I want to wish a very speedy recovery to Calgary artist Doug Swinton - someone who has been a Godsend to me and my painting.
Doug is a wonderful instructor, great fun, and very informative. To a tight painter like myself, an occasional workshop with this very talented artist has helped me to not to diddle my work to death.
A workshop with Doug means stepping out of one's comfort zone and working fast, but with fresh brushwork that conveys the subject simply and juicily. (Is that a word, anyway?)
Doug is kind and friendly, with a great sense of humor.
I know that everyone who knows him joins me in wishing him a quick recovery.

I ended up with a lot more of a workload than I thought I was going to have the last few days, so I haven't yet completely finished the Leduc street scene yet. I'll post it as soon as possible.

Here's a poem I wrote a while ago - I hope it inspires you to paint.


THIS PLACE

In this place that I live,
With brushes, paint and mind,
Hours go by that I have lost,
Not again to find.

A sunset may appear,
Or landscapes could unfold,
Familiar faces oft are found,
Of young ones and of old.

The vastness of the sky,
With its clouds and sun aglow,
Captures that within my soul,
That only artists know.

Short strokes and the right touch,
With a strong desire and will,
Can change a landscape in an instant,
From plain to magical.

The caustic scent of oil,
To others may offend,
But to those who live in this place,
It’s life’s blood and oxygen.

On the artist’s easel,
With its treasure that’s been built,
Is the artist’s very being,
On that surface at a tilt.

When color touches canvas,
And its white’s no longer bare,
You’ll see everything that I can see,
In the painting that leans there.

In this place that I live,
With calm, no angst or haste,
Hours go by that I have lost,
Not one has been a waste.

By Susan Abma