ARTIST’S STATEMENT:

My preferred medium is oil; however for sketching trips, painting in watercolour and working oil pastel sketches is more practical and portable.

Like my mentor, Emily Carr, I am seeking to paint the spirit of God in nature, and the essence of that spirituality is important to me.  Through the use of colour, which I enjoy exploring, I hope to offer optimistic impressions to the viewer of my interpretation of the glorious Canadian landscape.

I also enjoy painting the Madonna, and other religious pieces.  Several of these paintings are hanging in local churches and rectories as reminders of the value of my faith and how it is the foundation of my whole life.

EXHIBITION HISTORY:

1977 -1979    Solo exhibitions in Cornwall , Ontario

1980              First Toronto exhibition

1982 – 1984  Participated in Festival de Arts, Montreal , Que

1982              Solo show, Royal Trust Tower , Toronto , On

1983              First exhibition in Kingston,On

1983              Fall exhibition, Coral Studio, Unionville, On

1984              Bicentennial, Invitational Group Show, Cornwall , On

1985              Fall showing, Royal York Hotel, Toronto , On

1986              Solo exhibition, Cornwall Regional Art Gallery

1986              C.R.A.G. Summer Traveling Group Show

1986              Wood House Museum , Solo Show, Cornwall , On

1986              MacDonald Club, Artist of the Month, Ottawa , On

1986              Del Bello Gallery, Juried Exhibition, International Miniatures, Toronto , On

1987              Kingston Public Library, Wilson Room , Solo Show (February)

1987              Cedar Ridge Studio Gallery, Scarborough , Solo Show (May)

1987              Cornwall Regional Art Gallery , Solo Show, (November) Cornwall , On

1988              Belleville Public Library Gallery, Solo Show

1995              C.R.A.G. Trees and Sky, Tribute to 50^th anniversary of Emily Carr’s death, Solo Show

1996              Earth and Sky: Combined exhibition with clay artist, Janet Keefe at Gallery Collections, Windsor , On

1996              Boulders and Branches, Second showing of work with clay artist, Janet Keefe, Nor’Westers and Loyalist’s Museum, Williamstown, On

2003              Homeward Bound: An Exhibition of new paintings, Lancaster , On

2004              Participated in Apples & Art Studio Tour, Cornwall area

2004              Group showing, Arbor Gallery, Vankleek Hill , Ontario

2005              “Flying Solo” exhibition, Lancaster , On

2005              “Art in the Family” Cornwall Regional Art Gallery , with Edgar Levy, Joan’s father, and John Earle , and Lisa Earle , her children

2007              Tribute to Jack’s Farm, major exhibition, Cedar Ridge Studio Gallery, Scarborough , On

2008              Group Show, Opus 3, The Abbey for the Arts, North Lancaster , On

SPECIAL PROJECTS:

1984      Volunteered as Artist in Residence, Nativity School , Cornwall , On. Set up studio in one of the classrooms for two months; painted a series based on the music of Andre Gagnon.  Students participated through observation and also150 students created their own painting.  Exhibition was held at the school of both artist’s work and that of the students.  This series was later shown at an Andre Gagnon concert, and also, at the Palais  de Congres in Montreal , Quebec .

1985      Volunteered for three months as Artist in Residence, Iona Academy , St. Raphael’s, Ontario . Set up studio in school and created a series of paintings based on the music of Roger Whittaker.  Regular visits to the studio by the students, learning techniques, and then doing their own paintings under the guidance of the artist.  Students were from kindergarten to grade eight.  Followed up by school exhibition, and showing at Cornwall Gallery.

1987     Volunteered as Artist in Residence, Mohawk School , Akwesasne Reserve near Cornwall , On.  Presentation of the work of poet Wallace Havelock Robb, Canadian poet who specialized in writing about native people. (W.H.Robb resided at Abbey Dawn, near Kingston , On)  A series of paintings was created based on his poetry,and worked with senior students on painting technique, with regular visits to the studio classroom, and followed this by a painting demonstration in each class.  Students and the artist combined efforts to present an exhibition of all of the paintings at the end of the project, which took two months.  The artist followed this with a special showing at the Belleville Library gallery in 1988 to celebrate the centennial of Robb’s birth in Belleville in 1888.