"My Artistic expression is simply a celebration of life and a pouring out of positive
energy. My experience working as an Emergency Room nurse has taught me to value every experience that I encounter.
I choose to focus on the positive aspects and the beauty that life has to offer."
"Creating art has become a way of life for me over
the last decade. It has changed from something that I enjoy doing, to something
that I am compelled to do daily, in one form or another. Everything that I see,
I look at in terms of capturing it in two dimensions on paper or canvas. Objects
are simplified into shapes, values, and colours."
"I spend time outdoors,
usually riding my horse, taking in the sights and all the other sensory
stimulation that nature has to offer. Many of these impressions are imprinted on
my memory, waiting to be expressed when I paint in my studio. Often the images
that I paint are created from my memories, and represent how I feel about the
subject. I also enjoy photography, and I sometimes use my photographs for
inspiration. The nature of my subject is revealed through the abstract shapes
and the way light moves through my compositions. My subject matter varies,
depending on my inspiration at the time. Landscapes, florals, and figurative
paintings as well as non objective work are included."
"I am very fortunate
to have a large studio in my barn loft. It has beautiful light, and it allows
for privacy while I paint. It is
enough to open up my paints and wet my brushes to get me in the mood to paint.
When I turn on the music, my work space is transformed into a place where I can
lose myself for hours."
"I work in various
water media such as watercolours, acrylics, inks, water soluble crayons, and
sometimes include collage in my process. Anything goes as long as the process is
archival, and my materials are artist quality. I love to contrast transparent
versus opaque passages, colour, and texture to create paintings that vibrate
with energy."
"I am
in the process of creating my current series of paintings that have a horse and
rider figurative theme. My recreational time has been largely spent riding and
watching riders work with their horses in various disciplines such as dressage,
jumping, hunters and hounds. It seems natural that this subject has found its
way into my paintings."
Biography
Linda is originally from Ottawa Ontario and now lives in Ashton Ontario, on a hobby farm, with her family. This country studio environment is directly reflected in Linda's subject matter, as she draws inspiration from nature in her landscape, floral and figurative work. Primarily a studio artist, Linda works in various watermedia including acrylic, watercolour, ink, collage and enjoys using a mixed media approach in her stylized treatment of form, colour and design.
Linda has graduated from the Fine Arts Program at St. Lawrence College, in Brockville Ontario. Linda has also completed courses at Haliburton School of Fine Arts. She has attended numerous workshops over the years and finds that the creative process is a continual learning experience. She is influenced by the Abstract Expressionist Movement.
Linda has worked for over 22 years as a registered nurse, since 1988 in the
Emergency room. She now has fully committed her time to painting, teachings and
working as a professional artist.
Linda is inspired by the pure process of painting, and loves to create textures and contrasts in colour, transparent and opaque passages, and interesting designs. The ultimate satisfaction for her is to just play with the paint and see what happens. "I believe that if an artist can fall in love with the act of painting and not worry about the end results, wonderfully spontaneous images happen.", says the artist.
Linda is a Fellow of the Ottawa Watercolour Society and an Associate member of
the Canadian Society of Painters in Watercolour (CSPWC). She is a member of the Nepean Fine Arts League
(NFAL) and the Kanata Art Club. Linda exhibits her work at their group shows. Her paintings are in private collections in Canada, the United States and Europe.
She also has a painting in the permanent collection of the Conference Board of
Canada.
Linda also teaches mixed water media workshops to beginner as well as more experienced artists. The workshops are designed to encourage the creative spirit in the artist and
incorporate the use of colour, shape, value and composition.
Recent awards:
At the 2006 OWS Juried Water media exhibition, Linda won the Morton
Baslaw Award for her acrylic and ink painting "Last Light ",
At the 2004 OWS Juried Water media exhibition, Linda won the Morton
Baslaw Award for her acrylic abstract cityscape "Summer Heat ",
At the 2003 OWS Juried Water media exhibition, Linda won a Jurors Award
for her acrylic painting "Flare ",
At the 2003 NFAL Member's Night annual exhibition, Linda won an Award of
Excellence for her Mixed Media painting "Autumn Mist ",
At the 2002 NFAL Member's Night annual exhibition, Linda won two awards
for her acrylic and ink painting "End of the Day 2 ", the Award of
Excellence for Mixed Media category and the Judges Choice Award.
At the 2001 NFAL Member's Night annual exhibition, Linda won an award for her
abstract acrylic painting "Magical Melody ".
At the 2000 NFAL Member's Night annual exhibition, Linda won an award for her
mixed media painting "Mother and Child".
At the 1999 NFAL Member's Night annual exhibition, Linda won two awards for her
acrylic and collage painting "Dream State"; the Award of Excellence for
Mixed Media category and the Paraskeva Clark Award, given for the most
innovative work in the exhibition.
At the 1998 Nepean Fine Arts League Clothesline Art Fair, Linda won 2nd place
for "A Rose is a Rose", a large and vibrant acrylic painting on
watercolor paper.
Exhibitions:
Rothwell Hauck Gallery Solo Exhibition, Nov. 2006
Toronto Art Expo, Metro Toronto Convention Centre, 2006, 2005, 2004
Big Sisters Big BrothersArt Auction, The Congress Centre 2007, 06, 05, 04,
Museum of Civilization, 2003, Museum of Nature, 2002
Merrickville Art Festival, Merrickville 2004, 2003, 2002
Rideau Valley Art Festival, Westport 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001
Elmwood Art and Home Fair 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000
Ottawa Art Festival 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000
Carlen Gallery, Ottawa Ont. 2003
Country Lanes Studio Tour - May 2001, 2000,
Artrise Gallery Stittsville, Ontario, solo show - Spring and Fall 1999 and 1998,
Kanata Art Club, Alcatel Group shows - 2001, 2000 and 1999,