Pivotal Event #13 (a) Saskatchewan

In the spring of 2013, I was fortunate to spend several weeks expanding my vision on the beautiful prairies of southwestern Saskatchewan. The landscape somehow reminded me of deeper aspects of myself both as an artist and as a person. I experienced how the vast, open outer space translated into more looseness and openness in my work. Ochres, umbers, sepias and ultramarine blue crept into my palette, as did line work that echoed the telephone wires and fences stretching across the prairies.

One unexpected benefit of the residency is that I had time to work through some of the questions about my life that had been on my mind. I asked myself, “What other skills do I have that I’m not yet using? What aspects of the environment are most important to me? How can I position myself to grow as an artist and align with my purpose and goals? And exactly what are my goals?” You can’t beat long, windy walks under the endless prairie sky for shaking up your thought processes!

I’ve talked a little bit about this residency in a past newsletter but I wanted to touch on it again. My time on the prairies was pivotal in my realization and recognition of how deeply influential my surroundings are to my creative process. It also reinforced how important it is to me to offer my interpretations of the environment as visual translations in my paintings.