This selection of paintings was was inspired during a visit to Num-Ti-Jah Lodge in Banff National Park to participate in an art exhibition.  Also included are a few ocean shoreline studies completed while teaching workshops on Vancouver Island B.C in March.  Watercolour is well suited to the wet in wet effects of shorelines and the coastal light, however it is a great challenge painting water that is always on the move.

Painting Spring break-up at Bow Lake, 2005	Spring Break-up on Bow Lake
Athcabasca Glacier	Spring Evening on Bow Lake
Incoming Tide	Painting at Wreck Beach, Vancouver

Sky Study Towards the Sunshine Coast	Painting Sky Study, Towards the Sunshine Coast
Sunshine Coast	Incoming Tide #2
Pacific Spirit Forest, study	Surf Study, Wreck Beach , Vancouver

This selection of paintings was was inspired by the dynamic, intimate and sometimes humbling landscape of autumn in the Canadian Rockies. The watercolours were painted on location from various backpacking trips as well as hikes from residences at the Num-Ti-Jah Lodge in Banff National Park, Alberta and the Elizabeth Parker Hut at Lake O'hara, Yoho National Park, British Columbia.

Sargent's Point, Lake O'hara	Painting last light at Lake O'Hara
Lake McArthur	Panorama of Lake McArthur
Highland Passage	Study from the Pass, Lake McArthur

Painting Autumn Colours at Lake Oesa	Larches at Lake Oesa
Lake McArthur, #2	Waterfall, Oesa Lake Trail
Painting in the Rain, Lake Oesa	Lake Oesa

Painting Towards Lake Oesa	Lake Oesa Trail
Autumn Morning in Banff	Early Autumn Morning from Vermillion Lakes, Banff
Mt. Robson	Mount Chephern

Peyto Lake Shoreline	Study from shores of Peyto Lake
Painting at the toe of the Bow Glacier	From the Toe of the Bow Glacier
West Coast River	Coastal River

Peyto Lake	Painting from Peyto Lake Lookout
View from the Ram Pasture, Bow Lake	Evening at Bow Lake

This selection of "en plein-air" paintings was created in Banff National Park in early spring 2004.  It was absolutely energizing to reconnect to this landscape and witness the spring thaw of wild rivers and snow laden peaks.  Thanks again to the amazing staff and friends at Num-Ti-Jah Lodge who made this trip possible and memorable!

Watercolour Painting at Saskatchewan Crossing March 2004, Banff National Park	The Crossing
Spring Break Up	Ice Banks, Saskatchewan Crossing

Ancient Cedar Forest	David McEown painting en plein-air on Vancouver Island
David McEown painting at Englishman Falls, Vancouver Island, March 2004	Falls, Vancouver Island, B.C.

Paintings from Canada's East Coast, Autumn 2003

The selected paintings were inspired from the wildly rugged landscape of Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland Labrador. The park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. Horizon Embrace

Inland Fiord, Gros Morne

Aurora Borealis, Green Point Newfoundland

Painting Western Brook Pond

Gros Morne Cliffs

Newfoundland Cascade

Snug Harbour, Western Brook Pond

Painting in progress at Snug Harbour

Prince Edward Island National Park of Canada's east coast is home to barrier islands, beaches, sandstone cliffs, wetlands and forests. These diverse habitats provide a home for a variety of plants and animals, including the endangered Piping Plover. The park protects unique dune formations, rare plants and animals, as well as archaeological findings dating back 10,000 years. Shoreline Embrace

Brackley Beach, P.E.I

Surf, Robinson Island, P.E.I

Arches, P.E.I

Painting Plien Air, in Prince Edward island National Park.

P.E.I Shoreline

Receding Tide at Beach "studio" in Prince Edward Island National Park.

