Thursday, June 30, 2011

Cameron Creek by Andrew Kiss



It gives me a lot of pleasure, as a landscape painter to write a critique of Andrew Kiss's, 'Cameron Creek'.

Andrew follows the traditional format of leading the viewer along the watery pathway into the heart of his work. And, for those familiar with the process of painting, the visual pathway ends in the traditional 'sweet spot area' of his work of the cross hairs of the upper right quadrant. I like the way Andrew arranges the rocks in the bottom of the creek bed in an arrow like pattern pointing towards the upper creek. And, for good measure Andrew paints a long darker area which directionally lances towards the the last falls. All of these are hallmarks of a technically accomplished artist.

What really catches my eye is the precision, and intricacy of this work. No detail goes untouched in this beautiful work; be it small stones, hair like tree roots, ripples of water, and even rocks from the creek bed.

I am drawn to Andrew's skillful treatment of light. The gentle ripples of reflective light in the stream leads us up to the place where the stream becomes a white path among the rocks. It also interplays with the skillfully blended blues and violets in the rocks along way. Then, when you pick up the same muted tones in the mountains you find a work where sky mountains, rocks and water literally vibrate with light. And together, these adjunts make up 4/5th of his painting. But it doesn't stop there. The foliage for the most part is painting in the springtime lemon yellow-green tones. Notice the how the light bounces off the foreground shrubs. Exciting stuff!

I mentioned how I liked Andrew's colouring of his rocks. Notice how this colour flows into the flow of water in the lower part of the stream. Beautiful colouring.

I have to tell you. I am most impressed by this painting. Its the signature work of one of Canada's premier landscape artists.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Souls Memorial: Aboriginal Heritage Month



Souls Memorial is found alongside the Blue Water Bridge which links Port Huron Michigan and Sarnia, Ontario on the St. Clair River.




The Souls Memorial has been erected by the Blue Water Bridge Canada as part of a major redevelopment of its waterfront in Point Edward, for the enjoyment of the community. It will stand as a symbol of co-operation and respect between the Blue Water Bridge Canada and the Aamjiwnaang First Nation.

The following was written by Reverend Matthew Stevens, of the Aamjiwnaang First Nation, for the special day of the Unveiling of the Souls Memorial, held June 21, 2003.




Aanii, Boozhoo (WELCOME)

The completion and dedication of the Souls Memorial represents a pinnacle in the long history of co-operation between the Aamjiwnaag First Nation and the Blue Water Bridge Canada. Eons before trade flowed back and forth between Canada and United States across a bridge, this site was the hub of an Anishinaabek trade network that stretched over the entire continent. The Souls Memorial stands in tribute to the generations of Ancestors who gathered on this site for trade, for celebration, for teaching, and for sharing in seasonal spiritual ceremonies.

Naturally, as a site of such seminal significance to the Anishinaabek, some of the Ancestors were laid to their final rest in this area. This practice continued routinely for many hundreds of years, leaving untold numbers of Ancestors interred in the surrounding area. Centuries later, the expansive commercial dynamic of contemporary society inevitably resulted in the resting places of the Ancestors being disturbed by construction and redevelopment.

Thus began a relationship between Aamjiwnaang First Nation, Graves Protection & Repatriation Committees, and the Blue Water Bridge Canada, a partnership that has been marked since its inception by mutual respect, learning, fellowship, and genuine cooperation. The spirit of the Ancestors has taught us how to come together in solving challenges that otherwise might have remained irresolvable. It's been valuable learning, as witness in the thousands of artifacts carefully unearthed by Mayer Heritage Consultants of London, Ontario. Further affirmation was provided by the Ontario Archaeological Society jointly presenting the Aamjiwnaag First Nation, Graves Protection & Repatriation Committees, and the Blue Water Bridge Canada, with The Ontario Heritage Award for the year 2001.




The Souls Memorial was designed and executed by Anishinaabe artist Dennis Henry-Shawnoo, and depicts on the central statue a series of faces representing the Ancestors. To quote Mr. Henry-Shawnoo's...”the inspiration for the Souls piece is the past, the present and the future. The piece reflects on the old ones who have gone..We all must find our true history before we come to the present and move forward to the future. The present is only a moment in time.” It rests atop a tall plinth, handcarved by the same artist from a single massive stone, and embodies certain design features that will be utilized in the celebratrion of traditional ceremonies for many years to come.

Dennis Henry-Shawnoo, artist/sculptor and designer of the Souls Memorial.

