Celebrating small wins with your art

It's January 1st, the perfect time to reflect on the successes from last year.  Here's the run down. 
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1) I painted for (7) shows last year, getting in to 6 of them. 

• (4) shows with the Federation of Canadian Artists with 6 pieces being accepted by jury review and the sale of my largest piece through the Federation, so far. "Love @ First Sight" pictures below had two buyers vying to purchase this piece.  Very exciting. 

• "Luminous" was accepted by jury review into the 55th Annual International Juried Exhibition with the Society of Canadian Artists in Toronto.  I flew out for the gala, and what a treat that was. 

• My solo show at the Nomad Gallery.  Wow!  It was elbow room only during the opening reception.  How wonderful to see so many come out to be a part of the show. 

The Rebel bookclub

2) I took on a month long watercolour painting project.  I set out to try plein air painting with this project and soon realized that the cold, windy weather made it so uncomfortable that I would jot down the start of an idea, take a photo and finish the piece back in the studio.  It was an amazing project.  I produced (33) small pieces and sold all but three of them. 

3) Lahaina, a beautiful seaside community on Maui was completely destroyed by fire. The Oil Painters of America, which I'm a member of, partnered with several other arts organizations to put together a fundraiser.  I decided to contribute a piece to the cause. It felt amazing to be a part of it. "Peach Hibiscus" is the piece that I donated. 

4) In total last year, I completed 10 paintings which may not seem like that many, by quantity, however, they totalled 7100 square inches.  That's 350 hours of painting, and almost 100 square inches more than last year.  Whew.  

5) Commission were a big part of my year.  From Ontario, to Idaho, to local clients It was fun putting these projects together for them. 

6) I was asked to speak and present with Opus Langley & Granville Island as well as present at the South Surrey White Rock Art Society.  Great to share knowledge with other artists.

Opus Langley

Opus Granville Island

7) One of my paintings, "The Delightful 6" was accepted, by jury review, into The International Artists Magazine.  It's a publication out of Scottsdale Arizona that reaches over 100,000 reads around the world.  Wow.  It was awarded a finalist in the Florals and Gardens category and printed in the Feb/Mar edition.  Very cool. 

8) In my personal life, my husband and I celebrated our twelve anniversary.  It's wonderful to have a partner to walk this life journey with me.  Very grateful for all the support from my family. 
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My husband and I

My son and I.

2023 was amazing on so many levels and it was also one of the most challenging.  The deeper I get into my art career the more I find myself refining what it is I really want to do with my art.  I am embarking on another philanthropic project as well as planning to create a number of gorgeous paintings for shows/exhibitions and special collections.  I have some big plans for next year.  Stay tuned.  

All the best for a wonderful 2024.