibition at Propeller Gallery

 

I am pleased that my piece, "Can you make a difference?" was selected for this group exhibition at Propeller Gallery, Toronto. The show runs through August 21st and the opening is Saturday August 6th from 2 to 5 pm. The exhibition is a joint collaboration between Propeller Gallery and the Broken Forests Group. Here is a list of the artists with work in the exhibition: Alexander Boudreault, Michael Brown, Nancy R. Chalut, Michael Cywink, Liz Rae Dalton, Susan Farquhar, Linda Fitz & Steve Paul Simms, Peter Friedrichsen, Sharron Corrigan Forrest, Gerry Gooderham, Arlington Hoffman, Lee Horner, Domenica Howley, Valentina Hutcheon, Alexandra Iorgu, Lisa Johnson, Clement Kent & Leena Raudvee, Sophia Kim, Robin Kingsburgh, Karen Klee-Atlin, Adam Kolodziej, Michelle Letarte, Liz Menard, Jurgen Mohr, Lisa Murzin, Leah Oates, Frances Patella, Atia Pokorny, Dominique Prévost, Clare Ross, Susan Ruptash, Silvija Saplys, Tracy Thomson, Mateus Stelini, Pearl Van Geest, Nadine Wyczolkowski, and Noriko Yamamoto.

"Can you make a difference?", mixed media on canvas, 105cm x 120cm x 5cm, 2022

Taking inspiration from planting trees

This piece takes inspiration from Jadav Payeng, also known as the "Forest Man" in Majuli, India. Since the late 1970s he has planted trees to create a forest that is twice the size of Central Park. I highly recommend the documentary Forest Man. It talks about his life and project in great detail.

Forest Man, mixed media on panel, 30cm x 30cm x 5cm, 2022, AVAILABLE

Newest piece called "Amarillo"

 I have reworked this piece many times. I think I have it finished. I started with a yellow plaster base which really warmed up this work.

Amarillo, mixed media on canvas, 40cm x 30cm x 5cm, 2022, AVAILABLE

Stranger in the Woods

 I loved the book, Stranger in the Woods, by Michael Finkel. This piece takes inspiration (and some background text) from this book.

Stranger in the Woods, mixed media on panel, 30 cm x 23 cm x 5 cm, 2022, AVAILABLE

Reworked piece entitled, 16 random numbers between 0 and 9

 

16 random numbers between 0 and 9, mixed media on canvas, 16" x 12" x 2", 2022, AVAILABLE through Canvas Gallery.

I recently reworked this piece by bringing out some of the geometric shapes in lower levels of the painting. Here is the earlier version. I think the piece is now stronger.

Working on some new painting and just applied to the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair

I took some time this holiday break to work on some pieces. I also applied to the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair that will take place at City Hall in mid-July.

Here's one of the new pieces. The text in the background is from the song of the same name by Gordon Lightfoot.

Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, acrylic and graphite on panel, 30 cm x 23 cm x 5 cm, 2021, AVAILABLE

Collective Experience: 25 years of Propeller Gallery

 

My piece, Copan, is currently on display at Propeller's 25th anniversary exhibition. I was a member there in 2008 and 2009.

New piece on mylar

Copan, oil and graphite on mylar, 20" x 20", 2021. (Frame size: 31" x 30"). SOLD through Canvas Gallery.

For this piece I thought back to the first archaeological site that I visited in July 1989: Copan. This site in Western Honduras really moved me. The text running in the background relates to the site. The numbers were taken from an online random number generator.

Brazil

I just finished this piece that I named Brazil after Chico Mendes. He was a rubber tapper and environmentalist who, sadly, was assassinated in the late 1980s. He had some very inspiring quotes about the environment and the Amazon. The palette references water, which is a huge part of the Amazon. Recently I read that rain clouds that form over the Amazon come from the moisture from the jungle. Previously the thought was that the rain clouds came solely from westerly winds blowing over the Andes.

Brazil, mixed media on panel, 36" x 48", 2021, M. Brown

 

Brazil, mixed media on panel, 36" x 48", 2021, SOLD

Kentucky Coffee Tree

Recently we had a Kentucky Coffee Tree planted out front. It is a beautiful tree. As I did this painting, the tree was on my mind. I love to watch how plants/trees grow over time.

Kentucky Coffee Tree, mixed media on canvas, 16" x 12", 2021. $440. SOLD through Canvas Gallery.

MLK

MLK, mixed media on panel, 40" x 40" x 2", 2021, SOLD through Canvas Gallery.

I used a quote from Martin Luther King Jr. that talks about making difficult decisions. The quote runs in the background, although is somewhat obscured by the numbers.

This has been at times a difficult year where I have had to make decisions that were neither popular, nor safe, nor politic. Painting this piece helped me through these difficult times. Mixing paint and putting colours together takes my mind off the other stuff.

