Hello Summer, Hello to a New Year

Life seems to slowly be moving towards a new and better year. With vaccines going into the arms of more and more people, mine included, the virus seems to be retreating and life is slowly getting back to some type of normal. To be grateful for art is an understatement for me. I certainly never thought I would ever call myself an artist but it becomes easier as more people tell me they love what I create. And to be able to create over the last year has certainly been a blessing. Every time my mind goes blank, I see something that forms the idea for a new illustration. The following started with "A Mushroom Forest" that inspired "A Flower Patch" which inspired "The Neighborhood". In addition to these three, here are a few more recent works.

Recent Works

After more than a year of mostly showing my art on "Social Media", it was great to display my work at Gallery Vertigo as April Artist of the Month. I loved being able to put up much of my recent work in one room and it gave me a sense of accomplishment to see over 100 of the smaller originals on the wall that were created after the time COVID shut so many venues down. Here is a small sample.

Stay tuned to more illustrations coming up for the Monashee Arts Council's July Show "People, Plants, and Pollinators". I have visions of bees, dandelions, and bee hives so I had better get busy. I am always looking for ideas. Sometimes a word, a picture, a thought, a story are all I need to create.

"You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream"

2020 Reflections and the Beginning of a Brand New Year

Here we are, the beginning of a new year following a year most of us would like to forget. I, however, have to start by saying how grateful I am to have discovered art at this stage of my life and all the joy it brings, especially during the challenging days we have had and are still dealing with. I am grateful to have the support of family, friends and the many local businesses that carry my art. Many projects kept me going, one which was called "Art in Isolation". A series of word prompts from Sheri Kunzli from the Vernon Community Art Centre encouraged me to create every day for almost two months and which I added to this board.

Then the lovely Lauri Wiberg and I worked together to create and publish two children's books. My illustrations and her delightful poetry came together in "A Whimsical Journey, Books One and Two".

To top it all off, I worked hard on creating this new website from which you can now purchase my greeting cards, prints, books and more. See Children's Book in the Gallery.

December was a busy month getting organized for the local fundraiser "Artsolutely". Up until the last week we were not sure it would be a go but we were approved to open and the Vernon Community Art Centre had it's best year ever. Shoppers enjoyed having a safe place to view and purchase local art from our amazing artisans.

The new year has begun with having a new coloring book ready for print [Book 7] and a small ABC booklet that can fit into a greeting card. Makes a great little extra gift when sending a card and filled with 26 of my illustrations. Check out the Coloring Book section in the Gallery.

And of course Valentines is around the corner so hearts are in abundance in my art. Check out the Seasonal section in the Gallery.

Making concrete plans for markets and shows are still not in the works but with vaccines coming soon and more people following COVID protocols, I hope that some kind of normal happens soon. I miss being with family, seeing faces of friends, celebrating special events and giving hugs. However, creativity rules and I read the best use of imagination is creativity and the worst use of imagination is anxiety. "Deepak Chopra"

Happy New Year to All!!

The Magic Touch - A Whimsical Journey - Book Two - Just Published

Before becoming an artist, I created a beautiful magical garden in Maple Ridge, BC. My garden was my joy, full of peace and good energy and I loved to share it with other gardeners. With the help of a good friend, we organized "Country Garden Tours" that raised over $30,000 for "Sunshine Dreams for Kids". Over the years I had hundreds of people tour my garden, and often I was asked how I managed to keep it looking so healthy. My answer always was "the fairies help me". The garden was featured in "Canadian Gardening" and the article on the garden was called "The Magic Touch". I always loved the whimsical fairy ornaments I would see in the garden centers and had a few placed along the pathways but suddenly "fairy" statues of all kinds and sizes began to mysteriously show up for me to find among the flowers. To this day no one has owned up to leaving them but they all moved with me and sit quietly on my balcony garden here in Vernon. I am sure those little fairies continue to inspire me but now on paper instead of in the garden. Laurel has come up with the most delightful poetry to accompany my illustrations.