The memorial is situated within a garden-plaza setting that was conceived and designed by landscape architect Wendy Shearer. Through many hours of consultation and research, Ms. Shearer gradually evolved a concept that incorporated the traditional symbols, shapes, and colours of the Anishinaabek Medicine Wheel. The plants and shrubs that ornament the beds within the area are all selected from the original traditional medicines, thus completing the symbolic effect. Although the overall effect conforms beautifully to the surrounding terrain, it still emphasizes the centrality of the Memorial.

The Souls Memorial has been erected by the Blue Water Bridge Canada as part of a major redevelopment of its waterfront the Point Edward, for the enjoyment of the community. It's already evident that the completed project will provide critical environmental protection to the shoreline, while at the same time it will create a revitalized community space that will be a source of civic pride for many years to come. Indeed, the visibility of the Memorial during the daytime and at night ensures that it will rapidly become a local landmark, guiding twenty-first century travellers to the same site that for hundreds of years beckoned to the Anishinaabek.




Today's ceremonies will seek to honour that proud heritage, and will in part, reach back to tradtitions that originate in time immemorial. The contemporary celebration that our visitors will witness today, actually commenced long before sunrise this morning. The Spiritual Elders and members of the Graves Protection & Repartriation Committees from the Aamjiwnaang First Nation gathered together during the dark hours of this morning, and began preparing the Sacred Fire. Joined by other speically invited Elders, they continued with all of the ceremonies instrumental to appropriately dedicating the Memorial site to a commemoration of the Ancestors. What our guests will observe during the public ceremonies, will in effect be simply the conclusion of the work-begun hours earlier.

As many of our visitors will know, today (June 21st) marks the Summer Solstice, the day each year that delineates our passage of Spring into Summer. The spiritual significance of this day translates into the traditions of virtually every First Nation culture, and celebrated both the teachings of the past and the challenging prospects for the future. In 1996, the Government of Canada moved to grant legal recognition to this day, and then Government General issued a proclamation on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen, which in part reads: WHEREAS the Constitution of Canada recognizes the existing rights of the Aboriginal peoples of Canada;
WHEREAS in the Constitution of Canada "Aboriginal peoples of Canada" include the Indian, Inuit and Metis peoples of Canada;
WHEREAS the Aboriginal peoples of Canada have made and continued to make valuable contributions to Canadian society and it is considered appropriate that there be, in each year, a day to mark and celebrate these contributions and to recognize the different cultures of the Aboriginal peoples of Canada;
AND WHEREAS many Aboriginal peoples celebrate the summer solstice, which has an important symbolism within their cultures;
THEREFORE, His Excellency the Governor General in Council....hereby directs that a proclamation do issue declaring June 21 of each year as "NATIONAL ABORIGINAL DAY".

Recognizing the growing spirit of co-operation that has began, many Fist Nations have included the word "Solidarity" in the title for this day. We're pleased to welcome all of our guests here for our NATIONAL ABORIGINAL SOLIDARITY DAY festivities.
We're also particularly pleased to have the privilege of welcoming the Honourable James K. Bartleman, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, as our guest of honour. The Honourable James Karl Bartleman is the 27th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario and was sworn-in on March 7, 2002. He is the 41st vice-regal representative since John Graves Simcoe's arrival in Upper Canada in 1792. Mr. Bartleman had a distinguished career of more that 35 years in the Canadian Foreign Service, and also served in senior positions in the Department of Foreign Affaires and International Trade. Of special significance to today's ceremonies, the Honourable Mr. Bartleman is the first Anishinaabe to hold the vice-regal position for the Province of Ontario, being a member of the Mnjikaning First Nation, in the Muskoka region of Ontario.




Of course, none of today's festivities could occur if it hadn't been for the determined and cooperative efforts of a great many people. Unfortunately, time simply doesn't permit for the individual recognition of all of people who have been involved over the years of work leading up to this morning. Some were trained professionals, who added to their qualifications the skills of patience, cultural sensitivity, learning, and consensus building. Many others were interested volunteers, who, like their professional colleagues, found their knowledge expanding in all sorts of ways they'd never previously considered. To a very great extent, the Souls Memorial is a testimony to all that can be accomplished when people of disparate backgrounds meet the challenges of contemporary society, in a true spirit of mutual respect and co-operation. We're indebted to them for the exemplary legacy they leave.



Article extracteed from the Blue Water Bridge website. To visit the site, please click here.


