25 Years in Canada - the Year 2019 Part II

Heading Towards Mount Robson Park, acrylic, 18" x 24", CAN

Blog 26


The second half of 2019 started with a reminder from my body that I had to slow down. Due to the inflammation in both heels, I could not walk much. It made me sad that I could not walk Alex for a couple of weeks, but it also freed up some time. During our family vacation to the cottage, I managed to paint despite many visitors.

On July 24, I spent a wonderful evening with fellow artists and visitors at the vernissage of the Arteast Promenade exhibition Summer Inspiration - Inspiration d'été, my only exhibition participation for the rest of the year.

Beebalms and Globe Thistle, acrylic, 8" x 8", CAN $230

 

I took part in two plein air painting events organized by the art organization Arteast. First, we went to a beautiful garden of one of the members in Cumberland, where I created the 8” x 8” painting called Beebalms and Globe Thistle. Next, we met at Petrie Island. I had a hard time and was quite frustrated with my artwork. When I stepped back from the easel, I was surprised how it had turned out and loved my painting Pickerel Weed.

 

Pickerel Weed, acrylic, 8" x 10", CAN $250

 

I had a very productive August with two drawing events and a painting party at the Humanics Sanctuary and Sculpture Park. I also managed to either paint or felt at least an hour every day, which felt amazing. I also started teaching my private German student again, who had taken some time off to travel.

In the summer, I received the opportunity to teach German classes virtually for government employees two days a week in the fall. I was excited about the prospect that would save me so much commuting time. Unfortunately, when I received the schedule, the hours were not divided over two days but four. They were also in the middle of each day, blocking other activities. As a result, I had to change my private teaching schedule, which was quite frustrating. 

Grassland, acrylic, 11" x 14", CAN $375

 

September was a very productive month for me due to the fantastic painting trip to Kamouraska. It was our 10th trip to this beautiful region. For the first time, Hélène, Janis and I drove together in one car. The painting trips are not only about painting but also about spending time together and sharing food. Painting is often a very solitary activity. Therefore, it is great to spend the time painting outside together. You have immediate support when you feel frustrated. My blog posts from September 20 to October 4 contain the travelogue of the trip. 

I tried to pass on this support by facilitating meetings for creative minds in my studio. With the Art Circle, the Crafters Evening, the Art Cafe, painting parties, and felting workshops, I brought more creativity, connections and fun into the lives of my students.

I taught three Cartooning & Comics courses and one mixed media course at the François Dupuis Recreation Centre. I also instructed three private German students and offered twelve hours of German instruction online.
 

Manning Road Marsh, acrylic, 8" x 10", CAN $250

October started with a delightful trip to Lake Clear with the Plein Air Ensemble. It was a very productive long weekend for Hélène, Janis and me. Instead of driving around long distances to find interesting spots, we stayed close to the resort. We discovered many interesting sights and had more painting time. To read the travelogue, please go to my blog from October 11 and 25. 

I also spent more on my felted paintings and finished three in the second half of 2019.

 

Apple Blossoms, wool and mixed fibres, embroidery thread, 8.5” x 11”,  CAN $375

November was extremely busy because of my trip to Germany at the beginning of December. I created the November and December content for my art and German business so that my customers received my daily FB posts, blogs and newsletter without interruption. I also held my Open House already in early November.

For the first time, I created a calendar of my works to have beautiful gifts to take along for the trip. The 2020 Canadian Landscape calendar was also a big success with my clients.
Despite the extra workload, I still managed to volunteer at Baz’Art in the Shenkman Arts Centre. A group of us promoted Arteast with painting demonstrations. I also replaced one of my friends during her regular classes at the St. Laurent Complex. I am glad that my friend Josie and I work very well together and replace each other at work whenever it is necessary.

Even though I worked extremely hard, I still made time for my family to experience our usual Advent activities before I left. We went to see the Christmas play at the Ottawa Little Theatre, visited the Village of Light at the Cumberland Heritage Village Museum and the Orleans Santa Parade of Lights. I even decorated the house, prepared the Advent calendars as well as the Santa Claus treats. We even managed to cut a tree together.

