The Art of Phil the Forecaster

Phil and the Southampton Art School 2012

2012-02-08T05:23:00.000-08:00

I will be painting with the Southampton Art School again in 2012. It is always a fun time. The two courses are "Making Waves on Chantry Island" August 20 - 22, 2012 and "Killarney: The Annual Adventure" October 1 to October 5, 2012. I try to instruct, guide, coach, encourage and empower people to really see and have confidence to apply paint to canvas. Afterall it is only paint and the real goal is to stretch our horizons - there are no limits except those we impose on ourselves. Most important, it is all about fun and being outside... and sharing the experience! Clicking on the images will link to the Southampton Art School for these courses.
I look forward to these trips and these two very special locations to paint. There is no shortage of material and weather! Here is a piece from Killarney 2011..

Gone But Not Forgotten

2012-02-06T06:57:00.000-08:00

Does anyone know where this is? This image is from the spring of a couple of years ago.

Indigo Bunting - Detail

2012-02-06T06:54:00.000-08:00

Here is a closer look at the indigo bunting from Singleton Lake. There are not a lot of brush strokes but enough...

George Lake East Basin - Killarney

2012-02-03T18:21:00.000-08:00

This is the remarkable view from Camp site 77 overlookingGeorge Lake. Several canoes came and went while I painted. They barely evenstirred the mirrored surface of the lake. Bold, simple strokes...

Flagged Pines - Killarney

2012-02-03T04:05:00.000-08:00

I am catching up with some Killarney plein air paintings from October. The pines are heavily flagged to the northeast due to the prevailing and strong southwesterly onshore flows. I worried at the start but it turned out very well indeed. It did capture the scene without painting each pine needle. This view is from the appropriately named Red Rock Bay.

Singleton Indigo Bunting

2012-02-02T16:56:00.001-08:00

Some studio work blogged by email...

Anyone Know Where this is?

2012-02-01T13:22:00.000-08:00

Does anyone recognize this location? As I start to paint full time I wonder what kind of art I should concentrate on: weather; wildlife; portraits; landscapes? It's only paint .. but I get most enjoyment out of a plein air impressionistic realism treatment of weather. However I completed a nice indigo bunting this week which I will post soon (I want the oil to tack up before I try to photograph it).

Any guidance anyone?

Snow and Wind

2012-01-30T16:50:00.000-08:00

The wind combined with the cold creates conditions that I really can't paint out in! I froze my hands painting and now they freeze much quicker. So as a result I continued to sketch from inside the studio looking southward. The wind and moderate snow created a very different scene. How does one paint the wind? I tried...

January Snow

2012-01-30T04:40:00.000-08:00

Does looking out the studio window count as a plein air painting? That is what I did because the weather behind the cold front was way too nasty. Heavy wet snow quickly added a thick layer of white to the ice that never melted from the trees. I would have needed some kind of umbrella to keep the very heavy and wet snow off my canvas. As I result I painted in the comfort of the studio looking out the south window. Both the wood stove and stereo were on. If plein air painting requires one to be out in the elements, then this certainly doesn't apply...

Fire and Ice

2012-01-29T12:42:00.000-08:00

Freezing rain again ... but a warm fire in the wood stove. No one is moving anywhere. About 4 mm of ice coats all surfaces – especially the smaller branches which are very efficient as ice collectors. The priority was to stand outside and experience the freezing rain first hand – then go back inside to paint in front of the fire. Three doe bounded across the field while I painted. By the time I finished the atmosphere had lost the above freezing layer aloft and large flakes of snow had replaced the freezing rain... I won’t bore you with the atmospheric details of what this means...

Late Afternoon Light - Gray

2012-01-26T12:18:00.000-08:00

I wanted to loosen up... Light rain showers from embedded altocumulus castellanus drifted across Singleton Lake all day. The dark bases of the castellanus provided the leaden gray colours I was looking for while the breaks between showers gave me the rosy and yellow bright parts of the skies. The clouds were aligned parallel to the deformation zone associated with a minor low crossing eastern Ontario. Notice that the clues to diagnose the weather pattern were all clearly written in the clouds... and thank you to those who comment... I read them all!

Ragged Waters

2012-01-25T13:59:00.000-08:00

The rocks of Ragged Falls are an effective set of teeth to chew up the waters of Algonquin Park. The water flowing off the highlands has to plummet through the tumble of Canadian Shield on it ways to the ocean. The result is the colourful splish and splash of water as it stumbles over Ragged Falls. I painted this from the 22x28 inch painting "Ragged Falls" which I completed in 2009. Normally I wouldn't recreate another painting based on a fairly large work. In this exception I wanted to make a match for "Oxtongue Rapids Revisited" while using the same palette of colours. These paintings are both 3x4 footers and I hope they are equally turbulent in their brush strokes.

Oxtongue Rapids Revisited

2012-01-11T07:39:00.000-08:00

I am finally painting full time and getting to projects that have been on the back burner too long. This revisits #1069 "Oxtongue Rapids". I felt it needed a bigger format. The sketch was very powerful possibly because the voracious black flies prevented me from overworking any of the brushwork. I barely had time to grab some paint and stroke it on before swatting off a black fly. Blood stained the brim of my hat ... The bugs got hungrier as the morning progressed and that certainly saved me from labouring on the brush strokes and leaving the vitality in the paint. The black flies deserve the credit if any is due.

My goal in revisiting the Oxtongue Rapids was to maybe increase the motion in the water and trees. If I could achieve that inch for inch then the 3 by 4 footer would be powerful indeed in any room. It is not done yet but there is enough paint on the canvas to get the idea...

"The Cadillac of Cabins at KML"

2011-10-16T08:14:00.000-07:00

This is probably the most expensive and secluded cabins offered for guests of the Killarney Mountain Lodge. It would be a great place for a family to spend a week. I was very pleased with this effort. The composition and colours came together very well.

"George Lake East Basin"

2011-10-16T08:11:00.000-07:00

This is the remarkable view from Camp site 77 overlooking George Lake. Several canoes came and went while I painted. They barely even stirred the mirrored surface of the lake.

Stormy Night on Killarney Bay

2011-10-16T08:09:00.000-07:00

"Stormy Night" is the name of the 39 year old sailing boat operated by the Killarney Mountain Lodge. It just happened to be sailing past the western light of Killarney Channel as I was working on that portion of the painting. It was a beautiful fall day and not a "stormy night" at all!

Flags

2011-10-02T14:13:00.000-07:00

The next task on my agenda was to practice the handling of the Killarney trees. The pines are heavily flagged to the northeast due to the prevailing and strong southwesterly onshore flows. I worried at the start but it turned out very well indeed. It did capture the scene without painting each pine needle.This scene is in the appropriately named Red Rcok Bay.

"Mahzenazing Dam"

2011-10-01T17:33:00.000-07:00

It was still only 10 Celsius and the wind made it feel much colder. It was an awkward place to set up an easel but I liked the curve of the beaver dam in the foreground and the colours in the trees and how they were reflected and refracted in the water. This was an active dam as witnessed by the fresh greenery added to the top and the nearby and fresh beaver "chews". Darn it was cold though! My hands can't take the cold ever since I froze them in the 1990's.

In Google and Map Source, this waterway is called the "Megazing River". I got the name from the road sign which I trust!

Club Island

2011-09-30T10:58:00.000-07:00

This is the view to the west from the lawn of a "for sale" cottage on the northeast tip of Club Island. The cottage is in need of repair. Raccoons and skunks were living under the cottage, having removed some of the wood fencing that was designed to keep them out. This is the third day of the 10th Annual International Plein Air Painters Paint Out. We have 20 artists participating in the Rockport Event which was cosponsored by the Rockport Development Group. The wave action from the passing tours boats came crashing into the little bay.