Picture of the Blue Water Bridge, extracted from Wikipedia. Please click here.

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Steve Shaw Artist with a Cosmic Vision



When I passed through the doors of Steve Shaw's home today, little did I realize that I was following a well beaten path made by others who had come to visit this most creative man.

Steven is well known for his skill in making leather masks.



Steve explains the genesis of his masks: "Masks were worn by troubadours." and troubadours can be called "truth adorers." and "We are all cosmic gypsies" like the troubadours who wandered the highways and byways of Europe, providing entertainment and insights into life.

His masks are brilliantly designed. They are made from leather and are of a quality which one would expect to find worn by Shakespearean players. They are colourful, aptly named for metaphorical concepts,(Fallen, Autumn Wind, Rainbow Butterfly, Tree Jester, Stardust and Crossroads Owl, for instance)and are finely sculptured and comfortable to wear. I asked Steve and his partner Ruth to pose with me (centre) for the top picture.

Steve lives near Parsons, a small village along Highway 95, south of Golden, BC.
This is an area inhabited by some of the most uniquely creative individuals you would expect to find concentrated in one small area of Canada. And like many of them, Steve made his way over the Rockies after having lived elsewhere.

First of all, please allow me to back up a step.

Steve is the offspring of American parents who migrated to Canada. He is also the father of three children and for many years he made his living in interior decorating, design and in the furniture business near Washago Beach, Ontario. About ten years ago, Steve decided that the pressure and stress of the business world wasn't worth it. So, he packed his bags and headed west.

Steven struggled with dyslexia throughout his life and in his youth he refused to yield to the pressure of changing from writing with his left hand to his right. And as any student of psychology will tell you - left handers have strong right brain hemisphere development.

Steve playfully defines himself as a Dysfunctional Human in Training. (D.H.I.T) And his artistic life training includes, writing, art and mystical presentations.

I enjoyed Steve's creative play with words. A play that was rife with subtleties of meaning.

I invite you to join me in taking a fascinating journey into Steve's world by clicking here to open his website. And be sure to check his video for this is where Steve opens the door to his universe.

Saturday, June 25, 2011

Clive Powsey: Man Eating Landscapes



This marks the final weekend of Clive's Man Eating Landscapes Showing at Dale's Gallery. 537 Fisgard St., Victoria BC. June 9 -29th.

Flight by Ice Bear




This visually exciting work is by Ice Bear (Chris Johnston). Please check the right column for the announcement of his most recent showing at Coombs, Vancouver Island. The open house will be held at Coastal Carving Fine Art Gallery just across the bridge from the famous 'Goats on the Roof' country store, June 24 to 26.

Friday, June 24, 2011

Alfie Fishgap: Art Which Speaks for Heritage and Spirituality


by Maureen Bayliss.

Alfie J. Fishgap descends from the Salish First Nation but grew up estranged from his Native roots.

Alfie’s adopted name was not Fishgap. After discovering as an adult that he had been adopted by his Scottish/Italian parents, he researched his background learning of his Coast Salish heritage and that his ancestors had been fish trappers for their village. An elder had used the name Fishgap, and now so would he.

Always interested in art, the pathway to his West Coast heritage led Alfie carve a ‘wild woman of the woods’. It was during the journey with this piece that the spirit of his western roots reached out to him.

Since then, Alfie embarked on an exploration of his ancestry and immersed himself in the styles and lore of Haida and Kwakiutl art.

In speaking of his work, Fishgap says he does not create his art; the art creates itself using his hands as the tools.




Like the dream time his ancestors revered, Alfie’s art speaks directly to him and it is not uncommon for him to return from a foray into the woods harbouring a myriad of artistic inspiration. And in this, he is moved to create.

Totems, spirit lures, masks, halibut hooks, boxes, canoe paddles; all are part of Alfie’s repertoire. His work exhibits his heritage, and the spirituality of his ancestors. Each piece created is one of a kind meticulously designed, hand carved, burned, and painted in a traditional style which speaks to a new generation, yet still honours the past.

Alfie resides with his wife and his daughter in Holland Landing (near Toronto, Ontario). His career has led him to enjoy many awards, commissions, exhibitions and an offerings of workshops with private and public events.

To read more about Alfie Fishgap and his work, please click here.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Meet Andrew Kiss, Alberta Nature Artist

Andrew Kiss, lives in Calgary with his wife of 43 years. He began painting at about the time of his marriage and 17 years ago, he took the big leap of faith, and left his employment to make art his full time vocation.