Pink Poinsettia sketch, watercolour, 5" x 7", NFS

My stay in Germany was one big reunion with relatives and friends. I even squeezed in time to visit the van Gogh exhibition in Frankfurt and the Jawlensky and Werefkin one in Munich. However, not everything went according to plan. My mother got sick and was hospitalized. Luckily, she only had to stay in the hospital for two days, but she was too weak for the activities we had planned together. However, we managed to get our very first family pictures done. I am so glad we have those photos of my parents, my sister and me. Who could have known that it would be at least two years before the next reunion?

When I arrived back in Canada on December 23, I still needed to help finish decorating the tree and the house for the next day. Christine baked a small number of cookies. Instead of our usual gingerbread house, Dominic put together the tiny chocolate house with our favourite sweets. While our Christmas was a little improvised, we celebrated in gratitude that we were together with Alex. Our almost fifteen-year-old dog was more excited than any one of us to open his present.

Three days later, we went to the cottage to end the year surrounded by the peacefulness of the snow-covered landscape. It was the perfect spot to re-energize and get ready for the new decade. Nobody had any idea how our lives would change in a couple of months.

25 Years in Canada - the Year 2019 Part I

Yellow Flower Served on a Platter, acrylic, 8" x 10", SOLD

Blog 25


I was excited to start 2019 with a new website. After my son had started and got stuck on creating a fresh look, Cynthia Harriston of Ottawa Net Designs combined his ideas with my functionality requirements. I was happy with the fresh look, even though I still had a lot of work to upload new paintings, course and workshop information.

Starting in January, I taught government employees again two days a week during the winter semester. While I loved the work, the 20-minute walk to the building from the National Gallery was treacherous during winter conditions, especially as I had to bring all my teaching materials with me. 

 

Kerstin Reading, acrylic, 20" x 16"

My winter courses for the City of Ottawa started in the middle of January. The number of registrations for my Cartooning and Comics courses stayed high at Francois Dupuis Recreation Centre. I also taught a mixed media course at Bob MacQuarrie Recreation Complex. However, the icy and snowy weather made getting to classes and workshops stressful. I preferred teaching from my studio. Aside from Painting Like Famous Artists workshops, I offered painting parties and specialty workshops like felting Easter eggs.

  

Candy and Alex, acrylic, 30" x 40", NFS

A huge milestone was the completion of the double portrait of our dogs Alex and Candy. When I started it in 2013, I thought I had lots of time to finish it. At that time, both dogs were seven years old. Little did I know that Candy would already leave us just over a year later when she died without any warning from a burst tumour. In 2016, I finally continued my work on the painting. However, I struggled with Candy. In the end, I picked another head position and re-painted her face completely. Working on Alex was a little bit easier as I had my model right with me in the studio.


Despite all the work, I was excited about the many visitors to our home. First, we hosted a big Peters Family reunion for our yearly Schnitzel Extravaganza. Then, my parents came for their last visit to Canada. Both my parents were in their eighties, and the trips to visit us became too strenuous. As they came for a visit three times a year, we had purchased a four-season cottage together after my son was born. After more than 20 years, it was time to sell the building. Even though my parents had cleaned out a lot, it took me three more days to empty the rest. In the end, we had half the garage full of stuff to donate. The experience left me mentally and physically drained. I resisted any further thoughts about selling our house. Instead, I started unpacking some of the boxes with our belongings. I am glad that we cleared our house in preparation for the sale and continue to clean out things that we do not need anymore. At the time, I was not ready to downsize to move into a much smaller house. I am sure that the day will come at some point, but at the moment, we enjoy our home and property. 

Abundance of Pansies, acrylic, 9" x 12", SOLD

As I had expected to move in 2018, I had not applied for many exhibitions. I was only part of the Navan Fine Arts Group display at Shenkman Arts Center. Nevertheless, I sold my painting Abundance of Pansies. I showed my studio to a guest, and she fell in love with the painting right away. That is the best possible scenario for an artist.

Almost Nighttime, acrylic 16" x 20", unfinished

In mid-March, I spent three hours at the DeSerres art store at the St. Laurent Shopping Centre to promote myself. I enjoyed some lovely conversations with young and older art lovers who watched me painting Almost Nighttime. It is another sunset from the shore of the St. Lawrence River in Kamouraska. 

