~ See With Your Soul ~

"See With Your Soul"

February 2016

Mixed Media on Canvas

Watercolour, Coloured Pencils,

Acrylic Paint & Gems

8" x 10"

Original Artwork:

BUY

8" x 10" Print:

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Larger Prints:

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VIDA Tank Top:

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For the past few years I've been so busy with the business side of my art career that I had stopped making pieces based on instinct and bouts of inspiration. I focused my energy on commissions, practice pieces, contest prizes, and pieces made specially for exhibitions. I can't begin to tell you how many ideas popped into my head over the years but instead of starting them I would add them to a list; "Pieces I Want to Do". I think as the years passed and the list got longer and longer I began to feel a bit disconnected from my work. I longed to make work from my soul but I couldn't find the time. Finally I've decided I MUST make time because an artist can't sit on passionate messages, they have to get them out. Moments after having this realization I was struck with a thought that often comes to me. 

How much better would the world be if we were all accustomed to questioning the things that are presented to us? What if we all questioned ourselves, our thoughts, our morals, and our beliefs? This thought is based on my personal journey of deciding to question our world and my thoughts about myself and people in general. It was this internal investigation (one that will go on for the rest of my life) that has allowed me to challenge a lot of societal norms and personal beliefs that were causing me harm. I have changed drastically in the past eight years and it is all because of internal thought and what I call "evolving my soul". One of the biggest ideas I challenged was the concept that people can be compared as equals; that one person can understand another person. Despite what the media tells us, we can never be like anyone else, ever. It doesn't matter if you're an identical twin being raised in the same household. You are a unique person because no one has lived your life completely and no one truly knows all of the thoughts and feelings that have gone through your mind. From this came my belief that it is our uniqueness that makes us beautiful and extraordinary. This then led to never comparing myself to anyone else because we are all on a unique journey. Once that thought sinks in it is much easier to stop judging, to be kinder, to take joy out of other peoples joy and successes, and to know that we can grow and change for the rest of our lives. This concept of communicating with my inner self, my soul, is represented in this piece by the golden eye. It alludes to the idea that if we see the world and ourselves through our soul we will inevitably understand ourselves and others better which can only lead to change and happiness. The idea of inner reflection is sometimes a scary thing. Learning that we don't like certain things about ourselves or admitting that we've been wrong can be very hard. But getting passed those hurdles, realizing there is no shame in admitting you're not perfect, can open you up to a world of understanding and a sense of peace. No matter how many or how few people you have in your life, you will ALWAYS be in the company of yourself so why not make yourself the best and most content person you can be.  :) 

Keep scrolling for close up photos of the piece ... 

Presenting ... Mehndi Indian Bride!

"Mehndi Indian Bride"

February 2016

Acrylic Paint, Oil Paint, Mica, 

Pearls, and Gems on Canvas

24" x 24"

COMMISSION

This piece and I have had quite the journey! I remember when my client from Hong Kong first commissioned me to create this painting last February 2015, just over a year ago, I was over-the-moon excited. The piece captures the natural beauty of my client's wife on her wedding day using layers of acrylic paint, washes of oils, and 3D features such as gold pieces, pearls, and gems. There were some fantastic challenges that I knew I'd need to overcome such as the sheer look of the veil, the mehndi on her hand, and the multitude of fine adhered gems, pearls, and metallic pieces. I'm happy to say the results of these challenges have come out better than I imagined! Another challenge was getting the facial features highly realistic, and an exact likeness to my client's beautiful wife, at this unique angle and when the reference image contained many shadows. In the end her true beauty shines through the smooth luminescent washes of oil paint. All of those challenges were inspiring! I figured I could complete it by the original due date in the Summer of 2015 but it wasn't meant to be. A challenge I couldn't predict was that my health would take a bad turn. Though I tried to work on her little by little, the deadline was forced way back. This was the first time in my life that I'd been this tardy with a project or deadline. I was one of those "goody two-shoes" in school that always had homework done on time and to the best of my ability. And that was school, something forced on me that wasn't always fun; when it comes to my art career I'm even more eager and serious about my professionalism and meeting deadlines. It quite literally broke my heart not being able to complete my work. It was a tough year but I won't dwell on it; when I think back I'll remember how I battled through it and spent what time I could on creating this breathtaking portrait! I can never thank my patron enough for his patience. I hope that the piece will bring his lovely wife lots of joy and that the two of them will enjoy the painting for years to come. 

A FULL ALBUM of photos and close ups on my Facebook Page: HERE

Vegan & Dairy Free Cheese Sauce

I've been living with a mystery illness for some years now and I've noticed that one thing that significantly helps me is changing my diet. The BIGGEST improvement came when I excluded all dairy from my diet. Actually, when I eat dairy I am instantly stick to my stomach and end up suffering for days. SO despite cheese being my favourite food in the entire world; seriously my ULTIMATE FAVOURITE thing to eat is CHEESE; I really had no choice but to cut it. I'm sad ... I'm happy to have some relief, but it still makes me sad. Then a couple of weeks ago a friend of mine posted a recipe for Vegan Cheese Sauce and I was extremely intrigued. I went out immediately and got all of the necessary ingredients. I got home and made the sauce right away, I was SO excited! It looked super creamy and cheesy, I was pumped! BUT does it taste like cheese? Unfortunately, not quite. It's definitely got a cheese texture and taste sort of cheese-like, but it's not the real thing. That being said, it is DELICIOUS! And since I can't eat the real stuff I'm definitely thrilled to have an alternative. :) 

Now I know what you're thinking, that meal pictured certainly doesn't look vegan! Well, it's not! I wholeheartedly understand why people become vegan and wish I had the will to take that journey myself but I'm not there yet. At this stage of my life, I was more interested in the dairy free aspect of the "cheese". These burgers you see above are homemade using 100% lean ground beef, brown gravy, mashed avocado, bacon, and of course the vegan cheese! We also added green leaf lettuce, red vine tomatoes, and mayo! They were AMAZING!!!! 

