KATHY MACKAY FINE ART
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Day 10 of 30 - Rural Impressions

9/10/2017

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Picture
Countryside from Above. Oil on cradled wood panel. 10x10 inches. $135
Ontario, Canada is known for it's beautiful rural countryside.  This painting depicts the countryside from above.  I used a photo reference for this piece - a photo my dad took many years ago, on a hot air balloon ride.  

Till Tomorrow,
Kathy
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Day 9 of 30- Rural Impressions

9/9/2017

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Picture
A Field of Flowers and a Barn Quilt (plein air). Oil on canvas panel, 5x7 inches. $70
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Today's work is a little plein air piece I painted back in July at Fanshawe Pioneer Village.
There is this field of flowers that blooms a golden yellow - it is really quite striking.  

Till Tomorrow, 
​Kathy
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Day 8 of 30 - Rural Impressions

9/8/2017

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Picture
The light in me honours the light in you, kid. Oil on canvas panel, 5x7 inches.
Goat yoga! what could be more fun?!

I am lucky that not far from where I live, there is a farm that offers Goat Yoga (Full Circle Ranch).
Today's painting captures a small moment from a Goat Yoga class I attended. 

This painting took me out of my comfort zone.  Up until now, I have steadfastly avoided including humans in my paintings.  The cartoon below captures how I felt while creating this piece.

(I'll be sharing some more goat yoga photos soon...)

Till tomorrow,
Kathy
Picture
Obviously, goat yoga was quite a joyful experience for me! I look so happy!
Picture
My experience painting people is summed up well with this cartoon! Credit: www.AwkwardYeti.com
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Day 7 of 30 - Rural Impressions

9/7/2017

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Picture
Barn on Medway. Oil on Wood, 11x14 inches. $170
Click here to purchase
Today's painting, one of the larger pieces I will do during this challenge, features the same barn from day 1 (at a different angle).  

If you love old barns, comment below ... share a word, a story, or a sentiments that captures your feelings towards these old, rustic barns!  I'd love to hear from you!

Change is inevitable

In the spirit of honouring rustic old barns and their evolution over time, I have included some aerial photos of how my parent's dairy barn has changed over the years.  
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Day 6 of 30 - Rural Impressions

9/6/2017

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Picture
Farm on Richmond. Oil on Board, 9x12 inches. $140
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Quick studies lead to more finished studio paintings

This painting was completed using a smaller painting I did on location as  my reference.  The original study was a small value study - an assignment for an online course I have been auditing ("Landscape Sketching in Watercolor and Gouache" - taught by Nathan Fawkes).  I was quite pleased with the final painting.  
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Day 5 of 30 - Rural Impressions

9/5/2017

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Picture
Rest Time (plein air), oil on canvas, 8x10 inches. $105
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The subject of today's painting is a little bit, shall we say, different. At first glance it probably looks like a rustic little hut, but in actuality, it is the restrooms at a local winery, Quai du Vin.  I hope this painting serves to show that beauty can be found in unexpected places!

I was visiting the winery as part of the 'Off the Wall' Art Show were I was one of the 'plein air artists'.  I've included a couple photos from the day.   

Till tomorrow,
​Kathy
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Day 4 of 30 - Rural Impressions

9/4/2017

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Picture
One Room School House (plein air), oil on canvas panel, 5x7 inches. $70
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I am very lucky to live close to 'Fanshawe Pioneer Village' and frequently visit to paint plein air and take my dog Wylan for walks.  

"Fanshawe Pioneer Village tells the story of rural communities in the former townships of Westminster, London, North Dorchester, Delaware, West Nissouri and Lobo in Middlesex County from 1820 to 1920 and the founding and development of the City of London up to 1840." (from the Fanshawe Pioneer Village website)


This painting depicts the old Pond Mills School, which back in the day was known as School Section #7.   According to Pioneer Village's website, "The school was originally located in the village of Pond Mills, Westminster Township, which is now a subdivision in south east London. S.S. #7 was in existence from 1825 -1966 and began as a one-room schoolhouse on land which is now part of Pond Mills Cemetery."  Today, the inside of the school depicts a Masonic Lodge.  
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Day 3 of 30 - Rural Impressions

9/3/2017

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Picture
Road Behind the Barn (plein air), oil on canvas, 8x10 inches. $105
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This scene was painted on location - at my parents farm. This small dirt road can be found behind their dairy barn and leads to the back fields.  I have many memories of this little road...
  • Going back in the field to pick corn
  • Rides on the 3-wheeler with our Australian Blue Heeler, Reg, running behind the 3-weeler
  • Driving the baler
  • And many more... 