 

Flower Doodles from the first Art Cafe

Teaching art was never only about teaching you techniques. Creating community has always been very important to me. Therefore, I welcomed new and existing clients for the first Art Cafe in April. During the event, we enjoyed some refreshments and created a themed craft while chatting, laughing and building connections.

Of Flowers and Butterflies, acrylic, 16″ x 20″, CAN $400

On the last weekend in April, I participated again in the Navan Fine Art Exhibition and Sale. During the event, I created a painting to the music played by pianist Bev McKiver. I was the second one scheduled and had assumed that I would paint an abstract piece. Instead, I started to panic as my mind went blank. Usually, when I go into my studio, I know what I want to paint. I might struggle with the composition or the process, but I know where I want to go. This time, I did not know what to expect. I had no idea what Bev would play or how I would react to it. I also was aware that people were watching me and talked to spectators during the process. When I finally started painting, I felt like flowers and butterflies. I was frustrated with the result. It took me a long time before I finished the painting. It is not one of my favourites, but it reflects the cheerful music.


In May, I worked non-stop as I planned to take some days off to spend time with two good friends from Germany and their husbands. Emptying the cottage, teaching, working on my website and marketing my events had left me spinning. It was all too much. I worked until late in the night and on weekends. When I look into my daily planner, I did not even take time for my quick 5-minute journal entries. Whenever I wanted to take time off, I prepared all the materials in advance. I needed to simplify some of my tasks. The first change was the reduction of my blog posts to a bi-weekly publication. However, the timing for their visit was perfect, as my husband and daughter spent the same time in Japan. We went sightseeing downtown and to several areas typical for the Canadian landscape, like Gatineau Park and the Mer Bleue Bog. It was fun to spend time together and be a tourist for a change!


The day after my friends left, I went on a bike ride with my son along the Ottawa River. Due to the high water on the pathway, we had to turn around and suddenly realized how dark the sky had turned. We just made it back to the car when the first heavy rain set in. Luckily, we left right away because about half an hour later, a tornado touched down where we were parked. While the residents in the area feared for their lives, we were only a few kilometres away enjoying ice cream, unaware of the drama. However, when I left later to pick up my husband and daughter from the airport, the sky was stunningly glowing in an unrealistic orange-red. On both sides of the road, trees looked like broken toothpicks, and houses were missing shingles.


In early June, I was horrified to see that someone had hacked my website and given himself administrator privileges. Luckily, I received an email right away. Together, my husband and my website designer could stop the attack quickly. I was relieved as the person either did not have the time or the interest to change any data.

During the Shenkman Arts Centre 10th Anniversary Block Party on June 14, 2019, I participate in a painting demonstration to promote Arteast and its members. At the beginning of my career, the prospect of painting watched by spectators would have made me very nervous. These days, I enjoy spending time with other artists and talking to the public. 

 

Self-portrait, oil pastels and coloured pencil, NFS

Therefore, I was also up for the challenge of creating a self-portrait during a visit to the Gauguin exhibition at the National Gallery and had a great time drawing it with oil pastels and coloured pencils.

At the end of June, I finally got to relax at the cottage with some of my friends. We enjoyed the slow pace and the time to recharge in nature. In this quiet setting, we took some time to brainstorm ideas to serve more people in our specific fields in the second half of 2019. We returned on the Friday of the long July weekend. I felt great and was very relaxed. I was looking forward to the Canada Day activities. When I woke up the next day, I could hardly walk and was in a lot of pain. I guess my body required even more rest. I was devastated because our yearly family vacation was only a week away.

 

Delightful Tulips, wool, 11" x 8.5", CAN $375

Next week, I will tell you more about my body’s need to rest and the small change that made it possible to free up a lot of time while serving more clients.

Vacation

 

25 Year in Canada - The Year 2018 Part II

Daring to be Different, acrylic, 10" x 10", CAN 275

Blog  24


Despite the heatwave we had here in Ottawa in July, I was very productive. I finished a couple of paintings and started a series of 15-minute art projects I posted on my Facebook page. I continued my Creativity Challenge. However, for the first two weeks of July (July 6 and 13, 2018), my blog posts reflected the discussion I had with my artist friend Anne Warburton on “Creating Art with a Group”. We taped the talks, and each of us wrote two blogs summarizing our answers to the same questions. While I posted Anne’s responses, she posted my answers to the same questions in her blog at https://annewarburton.blogspot.com/. All four blogs contained links to the five video clips. 

