Some individuals are very successful at downsizing and staying downsized. Others, like me, simply exchange one type of collecting for another. Due to our current home being essentially modern, I collect fewer antiques but recently, more art. I thought I’d share some of the pieces I have collected, and a little about the artists who created them.

The first painting, above, is by veteran artist, Jim Davies. He is known primarily as a landscape painter but his take on the genre is anything but predictable. According to the Art gallery Of Alberta’s website, “Davies’ expressive technique creates a lively narrative that places the Prairies in a mysterious and intriguing context.” This painting spoke to me. The landscape is rather “dark” and the viewer is not exactly sure what time of day it is, in spite of the sun’s location. The foreground appears to be of a swamp, and the mood is more twilight than mid day. I love these contradictions. I have more paintings of his that I will share later. (I’m a fan – what can I say?) https://www.scottgallery.com/artists/jim-davies

This is the first painting I have collected by artist Yvonne Dubourdieu of Edmonton. Yvonne, in addition to being a documentary filmmaker, has a studio at Harcourt House, the hub of all things artistic. She held a sale of her works in one of Harcourt’s galleries and this is where I saw this piece. Her web site says this about her work: “Yvonne blends marks of realism, impressionism, and abstraction to the subjects that populate her works: landscapes, birds, animals and humans.” This painting is clearly of a waterfall but I was attracted to its graphic, abstract, painterly qualities. https://www.yvonnedubourdieu.ca/

I love going to Art Walks in spring and summer. The bright sunshine, the fair – like atmosphere, and the palpable energy you feel from all those creative artists in one spot – what’s not to like?  This summer, however, was a bit short on sunshine, so if it hadn’t been that I ducked into this artist’s tent in order to hide from the rain, I might not have looked as closely at her work.

What appealed to me right away was the Vanessa’s use of colour. She works in all media: oil, acrylic, coloured pencils, watercolour and more. She is a graphic designer by trade and this is evident in the crisp handling of her subject matter. She uses negative space in this painting in order to create this layering of colours and textures of what is essentially a painting of… weeds. I love the title too! www.valiart.ca

So there you have it. Do you collect art? What are some of your favourite artists?