Reading Richard Wright

Reading Richard Wright, mixed media on panel, 12” x 9” x 1.5”, 2020, $240, SOLD through Canvas Gallery.

I was reading Black Boy, by Richard Wright, when I painted this piece. I found the book very moving. He was born in 1908 (the same year as my grandparents), but fought tremendous racism as a black boy/youth growing up in Mississippi in the 1920s and 30s. The text running in the background of this piece is from a quote of his based on the state of things in the US in the first half of the 20th C. 

Standing up for what you believe in even if you are alone

Standing up for what you believe in even if you are alone, mixed media on canvas, 16” x 12” x 2”, 2020, $425. SOLD through Canvas Gallery.

This quote (and title of this painting) comes from Sophie Scholl, an activist who died very young during WW2. As I navigated a couple of difficult weeks at work, I managed to create this piece.

Cortez - Newest mixed media painting

 Cortez, mixed media on panel, 36” x 48” x 2”, 2020. SOLD through Canvas Gallery.

This is the latest in a series of text-based paintings. The  numbers are drawn at random. The text underneath is taken from a speech from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Off the road - New mixed media painting

This piece I started last fall but had to put it on hold when we were in Costa Rica over the winter. I just recently completed it in a home that we are renting in the High Park neighbourhood. The trees and amount of wildlife (especially birds) is inspiring. SOLD through Canvas Gallery.

                                  Off the road, oil and acrylic on panel, 90 cm x 120 cm, 2020

Gallery 1313 show recap

Thank you to everyone who came out in late October and early November to see my exhibition, "Sleep on it. It will come to you" at Gallery 1313. I had the opportunity to share the space with Sally Holcomb Blackman. who exhibited in the Cell gallery and Lina Faroussi, Irit Epstein and Elham Hazfi who shared the main gallery. Here are a couple of images of my work displayed in the Process Gallery.

222 Mill Road

This piece was part of my most recent show at Gallery 1313.

222 Mill Road, mixed media on panel, 13" x 15" x 2", 2013 and 2019. SOLD

9 random numbers between 0 and 9

The following piece will also be featured at Gallery 1313, from October 23rd through Nov 3rd.

"9 random numbers between 0 and 9", mixed media on panel, 12" x 9", 2019. SOLD

Sleep on it! It will come to you. Exhibition at Gallery 1313

I am pleased to announce an exhibition of new work that I have completed over the past 12 months. For more information about the exhibition, see details below or you can visit the Gallery 1313 website

16 random numbers featured on ArtBomb

I am very pleased to share that my piece 16 random numbers between 0 and 9 is being featured today on ArtBomb.

16 random numbers between 0 and 9

16 random numbers between 0 and 9, mixed media on canvas, 16" x 12", 2019, $375. Available through Canvas Gallery.

This piece I did first as a portrait in 2003. I reworked it 3 times in 2004, 2013 and finally in 2019. I feel the piece is finally finished. This will also be featured in an exhibition that I will be having at Gallery 1313 from October 23 through Nov 6.

168 letters drawn at random

168 letters drawn at random, oil and acrylic on canvas, 48" x 42" x 2", 2013 and 2019, $2400. AVAILABLE through Canvas Gallery

I reworked this piece that I painted in 2013. This will also be featured in an exhibition that I will be having at Gallery 1313 from October 23 through Nov 6.

3 small pieces at Propeller Art Gallery

I am pleased to announce that I will have 3 pieces on display at Propeller Art Gallery until July 28th (30 Abell Street, in the Queen and Gladstone neighbourhood).

Bayview and Eglinton, Mixed media on panel, 6" x 6" x 2", 2018-2019, SOLD

Pi to 79 decimal places

Pi to 79 decimal places, 2018. Oil and acrylic on canvas, 150cm x 120cm x 3cm. SOLD

I created this painting by randomly laying down the first 79 digits of the number Pi.

Fibonnacci 17

This painting depicts the first 17 terms in the Fibonacci series. The next term is the sum of the previous two terms. There are numerous applications of this series in math, architecture and nature. I enjoy bringing math into my artwork when I am inspired in this way. SOLD through Canvas Gallery. 

This piece was featured on Season 4, Episode 2 of the Handmaid's Tale.

Fibonacci 17, oil and acrylic on panel, 60 cm x 45 cm x 3 cm, 2018. SOLD.

Summer 2018 - New painting

These are several new pieces that I started working on during the school year that I finally had time to finish off.

Bayview and Eglinton, 2018, acrylic on panel, 15 cm x 15 cm, 2018, SOLD

Dundas West and Bloor, 2018, acrylic on panel, 15 cm x 15 cm, 2018, SOLD

Lansdowne and College, 2018, acrylic on panel, 15 cm x 15 cm, 2018, SOLD