Fish Rock

2011-09-30T10:55:00.000-07:00

This is swimming hole for all of the kids of Rockport looking east at around 2 pm on Saturday September 10th, 2011. This is also the second day of the 10th Annual International Plein Air Painters Paint Out. We have 20 artists participating in the Rockport Event which was cosponsored by the Rockport Development Group. One of the next generation of Rockport kids kept me company while we both painted.

Rockport IPAP Paint Out - A Wonderful Three Days of Creativity

2011-09-16T05:12:00.000-07:00

Twenty artists painted and ate for three days amoung the Thousand Islands at Rockport, Ontario. It was a wonderful time with close to 100 works of art completed. I managed seven... and I will show a couple of them here.

"999 2 Go"

This is Fancy Rock Island from the dock of Pine Island looking east at 9:30 am on Friday September 9th, 2011. Having painted one island of a 1000 explains the mathematical title.

"Zavicon Island"

painted from a small patch of grass on the south slope of Pine Island looking south at around 2 pm.

"Ishpeming "

The tugboat is a bit dented but has a lot of proud character. An internet search revealed that the name Ishpeming comes from the Anishinaabe language ishpiming, meaning "on top" or "from above" or "upon high." Ishpeming, in the Ojibwa dialect of the Anishinaabe language, also means "Heaven".

Rockport, Ontario - International Plein Air Painters (IPAP) Worldwide Paint Out in the Heart of the Thousand Islands

2011-07-31T08:06:00.000-07:00

The Historic Waterfront Village of Rockport in the Heart of the Thousand Islands is sponsoring the 10th International Plein Air Painters (IPAP) Worldwide Paint Out. The itineary can be found at ww.rockport1000islands.com ... The village organization of Rockport Development Group will be your host and start your weekend experience with a welcome breakfast on Friday morning followed by a tour of the various locations for painting. There will be transportation available to take any artist to an island location, if this is your choice, but there are numerous unique locations on the mainland if boating is not your desire. Each evening there will be a dinner offered at one of the local waterfront restaurants and a topical speaker will do a pre-dinner presentation.

We hope you can make it. It is hoped that this will be the first in a long tradition....

Great news...my Southampton Courses are both full...

2011-06-19T17:18:00.000-07:00

Southampton Art School - "Making Waves on Chantry Island"- August 22 - August 24, 2011Spend 3 full days learning the fine points of painting water and everything surrounding it - the first day on Chantry Island - day 2 and 3 in the studio working from your sketches. The prime themes in Phil's work are weather patterns and how they affect water and skies and he'll share his secrets of painting a great lake's great moods in this workshop.
Time: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm Southampton Art School - "Killarney Paint Escape" October 3 - October 7, 2011
Participants are to arrange their own transportation and accommodation/meals package at Killarney Mountain Lodge. 1(800) 461-1117
Escape to Group of Seven country and paint "en plein-air" with Phil the Forecaster Chadwick. The fall colours of the trees and granite ridges will expand your palette and spark your creativity. Killarney Provincial Park and Georgian Bay provide outstanding artistic opportunities against the expansive skies of Canadian weather. Killarney Mountain Lodge accommodates the artists and the menu is delicious!
Daily morning trips will be to different locations to explore the elements of design that the landscape offers. Afternoons are free to develop your work. There will be a full day excursion to the Lodge's wilderness camp in the park interior, superb for creating on shore or from a canoe or kayak ($35 additional fee). Practiced plein-air painters will enjoy this back-to-nature experience. Phil's passion and techniques for capturing the essence of the moment are equal to his love for passing them on.
This paint escape is in tribute to his friend and fellow artist Jane Champagne.

Summer Arts Fest August 13th in Public Square, Watertown NY

2011-06-19T17:11:00.000-07:00

The North Country Arts Council (NCAC - www.nnyart.org) is holding it's third annual Summer Arts Fest August 13th in Public Square, Watertown NY on August 13th.Traffic is restricted from one side of the square where tents are set up for various vendors and entertainment (bands, dance, etc.) are conducted. Bob Heddon is organizing the Plein Air Event for the Summer Arts Fest and has asked me to be the judge. I will do my best but I see something great in all art...

Racing the Rain

2011-04-11T11:53:00.000-07:00

I decided to paint from the dead-end scenic road south of Burk's Falls. It was a race with the weather. The cirrostratus had thickened overnight and bands of altostratus were streaking across the southern horizon with the warm conveyor belt of the spring storm. These same winds produced gravity waves in the cloud above the warm frontal surface. At the ground I had a raw, damp easterly wind chilling me and my hands to the bone. The temperature might have been plus 6 Celsius but it felt much colder. The painting was a bit of a race against the weather. I had to get it done before the altostratus switched to nimbostratus and rain. I made it with 5 minutes to spare.

Algonquin Spruce Sentinel

2011-04-11T11:52:00.000-07:00

I painted from the wooden bridge looking northeast across the flood plain of the South Magnetawan River and the mix of trees - some alive and some dead! It was a beautiful spring day and much too nice to miss. Note the altocumulus in gravity wave patterns. I was very pleased with the resulting sketch of the dead spruce tree.

Magnetawan Morning

2011-04-11T11:46:00.000-07:00

On day two of the Nickle Paint-Out we headed to the South Magnetawan River and stopped when theForestry Tower Road got too soft and sloppy. Lawrence was leery of getting his truck stuck in the mud. I painted from the wooden bridge looking southward toward the shaded hillside. The sun was on my left shoulder. It was a beautiful spring day.

Forest Shadows

2011-04-11T11:43:00.000-07:00

I don't normally paint looking into the sun, especially across a reflective surface like snow and ice but this was an exception. I liked the shadows that rolled down the snowy slope. I wanted to see if I could capture the moment of the strongly back lit forest. Cirrostratus from the approaching spring storm was already starting to veil the sun.

Spring Marsh - Algonquin

2011-04-11T08:49:00.000-07:00

This is the first painting of my spring break-out paint out with Lawrence Nickle. This is on the Rain Lake Road looking northward across the marsh. There was a strong current in the culvert under the road. There was a chilly northwest wind ahead of the ridge of high pressure. It made me think that Lawrence had the right idea painting in his truck. The sun felt warm on my back but it was still chilly.

Leave It For Beaver!

2011-04-07T05:03:00.000-07:00

The beavers gnaw on hardwoods to wear down their incisors. The tree in the foreground has been the target for several years but was still surviving in spite of the attack. My brother Jim and many others have a hate on for the beaver and their damage to forests. I try to see the bigger environmental picture. There is some good that comes from the beaver dam building and tree cutting along the water's edge. It is also quite futile to battle Mother Nature so I prefer to tolerate these tree attacks and "leave if for the beaver". This is also a take off on the title of the favourite TV show of the 1950's that Jim and I loved to watch. He thought I was the "beave".

Flooded Forest

2011-04-07T05:02:00.000-07:00

This is the view looking northwest across the middle provincially significant wetland. It was a blue bird sky. The sounds of birds and wildlife filled the air. Ruffed grouse drumming added the beat to the chip and chirps of smaller birds. Turkey vultures soared overhead with the bald eagle. Ducks buzzed in and about the wetland. Two otters glided down the seasonal stream in front of me without taking any notice of my presence. It was a good day. This forest will be dry by June.

