Saturday, April 18, 2015

Chalkboards for Antico Pizza in Kelowna





It's been a total pleasure doing these four chalkboards for Antico Pizza in Kelowna for the past few days. They're huge (almost 6' tall) and filled with all my favorite ingredients.  I chose to do the mosaic tile motif in the headers to reflect their beautiful pizza oven. It's a work of art. I'll definitely be frequenting this place anytime I'm back in Kelowna. Go check it out if you're there. It's on Bernard between Water and Pandosy. Estimated opening May 5th. 

Sunday, April 12, 2015

Plein Aire Challenge at Van Dusen Gardens

Well I'm home safe and sound. Spain was amazing and I loved every second, but I've landed to a flurry of activity that's keeping me too busy to pine for the Spanish countryside. In the 10 days I've been home I've moved to a new studio, bought my own press (yay!),  competed in an outdoor painting challenge and taken part in a huge Lab Art Show!   Now it's Sunday morning and I'm getting reacquainted with my sofa as I update. 

Cherry Blossom Festival Plein Aire Challenge at Van Dusen Gardens 

Yesterday I gathered with a couple dozen artists in this amazing park in the heart of Vancouver. We had 3 hours to paint our surroundings, then gathered for jurying. Joanne won 1st place in the acrylic category and I got a second in watercolour. We both won big fat gift cards from Opus, my favourite att supply store. Thanks Opus for sponsoring the event, and Alfonso Tejeda for hosting. It was really fun!  It's the first time I've joined in an event like that, but I'll definitely do more. The best part is getting to know other artists and seeing what they're doing. I was amazed by so many of the paintings , and by what people can get done in a few hours!  Wow!  
Here we are with our paintings, grinning like girls with a few hundred bucks to spend. 


I had an hour of downtime, then was off to the Lab Art Show with Glitz Entertainment (I love those ladies!). They put on a fantastic show; live music, dance, mind-blowing body painting, interactive art pieces and a really cool cross section of visual art. I was proud to be part of it.  I met lots of really cool people, and a few of my faves came down to check it out and cheer me on.