The Old Shed, acrylic, 8" x 10", CAN $250

As I was not working, I spent more time with my friends Janis Fulton and Hélène Martin. Together, we went to the Cumberland Heritage Village Museum, where I painted an old shed that nature slowly took over. The building was covered in vines and surrounded by tall grass. We also went out to the Beechwood Cemetery. There, I painted the pond with the water lilies. At the Humanics Institute Sculpture Park in Cumberland, we spent a morning drawing the sculpture “Motherly Love” of a hippopotamus holding her baby in her arms.


At the end of July, Christine and I went to Germany for my mother’s 80th birthday. It was extremely close to my heart as my mother had lost her only sibling less than six months before. Plus, it felt like a replay of her 50th birthday when her mother was in the final stage of cancer. My mother celebrated near her mother’s house so we could be together one more time. Due to my godmother’s illness, my mother had picked a birthday venue close to her sister’s home. Only this time, the seat stayed empty. When we later went to the cemetery, it hit me hard to see my beloved aunt’s name on the stone. It made her death inescapable.


While we were in Germany, the country reached temperatures in the high 30s - not even considering the humidex. It was more or less impossible to be outside after 10 am. Even at night, the temperatures hardly dropped. Traditionally, most buildings don’t have air-conditioning, except for the grocery stores and maybe new and big hotels. Some of the grocery stores lost their air-conditioning and could only offer non-perishable foods. It was also disheartening to see the brown landscape as many trees did not survive. We even saw little fires in the median strip of the highway at one point. 

Yellow Flower, watercolour, 7" x 5", NFS

During my vacation, I used periods of waiting to create my pencil or watercolour pencil sketches. I painted three watercolour paintings in my parents’ garden, where the continuously blooming flowers provided never-ending inspiration. Back at home, I met my clients-turned-friends for our yearly painting event at a local park. The group had picked a picture of pansies that was more challenging than expected.

From August 11, 2018, I was part of the next exhibition at Da Artisti Studio & Gallery in Cumberland. This time, I showed some of my acrylic paintings. As I was absent for the vernissage, I did a painting demonstration on September 1, 2018.

St Andre Lighthouse,  14" x 11",  acrylic, CAN $375

At the beginning of September, Janis, Helene and I drove together to Kamouraska for our yearly painting trip. The week was fantastic in every aspect. If you would like to read my travelogue, please go to the blogs that start on September 21, 2018.

 

After my trip, two new Cartooning and Comics courses started at François Dupuis Recreation Centre; I have one group of 7-12-year-olds and another of 5-7-year-olds. I also continued teaching workshops in my studio space.


Less than a week after my return from Kamouraska, my family looked forward to my birthday weekend at the cottage. My son and I wanted to leave Friday afternoon to get an early start to the weekend. However, when we heard about a tornado warning for our region, we decided to wait for the system to pass. Our houses nor the cottage were affected. However, we might have hit the system on its way to Dunrobin. The wind and rain were scary. Trees were down everywhere. When I picked up my son in the morning, his neighbourhood was among the ones still without power. Later in the day, we saw images of the areas destroyed by the tornado. It was devastating! Many people lost everything in a couple of seconds. One of the buildings was a little gift shop that my husband and I had just visited four days earlier for the first time.

At the Market II, acrylic, 16" x 20", SOLD

At the beginning of October, I sold my painting “At the Market II” to one of my very supportive clients. He had fallen in love with the painting years earlier and finally decided to buy it. I am excited if one of my paintings touches others so that it brings them joy. That is one of the best compliments. 

Exhibition at Lunasole, photo by Gwen Cowan

On October 16, I hung my new solo exhibition at Lunasole Resto Bar in Orléans. In the follow-up exhibition, all the artists from the past year showed some new works.


During November, I also invested in my business. At the beginning of the month, I went to Lisa Larter’s Money Mindset Marketing conference. She gave the participants lots of information to help them serve their clients better. I also attended a Mastermind workshop to get together with other entrepreneurs to brainstorm about new solutions for our businesses. Finally, to give my website a much-needed facelift, I hired a website creator and a photographer for an updated headshot.