Spring Forest

2011-04-07T05:00:00.000-07:00

This is a view of the northeastern part of our forest. It has never been extensively logged and is full of large oak, beech, maple and hickory - even some butternut trees. The open field in the foreground has deep but wet soils and was probably logged to built the homestead buildings which lie a few hundred meters to the south. Cattle grazing has kept the trees from coming back. With our arrival and the absence of the cows, ash trees are emerging throughout this field. I also planted about 500 black walnuts in 2007 but there is no sign of them yet. The emerald green ash borer has been seen in eastern Ontario and these ash trees will be threatened.

Mighty Oak

2011-04-07T04:58:00.000-07:00

This is a huge red oak tree on the north side of the provincially significant wetland abutting our building site. My outstretched arms do not even reach half way around this mighty tree. There is abundant scat at the base of this tree from the animals that have used it for food and refuge. This fertilizer has probably helped it reach its enormous girth. It is also surrounded by a defence of prickly ash making it difficult to reach without being scratched.

It was a cool spring day with brisk northerly winds. I was painting looking southerly with the wind on my back but the sun occasionally in my face when it broke through the turbulent stratocumulus cloud. The temperature was supposed to be plus 8 Celsius but it felt cooler! This was my first plein air painting since October. Home building can really occupy your time!

Southampton Art School Classes

2011-03-06T10:22:00.000-08:00

Making Waves on Chantry Island and Killarney: The Annual Adventure are now posted... I hope to see you there! Some of my favourite time painting has been around Killarney and Southampton. It is an honour to be associated with the Southampton Art School!

2011 at the Chadwick Art House

2011-02-14T15:39:00.000-08:00

Announcements... I will keep this brief...

Phil the Forecaster has officially retired... almost. His Retirement Bash originally scheduled for Ground Hog Day 2011 was appropriately rescheduled due to a blizzard. You gotta laugh! The February 15th Retirement is now his Valentine present to Linda even though it might not be exactly the perfect gift.

The Chadwick Art House has moved and now also produces 10 kWatts of solar energy. It has been a very busy fall and winter of construction but the paradise of Watershed Farm has indeed been recreated at Singleton Lake in eastern Ontario – Watershed Forests. If possible, it is even better than imagined and blends in with the environment. The property is now a forest and nature preserve providing habitat for lots of endangered species including artists. By late summer all of the work will be completed. Phil is now able to paint a lot more – watch the pig(ment)s fly now!

Here are the coming 2011 activities planned to date...

“Searching for Tom” in The Museum. I will present "Tom Thomson Was A Weatherman" at the Museum in Kitchener at 1:30 pm on Sunday March 27th. For full details ... click. It will be fun!

“Algonquin and Killarney in the Spring” ... a painting trip just because I now have time...

NOMEK – Meteorological Training in Finland, May

Algonquin Art Centre

The Algonquin Art Centre is proud to host one of Canada’s only “Year of the

Forest” events. 2011 is the United Nation’s International Year of the Forest which is an international campaign to promote awareness of the importance of forests. For more details about the program, click. I will be participating and have already started to paint along this theme which has always been present in my art.

“Weather in the Thousand Islands”, Thousand Islands Association, The Gananoque Playhouse, July 30th. A presentation about severe weather and how to survive it... you might want to see severe weather before you die ... but not just before you die!

Southampton Art School and Gallery

"Making Waves on Chantry Island”, Aug 22-24

Spend two full days learning the fine point of painting water and everything surrounding it - the first day on Chantry Island - and day two from Southampton's shoreline. The prime themes in Phil's work are weather patterns and how they affect water and skies and he'll share his secrets of painting a great lake's great moods in this workshop. Plus we will have fun!

International Plein Air Painters 10th Great WORLDWIDE Paint Out September 9-10-11, 2011 ... For the first time in the Thousand Islands. Details to follow after they get decided.

Awenda Provincial Park, Awenda Provincial Park is located on Georgian Bay, 20 minutes northwest of Penetanguishene, Ontario. The Friends of Awenda sponsor an annual art and the environment event and I am participating on Saturday and Sunday September 17 and 18th, 2011- presentations of "Tom Thomson Was A Weatherman!". More details to follow as the date nears.

Southampton Art School and Gallery

"Killarney Paint Escape" October 2-7, 2011. Escape to Group of Seven country and paint "en plein-air" with Phil the Forecaster. This Paint Escape is in tribute to my friend and fellow artist Jane Champagne.

“Weather of Ontario" - The book, published by Lone Pine is available in stores across Ontario if not across Canada. You can even find it in Canadian Tire! There is talk about doing an "Art and Weather" book based on my Tom Thomson presentations. It would be fun!

“Northern Light" - My Friend Roy MacGregor has published "Northern Light: The Enduring Mystery of Tom Thomson and the Woman Who Loved Him", Random House. It is the definitive Tom Thomson - Winnie Trainor text. Roy and I agree that there is not as much mystery as one might think - we are in complete agreement. Roy dug up the facts and by eliminating the half truths and lies - only the truth remains. It is a wonderful piece of Canadiana and an important part of our art and cultural history. Roy used some of my contributions. I am proud to be even a small part of this effort. Well done Roy!

Have a safe and healthy 2011! Life is good...

Warmest Regards,

Phil the Forecaster
Blog http://philtheforecaster.blogspot.com

Singleton Phil

2011-02-04T05:56:00.000-08:00

Singleton Phil continued the family profession but actually went to university and became a professional meteorologist with Environment Canada. His first career as a nuclear physicist was too much like living in his burrow so he opted for a career change and the fresh air outside the hole in the ground. His more famous relations took the media route and jumped into the forecast game without any academic training.

His Second Cousin in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania is certainly the star of the clan and kept the family name. (Ground hog’s surnames are actually their first given name preceded by the location of their burrow.) Another cousin disowned the family and now lives in Wiarton. “Philly”, now known as “Willie” was the first of the clan who learnt how to cross the road after observing the success of some chickens. There are now furcasters scattered around North America. And that’s the truth... although most have had to change their names because of their media handlers - just like Marilyn Monroe. You might be surprised to learn that Buckeye Chuck, General Beauregard Lee, Staten Island Chuck, and Shubenacadie Sam are all cousins of Singleton Phil.

Cousin Phil in Pennsylvania's Punxsutawney emerged on Groundhog Day 2011 to make his 125th annual weather forecast to predict a shorter winter. Punxsutawney Phil, not being a trained meteorologist like Singleton Phil, still forecasts the old superstitious way based on his shadow. If Punxsy Phil sees his shadow on February 2nd, the Christian holiday of Candlemas, he feigns terror and runs back into his hole thus predicting a longer winter – more than six more weeks of cold. If Punxsy Phil doesn’t see his shadow, well he acts cool and does what he does best (continuing to eat which explains why he is overwweight) indicating that spring is right around the corner. The only natural reason that any ground hog would be leaving his cosy cavern in February at all is to find love in time for Valentine’s Day. The real reason that Punxsy bales from his bed on February 2nd is that his media bosses tell him that he must make an appearance for the masses. No appearance ... no caviar...

Before Wednesday, Punxsy Phil had seen his shadow 98 times and hadn't seen it 15 times since 1887. The media star and self proclaimed “Prognosticator of Prognosticators” claims an 85% accuracy but he doesn’t consider the spatial and temporal aspects of performance measurement so his verification is pretty much meaningless and biased. If one completes even the most rudimentary scientific verification of his actual skill, Punxsy Phil actually scores a pitiful 39%. That’s the glamour of the media though where flash can be more valuable than fact.

Singleton Phil, after 35 years with Environment Canada claims an 86% accuracy in both time and space. Whisker plots of the data using radar, satellite and lightning remote sensing data to supplement the human observations, places these numbers on a solid scientific footing. Agent Maxwell Smart would agree that 86 is more than a number pulled out of thin air.