Till tomorrow,
Kathy
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Day 2 of 30 - Rural Impressions

9/2/2017

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Picture
Amazing Graze. Oil on Canvas, 9x12 inches (SOLD)
Today's painting captures a heifer (aka a young female cow) and a cow grazing at the end of the day, as the sun is setting.  I painted this from photo reference; I snapped the photo last June (2016), on my way home from the 'fun fair' at my nephew public school.  I decided to share a few photos from our evening at the fun fair!
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Day 1 of 30 - Rural Impressions

9/1/2017

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Picture
Red Barn in Morning, Oil on Canvas Panel, 5x7 inches. $70
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Welcome to my September 2017 painting challenge in which I will be posting a new painting everyday for the next 30-days (aka 30-in-30). This will be my 5th time doing a 30-in-30.  

So, here my first painting of the challenge. This little painting was completed back in July when I stumbled across this nice lookin' barn right beside a vacant public school yard (Centennial Central School - North of London, Ontario)

For the duration of this challenge, I have chosen the theme 'Rural Impressions' and hope my paintings can serve as a glimpse into country life in Southwestern Ontario, Canada.  Growing up on a dairy farm, I have a deep nostalgia for country life (despite now being a bonafide city slicker).   This is actually not my first time doing a series of farm paintings.  Back in high school, during OAC (grade 13) art class, we had to choose a theme and then create 6 art pieces (I chose 'Farm Life').  See below a college I created of my Grandma MacKay and my dad (he's the baby).  My dad has lived on the same farm, in the same house, for his entire life.  

Till tomorrow,
Kathy
Picture
A sample of my high school art work - a collage of my dad as a baby and my Grandma MacKay
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Coming Soon from Kathy MacKay Fine Art!

8/21/2017

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30-in-30 is back!

Each day for the month of September, I will be posting a new painting on my blog and Facebook page.  My theme is "Rural Impressions" and will feature paintings depicting country life in Southwestern Ontario!   
Picture

What else have I been up to?

PictureMe and my art wall at the Art Emporium, Port Stanley, Ontario.
It's been a good summer thus far.  While I haven't been sharing many new paintings, I've been doing lots of painting.  In particular I have been doing both plein air work (i.e. painting outdoors from life) and painting ahead for my Sept 30-in-30.  

I have been continuing my online training at Watts Atelier.  The work in the program is mainly drawing and focuses on figure and portraiture.  These are definitely outside my comfort zone - but I am making slow and steady progress.   Me and some of my peers at Watts are also taking a landscape sketching class through Schoolism, taught by the talented Nathan Fowkes.  I have learned a lot thus far and it is definitely informing my landscape work.  

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What happens when I channel my inner Monet...

7/11/2017

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Picture
Dappled Sunlight, Springbank Park (plein air). Oil on Canvas, 8x10 inches
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This past Saturday I spent a lovely morning out with the London Plein Air Group at Springbank Park.  It was the perfect day for painting - not too hot, nice breeze, sunny. 

​While it wasn't my plan, this painting turned out quite loose ... I think I may have been channelling my inner Monet.  Hope you enjoy. 

Have a great day!
Kathy

A few more photos for the day:

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The Travelling Chicken Comes to Town!

7/2/2017

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Hey friends!

Back in February (or around that time), I stumbled on a website called the "Travelling Chicken".  It turns out, there is this little a ceramic hen that has been travelling all over the world for the past 5 years.  The chicken travels from artist to artist and each artist paints their interpretation of the chicken.  I LOVE this kind of stuff, so signed up immediately.  Now...  fast forward 5 months, and yes, the Chicken has FINALLY arrived.  I've included a fews photos at the end of this post if you want to check her out!
While I will spare you the details in this blog post, you can learn more about the Travelling Chicken Project if you click here (if you are an artist, you could even consider signing up yourself).  You can also check out the Facebook page. 

If you would like to learn about what the Travelling Chicken and her friends got up to while they visited me check out my two blog posts:
1. Blog Post #1 - TC & Senor Azul have arrived in Ontario
2. Blog Post # 2 - Happy 150th Bird-Day Canada!

