HELLO AND WELCOME TO OUR PAINTING A DAY SERIES! Our first featured work is by Dennis Reid

Hello everyone and Happy Saturday to you all!  Today seems like an unlikely day to start a series as such, but there's no day like the present I suppose.

After chatting with a friend on a warm summer-like day the other day (remember THAT day!), it dawned on me that we need to do more on our blog to get you to follow us along and share our posts with others....So if you like what you see in this series of posts about some wonderful works by our amazing artists, please re-post, Pinterest it, Twitter it..basically share the great art that's all around us.

Ok...so enough chatter...on with the painting of the day!

Today's painting is a NEW one to us...as of yesterday. It comes to us from an artist from New Brunswick, Dennis Reid.  As soon as these arrived, there was suddenly a lot more people stopping in their tracks outside our gallery window...and no wonder. Dennis brought us a grouping of new works, but I thought this one would be wonderful to share with you all, as it speaks SPRING! As one viewer said, you can " smell the earth and hear the water and feel the air in this one".

This work is called "Overflow"  It measures  32" x 34"

Also...as many of you may not know, Argyle Fine Art is always happy to work on payment plans customized for you...so now everyone can own original art. Call us at 902-425-9456 or email us if you have any questions about this work at gallery@argylefa.com

Artist Mark Brennan in the News today....

Good afternoon everyone!  We're delighted to find a great article in the METRO News today about Mark Brennan's latest body of work at the gallery. The website for METRO seems to be experiencing some difficulties at the moment, so we have posted an image of the page...hope you can read it. If not, I'm sure it will be accessible online soon here: http://www.metronews.ca/halifax/local/article/1137555--installation-by-mark-brennan-brings-nature-into-the-gallery

Join us TONIGHT for the SIGHTS and SOUNDS of artist Mark Brennan

We're delighted to be showcasing not only the painted works of Mark Brennan, but also the soundscapes he has collected while painting on location to many of the areas depicted in the paintings you'll see at the show.

As I write this, he is telling some amazing stories to a local reporter- he has such a sincere passion for what he does. I could listen to him for hours talking about these works, and we hope that you too, will drop by the gallery this evening, Friday, March 23rd beginning at 7pm, to meet Mark and hear him talk a bit too.  Here is a picture of Mark collecting some sounds in February of this year.

We will be joined by Yellow Tail Wines this evening as well, for a special wine tasting in hounour of this new show and our caterer, Certainly Cinnamon, has assured us they have created some special "thematic" food for the evening.Start your Friday evening with us, or be sure to drop by tomorrow and experience the sights and sounds of Mark Brennan.

After the show opens, you will be able to see the entire show at www.argylefineart.com.

Watch this Film Trailer for Mark Brennan's Art show-opening this Friday!

Happy Monday to you all! If you're online and want to take a quick break, watch this film that artist Mark Brennan created for us to feature on our windows at night, at Argyle Fine Art.

Tonight will be the first night you will be able to walk past the gallery and see this...but just in case you want the whole effect, you can watch it here too...Make sure to come to the show, this Friday, March 23rd, 7pm.  We'll be playing this video on a loop throughout the week, leading up to opening night!

Mark Brennan paints wetland dawn in his studio in Northern Nova Scotia.

Mark Brennan paints wetland dawn in his studio in Northern Nova Scotia.

Have you Seen this Man? You can meet him at the gallery tomorrow- Saturday, March 17th

 Drop by Argyle Fine Art tomorrow (Saturday, March 17^th) for a casual meet the artist afternoon with Gordon MacDonald if you are in the area. Gordon’s recent show, “Quiet: Nocturnal Landscapes” is a very different body of work by Gordon, which has inspired many interesting conversations in the short time it’s been on display. Come and talk to him directly about why he decided to take on the difficult task of painting these haunting, romantic winter scenes from 2-3:30pm. Remember…all questions are good questions. While here, make sure to check out the other work on display, including the work of Andrea Saint Pierre with her latest collection of beautifully hand printed illuminated works in her show Lucent Liberation:Casting Light on a Conquered City. Both shows will continue until March 20^th and are online at www.argylefineart.com

UPCOMING!  Mark Brennan multi-media Show

 Watch our windows at night starting on Monday evening, for a video trailer created by artist MARK BRENNAN in support of his upcoming show at Argyle Fine Art opening on Friday, March 23^rd called “The Story So Far: Paintings from the Acadian Forest.”  If you’d like a sneak peek at the work in this show, please don’t hesitate to call or email the gallery.

HELP US FIND OUR STOLEN SIGNS!!!!!!!!!!!!