Singleton Phil sometimes wishes he had gone the high flying media route like Punxsy and Wiarton. The financial rewards with mass media are certainly greater but the quiet, family life of the scientific meteorologist ground hog on night shift still had its rewards. Now it’s time for Singleton Phil's real passion, painting the weather with his own hog’s hair brushes.

Phil the Forecaster Retires

2011-02-03T13:18:00.000-08:00

"Singleton Phil" did not see his shadow during the blizzard on February 2nd. As a result there are now only 10 more days left as an official Envirnoment Canada meteorologist. He will always be "Phil the Forecaster" but now the plein air paint is really going to fly! Notice that Singleton Phil and Phil the Forecaster go to the same barber and enjoy the same hair colour.

Tom Thomson at the Museum

2011-02-03T13:10:00.000-08:00

I will present "Tom Thomson Was A Weatherman" at the Museum in Kitchener at 1:30 pm on Sunday March 27th. For full details ... It will be fun!

Dragonflies in Love

2010-09-02T10:41:00.000-07:00

Dragonflies are one of my favourite insects. I serve and stop to avoid them while driving. They have a friend at Singleton Lake. This pair of mating dragonflies were left undisturbed in their loving embrace. The male is to the left with the female to the right scooping sperm into her ovary. At least that is kind of how it happens.

Singleton Spotted Sandpiper

2010-08-16T05:32:00.000-07:00

This is based on an excellent photograph taken by Simon Lunn, Naturalist & Photographer of Smiths Falls, Ontario. Simon walked the property on Tuesday, June 29th, 2010 as part of the "BioBlitz" I had done during the summer of 2010. I wanted to know just what species inhabited the Singleton Lake property and what I could do to help them along. There is much more to do on this painting but it is a good start.

Three Is Company at Singleton

2010-08-03T15:37:00.000-07:00

My first sketch of three fledgling Eastern Kingbirds perched close together on a limb at Singleton Lake, June 2010. This is based on an excellent photograph taken by Simon Lunn, Naturalist & Photographer of Smiths Falls, Ontario. Simon walked the property on Tuesday, June 29th, 2010 as part of the "BioBlitz" I had done during the summer of 2010. I wanted to know just what species inhabited the Singleton Lake property and what I could do to help them along.

Fair Weather Fun

2010-07-18T12:26:00.000-07:00

It is a challenge to paint convective cloud. No sooner have you blocked in the cloud structure and colour, but the cloud changes both in shape and colour. Typically the convection is taller and the bases are darker. The taller clouds places some neighbouring clouds in shadow and these take on a grey colour with a tint of burnt sienna. I have a few of these in this painting.

A knowledge of the meteorology of the situation does indeed help but it is not the solution. The fix is to practice what I preach and that is to leave things "unfinished". Get the first attempt right and leave it alone. That is what I did with this bit of summer-time fun. The cumulus continued to develop and by the time I was finished, the scene was overcast cumulus. The little ridge was passing through Brockville so more weather was on the way!

The sailboats came by just at the right time. I wanted to practice what I preach and this time, there was no delicate touch-ups! It is becoming easier to ignore the finagley details as my older eyes don't see it as clearer as they used to.

Winter Sunrise

2010-07-17T13:14:00.000-07:00

A brilliant sunrise over Ogdensburg, New York - There was a lot of science in this scene. I hope there was a lot of art as well.

The reflection of the sunrise is most brilliant where the water is smooth and more mirror-like. For sun glint, a rippled surface at a given distance, is less bright as the amount of surface area oriented to reflect the direct sunlight to the eye is certainly less than that of a mirror at the same distance. The amount of sun glint decreases as one looks more directly down on the ripples as the surfaces of the small waves are less likely to be oriented to produce direct reflection of the sunlight to the eye. The best and brightest sun glint reflections occur when the viewing angle is less than 15 degrees to the surface of the water.

The amount of reflected light also decreases as the viewing angle increases so that one is looking more directly into the water. At these angles, refraction of the light into the water dominates reflection. Thus the small amount of reflected light at these angles is light from the sky thus making the ripples more blue. Most light gets refracted into the water and thus the overall appearance of the water is darker.

"July CU and CI"

2010-07-11T13:53:00.000-07:00

Fair weather cumulus (CU) developed early Sunday afternoon. There was more cumulus over the American shore with a minimum over the St Lawrence River. It was apparently holy cumulus - appropriate for a Sunday. A few of the cumulus towered rapidly upward with the crazy wind shear and then was quickly torn apart. The towering cumulus tops sheared up river with the outflow from a high pressure area to the north.

There was a backdrop of cirrostratus (CS) far to the south. In addition there were a few tentacles of fair weather cirrus (CI) in the upper right of the image. The low pressure area far to the south was never a threat for rain along the St Lawrence River.

Tom Thomson - Artist and Weatherman

2010-07-05T17:51:00.000-07:00

Thoreau MacDonald (J.E.H. MacDonald's son) wrote a perfect foreword to Ottelyn Addison's book... ``Tom Thomson : The Algonquin Years``

“Thomson’s work would be a fine study for some competent critic, but anyone attempting it should be familiar, not only with every phase of his work, but with the country too. He must know the trees, rocks, lakes, rivers, weather; to have them in his bones ..."

I do not profess to be an art critic or curator but I am fully qualified to discuss the meteorology in Tom`s art. I do hope that you enjoy the discussions in this new web page and that it encourages reflection and positive debate. In some cases, there are multiple plausible solutions and I attempt to give each a fair presentation. I always try to conclude with the most likely interpretation. Of course, I am making this all up but it is based on some pretty sound science. I wasn't there painting with Tom at the moment of the sketch creation but Tom was a truthful and gifted observer of the natural world. Through CSI (Creative Scene Investigation), I can return to the scene of the time...
I have been doing presentations based on this material since the early 1990's. I feel it is important as well as interesting to put Tom 's art into context. There are not many of his works that I have yet to apply CSI to.

http://tomthomson.homestead.com/

"Rocking" - Something a lot different than usual...

2010-07-04T07:24:00.000-07:00

It was about to rain but I wanted to play with a panel that I had been using to scrape off my palette knife. I wanted to use the random colours and texture of the scrapings on the panel within the painting of the granite rock on the south shore of Jim Day Rapids. I had the paint and the time and plus there are no rules in the art world... It sprinkled a few drops before I finished but not enough to affect real oil paint.

This can be hung either way - it was meant to be a fun reflection piece.

Every Cloud Has A Green Lining

2010-07-03T04:14:00.000-07:00

I made time to paint. The cold frontal convection was setting up and I thought that it would be fun to try to capture the moment under the shelter of the balcony. This was a thunderstorm although I could not hear the thunder until after it passed. The cell turned right as it crossed the St. Lawrence which is a clue that it was a supercell. It changed so quickly that I just blocked in the colours and shapes. An area of dark heavy rain was followed by a whiter swath of heavier rain and I believe some hail. The updraft was definitely tilted to the northwest. The outflow winds stirred up the waves which were then pounded down by the heavy precipitation. The cloud elements really were that dark.

The cloud has a green lining because the canvas was tinted a cool green but also because the rain is much needed for the ecosystem of the St. Lawrence river valley and the low water levels of the summer of 2010. The cloud also blocks a fair bit of the harmful UV radiation. In fact I much prefer a cloudy day when I am en plein air. There was no way I could have painted this cell from the field.

