Just Peachy

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I borrowed the light from a friend’s studio in Manhattan when I visited her one day about five years ago, when I started this painting. Not that I’ve been working on it for five years ago, just that I started it then, worked on it here and there and finally finished it this week. My friend had extra large, gorgeous peaches set out on the table that overlooked a busy city street. The light falling in the windows reminded me of Vermeer. I thought it was a beautiful studio to work in and bought a small painting of hers on that day for my collection too. Visiting her in her studio was a highlight of a wonderful trip.

Street Crossing

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I’ll try to get a better photo of this painting later, there is some glare on the image.

I was delighted to receive the above photo this weekend from a lady who bought the above painting (unframed) in 2008. It is a 2006 watercolour sketch of a Weimaraner that I later painted in oils. Seeing a painting after a few years is a little like seeing an old friend. Thank you for sending this along, Michelle!

I think this is going to be a fun year, maybe that’s what the Mayans were thinking when they set up their calendar? Go for years and years and years, slogging it out, then, bang! Fun. Click on the image above if you’d like to read my latest newsletter. You can subscribe to it by clicking here.

Light, field & stream

SOLD

Private Collector: Fredericton, New Brunswick

Cat on a red blanket

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This cat looks like it posed for hours in a studio with that dark background but it started out as an image that caught my eye in 2005, a friendly barn cat I had just woken up.

Calyx

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If you’re familiar with gooseberries, you’ll probably recognize the papery-thin wrapper they grow in.

Tomato

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BUNNY

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I thought it was time Bunny had his portrait done.

Turnip

SOLD

Private Collection: Truro, Nova Scotia

Yesterday, the New York Times published Recipes for Health: Turnips, which sent me scrambling to the fridge. There were two small turnips sitting in the bottom drawer since October, one was growing yellow sprouts. I peeled, chopped and then tossed the one without the sprouts into a soup pot, the other became a subject of fascination: the above still life. According to NYT article, you can eat turnip leaves (who knew?) and they taste like kale. I’ve never eaten turnip leaves before, have you? I plan on trying them next spring, or whenever I see them. The leaves are full of calcium, vitamins K, A and beta carotene. Worth trying. Just hope some turn up soon. ;)

Oddly, for the first week of January, this is turning into a hopeful gardener’s week, first, harvested swiss chard, kale, rosemary and thyme (which went into a delicious omelet), then I learned that the book launch for The Year Round Vegetable Gardener is happening in a few weeks at Halifax Seed. Then Halifax Seed’s catalogue arrived in the mail and now this new information about turnips. It’s a wonderful start to a new year especially since I miss my garden so much in winter, the next best thing is just planning for the next season.

Click here for a Global Maritimes news story about winter gardening. Warms my heart. :)