Ingredients

2 C. potatoes, diced large

1 C. carrots, diced large

1/2 C. water

1/3 C. olive oil

2 tsp. salt

1 Tbsp. lemon juice (fresh is best!)

1/2 C. nutritional yeast flakes

(The yeast flakes ARE REQUIRED. 

They are what makes it creamy and slightly cheesy tasting.

You can get them at health food stores.)

1/4 tsp. onion powder (opt.)

1/4 tsp. garlic powder (opt.)

dash of cayenne (opt.)

ANY other spices you think might be tasty!

(This is going to make Vegans cringe but ... 

adding a couple drops of bacon grease makes it EXTRA delicious.)

Instructions

Boil the potatoes and carrots until soft.

Blend potatoes and carrots together along with the rest of the ingredients 

on high in blender until the cheese is extremely smooth. 

I use a food processor.

Store in refrigerator for up to a week.

Notes

This cheese will melt just like real cheese!

Take it out of the fridge, "nuke" it for about 30 secs, stir, and it's back to amazing!

This recipe was adapted from Vegan Yumminess. :) 

Toronto Portrait Artist @ Art Maze Exhibition in LONDON, ENGLAND!

Art Maze Exhibition

By Exhibit Here

At the Historic

Oxo Tower Wharf

Bargehouse Gallery

London, England

Dec 16th - Dec 20th 2015

Private Viewing: Dec 16th 2015

I am so very blessed to have had this incredible once-in-a-lifetime experience. In December 2015 I created a special series "Bejeweled Beauties" inspired by UK based women specially for the "Art Maze" Exhibition being curated by Exhibit Here and displayed in the historic Oxo Tower Wharf in London, England. I'd shown my work in London twice before but this time would be extra special. On December 13th I flew 8.5 hours from Toronto to London to set up and see this exhibition in person. As a humble full-time artist the cost of the trip was quite the challenge but thanks to some space on my loan, my incredibly supportive husband to be, and my supportive fans who purchased my 2016 Art Calendars, I was able to make this dream a reality. :) 

Some of my fans may already know that I'm an avid traveler but what they may not know is that I am constantly cursed with travel nightmares. In my dreams I loose my luggage, I miss my plane, a ship I'm on is sinking, my belongings are thrown into deep water, a tall building I'm in starts to fall over ... and on and on. Why do I have these dreams? Your guess is as good as mine. Although I suspect some of it is due to flights having lost my luggage TWICE while travelling alone. Because of all this I never travel with luggage. Never. I fit everything I'll need, in this case for almost three weeks, into a school bag (back-pack). I'm not a typical girl that needs a ton of fashionable outfits, a set of makeup, a hair straightener, and whatever else many women feel is the requirement. I survive on a couple of comfy outfits which I wash in hotel sinks as I travel, some mascara and blush, a brush with hair ties and clips, and I purchase some necklaces as souvenirs as I go along which I love to wear while I'm still traveling. So generally packing light wouldn't be a problem ... but this time I also had to bring my artworks. Storing them in luggage was too risky! I couldn't invest so much into this trip only to have the flight loose my artworks. So I planned to make small 8" x 10"'s on paper and frame them once I arrived in London. The plan seemed like a good one until I arrived in London on Monday Dec 14 and had a real heck of a time finding a store that offered frames. In the end I did find a store that specialized in frames but was quickly informed that 8" x 10" wasn't a usual size in the UK. Thankfully they did have 4 available in two different styles so all worked out in the end. 

The day after was quite the challenge as we were required to set up our artwork ourselves at the Bargehouse Gallery. Thank goodness the curator, Leila Bibizadeh, had her father there to help me because drilling holes into brick walls is something I simply physically could not do. I am so very grateful for his help. I also had the help of a new friend Katrina Steinman (who is also one of my "Bejeweled Beauties") and after set up was complete we went out and had a lovely dinner. :) 

The Private Viewing on Dec 16 was a two hour long whirlwind! I had the pleasure of meeting of all my "Bejeweled Beauties" in person as well as their family and friends. I also had a brief chance to meet some of my fellow artists which I'd come to know through social media. I cannot express just how grateful I am to everyone who showed me support that night. It truly was a night I will never forget. My only regret is that I didn't have enough time to chat and get to know everyone. But you never know! I may get another chance to make my way overseas in the future. 

The video above outlines my entire experience and shows all of the photos I'll be posting below!

I'll also be posting an Album on my Facebook Page which will contain MORE PHOTOS! :)  

Brittany Firmi-Kuehn

Lucy Houston

Bindiya Bhudia

Veronica Martynyshyn

Imogen Grant

Chandni Bharadia

Caitlin O’Sullivan

Katrina Steinman

Myself with my "Bejeweled Beauty" Lucy Houston and her lovely Mother Linda Millington.

Myself with the gorgeous curator and owner of Exhibit Here, Leila Bibizadeh.

 See more photos of this Art Series HERE!