This selection of plein-air paintings was created in early spring 2003, in the heart of the Canadian Rockies. After a long winter in the studio it was absolutely energizing to reconnect to the landscape.  The act of painting on location is an opportunity to be a vehicle in which the "land" paints itself. In the case of watercolour, the temperature around freezing point can totally influence the application of paint and produce intriguing crystal patterns and textures.  The mountain weather can change instantly, the painter responds with this dance; surfing the moment and writing with the wind.  I hope to produce studio works from this adventure soon.     An artist in Residence program at the Num-Ti-Jah Lodge made this trip possible.  The Lodge, built in stages by Banff legend Jimmy Simpson and his crew from the 1920's to the 1950's, is an historic mountain lodge situated on the Icefields Parkway, 40 km north of Lake Louise.  Num-Ti-Jah sits on the shore of Bow Lake, beneath the majestic Bow Glacier and the Wapta Icefield.  This location marks the major source of the Bow Valley's precious fresh water resources.     Num-Ti-Jah Lodge continues a tradition, dating back to the days of Belmore Brown and Carl Rungius; of offering residencies to artists who come to be inspired by the area's incomparable scenery and recreational opportunities, and to have their works displayed for the ongoing enjoyment of visitors to the lodge.     A few of the following paintings will be included in an art exhibit called "Source". Opening Friday, May 23rd at Num-Ti-Jah Lodge; the show will continue through the summer of 2003. (for more info click on exhibitions)

Bow Lake, Early Spring

Banff National Park

Saskatchewan Crossing

Banff National Park

Western Canada, 2002

The summer and autumn of 2002 were spent painting and exploring the incredibly diverse and spectacular landscapes of Western Canada.  The return journey from southern Ontario to the ancient forests of the pacific west coast was an overwhelming passage through time and space.  Twelve hundred year old moss laden coastal red cedar groves are such a contrast to seeing dinosaur fossils rising up through the earth among cactus and rattlesnakes of the Alberta Badlands.  Pitching a tent between ancient teepee ring stones in Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan, one looks across the coulee to a 360 degree view of sky, imagining a few hundred years ago when bison may have covered the horizon.    The lightness and spontaneous nature of watercolour is appreciated when undertaking rigorous backpacking trips along the ice fields and peaks of the continental divide.  The Canadian Rockies inspire dynamic composition and endless variations of colour and tone. The land awakes the senses, feeds the soul.    Painting can be a way of expressing reverence. It is a process of celebration, a union of the artist with the subject.   It requires humility, patience and an openness to hear nature's song.    The following images are a few paintings from the west coast and the Rocky Mountains.  There will be more paintings and studio works posted from this journey on the web site page soon.  The complete selection of paintings can be found in the Watercolour Galleries page.    Thanks to the many kind friends and family across this country who gave me a place to rest and renew.  Also, a special thanks to the Artist in Residence program at Num-Ti-Jah Lodge in Banff National Park.

Floe Lake Northern Lights

Ancient Cedar

Long Beach, Pacific Rim National Park

Bow Lake Reflections

2001 Lake Superior Trip

Painting directly from nature is the most rewarding part of being a landscape painter. This is the time of year to absorb and experience the energy and wonder. Such recharging is important in order to carry the feeling of reverence throughout long winter months and on to more sustained works of art.  Autumn 2001, was spent exploring the north shore of Lake Superior and its many exceptional Provincial and National Parks. The world's largest fresh water lake truly feels like a great sea and has a shoreline with weather that is incredibly diverse.  Much of this solo journey was spent in the interior, wilderness backpacking and shoreline hiking with my faithful watercolour folder.     The challenging medium of watercolour is the most direct and effective medium for expressing the fluidity of the rapidly changing landscape - as well as revealing the artist's heart and years of seeing.     I have started some large and sustained works now and hope to post them on this site soon.     Also, I want to say a big thank you to the good friends, rangers, and train crews who offered food, shelter, and company when the elements became humbling!

On Top of the Giant

Painting, Agawa River, September, 2001

Toronto, ON     New Year's Day, 2001, was spent paying homage to the great humpback whale.   This whale mural commission is part of an ongoing, larger painting project that is already more than 10,000 square feet.   I hope to invite everybody down to see the murals when renovations are complete.   Please see The Murals - http://artistjourneys.com/murals.html     for more whales and big walls!

Alaska, Tatshenshini-Alsek Park in B.C. and Kluane National Park in the Yukon Territory     In September of 2000 this powerful landscape of the Pacific Northwest pulled me back to explore and paint its wonders. Here are a few examples of recent paintings done on site.  The work was inspired from the parks just outside of Haines, Alaska, where we could witness brown bears fishing for salmon while a glacier would calve off in what sounds like background thunder.  From this misty green world we traveled up in altitude through the Chilkat pass, an ancient indigenous route of what's now called the Haines Highway.  From the Tatshenshini-Alsek and Kluane parks, the autumn colours and fresh snow just added to an already spectacular panorama of mountain peaks.  The ever-changing extremes in weather created real challenges to paint in, thus giving some of the works a sense of directness and spontaneity that is sometimes hard to attain in studio paintings.

Tatshenshini

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