I have a theory. Tell me if it's true. I believe art and nature are the same and cannot exist without the other. Nature is an art in itself, creating perfect colour palettes and harmonious shapes. Within all its organic-ness is perfection. How can nature be wrong? It holds an endless supply of lines and patterns. Nature is a terrific source for artists to "draw" from.
My inspiration has always derived from the world I see around me. While going through my photos from Vietnam, I noticed this connection for other artists as well. A figure drawing class in the middle of (what seemed) an abandoned garden. A monk who found eternal youth and happiness from painting thousands of mountain scrolls. A boy who used large leaves as his paint palette. A Canadian example, the iconic style of The Group of Seven. The documentary Painted Land, shows how they loved the natural landscape and spent their lives painting it. It's hard to know which they loved more—painting or being in nature?
Homes and Gardens:
Look who popped up at the Home and Garden Show!
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| My little garden-in-a-vase integrating with the Gold Bird Mural. |
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| A sweet bunny adds fun decor to a hydrangea garden. |
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| Beautifully designed metal palm trees by Designer Palms— and they have coconut lights! |
Sculpture Gardens at the McMichael Gallery.
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| My friend Juli Lyons and I enjoyed a Spring afternoon photographing. |
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| We walked among welcoming sculptures that seemed to blend perfectly into the landscape. |
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| A jar containing a Haiku poem hangs from each of the sculptures. |
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| 6 of The Group of Seven artists lay to rest here, in a protective circle of rocks. |
Surprise Appearances in Gardens.
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| Mountains of mountain paintings made by a monk (Dalat, Vietnam). |
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| Nhat paints my portrait (Saigon, Vietnam). |
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| Mr. Thuc, the monk artist, looks much younger than his 65 years. |
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| Leaves used as a paint palette (Luang Prabang, Laos). |
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| Carving in the back garden of a restaurant run by an artist (Kon Tum, Vietnam). |
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| This figure drawing class was completely hidden in the massive gardens of the Forbidden Purple City (Hue, Vietnam). |