Andrew is the first to tell you that being an artist, isn't always the most secure way to make a living. But, solid support from his wife Lynn and a strong dose of perseverance have helped him on his journey.

Andrew moved to Calgary, where his daughter Rita and son Lee, also live, 5 1/2 years ago, from British Columbia,

Like many artists, Andrew cannot remember when he didn't like producing art. And as the years passed he worked in cartography as a draftsman. Andrew says about his employer:
"The company I worked for was very lenient in allowing me to go do art shows and taking time off, they were really good that way."

They say that behind every good man is a good spouse. And in Andrew's case, Lynn supported him in his art pursuits. He started with landscapes but did wildlife for about 10 years and this saw him produce 110 limited editions in the print market. He later returned to landscapes and also produced small birds.

Its nice to know that he has received well deserved success. His art has allowed him to exhibit all over the world- Europe, Hong Kong, all over the US, many parts of Canada. And, It has also allowed him to travel to many places such as Kenya, Tanzania, Hong Kong, Austria, New Zealand and many other places I would not have gone to if it wasn't for the artwork.

As far as technique and style is concerned, Andrew is a self taught artist, and he cannot attribute any other artist who influenced his work, and he feels that this is most important in setting an artist apart from others.

I am most impressed by the energy Andrew put into marketing himself by travelling extensively and by doing as many as 15-20 shows in a year and he is quick to share his appreciation for his son or daughter who would travel with him to help out, particularly in long drives to Los Vegas or Phoenix.

Andrew made a major shift in his focus about ten years ago, when he moved the bulk of his work over to galleries to handle his art and this freed him up with more hard earned painting time - although he still does occasional road shows. His works can be found in 6 galleries whose names can be found his website. He also does the Calgary Stampede every July and this has the largest juried art show in the west with only originals from approximately 75 artists,

As far as the future goes, he looks forward to continue doing what he is doing now, and most importantly he hopes to continue giving pleasure to people who see his work.

Andrew invites you to click here to check out his website. Its filled with great art, and is sure to give you a lot of insight into why he has become such a well respected artist.

Monday, June 20, 2011

Vancouver Street Riots and Love in the Eye of the Storm



I hesitated in blogging this picture from Vancouver's Street riot, mainly on moral grounds. Is it appropriate to put a picture such as this on an art blog? I watched the young couple being interviewed on television and they told the story of the young woman being knocked over and the man comforting her and in the end this picture tells of where comfort can lead.

Photography as an artform has been given,at best, token representation by' The Portrait'. My bias, as a painter, is pretty apparent and I will be the first to admit it.

But there is something about this picture which reaches deeply inside my artistic spirit, call it the art of life, or love triumphing over hate whatever you will.

Canadian Painters of the 30's.



Its a long one but worthy for any student of Canadian art history. Please click here.


Canadian painting in the '30s.
The CBC Digital Archives Website.
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Aboriginal Heritage Month: Thayendanegea (Jospeh Brant) - as seen by different early artists




Interesting: Two paintings of Joseph Brant by two different artists. How can one person look so very different?

The picture on the left was painted by William Berczy, c.1807. a German artist who emigrated to the States, and from there to Canada. Berczy was the leader of the Markham, Ontario Berczy Mennonite Settlement. Click here to see the Wikipedia article.

The painting on the above right was by George Romney. Wikipedia states:
Portrait of Joseph Brant. Brant was visiting England with Guy Johnson at age 33 or 34 when Romney painted him in his London studio. Brant is shown wearing a white ruffled shirt, an Indian blanket, a silver gorget, a plummed headdress and carrying a tomahawk. The painting is today in the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa.

The Berczy painting makes a token effort of presenting Brant in a more authentic context, in that it looks as if it was painted on location where Thayendanegea lived. Also, the Chief looks older then he does in the Romney work, which was painted around 17 years earlier.

When I look at the Berczy painting, I find myself wondering why and where the chief is pointing. Historical inreading suggests that it may be looking at his people and pointing to Canada where his people would be resettled in safety and as a reward for the loyalty to the crown.

I am intriqued by the way the artists painted Thayendanegea's face. Berczy gave us a Native Chief. Romney presented a styalized white man with white skin, sensual lips, and dark searching eyes.

Both paintings present the chief in ceremonial regalia. Romney has him wearing a Christian cross whereas Berczy gives us a Mohawk Chief wearing his hair cut in traditional Mohawk fashion.