Transformers

2010-07-03T04:13:00.000-07:00

The process of transformation happens every day. Morning cloud morphs into something new due to daytime heating and the wind. In this case, overcast stratocumulus transforms into cumulus and cumulus fractus with the strong daytime heating commensurate with the sun of early summer. Warm, calm conditions exist under the rising thermals of the cumulus while cool downdrafts mark the compensating descending air that balances the updrafts. What goes up must come down.

The stratocumulus transformed to cumulus faster over the land than it did over the water. Streets of cumulus aligned along the southwesterly winds and funneled down the St. Lawrence River. The cloud patterns changed quickly and it was challenging to keep up with the composition. With time there was more blue sky between the clouds that were transforming from the horizontal to the vertical.

Convection Killer

2010-06-24T05:39:00.000-07:00

An overcast deck of stratocumulus in the morning can really ruin a perfectly good (but inaccurate) forecast for afternoon convection. Such stratocumulus is typical in the warm and humid air mass. The same moisture that creates the huge instabilities conducive to severe convection, also promotes low deck stratocumulus. As I was signing my name, the sun started to peak between the stratocumulus as it continued its transformation into cumulus due to the ongoing daytime heating.

Boots

2010-06-17T16:30:00.000-07:00

This is the marble point at Singleton Lake. I was up to my thighs in water with the setting sun on my back. Sun fish swam around my legs. It was only an 8x10 canvas and I was a bit cramped for the composition - but I had fun! The boots left on the shore are mine. Thus the cryptic title for this sketch.

"Northern Light: The Enduring Mystery of Tom Thomson and the Woman Who Loved Him"

2010-05-26T06:19:00.000-07:00

My Friend Roy MacGregor is just finishing the final edits on his study of Tom Thomson. "Northern Light: The Enduring Mystery of Tom Thomson and the Woman Who Loved Him". Random House will publish it in September. Roy and I agree that there is not as much mystery as one might think. When one removes the silly, implausible, invented fabrications, the simpler truth remains. I was very pleased to help out where I could. CSI (Creative Scene Investigation) is a powerful tool. It is a really great read and my only wish is that the really long version could go into print... There are some facts that will finally set the record straight and certainly surprise a lot of TT enthusiasts! Good for you Roy...

This is the cover... It shows Tom circa 1915-1916 working on a trout spoon. Tom always thought that he was a better fisherman than an artist.

Grey Owl - Day 7

2010-05-07T03:41:00.001-07:00

I will likely tinker on Grey Owl for another few days but it will be difficult to see the brush strokes - and maybe even the differences.

Grey Owl - Day 3

2010-05-04T15:22:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of feathers on a grey owl and no two seem to be the same... I hope that you like it!

Great Grey

2010-05-02T08:30:00.000-07:00

My Friend Dave Hotchkiss took this remarkable image of a great grey owl about to strike a baited mouse on the top of the fence post. Dave wanted me to tackle this subject matter to see how I would do. I actually counted feathers while trying to keep the art painterly and loose. It is indeed another challenge. Let's see how it turns out! The hauntingly intense eye is the most important part of this subject.

Portraits are Challenging

2010-04-28T12:59:00.000-07:00

Every portrait is a challenge and this had two - but I like a challenge. More importantly, I want to please and that is my only goal for portrait work. I have had several last days working on this portrait pretty much non-stop for a month. I work to recover what I had. at an earlier stage. At this point the slightest change in colour, shape or tone has a huge impact.. One must know when to stop... I had better walk away from it soon...

Family Portrait - First Sketch

2010-04-09T06:16:00.000-07:00

This is the first attempt at the commission. I was having a very good day and the likenesses just popped unto the canvas... Let's hope that I continue to have good days on this work.

Autumn Patchwork

2010-03-29T10:26:00.001-07:00

This is the view of the shore of Round Lake in the fall of the year from a canoe - the only way to view a lake. I was attracted to the patchy nature of the tree crowns creating a tapestry of colour. In addition, I just wanted to have some fun.

Path Behind Mowat Lodge

2010-03-26T09:11:00.001-07:00

This is a classic Tom Thomson composition but I picked it for its climate change message. Plus this was one of Tom's favourites as he even took time to sign it.
In a warmer atmosphere, snow will become less frequent with more of the precipitation arriving as rain. With less snow and warmer temperatures, the snow pack will melt sooner with the run-off getting to the rivers long before the growing season starts. The springs will be warmer and drier. Spring time drought will impact on planting success although tractors will be able to get on the fields sooner without sinking up to their axles. The old adage of never going out on the fields in a month containing an "a" will have to be rewritten.
The forest fire threat will begin sooner and fires are more apt to become severe with more disease and insect infected trees along with abundant forest floor fuels. This path behind Mowat lodge would look like this on the snowiest day of the winter - never in spring ever again.

Round Lake Squall

2010-03-25T04:21:00.000-07:00

This is the view from a friend's cottage on Round Lake looking west from about the same place where Tom Thomson painted "The Canoe". Tom's dove gray canoe would have been pulled up on the shore to the right.
A squall line with thunderstorms had just passed Round Lake. The showers were over. Northwesterly winds were sculpting the clouds and leaning them to the southeast. Convection along the squall line gives regularly spaced light patches in the cloud base. Scud cloud stirred up by the blustery northwesterly winds were whipping along to the southeast.

Round Lake Mirror

2010-03-24T09:55:00.000-07:00

This is the view from a friend's cottage on Round Lake looking west from about the same place where Tom Thomson painted "The Canoe". Tom's dove gray canoe would have been pulled up on the shore to the right.
It was a clear and crisp morning. The water was a mirror. A shallow radiational fog over the water resulted from the lengthening fall days and warm water of Round Lake supplying the moisture. Cool winds would have been draining off the hillsides since the previous evening. It would have been great to have a canoe on the water and a lure in the water.

Canadian Talent Farm

2010-03-24T09:32:00.000-07:00

Phil has joined the Canadian Talent Farm using his home town of Kingston as the base...

http://www.canadiantalentfarm.com/Phil_Chadwick.html

March Lights the Shadows

2010-03-05T12:14:00.000-08:00

I had some more time to paint and it was a beautiful day to do just that. There was a brisk east breeze so I set up within the forest of the old Browns Bay Campground. It was still chilly at 0 degrees Celsius but it was very pleasant with the sun on my back. I was looking north through the forest at the bend in Jones Creek - Toniata River. I had to gradually shift my easel toward the south to keep the sun on the canvas. A couple of dogs came to pay there respects while I painted.

The sunlight of March heralds the end of winter. There was far less snow in the forest than I expected. The same light cast the shadows which were an important part of my subject. If you put this all together, one has the title which may seem cryptic at first. The word "lights" is a verb here but one might think of it as a noun as well. Both uses of "lights" were intended. It was a fun day.

Crash of the Cataract

2010-03-03T11:27:00.000-08:00

I was starting to loosen up so I grabbed a panel from the back of the grey Subaru. This is the view looking southwest across Lyn Falls and down the narrow channel carved between the granite ridges during eons of spring floods. There was still a lot of snow in the woods but the sun found its way through the bare trees to try to convert some of it to liquid to supply the cataract that crashed at my feed. It was a beautiful day and in addition, I think I caught the magic of the moment in my somewhat crude strokes.

