Meet Mojo, my sister Shannon's very busy pug puppy. This is a surprise Christmas pet portrait to hang with her paintings of her deceased pug ChiChi. When ChiChi passed away, the stars aligned and very quickly Mojo came into their lives. It was great to hear the laughter that only a new puppy can bring. I painted the background of Mojo's portrait to represent just how busy he is at this stage!

  "Mojo", Acrylic on gallery wrap canvas, 9" x 9"   #20130220

I was at a workshop with Connie Geerts called Loose and Large. We could paint from an animal reference that Connie brought or one of our own. I quickly sent our daughter a text asking for any photos of Freddie. This painting is on a full sheet of watercolour paper 30" x 22". It was very strange to paint a pet portrait that large and FAST!. I managed to get what you see above finished in the class. I outlined first with tape then with chalk, to see the final composition and size that I wanted, so I did not waste anymore time and paint on the rest.

"Freddie" Acrylic on Water colour paper,  mounted on board  #20128220
This is the finished painting. I wrapped and mailed it to our daughter and son-in-law in their Christmas parcel as sadly they could not be joining us this year (due to Covid restrictions). I would of wanted to see their reaction. It was really hard painting an all black dog, but I did have fun with wild non-traditional colours.

A huge thank you to Vernonique, Sue, Ross, Kathi, Deb and Bill for their purchase of original paintings in the fund raiser for the Red Barn Art Center. Also thank you goes out to those people that supported me with their kind comments, likes and shares on social media, it was wonderful to be supported. Dec 27 a $480 e-transfer was made from this fund raiser. There are a few days and 4 paintings left if you are interested - click here.

   "Pierre" Acrylic on gallery wrap canvas, 9" x 9"  #20131220

This was a surprise Christmas gift for Brent (a friend of our son's) of his dog Pierre.  I have wanted to paint Pierre for a long time and this Christmas season with the extra time at home, I finally had a chance! Pierre seems like quite a character and has wonderful shapes to his face. The photo above is what I based my painting on. The photo on the left is the "work-in-progress", working up the shapes to get the features. I loved the orange/red background to work on and how it peeks out of the final painting.

For someone who gets carsick quickly and randomly, interestingly I can sketch in the car while being a passenger. Looking straight ahead or at the sketchbook page seems to help. When we are driving behind a vehicle for awhile, I quickly sketch what I see of the vehicle ahead. I don't know anything about cars so really have to look as their shape or details (brake lights) etc. are not known to me. I have to sketch quickly as they may turn, pass or be passed at any minute. I usually sketch in ink as there is no time to erase and it is hard enough to keep my sketchbook and pen in hand.

​My favourite is to sketch in one continuous line without taking my pen off the paper. This makes some areas have multiple lines as I go back and forth and all the road bumps make very squiggly lines but I love the character it gives.

 #inksketches #sketchingontheroad #travelsketches #karenoliversfineart #sketchingforfun #urbansketch

This mixed media piece has layers including tape, pastel, pencil, acrylic paint. It was a cold blustery day and I was watching the wind blow the leaves off the trees. I wanted to capture the trees fullness before they were stripped of their beauty for the winter. This painting has been juried into the Federation of Canadian Artists "Works On Paper" and will be for sale at their Vancouver Granville Island Gallery January 25 to Feb 7, 2021.

"Tangled On The Prairie"
Mixed media on watercolour paper, 8" x 10"  #20101220
#karenoliversfineart  #colourfulart #mixedmediaartfun #canadianartist #colourfulartwork #originalartwork #mixedmediapainting