The smaller work which can be seen immediately above was done by Gilbert Stuart. Gilbert paints Brant with a face which has a nostalgic look suggestive of what he and his people have lost.


The picture to the left,was done by William Armstrong,(who also painted the first picture of Toronto's city hall which was featured in an early blog entry) who was an early Canadian watercolourist. Armstrong lived between 1822 and 1914. Its pretty obvious that Armstrong never saw the chief, for Brant died in 1807, 15 years prior to Armstrong's birth.

This picture has the most discomforting representation of Chief Brant. His features look disturbingly non native and most unlike any of the faces we see. The revered feather which was seen Berczy's work, has been replaced by what looks like a couple of ostrich feathers. More then that, I find Armstrong's painting of Brant in a pink shirt with flowers disrespectful.

When you check the link below it will take you to a sizeable collection of Brant portraits, painted and drawn by many artists. It's obvious that Brant was a highly respected native leader who made a significant contribution to the development of early Canada. please click here.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Carvings from the Shuswap Golf and Country Club. BC




Aboriginal Heritage Month Art - the Native Sun Man Glyph


Peterborough Petroglyph Park

Now, if I painted a picture like this and entered it into a major art show, it would likely get juried in and with a little luck be selected as a sure winner.

It goes to show that whatever goes around comes around. I find myself wondering what was going through the mind of this ancient glyph carver. Was he interpreting a figure from tribal mythology? Did he or maybe she, take a step into the realm where his carving took on its own life and meaning? I'm sure that Erik von Daniken could add his own spin to it and suggest that this ancient carver, had seen a denizen from another spacial realm.

I guess nobody but the carver who is long gone, knows what his being represented. Its easy to conjecture that his head resembles the sun. Was the carved man, an important being?

While I am on this theme, I had an interesting conversation with a man who owns a large farm in the Peterborough area, and he claimed that he has a set of petroglyphs that equals or surpasses the Peterborough glyphs in size, in the woods of his property but the Ontario Government has chosen not to acknowledge is presence.

So many mysteries, so few answers. If this entry has any native readers who are familiar with Algonquin spiritual symbols, I would be pleased to publish a response.

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Toronto's Struggle with Graffiti - Art?

Photo from: 'The Star'.

Anyone who lives in the Toronto area or who follows the news in Toronto, is no doubt aware of struggle the city is having with graffiti. The nub of the problem is the lack of discretion of many graffiti artists in painting on the sides of privately owned buildings, garage doors, and fences. The city requires owners to clean the graffiti off and this costs money which owners have to pony up for.

A recent public forum examined whether graffiti is an artform and if it is, do graffiti artists have rights to publicly present their works?


Please click here to be taken to the Star's article on the public forum.


Sunday, June 12, 2011

Artist honours Canada's fallen soldiers




Dave Sopher's massive work of art, a mural featuring oil portraits of 155 Canadian men and women killed in Afghanistan, will doubtless bring tears to the eyes of thousands of Canadians.

Known as Portraits of Honour, the piece is touring 105 Canadian cities this year starting in June. It is tentatively scheduled to in Brantford and Simcoe on June 19. Details have yet to be announced.

It's a deeply personal work for Sopher.

After more than three decades of success as a commercial artist, the Cambridge resident has sunk most of his time - it takes about 80 hours to do each portrait - and more than $400,000 of his own money into the project.

To read the rest of the article, please click here.
Title and article extracted from The Brantford Expositor.

Saturday, June 4, 2011

Herry Arifin: Steam Engine # 1



Talk about an iconic work! Herry Arifin captures the colour of days gone by with this work.

Herry, like many good artists, understands the power of simplicity. This is a pretty straight forward work with two basic elements - a steam engine and a grain elevator.

Notice the drama that Herry creates in the stark contrast between the black of the engine and its smoke and the surrounding whites.

Herry's wet on wet painting technique gives us a picture which wobbles with the flow of his paint; the result being seen in the roof of the grain elevator which bows and bends beneath its mantle of snow. And, when I look at the overall structure of his elevator and the sheds . I see the tilt and lean of time at play. And this contributes to the sense of this being a scene from days gone by when the steam engine ruled the country.

I like the looseness of this work. The smoke isn't restricted to the top left corner. Herry artfully lifts the wet paint from around the surface of the elevator and this gives us misty wreathes of smoke hanging in the air.

Herry uses a variety of colours on his engine and its smoke and this creates a certain visual vitality. I also like the way he charges the smoke with blossoms and lifted smudges - an exciting play of watercolour technique and the smoke unifies the work and engine, sky and buildings are all embraced.