We're just a wee little independent business, and any kind of theft is extra hurtful to our ability to operate successfully. Some of you may have heard that when I opened up the gallery this morning, I noticed that BOTH our hand painted entrance signs had disappeared. Not nice. These signs are the beacons that allow passerbys to see that we're here, we're open, and we'd love a visit. This is really important stuff!! 

Anyhow, now the plot has thickened. I quickly adjusted the text on our very last hand painted sign by Nick Brunt (using fancy computer paper) and put it out in front of the gallery. As Adriana and I were discussing the sadness of the signage theft, someone stole the THIRD SIGN, in broad daylight, with heavy pedestrian traffic. Surely, SOMEONE must have seen this happen?! 

We're baffled now.

Someone is playing a mean trick on us, and it's not fun. 

Please return our signs.. they mean a lot to us. 

These images posted are of ONE of our signs - the other two are blue wooden signs that are painted by Nick Brunt. They say "Hell yeah, We're Open!" "Sorry, We're Closed" and "Show On Now"

      

After Meatnite! : Certainly Cinnamon gets inspired by our Current Shows!

It's not everyday you see....a "Meat Clock" but it certainly was a topic of conversation at last night's opening for Gordon MacDonald and Andrea Saint-Pierre's shows, which also coincided with this weekend's time change.No one will forget to SPRING ahead with this handy-dandy meat clock.  We snapped this shot quickly, as it wasn't long before the numbers started to disappear. They were delicious!

Certainly Cinnamon is a wonderful caterer to work with, and lately they have taken to theming a part of their catering specific to our shows. We can only imagine  what will be next!  By the way, the numbers on the clock were made by using the back of magnetic numbers you may have found on your fridge years ago...used as cookie cutters. Such a great idea! It made many people chuckle.

By the way, Gordon and Andrea's shows will be online VERY SOON....check the website in about an hour or so at www.argylefineart.com ...

Happy Daylight Saving's Time! See you at the gallery!

TOMORROW: Gordon MacDonald & Andrea Saint-Pierre

This is it! Tomorrow is the big night! 

Join us for an opening reception featuring both Gordon MacDonald (Quiet: Nocturnal Landscapes) and Andrea Saint Pierre (Lucent Liberation: Casting Light on a Conquered City Illuminated Works) 

Show opens March 9th at 7pm - 9pm and runs until March 20th. 

Make sure you stop into the gallery and see these works for yourself!

This show is FREE to attend, and is open to the public!

Check out Argyle Fine Art in the latest BIG DAY DOWNTOWN Series!

ATTENTION ARTISTS: CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS!!!

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS:
In correlation with the Titanic’s 100^th anniversary,  Argyle Fine Art will be launching its latest exhibition, titled  “PAPER THREADS” This collection of locally crafted paper dolls will depict fashions from the early 1900’s and more. Submissions are welcome from artists of all backgrounds!! If you’re in the fine arts, fine crafts, animation, graphic, or fashion design… we want to see your interpretation of this project! Please read our submission guidelines, and start creating!

                       

Submission guidelines:

- Artists may submit any number of paper dolls/ outfits

-  Works must be original, hand crafted, and created using ARCHIVAL paper.

- Dolls can be rendered in any medium: paint, ink, watercolour, graphite, collage, etc…

- Dolls can be created in any size (within reason, and consideration for our display space)

- Works should somehow reflect the period/fashion of the Titanic. Our focus here is really on    

   fashion/clothing ... meaning, a full figure (body) is not necessarily required.

- We ask that you cut out your paper doll before submitting, don’t forget to include some tabs :)   

- DO NOT frame, mount or put hanging devices on the backs of your works. We want to be able to         

artfully       

   display these pieces in Vintage trunks.

- Please make sure your works are signed (either on the front or the back)

- DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS APRIL 6^TH. So get cracking folks!!! That’s only one month away! 

To submit your creation/s, simply send jpegs of your completed work/s to gallery@argylefa.com

If submitting via photo is not possible, then drop by the gallery between 10am-5:30, Tuesday through Saturday with your completed piece/s. All submissions will be reviewed by our Jury. Artists will be sent a notice on their application shortly after the submission deadline on April 6^th.

Pricing will be determined by the artist, with assistance from the gallery.

Show opens Saturday, April 14^th at 2pm.

QUESTIONS?

Please feel free to call or email anytime! We’re happy to answer any questions you might have.

SPRING ahead..Two shows about LIGHT opening Friday, March 9th. Please Join us!

Here are the invites we just received...hot off the press. Please share this link with others you may know, and join us for the opening receptions of both shows, on  Friday, March 9th. Both shows deal with the topic of light or absense of light....so we thought it was fitting to have the shows open the same weekend as some of us move to Daylight Savings time that same weekend!

Drop by and see new work by Gordon and Andrea...you will be happy you did!