2023 Advent Calendar Days 9 - 15

 

There are only ten days until Christmas Day. Are you ready for the holidays? Or are you still shopping for gifts and stressing to make it the perfect Christmas? While I cannot help you prepare your home and feasts for the holidays, I offer gift certificates for artworks and workshops that make gifting easier. Your loved ones can decide to bring a nature painting for continuous enjoyment to their home or register for a needle felting course. You can even register together for even more fun and lasting memories. Please contact me to order a gift certificate.

The images of my Art Advent Calendar might intrigue you to take a felting course. If you want to purchase any of the paintings, please email me.

 

Day 10: Cardinal in Spring, wool, 6" x 8"

I created this artwork during the felting workshop, where I am always more concerned about my students project than my own. After the first class, I was therefore unhappy with the composition. It looked like the bird was growing out of the tree trunk. I added another branch, more leaves and blooms. I also adjusted the bird's body before sending my cardinal into the world.

Day 11: Three Poppies, wool, 8.75" x 12",
custom-matted to fit a 12" x 16" frame, CAN $450 + shipping

Some years ago, I painted the scene in my friend's backyard in acrylic.

In the spring of 2022, I started a needle-felted version of the three poppies in front of blue irises. I usually don't use a lot of red in my artworks, but these bright flowers framed by the blue irises captured my attention.

I put the artwork aside during the summer and winter and finally finished it on January 1, 2023.

 

Day 12: Thatched-Roof Houses, Sylt, wool and mixed fibres, 9" x 11.5",
custom-matted to fit a 12" x 16" frame, $450 + shipping

Sometimes, when I get homesick, I think of German destinations I still want to visit with my children. I love Sylt, the island in Northern Germany, and the happy memories of family vacations that included my beloved grandmother. The thatched roof houses are so beautifully rustic and blend into the landscape. Many people who have visited Sylt fall in love with the island and become regular visitors.

Day 13: Wild White Roses, watercolour and watercolour pencil,
5.8" x 8.3"

This watercolour painting is another from one of our Painting Buddies one-hour Zoom meetings. I love wild rose bushes and have painted them often during our painting trips to Kamouraska. This piece is my first watercolour painting of a white rose. It is fascinating to see how many colours you see observing a white flower or any other white object. Nothing in nature is as white as the colour from your tube or pan. Check out the white snow lit by the sunset and see for yourself.

Day 14: Morning Chores, Venice, 18" x 24",
custom-matted to fit a 24" x 30" frame, CAN 800 + shipping

This image is the first artwork inspired by my travel to Italy this year. It is the largest needle-felted painting I have created so far. For the first time, I drew the rough areas of my composition onto the fabric.
Working on the large piece was challenging because it took a long time to see progress. Keeping the shingles more or less parallel took some patience.

My excitement rose when I started creating the woman tending to her plants. I considered felting a person in the left window but decided against it. Instead, I added laundry and flower boxes under both windows for additional colour. Creating the battered walls of the house, with the plaster crumbling and exposed stones, took a long time. Most of the time, my needle-felted paintings progress fast in the early stages, but the details take a lot of time. I enjoy seeing the pieces come together and take my time until I am satisfied with the result. Therefore, I had to postpone publishing the image a couple of days ago because I just finished the artwork in time for today's post.

I love that the image captures the beauty of the crumbling old house and the ordinary household chores, which we often see as necessary evil. Although seen from the outside, there is beauty in someone putting up the laundry and the clothes flying in the wind. Many artists have been inspired to capture everyday activities in genre paintings, often romanticizing household activities. 

Day 15: Hay Fields, wool, 8.75" x 11.75",
custom-matted to fit a 12" x 16" frame, CAN $450 + shipping

I painted the scene a couple of years ago with acrylic paints and sold the painting almost instantly. When I painted the image, I struggled to capture the impression of the fields for a long time. I was curious to find out how I would succeed with the details of the wool image. Again, creating the hay bales was a struggle.

 

The artwork reminds me of the smell of late summer and my home town where I took the reference photo.

 

Have a wonderful third weekend of Advent!