I highly recommend the above blog posts!

Here is the portrait I completed for my part of the Travelling Chicken Project!
Picture
Happy 150th Bird-Day Canada! Oil on Canvas Panel, 6x8 inches.
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What's New at Kathy MacKay Fine Art!

4/14/2017

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Fresh off the easel...

Picture
Late September Afternoon, Telegraph Cove, BC. Oil on Wood, 11x14 inches
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Last September (2016) my sister and I visited Telegraph Cove in British Columbia.  It is such a beautiful area and I have been itching to capture it in paint.  Here is my first painting.  This photo was taken as we departed the harbour for a whale watching trip.  

Art Show News

Paint Ontario

Picture
My SOLD painting from the Paint Ontario Show. This is Ontario's foremost art show and sale so I was very happy to sell this little piece.

Miniature Show, Portside Gallery, Port Stanley 

Cows everywhere!  Here are my three submissions to the recent Miniature Show at the Port Side Gallery in Port Stanley (Ontario, Canada). Two of the three sold - which delighted me.  These little paintings (all 4x4 inches) were really fun to paint!  
​

What else is new?

Drawing Practice: I have been working hard on my drawing skills and re-enrolled at Watt's Atelier (online program).  While the drawing does take away from my painting time - in the end, I hope this will result in higher quality paintings.  

Plein Air Season: As the weather is becoming nicer - I will be getting back into some plein air painting this spring and summer.  Despite the best of intentions - I did not do much plein air painting this past winter. 
Picture
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February Thaw!

2/19/2017

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Picture
February Thaw - Springbank Park, London, Ontario (Feb 19, 2017; plein air), Oil on Canvas, 7x5 inches.
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This plein air painting was done on location at Springbank Park in London, Ontario.  What a warm day - especially for February...  

​12C (53F) & sunny - a nice reprieve from Canadian Winter!  I really tried to soak up the warmth as I'm sure it's only a matter of time till man winter is back!

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A case of artist block... 

1/15/2017

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For those of you who follow my website, you may have noticed I dropped off the face of the planet over the past few months.  No posts since the end of Sept 2016!  That's over 3 months. I did create a few paintings during that time - and I've shared  those below (I think these paintings are some of my best work - and they are all SOLD).  

So where have I been??
It is well documented that the creative process tends to wax and wane.  Seems I've stumbled into a period of "wane', also known as the dreaded "Artist Block".

So what is a girl to do when she's hit with a case of artist block... ?  Google it of course.  Apparently, artist block is a common part of the creative process. With that said, it's not my favourite place to be and I am trying to take a bit of agency to get back into creating mode.  Here are a few things I've added to my life to help work through this:
  • Started a daily meditation practise - just at 10 minutes per day right now (this was also a new years resolution).  Check out the book 10% Happier by Dan Harris for a great read on the topic.   Here is an article on the role of meditation in creativity - particularly open monitoring meditation.  
  • Started to work my way through the Artists Way (TAW). I am currently on week 1 of 12 for this program (as I'm not a big reader, I splurged for the online course). Julia Cameron developed TAW 25 years ago and it has held strong over two decades (here is an article from the New Yorker on TAW). Time for me to find out what all the fuss is about. 

Over the next 12 weeks, I may post periodically (no promises though) while I work at the Artist Way.  After that, I truly hope I'm back to painting more and having lots of art to share!    

If you are an artist or creative - I'd love to hear your stories about artist block.  Comment below or email me.  
Picture
Picture
Orca Plus One, Oil on Canvas, 9x12 inches. Credit (and thanks) to Andrew Lees for the reference photo! Not for Sale (this one was a gift for my sister).
Picture
St. Mary's Train Station, Oil on Canvas, 8x10 inches. SOLD.
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Got this one framed!!! Shoot out to Guthrie's Framing for doing such a great job!!
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Nugget and Bean. Oil on Wood, 8x10 inches. SOLD.
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Poppy, Duncan, and Tate. Oil on Wood, 8x10 inches. SOLD
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The past 30 days... 

10/1/2016

3 Comments

 
Picture
Hello friends!! I put together this little college to nicely wrap out this 30-in-30!
Thanks so much to everyone who followed my paintings!!! 