Water lily, enamel on glass, 5" x 10.75", NFS

 

At the beginning of November, I took part in a two-part enamel on glass workshop at Da Artisti Studio & Gallery. I created a water lily painting. After the initial drawing, the challenging part was to decide what parts of the image to paint on each of the six sides of the three glass panels to create a three-dimensional effect.


At the end of November, I started teaching several groups of Government employees in Ottawa twice a week. Not having to cross the bridge to Gatineau and a later start in the morning made the commute a lot more pleasant. However, parking was a problem. I needed to park at the National Gallery, which added another 40 minutes a day of walking to my commute. On the plus side, I had the opportunity of going to the museum right after work.


As in previous years, I hosted another Open House and Customer Appreciation Day on the first weekend of December. I also had a silent auction on Facebook to raise funds for the Canadian Cancer Society. It was my part to support the fight against cancer, an illness that has taken some beloved people and pets from me.


At the same time, we also took our house off the market. After months with hardly any showings, we wanted to spend the Christmas season without the stress of living in a show house. Even though we were disappointed about the lack of interest, the positive side effect of the experience was a lot less clutter. You only realize how much stuff you have when you have to pack it. Plus, I was relieved that I would not lose my beloved studio. I had many new ideas for artworks and workshops and was full of excitement for the year ahead.


As I take a vacation away from my computer to spend time with family and friends next week, I will post the next chapter of my story in two weeks. I can hardly believe that there are only three more posts until I have reached the summary of my 25 years in Canada. Thank you for following my blog.

25 Years in Canada - The Year 2018 Part I

Three Poppies, acrylic, 9" x 12", CAN $ 300

 Blog 23

At the beginning of 2018, we had decided to sell our house. My husband and I both worked in Gatineau, a good 30-minute drive from our home in the best circumstances. Plus, our son had already moved out, and our daughter had registered for university in the fall.

Winter Mix Exhibition

To reduce the number of paintings in our house, I participated in many exhibitions. In early January, I hung some of my flower paintings at the St Laurent Complex for the Arteast Winter Mix Exhibition. While it was cold and dark here in Canada, it was summer in other parts of the world. Plus, the cheerful flowers offered a reminder of warmer weather. Next, I brought some of my oil paintings to Da Artisti Gallery, a beautiful gallery in an old building in Cumberland Village.


From Febr. 8 to April 17, my painting Nature’s Mirror was part of the Arteast Volunteers' Exhibition at Promenade Arteast at the Shenkman Arts Centre. On February 20, my friends Janis Fulton, Hélène Martin and I hung some larger paintings at the Residence Royal Gardens. As we often paint together, it was exciting to show our works together again.

 

 

St. Lawrence River Sunset, acrylic, 24" x 36", CAN $ 930

 

At the beginning of May, I had a solo exhibition at The Black Walnut Bakery in Cumberland Village. I was very excited about the opportunity to show my art in the popular bakery and café. The next exhibition followed in mid-May when I participated in the Arteast exhibition Summer Colours at François Dupuis Recreation Centre.

 

 

Summer Colours Exhibition

 
Despite the challenge of preparing our house for sale, I started my Creativity Challenge again on January 1 and kept it going until the summer. I wanted to create something every day to balance out the stress, even if it was only for 15 minutes. I shared my trials and successes in my blogs. The accountability of my blogs made me work on a daily project because otherwise, I did not have anything to write.


While my business activities were going well, I had to cope with personal losses. On January 2, my mother informed me that my godmother was dying. The encouraging news at the end of last year had not lasted. I considered flying to Germany, but due to my work contracts and our plan to sell our house, a trip at such short notice was not possible. I also wanted to spend my mother’s 80th birthday with her in the summer. I knew that I could not afford to travel to Germany twice. I hoped that my aunt would hold on until my visit. In the meantime, I concentrated on helping my friend whose cancer had come back and was terminal. She had started a painting in her youth that she wanted to finish for her children. In the end, she did not have enough time and died already in the middle of February. I was shocked, how fast her illness had progressed. She still had so many plans. It was a good reminder not to postpone your dreams.


About a week later, my parents told me the day before their flight to Canada that they would not come as my godmother, my mother’s only sibling, was on her deathbed. Not only did I grieve for the person who had been like a second mother to me, but I also worried about my mother, who reacted to the news with extreme stress symptoms. Once again, I had to deal with the grief alone. The rest of my family in Germany could support each other and say their farewell together. My daughter tried to console me, but my godmother was only one of the relatives she had met on our visits to Germany, not the special person she was for me.