This is an exciting painting by one of Canada's fastest rising watercolour stars.

Artist's Comments

Steam Train No. 1, was my first ever train painting. I've never painted any steam engine prior to that. It begins with a friend of mine who lives in Connecticut gave me a link to a website about trains. As I like to paint city scenes with the vehicles, streetcar etc, steam train isn't a too strange thing to try. So I combined few images and that how this painting emerges from. I never paint from imagination. I need to see to get inspired. Although the inspiration only produces the big picture, the little stuffs those fills the big one some of them come from imagination. I'm not an inventor by nature, but more as an 'improver' if you like.


I don't have one specific way to paint. Most of the time I paint on a flat even surface. Especially if I paint very wet, like in the case of the "At Spadina":
As this is the 2nd one, so the idea of painting steam engine became more familiar to me. And I had a lot of fun with this one. It is clear in the brush strokes which shows all the freedom. Please click here.

You saw the video too (I hope). In fact I rarely tilt the board, as I don't fancy much a moving / flowing pigment (by itself) unless if I wanted it to go to specific direction. Sometimes I paint vertical, like in the case of "Queen/Carlaw": Please click here. which I did in a bus stop by sticking the paper on to the glass wall. You can see the photo when I did that too.

Steam train #1 painting was my first ever train painting. The fact that I always like to paint/ draw transportation vehicles helps me to not feel too strange with painting this engine. As it was my first, I tend to work extra careful, which wasn't so much my nature. It looks too perfect to me though. But as always I don't worry much about the product. I concern about the process. The product is the viewers / collectors to care. I got my bit during the making of it. If you asked me the kind of engine work that excites me more, it is this one: Please click here. As this is the 2nd one, so the idea of painting steam engine became more familiar to me. And I had a lot of fun with this one. It is clear in the brush strokes which shows all the freedom.

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Herry Arifin - An Exciting Watercolourist

I came upon Herry Arifin's work, when I was doing a search for Canadian watercolour artists. And I will be candid when I say that his work took my breath away. My immediate response was, "Who is this guy? His works are really good".

After making contact with Herry, I discovered that he is retired and has only been painting for 9 years. What's more, Herry admits that he never drew or painted before that time. Herry is the first to admit that he was too busy with work and family responsibilities. So, there's hope for any newcomer providing they've got the tools. But before I get too carried away, Herry confesses that his achilles heel is painting people and their faces. (Well, don't worry about that Herry - for there are lots of very mature artists who jump through hoops to avoid those issues. ever wonder why you see people looking away from you in paintings?)

Herry lives in Toronto, and he paints both urban and country scenes. That is refreshing, for many painters prefer rural and wilderness landscapes.

Herry sees painting as his preferred means of communication. When he worked he communicated with words but now that he is retired he lets his paintbrush do the talking. And his visual scenes speak loud and clear!



Herry's collection of favourite artists include Andrew Wyeth; Hardy Gramatsky and Serge Hollerbach.

What surprises me is that Herry is not a galleried artist. I get the impression that Herry values being his own guy. He's not likley about to fill his portfolio with paintings and go knocking on gallery doors. (although I wouldn't be surprised if gallery's come knocking on his door before long). Herry enjoys the freedom of retirement and a pension and his ability to market his works on internet.

A good barometer of Herry's rapid rise in the art community can be found on the counter of his You Tube Videos. His first video clocks in with about 3,500 viewers. (see Herry's You Tube link in the right column)

To check Herry's website out, please click here. but be prepared to sit down to a visual banquet.

Fredericks-Artworks Blog, copying policy


The Canadian Copyright act, section 29 reports on fairdealing, that it is not an infringement to reproduce someone else's work for research, study, criticism, review or to report. Which pretty much sums up what this site is about. All content sources, be they artists, printed references, and website url's are respectfully identified on this site. http://http//www.canlii.org/en/ca/laws/stat/rsc-1985-c-c-42/latest/rsc-1985-c-c-42.html

Mission Statement
A Portrait of the Visual Arts in Canada, is intended to celebrate the richness of Canada's visual arts, and to promote the arts in Canada.

Statement of Intent
I make every effort to credit the sources of information used in this blog and to obtain the permission and cooperation of all the works presented by living artists. I try, as much as possible to use works from public sources eg. national and provincial collections, of deceased artists. If for any reason, any artist disapproves of anything written about them or their work the artist is encouraged to request withdrawal of the content.