Tuesday, September 11, 2007

On the cutting board

Acrylic polymer emulsion on gessoed hardboard, 12 x 18"
Painted May 22 - June 5, 2006, #102
Private collection - Québec City, Québec

This image is a result of happenstance. We were visiting Suzanne's sister Lise, and her family in Lévis Québec. Suzanne & Lise were preparing supper. Dicing up peppers and onions to garnish marinated beef & chicken skewers for the BBQ. As I entered the kitchen and saw what was in front of me, the only thing left to do was to get my camera. The light source is coming from the kitchen window. In the Pyrex measuring cup are onion skins, pepper seeds and tops. I like the way the light filters through the plastic cutting board onto the counter. Lise was a key figure in my growth as a painter.

When Sue & I got married in 1986, Lise was living in Vancouver BC, working for a firm where she did silkscreen printing and graphic art. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Université de Moncton. She was the one who introduced me to great artists like Vincent Van Gogh, Marc Chagall, Maxfield Parrish, Auguste Renoir.... My first visit to a major public art museum was in her company, at the Vancouver Art Gallery in 1988.