Art with Bonnie
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Cool  Cats   on   Etsy  - It's a Mixed  Media  Meltdown

16/5/2020

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Join me on a whimsical creative adventure.
I love creating these funny colourful characters. Over the past twenty years I have filled many sketch books with characters, creatures, doodle and more.

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One day when I was looking through the pages of all these funny friends, I asked myself…”what more can do with the designs to get really creative”? Then it came to me- copy them, cut them up and redesign them into whimsical wee wonders!
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Each piece is hand made by me… Bonnie McQuillan. I use copies of my original drawings, found images, acrylic gel mediums, acrylic paint, and acrylic paint markers. I don't try to hide the cut marks in my collages, look closely - you will see them.  I find it creates a transparency between what is found and what is created and painted. I also like the texture they add to each piece. All of my 12" x 12" pieces are on gallery cradled birch board. They come wired and ready to hang on your wall.
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Foyer Gallery  in  the  Nepean   Sportsplex -  Ottawa

16/5/2020

 
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I am excited announce that I have  been accepted as a new member of the Foyer Gallery .  The gallery is located inside the Nepean Sportsplex, 701 Woodroffe Avenue Ottawa, Ontario
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Because of the galleries proximity to the pool and other recreational facilities I thought it would be a great place to show my UNDERWATER series.
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Due to the current COVID-19 lock down, the gallery is not open but members of the marketing team are creating a great online sales portal.
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Visit The Foyer Gallery Online
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additional paintings in this series can be seen and purchased at my studio

Painting   Cullin   Lake

3/2/2020

 
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In July / August 2019 I was fortunate to attend an Artist Retreat through CPAWS ( Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society) 
On day three of the retreat I spent the day on Cullin Lake and painted three studies of the area. This blog post is about the steps I took to create the 36" x 48" painting of Cullin Lake in my studio. 
If you would like to see more about the day of painting on Cullin Lake it can be seen in another blog post here https://www.artwithbonnie.com/blog/day-3-dumoine-river-art-retrea
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This was the original photo
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This was the picture I used to create the painting - that's why the canoe is a different colour. I could not remember the colour of the canoe but it did not matter because the yellow / orange of the canoe worked with the complimentary colours of the purples in the tress. 

Step 1.  

I start most of my paintings with a value study in one, sometimes two colours. I usually use acrylic ink because they are fluid and transparent. 
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Step 2 & 3

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I added a second transparent colour to the value study because I wanted to get some darker dark areas. 
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Once I established the values I started to block in colour. 

Steps 4 & 5

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Once I had all of the colours blocked in I covered the entire piece with a wash of red oxide and yellow oxide. This gives it some continuity and a nice orange glow. 
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Then I go back in again blocking in colour. This time, however I am a little more selective about the colours I bring forward. Some are left behind to create more of a sense of depth. 

Steps 6 & 7

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Once i got all of the new colours blocked in I had to step back to see what was off. Can you see it? The canoe was to bright, the water was to dark, and the area under the trees was to bright as well. 
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I really darkened the area under the trees so only bit of the canoe were visible. I also went into the water and lightened it so the darker areas under the trees would appear even darker. 
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This painting and several others as well as a variety of artworks by 18 different artists from the retreat will be for sale in May 2020. Official date coming soon. Current information about my  show, classes and new artwork can be seen on my website at www.artwithbonnie.com 
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Day 3     Dumoine   River  Art  Retreat

20/8/2019

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Cullin  Lake

Day 3 (August 2, 2019) brought us to Cullin Lake . A short bumpy ride and then a wee hike bought us to another beautiful location for a day of painting.  Today I joined Tina, Olivia, Charlotte and John for another beautiful day of sun and scenery. 
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Drive was only about ten minutes away but a fallen tree cut our chauffeured service short :)  Note to self... always pack light - just in case lol. 
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The "beach" wasn't quite as big as we thought it would be but the view was fantastic. 
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My first painting for the day was inspired by my view from the dock. I opted out of using my chair for fear of ending up in the lake - the dock was a bit narrow. 
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This was a quick forest sketch - just before leaving
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The piece below started as a painting of the trees with the canoe - above. But canoes are a strange shape and hard to do. I will have to practice a bit more. Needless to say - the canoe got painted out. ( You can still see a few of the canoe outlines if you look closely. 
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11"x14" Acrylic on gallery wood panel by Bonnie McQuillan

Who   did   I   paint    with   Today? 

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FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT CPAWS - OTTAWA VALLEY OR HOW YOU CAN HELP PROTECT CANADA'S PARKS AND WILDERNESS CLICK HERE - THANK YOU
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Where Did She Go?  - Draw   Art   Retreat  2019

17/8/2019

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Draw - Dumoine   River  art  for  wilderness

I had the honour last week ( July 31 - August 6, 2019) of attending an incredible art retreat as part of a conservation effort on the Dumoine River in Quebec Canada. This was my first year being a part of the retreat but the third year of the event.  The event was initiated by artist Aleta Karstad with CPAWS Ottawa Valley (Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society) 

Day 1 & 2  ( July 31 & Aug. 1, 2019)

Day 1 consisted of getting there, getting set up and getting acquainted. ​
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When I first heard about the retreat I was excited about the prospect of having six days of painting outside in a beautiful wilderness setting.  And that was pretty much all I focused on until I finally got the word from  John McDonnell, (CPAWS Executive Director – Ottawa Valley Chapter) that I had been accepted to be a part of the retreat. 

After that the reality set in that I would be camping - ah camping, outside. (It had been awhile). And that I would be going into the bush with 15 people I had never met before. Very quickly I was I starting to have second thoughts. 

However, once I got here that all changed very quickly.  15 strangers quickly became a group of people I felt like I had known for years. And it just kept getting better from there. 
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Day 2 - August 1, 2019 - Painting  with  Phil  &  Mark

Phil and Mark were painting pals at lasts years retreat and were kind enough to let me tag along with them on the first day of painting.   
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see philip chadwick's artwork here
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See mark patton's artwork here
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This is the spot where I painted for the first day - "Le Grande Chute" . If your acrylic paints dry to fast, try painting beside a misty river lol.  ​
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"Le Grande Chute" 11"x14" Acrylic on gallery wood panel by Bonnie McQuillan
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"First Light at Le Grande Chute" 11"x14" Acrylic on gallery wood panel by Bonnie McQuillan
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"Free From Fog at Le Grande Chute" 11"x14" Acrylic on gallery wood panel by Bonnie McQuillan
We arrived early in the morning in heavy fog and mist off the water. But as the day went on the light emerged and revealed a whole new landscape to paint throughout the afternoon. 
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Watch for my next post with more about the Dumoine River Art Retreat
For more information about CPAWS - Ottawa Valley or how you can help protect Canada's Parks and Wilderness click HERE - Thank you
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    Author

    Bonnie McQuillan is an Artist and Art instructor in Ottawa Ontario Canada. 

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