Artist Shelley Mitchell is a well-loved Nova Scotia artist that we are proud to showcase at Argyle Fine Art. We're looking forward to her annual show, opening Friday, May 10th. Please join us that evening from 7-9pm, or drop by on Saturday, May 11th and meet her at the gallery in the afternoon.
We asked Shelley to be our feature writer for this blog entry. Here is what she wrote. Enjoy! It gives a wonderful view into Shelley's process...with lots of help from Charlie, her husband and partner in crime.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
I go to great lengths to find lovely hand crafted boats to paint
because of their elegance of design. As well as being constantly on the
look out while sailing in Mahone Bay and Lunenburg in the summers, I
take at least one trip down the New England coast each year and either
drive or sail to remote (and not so remote) harbours looking for small
boatyards and marinas. In among the inflatable tenders you will often
find an old beauty tied up and waiting. That's when my husband Charlie
springs into action and unties and repositions the boat so I can get
exactly the position I need (sometimes hanging by one hand from a pier or
lying on a float with my elbows in the water)
The 3 elements
I want are 1. a boat with good lines, 2. interesting water with color
and/or textures and 3. great light. I often need to get these 3 things
separately and combine them on the canvas. Usually I wait for the light
(sometimes for a day or 2) and then move the boat onto the good water.
It can be tricky and time consuming. We spend a lot of time revisiting
boats in different light and weather often at dawn and sunset. Charlie
will take someones rowboat out for a row without permission and we've
been questioned by many security people and locals.
Usually we can
talk our way out of a problem and we always tie every one back up
exactly as we found it. Except one time we put the oars back in the
wrong boat and made our getaway as the owner was scratching his head
wondering what was going on! Charlie has boundless energy and a good eye for finding and working with boats and I'd never get what I needed without his help and encouragement.
One
of the paintings in my upcoming show at Argyle Fine Art, "Waterlines", is called
Red Shed Reflected and was an adventure in patience and luck. I had
found a beautiful boat and an idea for interesting water and a hope the
weather might cooperate, but since none of these things actually came
together I used the form of the boat and artistic imagination for the
painting.
This is what I had to work from:
This is what I ended up
painting. I think it turned out pretty well. What I want from a
painting is a moment in time that shares my experience of that day
surrounded by water, light and magic, a gift to myself and others.
See you at the show!
Shelley Mitchell
