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

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

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.

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.

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

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

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.

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.

There's Math in Art

These 3 paintings are a continuation of the project, "What does a quart of paint look like?" In the first piece I stencilled out the contents of a 200ml tube of Winton Ivory Black--starting with 1, 2, 3 and so on until I ran out of paint at number 27. The second piece I stencilled a 200ml tube of Titanium White 25 times and in the third piece I emptied the contents of a can of Montana Gold, 1 number at a time until the can died at number 109. In this series, the content and look of the painting are decided by the quantity of paint in the container being used.