Compared to their illnesses, the continued problems with my eyes were only a nuisance. Nevertheless, it worried me that I could not open my eyes in the mornings. I feared an emergency during the night when I would need help to leave the house.


At the end of January, I learned that my German classes would finish months before the expected date. I still taught private German and art clients. My Creativity and Me workshops and my courses at François Dupuis Recreation Centre and Bob MacQuarrie Recreation Complex were very successful.

Nevertheless, I could use the additional time to concentrate on two pressing activities: decluttering and packing. It was probably good to be under pressure as I have trouble letting go of things. As a creative person, everything can give me ideas for future use in an artwork. Having to clean out my office to stage it for potential home buyers forced me to make some tough decisions. As much as going through the stuff was both physically and mentally exhausting, it felt good to look at my cleaned studio.


At the end of March, my parents finally came for the long-awaited visit. They had missed our week together at the cottage and my daughter’s 17th birthday, but we could spend Easter together. The day they left, one of my childhood friends arrived for a visit. This time, we spent most of her stay on a cottage vacation for a much-needed break from cleaning out the house.


However, I also worried about Alex, our Australian Shepherd. At 12-years-old, he suddenly lacked energy and slept most of the day. We found out that he had Lyme disease even though he was on tick-prevention meditation until the fall. Luckily, he fully recovered after a round of antibiotics.


With spring just around the corner, the longer and brighter days increased my energy. We had finished the first round of packing. I did not have a shortage of paintings for staging the freshly painted rooms, although many of my artworks were in exhibitions.

I only continued to teach Government employees in May. In the meantime, I collaborated with Jackie Leduc, the owner of a yoga and wellness studio in Cumberland. Jackie and I were at a Women Creating Impact workshop by Pierrette Raymond. Pierrette pulled our names for a mock collaboration, and we knew from the start that we would go ahead with the event we planned. Our Yoga & Art Retreat on May 6 was a big success. The eight lovely women who participated in our treated themselves to a day of relaxation and creativity.


By the middle of May, we were finally ready to put the house on the market. The realtor had hoped that the shortage of residences in Ottawa and surrounding suburbs would push buyers to rural areas. Disappointingly, however, the interest in our house was low. Nevertheless, we started looking around to find our new home.


My husband’s criteria were simple. He wanted a house with at least one garage and close enough to the office that he could bike to work within 30 minutes instead of spending the time (and often even longer) on the highway. While I could relate to his wishes, I had a far longer list of must-haves. In short, I was not ready to move. I had planned our home and picked out all the materials from floors to cabinets and paints. I do not love the outside of our house due to the cuts necessary to stay within our budget. However, I love the inside and our big yard. My husband also likes our house, but he is not as attached to it. He wished that we could have moved it closer to the city.


When we started looking at houses in the Alta Vista area, we saw some cozy homes that offered less than one-quarter of the space we had for the price equivalent to ours in the country. It became apparent that my husband and I had very opposing views of the possibilities of each building. I was frustrated and stressed by all the changes coming our way, especially as I continued to be disappointed by the houses we visited in different neighbourhoods.

The first half of the year ended on a positive note. I finally had more time to paint and felt. I joined a new plein air group, the Ottawa Plein Air Adventures Group, and collaborated with my artist friend Anne Warburton on a series of videos and resulting blog posts. On June 15, I spent the morning with my friend Janis painting poppies in her yard (see above). It was my first plein air painting time since our trip to Kamouraska the previous September. It felt so great to be outside in the warm sun and to paint without any distractions.


I also learned to work with glass in a Glass Fusion Workshop at Da Artisti Studio & Gallery. It was a lot of fun to work with a new medium. Wendy Canci guided our Arteast group well in the process of creating a dish and a pendant by layering glass.


The personal highlight for our family during the first half-year was my daughter’s graduation from high school. My parents and my in-laws came to celebrate this happy occasion with us at the end of June. We were so proud of her. Not only did she handle her health problems of the past five years, but she also finished as one of the top students in her grade.


Join me next week to learn more about our housing situation and whether I managed to stay creative throughout the stressful time of selling our house.