​Kathy
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Day 30 of 30 - A Little of This, A Little of That

9/30/2016

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Picture
SOLD. This Ol' Tractor. Oil on Canvas, 8x10 inches.
Yeah!! It's here... day 30.    Last day of the challenge.  Today's paintings is one of my favourite from the challenge!

So now that the challenge is over, you might be wondering what is next for me?   Well here are some of my tentative art goals
  • Continue to work on my drawing skills via online courses through Watts Atelier
  • Work on a series of studio paintings inspired by my recent trip to B.C. 
  • Aim to go out plein air painting 3-4 times per month
  • Start planning my next 30-day challenge for January 2017!! My tentative theme will be "My Drive to Work" - depicting the beauty I see in my every day drive to and from work.  

Thanks so much to everyone who has followed me along this past month!!! It is so, so appreciated!!

All the best,
​Kathy
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Day 29 of 30 - A Little of This, A Little of That

9/29/2016

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Picture
Evening Stroll Along the Beach. Oil on Canvas, 6x6 inches.
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Today's painting was inspired by a trip to BC a few years ago - it depicts an evening sunset in Pacific Rim National Park.  This painting is currently on display at the Art Emporium in Port Stanley, Ontario.  

Well as it's day 29 - there is only one day left in the challenge.  While completing the challenge will be a weight off my shoulders - it is also a little sad for me.  I do enjoy sharing my art with the world! 

Till tomorrow,
​Kathy
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Day 28 of 30 - A Little of This, A Little of That

9/28/2016

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Picture
Fanshawe Lilacs, Acrylic on Canvas Panel, 6x8 inches.
This painting was done on location at Fanshawe Conservation area, in London, Ontario 
(May 27, 2015).  Ok, so truth time - this is not a new painting.  However, as I have never shared/posted this work on my website, and since I am quite fond of this piece, I decided to include it in the challenge. A bit of a a cop-out I know... but after my week in BC, I have found completing the last week of painting a bit challenging (jet leg really gets the best of me).  

Till tomorrow,
Kathy
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Day 27 of 30 - A Little of This, A Little of That

9/27/2016

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Picture
For today's painting, I am sharing a couple of quick sketches I completed.
I am a firm believer that hard work, consistency, and grit are essential elements to grow and develop as an artist. I have seen how practising sketching and drawing has led to growth and improvements in my work.   This sentiment is echo'd in one of my favourite art  quotes --  by John Singer Sargent - a great, great artist!

Till tomorrow,
​Kathy
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Day 26 of 30 - A Little of This, A Little of That

9/26/2016

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Picture
Today's paintings are two small plein air sketches I completed while in vacation in British Columbia last week. . While I had the best of intentions of completing numerious refined sketches while there, these are the only two art works I completed.  I am hoping to develop some larger studio pieces inspired by the trip.

Check out some photos of highlights from the trip!! 

Till tomorrow,
​Kathy
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Day 25 of 30 - A Little of This, A Little of That

9/25/2016

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Picture
Beach Town Morning, Port Stanley. Oil on Canvas, 6x8 inches.
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Today's painting was one completed on location in Port Stanley with the London Plein Air Group.  Hope you enjoy.  Sorry for the short blog post - after an overnight red-eye flight from British Columbia to Ontario... my brain isn't coming up with much else to write.

Till tomorrow,

​Kathy

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Day 24 of 30 - A Little of This, A Little of That

9/24/2016

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Picture
SOLD. Lady LingSu, Oil on Canvas. 8x10 inches.
Today's painting, a commission I recently completed, is a portrait of the beloved Lady LingSu.  Sadly,  Lady LingSu passed away a few months ago at age 14.  She will be greatly missed and will forever be in her owners'  hearts.  

Till tomorrow,

Kathy
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Day 23 of 30 - A Little of This, A Little of That

9/23/2016

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Picture
Summer Fieldwork, Oil on Canvas, 6x6 inches.
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Today's painting depicts a combine out on the field. I love the atmosphere created by the grain dust! 

Till tomorrow,
​Kathy
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Kathy MacKay Fine Art
London, Ontario, Canada
mackay.painting@gmail.com​

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  • HOME
  • What's new?
  • About Kathy
  • Illustration Portfolio
  • Paintings
    • Landscapes
    • Animals
    • St. Mary's Ontario
    • Rural Impressions
  • **SUBSCRIBE**
  • Shop
  • Contact