Spring Pro Rogue

2010-03-03T11:25:00.001-08:00

It was my first chance to paint in a couple of months. In a way, my art had be prorogued by lots of things - mostly work. It was a beautiful March day and I could wait no longer. The sun was melting the snow cover and that in turn was flushing as fast as possible down Lyn Falls. The spring and snow itself had been prorogued by the cold weather of February. Everything was on hold pending the arrival of some sunny days and temperatures soaring above normal. The temperature climbed to plus 4 Celsius while I painted. This allowed the spring fever to start and also to covert the snow into its liquid form so that it could rush to the sea. In many ways the day was a rejuvenation of my art, the spring and the snow.
I didn't worry about details and tried to let the background roar of the cataract find its way on to the canvas. Mainly, I wanted to have fun and bask in the sun s it climbed above the tree tops.
The word "prorogue" has been added to the Canadian vocabulary through the dysfunctional political system. I decided to use it in a positive fashion.

Western Mariner

2010-02-27T07:24:00.000-08:00

My sincere thanks to my Friends at MSC/EC for making this happen. Weather is important and it happens everyday!

http://www.eagleharbour.com/magazine/index.html

What a nice magazine - and they are interested in weather too!

Playing with a Logo

2010-02-18T14:14:00.000-08:00

I wanted to tie the canoe to the art. Both are perfect ways to spend one's time. I wanted to keep it simple as well. Hmmm

High and Dry

2010-01-31T07:05:00.000-08:00

The next in the series of iconic Canadian art and how that inspiration might appear with the impacts of global warming. This is Tom Thomson's "Boats" from 1916. I have painted the same inspiration on a slightly different shape of canvas. The boats are now high and dry on green grass and the little water that remains is in the distance. Dropping water levels have already begun in the Great Lakes basin. Increased evapouration is the main cause for these drops. The rainfall is about the same or even a bit more but comes in intense but sporadic episodes that produce more run-off in between the longer droughts. The water doesn't stick around.
The title is fairly obvious with the positioning of the boats a long way from the water. The name also links to my favourite Canadian singer, Gordon Lightfoot and his song of the same name. I had fun...

The Dry Wind

2010-01-29T14:07:00.000-08:00

My version of “The West Wind” includes turbulent stratocumulus much the same as Tom’s but with a stronger wind. One of the characteristics of climate change is that storms will be more violent and energetic. Heat is fuel for these storms and there will be plenty of heat.

As well, the wind swept bay in “The West Wind” could even now be a marsh of cattails and grasses. In my version, the strong winds create waves in the grasses as the water levels are now lower and the marshes have moved in.

Water resources will certainly decline across most of North America with climate change. Evapouration will increase with increased temperatures and rainfall patterns will shift with the jet stream. The water levels of the Great Lakes have already started a serious decline.

Northern Trickle

2010-01-27T06:55:00.000-08:00

This is based on Tom Thomson’s “Northern River” which is a work he referred to as his swamp painting and one that wasn’t all that bad. Water resources will decline across most of North America with climate change. Evapouration will increase with increased temperatures and rainfall patterns will shift with the jet stream. The end result is that in many localities, rivers will decay into trickles. The ecosystem will change and the swamp won’t be a swamp any more.

This effort is for the Algonquin Art Centre 2010 show featuring the impacts of climate change.

The "Weather of Ontario" is now in stores...

2009-12-19T08:19:00.000-08:00

A friend told me that the "Weather of Ontario" is now in stores. They even bought a copy. I have yet to see a copy but am hopeful it is what I have envisioned.

Low Tide at Prospect

2009-12-01T12:48:00.000-08:00

The bay was calm like glass and the tide was really out when I started. During the painting, a brisk onshore breeze set up and the tide came roaring back in. The gentle swell from the ocean met the equally gentle outflow from the harbour. The odd fishing boat came back into port and the black ducks and gulls kept me company. I will paint here again.
Water mixable oil is not a great medium for plein air painting. The paint changed from buttery to gluey as I worked. Whether this was the result of the sun and the wind or the humidity, it is difficult to tell without further exploration – something that I don’t care to do. The work was successful but I don’t enjoy painting with glue.
When I was virtually finished, the painting blew off the easel. Water splashed on the canvas and I got gravel from the wharf into the paint. I grinned and packed it up and left my supplies on Eleanor’s back porch. I started back to Shad Bay by following the 5 or 6 kilometre path along the ocean through the Barrens. It was a wonderful hike. The shoreline was littered with the remains of lobster pots, wood and ropes. 16x20

Lines – Sky and Shad Bay

2009-11-25T14:17:00.000-08:00

A stable layer aloft and high altocumulus created gravity wave lines in the sky. The incoming tide and an island well to the left created elongated swirls and deformation zone “calm bands” in Shad Bay. The tides and storm cleaning the rocks on the far shore of Shad Bay created another set of line. The rust colour sea weed clinging to the rocks below this tide line created yet another line. The bands of spruce and deciduous trees on the far shore created a patchwork of lines. The home on the far shore with its paved, black top drive headed down to the ocean’s edge, created unnatural lines. I put them all in. 11x14 inches Water Mixable Oils

Olivia Beverley

2009-11-24T12:33:00.000-08:00

Two week old Olivia seldom opened her eyes at the start of the week. This changed rapidly day by day as she became more in tune with her surroundings. By November 14th, Olivia spent much more time alert! I have a happy face in every sun … and “Olivia” subtlety included in the painting as well.!

August Turbulent Stratocumulus

2009-09-23T14:10:00.000-07:00

A cold front passed by Watershed Farm near dawn. There were a few hours of showers and then the typical clearing with brisk northwesterly winds. The air was cooler and drier. The gusty winds lifted the moisture to condensation and streets of turbulent stratocumulus parallel to the mean wind direction in the planetary boundary layer results. As I was painting, the clouds became flatter topped and more blue sky appeared between the cloud streets. The air was almost cool and the geese and blue jays were talking like fall had already arrived. I think this is a powerful painting inspired by the moment.
I stood on the front hill of Watershed Farm looking northeastward almost perpendicular to the cloud streets. I had to stake down my easel with my tent cord and a spare brush.

Some More Summer Flowers

2009-09-21T02:09:00.000-07:00

Outstanding in front of the barn again just after 8 am. The types and colours of the perennial flowers and weeds have changed since the last time I stood here. The title is intended to be a bit of a humourous alliteration. Linda mentioned that she wanted another painting of flowers and this is it. Oils on cobalt blue tinted acrylic foundation on commercial canvas - 16 X 20

Painting the Forest for the Trees

2009-09-17T13:17:00.000-07:00

This is a decorative piece in which I wanted to have fun with positive and negative shapes without getting into the details of leaves and twigs and the tiny bugs on those twigs. The feeling of the forest can be captured without laying in all of the deadening details. At the same time, the character of the trees within the forest can be captured without including each tree. The saying goes that often, one cannot see the forest for the trees. I see the trees but wanted to paint the forest in a decorative way. My hope is that anyone seeing this will subconsciously appreciate the beauty in the individual trees that make up the forest. Moreover, I want them to come away appreciating the simplified overall beauty of the forest which is a complete and healthy ecosystem composed of trees that man should not mess with.
I still paint what I see but it is getting easier as I need glasses more often. I just wanted to have some fun!

Watershed Cumulus

2009-09-09T04:17:00.000-07:00

This is the view to the east from the front yard of Watershed Farm. It is mid afternoon and fair weather cumuli have developed in the northwesterly flow. These cells are slightly capped by a layer but some cumulus clouds like the main subject and the one in the right background, have erupted through this cap. The clouds are sheared toward the southeast indicating strong northwesterly winds above the cap. Nothing bad was going to happen with these particular cumuli. It was a fair weather day ahead of an upper ridge. My main goal was to have fun with the colours and to try to capture the cloud and its texture without making the hard cumulus appear like a boulder in the sky. Clouds can be like "ink blots" to fathom the inner workings of the mind. Everyone sees something different - sometimes very different! I was just painting what I saw...

