Academy of Realist Art "The New Masters" Exhibit

These photos were taken at the opening of "The New Masters" exhibit at The Academy of Realist Art. The paintings will be on view until June 21, 2014 if you would like to take a look!

I am also very excited to be flying to Britain next week and then taking the Eurostar to France! It is going to be interesting attempting to drive a stick shift vehicle on the wrong side of the road. The plan is to visit some gardens and palaces, then a few days in London before crossing the channel. We are heading west to Bristol and Bath, then south to Brighton. I hope to gather lots of reference material, especially for a series of paintings I have in mind, focusing on Parisian city life. Au revoir!

Academy of Realist Art Toronto "The New Masters" Annual Juried Exhibition Opens May 17

I hope you can join me this coming Saturday at the opening for an exhibit of realist art at 2968 Dundas Street West in the west end of Toronto. All the details are in the poster above.

Two of my paintings will be on display, including a really big one of Canadian athlete, Donovan Bailey, who was twice an Olympic gold medal winner! 

The location is in the west end of Toronto, in the area known as "The Junction", just north of Bloor West Village. 

There are some great places to shop and dine in the area too! I love The Sweet Potato (a mini Whole Foods) and Bunner's Bake Shop for gluten-free baked goods. Their cinnamon bun is delish!

See you there!

Opening Night for Canadian Olympic Athletes: A Dialogue in Art

As you can see, it was quite a crush!

Speeches were given, an Olympic torch was passed around everyone enjoyed viewing the paintings.

Donovan Bailey at The Spoke Club

Portraits of Canadian Olympic Athletes on Display at John B. Aird Gallery

My portrait of past Olympic Gold Medal winner Donovan Bailey will be on view at The John Aird Gallery in Toronto, Ontario from March 2-26, 2010, along with many other portraits of Canadian Olympic Athletes.

The gallery, located at 900 Bay Street, is open Monday to Friday from 10 am to 6 pm.

There will be an opening reception on Thursday, March 4 from 6pm to 8pm, so please come join us in celebrating the accomplishments of the athletes and how they have been portrayed.

Donovan Bailey Portrait - Detail

Here are the hands and the bling - the secret to painting jewelery is to not spell everything out. Human vision is selective - in other words we focus on one thing and everything else is peripheral. Leaving something to the imagination of the viewer makes the painting more interesting and truly realistic, something photography is unable to accomplish.

Donovan Bailey Portrait - Detail

Since this is such a large painting, I thought I would post a couple of details. I always want to get up close and put my nose next to paintings to see the brushwork and examine how the artist made the piece, so here is a close up of Mr. Bailey's head for anyone else who is interested in examining it more closely.