Donna Cheryl Brown, Fine Art
Painter, contemporary style - acrylic, oil, cold wax, mixed media.
Expressive abstracted portrait and figurative works, still life, abstracts, landscapes, trees.
Sassy Tree Studio, Desert Lake, Ontario

Blog

(posted on 15 Oct 2020)

I have been inspired for months now, painting to express Unity. Since March I haven't been able to paint much, perhaps due to Covid-19 and feeling the world doesn't really need another painting. Luckily, I heard about a show where a theme of unity was chosen. (N3XT, to be held at The Arts and Letters Club in Toronto) I began working on the theme in July, and have done so many paintings. It was good to have a focus, something I wanted to express. When I think of Unity I think of people. I think of the human race and connection between people. I also wanted to show Canada as a country where we are united, caring and accepting of all. I reached a goal of having so many understand my feelings - someone saw my painting 'From Sea to Sea to Sea' and said it made her proud to be Canadian.
 

(posted on 15 Jan 2019)

Finally, I am feeling free again and having fun with my painting practice. Experimenting, and really getting involved in what I am doing. Best of all, I have several more weeks in which I can spend a lot of time in my studio. We leave on our next trip on February 6th so I will paint most days until then. Feeling inspired! I am getting so involved that while I work there is no thought, only feeling. My current focus is inspired by the beautiful natural world - and by the spiritual world as well. 

I'm writing this blog so I can go back to it when I start to think about the product and focus on trying too hard and thinking too much. I need to remind myself that I paint for the joy of painting.

(posted on 16 Jul 2018)

July 16, 2018

I am so excited to be in my studio now, trying out materials that feel just right - and are new to me. I bought gold leaf paper and Japanese mineral paints and rice paper. Using these materials seems to fit with my new lifestyle, living on Desert Lake and becoming more attuned to nature - to the trees and rocks and water.

I went to Connecticut in June and took a workshop with Judith Kruger to help learn how to use the mineral paints. It was quite wonderful. I really enjoyed using the silver leaf paper too and plan to work with more of the metal papers.

My husband and I go for daily walks, and I meditate daily too. There is a calmness that comes from meditation, and I am thinking and hoping that it will help me be more creative and free. It does seem to be happening.

Thanks for reading this. I'd love to hear from you.....    Donna

I joined an art group in Kingston, OKWA, the Organization of Kingston Women Artists. I saw that so many fine artists are in the group and wanted to meet them and share with them our common interest. This year for Canada's 150th Celebration they are asking all the artists to choose a Canadian artist who inspired us and write a short statement telling why this is so. Such an interesting question. I could have chosen so many... some of the very famous, and some of my artist friends who are great artists too.

But, since we were to choose one, I picked Tom Thomson. When I grew up in Edmonton, Alberta we had prints in all of our elementary school classrooms of paintings done by Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven. 'The West Wind' was in my Grade 4 classroom and I spent a great deal of time looking at that work. It was my favourite of them all.

After traveling to China in 1994 I felt compelled to paint trees. I didn't realize it at the time at all, but now on reflection, my tree paintings were influenced by my childhood idol and 'The West Wind.' The trees I painted were on a coloured background, were stylized, and were mostly of a strong powerful single tree. I haven't painted trees much for some time now but since we are living on Desert Lake and surrounded by them, I plan to do many more in the next months and perhaps years.

So glad to have the inspiration from OKWA in order to reminisce and think about our great country and some wonderful artists!

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