Margaritaville Morning

2009-09-05T03:20:00.000-07:00

This is the campsite on the south shore of the big island in McCrae Lake on one of the first voyages of my Kevlar canoe "Margaritaville". It is early on a cool August morning. There was some Arctic sea smoke wafting off the warm summer water of the lake. I had Margaritaville pulled up on a patch of weed in a natural crevice in the granite. One would not want to scratch the finish just like one wouldn't want to dent a new car. Those fears are long gone but the memories linger. I was loading up the canoe with our fishing equipment. The little yellow, plastic box held surface lures - my favourite. Oils on medium burnt sienna oil tinted foundation on commercial canvas - 16 X 20 (inches)

A New Day

2009-08-28T05:57:00.000-07:00

I was standing on the front hill at 8 am looking toward the east. The deck of low stratocumulus was pushing in from the south while higher altocumulus was nearly stationary awaiting the sun to burn through it. It was a dark morning after the supercells of the previous day but it promised to be hot and muggy and much sunnier by noon. The energy was still around for more thunderstorms and there was still a lot of veering wind shear associated with the upper low to the northwest. I only had a couple of hours to paint this rather dark dawn to a new day which promised to be full of thunderstorms again. It was sunny by the time I finished.

2009-08-27T06:25:00.000-07:00

This is an example of a channeled, classic jet stream and the associated cirrus cloud. The jet stream is on the northern or cold side of the cirrus cloud. The axis of maximum winds is pretty straight or "channeled" in these situation. The jet maximum core is probably just at the leading edge of the thickest cirrus associated with the jet stream. For me, this meant that the jet stream was directly overhead and just outside of the painting. The clouds can tell you a story if you know the vocabulary. It is Greek to most people these days but the rural population of early Canada understood.
There is a patch of altocumulus floccus in the right entrance of the upper jet and this is consistent with the earlier diagnosis. The floccus type cloud tells us that the warm air mass south of the jet stream is quite unstable but pretty dry as well. Nothing bad is going to happen at least for a while.

Dark Dawn

2009-08-26T06:35:00.000-07:00

A warm conveyor belt associated with an approaching low pressure area was pushing northward across the Oak Ridges Moraine. Low level moisture moving with the flow was still dark while the sun illuminated the higher level sky. This low level cloud will dissipate quickly under the August sun but at dawn it looked really dark and dangerous. It wasn't but you really have to be a meteorologist or an experienced weather keener to figure it out. This sky meant that southern Ontario would get into the hot and humid weather again until the next cold front came along with thunderstorms. The cumulonimbus arrived just after I finished the painting the next day.

Note that the next day was Thursday August 20th and the tornadic supercell outbreak across Southern Ontario....

McCrae Memories

2009-08-25T08:50:00.000-07:00

This is a mid afternoon view of the creek that leads into McCrae Lake. This view is looking southward with the onshore lake breeze shaping the cumulus clouds. There is only a breeze getting to the ground through the channel that leads to the west and McCrae Lake. This explains the ribbon of sky reflection in the otherwise mirror-like reflection of the scene in front of me. My goal was to have fun with the colours and the reflections.

My Flower Bed

2009-08-24T04:51:00.001-07:00

By 8 am I was "outstanding" in front of the barn looking for something to paint. I like the way the tall flowers cast their shadows on the bright foundation of the barn. As well, the sun was on my back so it was a most pleasant place to paint. There are names for these perennial flowers but goodness knows what they are. By 8 am I was "outstanding" in front of the barn looking for something to paint. I like the way the tall flowers cast their shadows on the bright foundation of the barn. As well, the sun was on my back so it was a most pleasant place to paint. There are names for these perennial flowers but goodness knows what they are.

C.B. Rainbow

2009-08-22T07:46:00.000-07:00

Around 4:30 pm on Tuesday afternoon. I watched this thunderstorm pass by to the northeast of Watershed Farm. There was enough wind shear to encourage supercells to develop although the stronger dynamics were over the Ottawa Valley. In fact a tornado did occur in Gatineau just across the Ontario Quebec border.
This particular cumulonimbus was still developing but there was evidence that there was already a separation of the up and down drafts. The forward flank downdraft and associated rain was producing a shallow arch single rainbow to the right. The shallow angle the rainbow made with the horizon revealed that sunset was still hours away - almost 4 hours in fact. There looked to be a bit of a shelf cloud toward the middle of the cloud base and I'm not sure if this was with the forward flank or rear flank downdraft. From the orientation of the shelf fingers, this shelf cloud is more likely to originate from the forward flank downdraft. The flanking line of the CB on the left edge of the painting is short and steep. This storm had a lot of development left to do.
This storm was destined to rumble along the Lake Ontario lake breeze. Apparently damage was reported near Peterborough and this could have been the cumulonimbus responsible.
Although there is no secondary rainbow in this view, the sky between the primary and secondary bows is noticeably darker than elsewhere. Alexander of Aphrodisias first described the effect in 200 AD and it now carries his name. Light rays undergoing a single reflection in raindrops form the primary rainbow or brighten the sky inside it. Rays reflected twice are deviated to form the secondary bow or brighten the sky outside. Raindrops along lines of sight between the two bows cannot send light to your eye and so the sky is darker there - a good explanation.
As I was painting this, I was thinking of Lawrence Nickle's reference to the Group of Seven's treatment of clouds as "boulders in the sky". This cumulonimbus was a boulder :>)

The Son of the Fence

2009-08-21T12:30:00.000-07:00

This is the son (or daughter) of #0608 "February Fence". This painting is expected to be the brother (sister) to #1078 "The Son of a Wild Life". They are almost at the same location and the conditions were similar for both paintings which were both done in the late winter of 2003 - about 200 metres from the back of the barn.
Other paintings along this part of the fence line: #0608, #0618, #0629 #0879 #1078 and #1084.
Oils on light burnt sienna oil tinted foundation on commercial canvas - 36 X 48 (inches)

Weather of Ontario

2009-08-12T08:56:00.001-07:00

This is the cover of the "Weather of Ontario". It has gone to the printers and is expected to be on shelves by mid November although you can already pre-order at a discount on-line.
There is some new up-to-date science in the book and I want to thank the contributions of my friend and meteorological researcher Dave Sills. The folks at Lone Pine were terrific to work with and I look forward to seeing the final product. I am told they used a lot of my art. Most of the cloud images were selected from my library of cloud watching that spans the last 35 years. Some good friends filled in the weather image holes that I didn't have. There is even an image of the June 28th, 2009 F2 tornado included in the book at the last minute.

Tom Thomson’s “Dawn at Round Lake"

2009-07-28T11:29:00.001-07:00

Visit the Weather Doctor, my Friend Keith Heidorn to see CSI applied to Tom's painting.

http://www.islandnet.com/~see/weather/arts/tthomson-dawn.htm

Approaching Cold Front

2009-07-20T14:17:00.000-07:00

A long north to south cold front was crossing Lake Huron during the early afternoon hours. Gusty southerly winds had already blown over #1082 "Range Light Mourning" which as a larger piece of canvas, behaved like a sail. Mid level instability was sufficient to produce rain showers that reached the ground as pale sheets as in the northern portion of this painting. The altocumulus castellanus to the left were less well developed and had not yet developed into full fledged towering cumulus clouds and showers. The upper levels of the atmosphere were still layered and mainly stable. The fishing boat (steel turtle) had just headed out and I sketched it as it went past.

