8″ x 8″, watercolour and ink
This is my watercolour of the Bar Ape, three-wheeler Piaggio Ape truck. I spotted it years ago in my St. Lawrence Market neighborhood.
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Victorian Face Jug
8″ x 8″, watercolour
This is my watercolour of a salt-glazed stoneware Victorian face jug made by Robert Wallace Martin, of R.W. Martin & Brothers, Southall London, dated 1906, as I saw it at the Victoria & Albert Museum. Gary and I visited London in May of 2016 for our ten-year, wedding anniversary.
From the museum description:
“In the late 19th century, in reaction to the emphasis on commercial industrial production, manufacturers and new, small workshops produced ‘Art Pottery’ in which freedom of expression was paramount. The Martin brothers were the most creative of art potters, using traditional salt-glazed stoneware for fantastic jugs like this example.” -
Windmills in Astypalea
6″ x 6″, watercolour
This is a little watercolour of the traditional windmills of Astypalea, made while I was sitting outside at Café Meltemi. My husband Gary and I visited the Greek Island of Astypalea in May of 2023.
The windmills are located in the town Chora (city centre). The people of Astypalaia used to bring here the crops of the few grains that grew on the island for milling. All eight mills are of the same type called “xetrocharis” mill.
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Pen and Ink Self-Portrait
9″ x 12″, pen and ink
This is a self-portrait assignment from one of my foundation year classes at OCA, 1988. My hair kind of looks like that again today. I found this packed in my old school portfolio. Wish I could remember which instructor taught that particular class.
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Bar Relatame Olives
6″ x 6″, watercolour
My watercolour of the dish of olives we had at the Bar Relatame in Seville, Spain. The little neighbourhood bar and eatery was within walking distance our Airbnb apartment. We were in Seville for about four weeks back in January, 2017 before moving to Granada for our last week in Spain.
This little painting actually took me ages to complete. I was never quite happy with how the new watercolour paints I bought were behaving. It was like learning how to paint all over again. All I can say was that layering was difficult. It was a challenge to not overwork it, but still having it look finished enough with the right amount of detail.
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Roterdão Club Lisboa
9″ x 12″, watercolour, pen & ink
My watercolour of a day view of Roterdão Club on the famous “pink street” in Lisbon Portugal. From my 21-day stay in Lisbon in 2017. The place looks super-fantastic at night with all of the neon and surrounding lights lit up.
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Blue Striped Top
8″ x 8″, watercolour, pen & ink
My sketch of my old, blue, striped, boatneck, top with metal snaps at the neck. I wore it until holes appeared under the arms. It served me well for years.
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Angel Slice Cake
8″ x 8″, watercolour, pen & ink
My sketch of an individually wrapped, Mr. Kipling, Angel Slice cake I purchased from a Tesco Express in May 2017. It was incredibly sweet. Best with a strong cup of tea.
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Spanish Olives – La Barrica Debla
8″ x 8″, watercolour, pen & ink
Here’s the first sketch in my small series of olives eaten at various bars and tabernas in Seville and Granada. Gary and I spent five weeks in Spain pretending to be locals, while speaking horrible broken Spanish.
This dish of olives, with a little container for pits, was from La Barrica de Debla: a small craft beer bar close to our Airbnb apartment in the La Macarena neighbourhood of Seville.
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Farmer Breaky
8″ x 8″, watercolour, pen & ink
Here’s a slightly messy-looking watercolour sketch of the Farmer Breaky I had at a neighbourhood French Bistro for brunch. It had bacon, sausages, fried, fingerling potatoes with onions, grilled tomatoes and beans. No eggs, though, by request. I can’t seem to digest eggs very well now that I’m older. I’ve been told that it’s fairly common occurrence.