Pet Portraits

The first time I painted a pet portrait , I learned that honour had weight. It was a small canvas—too small, I would later think—for the responsibility it carried. The photograph showed two Golden retrievers lazing around in late afternoon light, their eyes soft with the patience of age.

Quinte

The Bay of Quinte region ,nestled between Toronto and Montreal,is a Mecca for tourism and recreation. It’s no big secret that it attracts artists and artisans from all over the world to create great pieces of work inspired by the majestic surroundings of the Quinte region. Belleville,the

Rembrandt Card Set

Special occasion card set Thanks for taking this time out of your busy schedule to review my latest blog post for my Rembrandt inspired special occasion greeting cards.  This is the second installment of a set of four unique prints of either ; Rembrandt self portraits or paintings that he created

Santa's Artistic Side

Unique Christmas Cards for Your Season's Greetings Ho Ho Ho! Merry almost Christmas! Are you ready to spread some holiday cheer with a twist of nostalgia and a sprinkle of Christmas magic? Well, you're in luck! 🎅🎄 After a sleigh-load of requests from family, friends, and even

Leonard Cohen

Leonard Cohen I’ve recently had time to reflect on the music of one of Canada’s greatest singer, songwriter, and poet; Leonard Cohen.  My appreciation of Leonard Cohen‘s music goes back to my early childhood overhearing my siblings spinning his incredible music throughout our home on Victoria Avenue.

En plein air

En plein air Painting en plein air to me, is one of the most natural and exhilarating forms of painting one can experience. Early on in my painting adventure I thought I would go outside of my comfort zone one again and enter the en plein air competitions sponsored by

Family History

For months now I have been gathering information on Finkle family history, as far back as when they settled in Bath Ontario as United Empire Loyalists. Throughout this fact seeking adventure, it appeared to me that there were many drawings or sketches of the Finkle Tavern - located at Finkle&

Fragile

The leg lamp that appeared in the Christmas classic “ A Christmas story “is symbolic of a piece of art that has beauty in the eye of its beholder. With that said, this lamp that arrived in a box marked fragile is and will always be a small piece of our

Broadway, Faces and Music

I have been oil painting now for approximately ten years and it wasn't until now that I had my first show. Quinte Arts Council invited me to display my theme of "Broadway, Faces and Music" in their newly renovated gallery in the heart of downtown Belleville.

Pumpkin Carving for Breast Cancer Awareness (BooBash 2022)

In this video, I demonstrate an innovative pumpkin carving technique to raise funds and awareness for breast cancer screening. The video was done in collaboration with Chris and the Trenton Memorial Hospital. I was contacted by the Executive Director of the Trenton Memorial Hospital Foundation asking if I could make

Family Portraits

This post is very personal and near and dear to my heart. I’m sharing with you the Finkle family portrait paintings that I have done over the years of my wife Susan, daughter - Julia, sons - Andrew and Adam - all of which I treasure most of all.

Pumpkin Art

“Carving pumpkins from an early age is a childhood memory we all share.” Having children presented us the experience to relive those memorable moments when we would celebrate Halloween by carving pumpkins for the front step and now we teach our children how to do the same and enjoy this

Memoriam

Early on in my portrait painting I was commissioned to paint a portrait from a favourite photo of a special person that left us some years ago and far too soon.After completing this commission I realized how special this painting meant to the family and it was this aha

Life Drawing

Life drawing One of the most fascinating courses that I ever took was that of “life drawing”.I was instructed in this discipline by a fantastic artist in the Belleville region by the name of Bill Tomlinson.Michael Rutland was also instrumental in my enjoyment of life drawing.Rest in

Still Life

"Probably the most important painting technique that that one can have in their arsenal" Its not really a technique but : the category of graphic arts concerned with inanimate subject matter. When I first decided to oil paint I never imagined painting a bowl of fruit or a bouquet

Island Dancer

After attending the Belleville Waterfront and Ethnic Festival in 2018 I had the opportunity to capture the performance of a group of dancers and drummers displaying their exceptional musical skills. This young girl was so rhythmic with profound energies I found it captivating and spellbinding.I was able to capture

Impressionists

Artist: Hendrick Terbrugghen I fell in love with this impressionist style early in my journey as it made me happy throughout the process. As I previously mentioned Claude Monet and John Singer Sargent are also two of my favourites that  I have enjoyed capturing the essence of light,depth and

First Skate

Welcome to my next blog May15/2022 I have always admired the art by many local artists that capture the essence of the harbour of the Bay of Quinte. From Manley MacDonald along with Barbara Whelan to all en plein air painters,I credit these amazing individuals whom inspired me

Rainy Street

This was my very first painting in 2012.  I was asked by Jesus Estevez to select a picture from a large amount of copies to replicate.  The picture I chose was one that I found both challenging and beautiful. It was wonderful going through the process of sketching, inserting values,

Santa Claus Cards

I always wanted to have my own Christmas card so years ago I painted a picture of the infamous Coca Cola Santa and handed out cards to my family. This idea was greatly received and there was an overwhelming response to have the cards saved and brought back out the

Bell the Beaver

In 2018 this beaver was rescued from an inhumane leg hold trap just meters from my residence. In response to a community outrage against trapping of wildlife in the city of Belleville I found myself part of a delegation to petition the city to adopt a new wildlife policy. I

Chris' Artistic Spark

First of all I want to thank everyone who has taken the time to view my website and subscribe to my newsletter (button below!).  It was 10 years ago that I first picked up a paint brush and oil paints to start my artistic journey.  I felt it was time

Featured

Weber Brothers

The Weber Brothers painting is depicted from a picture that was taken on February 11, 2018, during an unplugged acoustic presentation of the popular Live is Where it Lives series hosted by Joe Callahan at Signal Brewery. I chose this picture for the composition and the rawness of the musical

Gazing Beauty

This painting of Lucrezia from “The Borgias” depicts this beautiful lady gazing out a window and captures the sunlight on her face. I received a honorary recognition at the Impression show at the Parrott Art Gallery in Belleville, Ontario. Chris receiving honorary recognition at the Impression show at the Parrott

My Rembrant's

I have always enjoyed the Dutch Master Rembrandt Van Rijn with his interpretation of light on his subjects. If you can’t have the original, then paint your own!