Range Light Mourning

2009-07-19T05:14:00.000-07:00

A long north to south cold front was crossing Lake Huron during the early afternoon hours. The cirrostratus had already cover the sky in a thin veil. Thicker. lower and more opague wisps of cirrus were now spreading westward in advance of the cold front. This was followed by even lower altocumulus clouds that had edges that were more oriented form the southwest to the northeast. This mid level moisture was thickening into altostratus on the western horizon. Rain was definitely on the way but we had plenty of time to finish this third demonstration piece for the "Wind, Waves and Weather" plein air course.

I left a fisherman in the painting but I let him catch a fish and that is the splash in the water to the left of the range light. The fishing wasn't really that good. The calm water arching up and to the left is the wake of a small motor boat that is out of the painting and on its way to Chantry Island.

Breaking Waves

2009-07-18T13:03:00.000-07:00

This is looking northward from the rocky point near where we painted all morning.The wave action was still swell. The trees were still in shadow and actually interested me more that the waves. A few strips of cirrostratus were pushing across the sky to the north heralding the change in the weather scheduled for Wednesday. A warm southerly wind would dominate the weather ahead of the next approaching cold front.

Waving to Chantry

2009-07-17T18:25:00.001-07:00

The goal behind this demonstration piece was to illustrate how to observe and paint the elements of something that is in constant motion. Waves and clouds are good examples of such moving targets. The swells were still rolling in from Lake Huron as a result of the northwesterly winds from Monday and overnight. The wave action was swell (so to speak). There were no clouds.
I also emphasized the observation of colours and how these colours change with lighting and wetness. Sand is a great example of this.
The composition of this piece is designed to guide the eye along the wet sand to the remains of Chantry’s “Short Dock” and on that subtle line to the even more subtle but colourful sailboat. The sailboat is headed past Chantry Light and the secondary but more obvious point of interest.

Saugeen Tug

2009-07-16T06:41:00.000-07:00

This view is from 9 am looking south across the Saugeen at the assortment of turtle boats and a single tug. The far shore was all in shade except for a glancing slice of light across the roves and the northeast surfaces of the boats. A cold front had just passed through and a brisk northwest wind was pushing the waves upstream against the flow of the Saugeen. These same winds were blowing the tree boughs on the far shore to the east as well. The cold frontal stratocumulus cloud had cleared out leaving blue bird skies for the late morning and early afternoon. Some altocumulus gravity wave clouds crossed the scene later in the morning and I included these in the painting although there wasn’t much room available at the top. This layer of stable clouds was riding the elevated cold frontal surface. There was rust showing on the fleet and I wanted this neglect to show in a “pretty” way. The first day at the "Wind, Waves and Weather" Plein Air Course, Southampton.

Smoke Cedars

2009-07-11T14:34:00.000-07:00

This is the view looking southerly across Smoke Lake through a stand of cedars. Through the title I am not suggesting that anyone actually smoke cedar bark - I just thought the title might be humourous. There was a complex tangle of roots from the tree cedars all trying to find the sparse soil on top of the rock. I enjoyed this unusal composition which is not my typical painting. Oils on medium burnt sienna oil tinted foundation on commercial canvas - 11 X 14

Dry Towers

2009-07-08T18:15:00.000-07:00

At 5:30 pm I headed out to stand on the front hill. I had expected to find fair weather cumulus but there were several lines of embedded towering cumulus to the east. None of these towering cumulus produced more than a few drops so they were basically dry, cries. As I was painting the wind shifted from the southwest to the northeast. The cooler and drier wind from the northeast provided the necessary shear to tilt the clouds that were still in the southwesterly flow. The clearing with the northeasterly gusts provided my favourite shade of sky which I felt compelled to put on the canvas. These same winds also threatened to blow over the easel which I had to tie to the white spruce on the front hill. It was a fun evening with a bit larger canvas.
Oils on burnt sienna oil tinted foundation on commercial canvas - 14 X 18

Shower Curtains

2009-07-07T12:42:00.000-07:00

I set up my easel on the beach of the Kearney Lodge, Lake of Two Rivers. A cold low centred near Earlton was causing spokes of showers to rotate across Algonquin Park. The cold low wheel had many spokes so that the dry periods between the showers became shorter especially during the afternoon when the limited daytime heating had made the air mass its most unstable. This particular band of showers emerged from the west and gradually pulled a curtain of rain across my view. I had to retreat to the car briefly to keep the canvas dry.
I displayed this painting as a backdrop for my evening "Tom Thomson Was A Weatherman" presentation at the park. My friend Tony Bianco had praise for it. We had 96 people out to hear the presentation. It was well received.
The title is meant to be a humourous pun on the common bathroom item. Instead of keeping one dry, these atmospheric shower curtains made one rather damp.
Oils on medium burnt sienna oil tinted foundation on commercial canvas - 11 X 14

Morning Rain Clouds

2009-07-03T06:33:00.000-07:00

The old cold low continued to spin its weather over Southern Ontario. Some morning embedded altocumulus castellanus was visible every now again during breaks to the east. More overcast towering cumulus were bringing showers in from the west. The roof of the balcony was the only thing that kept me and the canvas from getting soaked. The colours of the clouds were my main interest in painting this scene.

Canada Day TCUs

2009-07-01T18:01:00.000-07:00

A towering cumulus (TCU) was laying down an isolated shower on the American shore. Not a drop fell during Canada Day Celebrations on the north shore of the St Lawrence River. The weather and clouds were shaped by southwesterly winds down the St Lawrence under a cool and unstable upper cold low situation. I didn’t have any cerulean blue so I made do. Some sailboats cruised by so I put them in the painting.Oils on medium rose acrylic tinted foundation on commercial canvas - 11 X 14

Algonquin Park CSI

2009-07-01T10:35:00.000-07:00

My good Friend and fellow artist Keith C. Heidorn, PhD is the Weather Doctor. Keith has compiled a piece on his website about my work with the art and weather of Tom Thomson. The timing is perfect as I present "Tom Thomson Was A Weatherman" at the Amplitheatre at Kilometre 34.6 of Alongquin Park at 8 pm on Monday July 6th - hope to see you there!

"What inspired Tom Thomson, one of Canada’s greatest artists? Join Phil “The Forecaster” Chadwick as he tries to convince you that the weather was Thomson’s inspiration and that the proof is in the painting."

Here is Keith's widely used website
http://www.islandnet.com/~see/weather/doctor.htm

Ragged Falls

2009-06-27T06:02:00.000-07:00

This is the view from partway up Ragged Falls looking upward toward the source of the torrent. I climbed up from the bottom of the falls looking for subject matter. There was so much of it. I didn't realize until I tried to climb out that Algonquin Park had erected great fences to keep people from going where I had climbed. Coming from the absolute bottom, I never encountered a fence until I tried to climb out. The falls are indeed ragged with many twists and turns among the torrent of water. The painting is not quite done... but you get the idea.

"Smoke Lake Cumulus"

2009-06-23T03:00:00.000-07:00

I still had hours until I had to be at the Algonquin Arts Centre Opening so I decided to check out the Smoke Lake boat ramp - it was a great decision. There were no bugs on the docks and I was able to paint in peace with a broad vista to the south. The cumulus clouds were well developed and were my main subjects. Jet stream cirrus and cirrostratus were streaming in from the west and heralding the approaching low pressure area and rain. This rain would come to pass as the deformation zone had pushed well to the north of Algonquin Park.
I started out painting on the floating dock but had to move to the shore due to the boat traffic in and out of the boat ramp. The dock bounced up and down and it was difficult to keep the brush on the canvas. Two young couples came by, admired my work and called me Tom Thomson - it was nice:>)