Western Mariner

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

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

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

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

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...

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

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

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

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.!