Duane Gordon

The Country Mouse and the City Mouse

March 26, 2009 – 8:25 pm
We've all heard the fable of the country mouse and the city mouse. Some people enjoy rural living. Hey, I've heard some even enjoy camping and communing with nature! Others prefer the fast-paced life of the big city. Apparently, this segregation is common among rodents as well. ;-) I'm a city mouse. I enjoy nature (mostly looking at it from a safe distance), but I love city life, although I must admit that at my age, it's not the fast pace that attracts me anymore. In fact, though I love to visit New York, I don't think my heart could stand the pace. Just standing on a street corner in Manhattan makes my heart pound! No, what attracts me to the city is the view. Montreal is a beautiful city, as are the people. Terrasse season is fast approaching, and fellow Montrealers (and former Montrealers) will remember the pleasure of sitting on a terrace having a coffee ...

Posted in Architecture, Canada, Drawings, For Sale, Landscapes, Quebec | No Comments »

I Surrendered to Facebook!

March 9, 2009 – 8:00 pm
Hi all, I've been remiss in posting to my blog because I've been busy working on my art. I'm an artist, what do you expect? :-) But... I'll be sharing new work here in the very near future... I've been hard at work on a new series about Montreal. I'm a landscape artist, and the Montreal landscape provides an endless source of inpiration. What a beautiful city I live in. But that doesn't explain the title of this post, does it? I never joined MySpace, and I resisted joining Facebook. I know they can be addictive, and I didn't want them to take time away from my art. The problem is, if you spend all your energy creating art and you never share it, what's the point of the art? So I knew I had to find an effective way to share and promote my art. Still, I procrastinated. At least, I did until my daughter (who's ...

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Painting in the Park

August 10, 2008 – 7:04 pm
Hi everyone, What a wonderful day! It turned out sunny after all... in fact, it was probably the nicest day we've had this summer. The cultural event was a blast. There were 20 artists who participated, and there were probably several hundred people who passed during the day. Just for fun, I thought I'd share with you how my painting evolved during the day. The rules were that we had to start with a blank canvas at noon. I took pictures of my canvas as it evolved through the afternoon, and this first one was taken at noon, just to show what we had to start with. I had worked on a drawing for the picture the day before, so I was ready to go at noon. However, we had 3 and half hours to produce a masterpiece... I was amazed at the number of people who succeeded! There is a lot of ...

Posted in Events, Landscapes, Sold | No Comments »

A Cultural “Event”

August 4, 2008 – 6:32 pm
This coming weekend (if it doesn't rain), there'll be painting in the park! The borough of St-Laurent (the area of Montreal I live in) will be having what they describe as a cultural event, which sounds a lot more snobbish than what it really is... a group of artists painting in the great outdoors. Sunday, August 10, 2008, 40 artists (max.) will be painting at Parc Beaudet starting at noon. Artists were invited to participate in painting "en plein air" followed by an auction of the works painted that day. Each of us chooses our own format and medium and provide all the materials... but there is one rule that makes this different and fun: When painting starts at noon, the canvas must be blank. The art work, whatever size the artist chooses, must be finished before the start of the auction at 4 pm (16h). Hmmm... a masterpiece in less than 4 ...

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What I’ve been doing with my summer…

July 27, 2008 – 8:13 pm
Hi everyone, I wanted to tell everyone about someone I've been working with lately. Sylvie Moncion is a successful artist, and I was drawn to some of her paintings I saw on her portfolio at Absolute Arts. I usually take painting workshops during the year, but they shut down for the summer, so I was looking for someone to work with as an instructor/coach. In a totally uncharacteristic move for me (I'm usually very shy), I wrote to Sylvie using her contact form asking if she ever offered workshops or lessons. I'm sure glad I did, because Sylvie replied that while she never had done anything like that in the past, she had been thinking about it, and if I was willing, we could see if we could figure out a way to work together. We met and decided that because of my goals, my level of experience and my schedule, she would ...

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Skies on Fire / Ciel en feu

May 13, 2008 – 11:15 am
© Duane Gordon 2008   Every Canadian knows that even though the sky appears as a conflagration igniting the trees as the sun sets, you’ll want to hurry to the cabin and huddle around the stove as night falls. Canadian winters are beautiful, but cold.   Height: 20 inches / 51 cm Width: 16 inches / 40.5 cm Thickness: ¾ inches / 2 cm Media: Oil on canvas Price: $225  SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "Skies on Fire / Ciel en feu", url: "http://www.duanegordon.com/?p=120" });

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Sun Through the Trees / Soleil à travers les arbres

May 8, 2008 – 8:23 pm
© Duane Gordon 2008   The sun shining through the trees and casting long shadows on the snow create the effect of bars on a window blocking your view of the scenery in the distance. Perhaps this is what is meant by the “gilded cage”?   Height: 20 inches / 51 cm Width: 16 inches / 40.5 cm Thickness: ¾ inches / 2 cm Media: Oil on canvas Price: $250SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "Sun Through the Trees / Soleil à travers les arbres", url: "http://www.duanegordon.com/?p=119" });

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It’s Snow Heavy / Que c’est lourd

May 4, 2008 – 7:02 pm
© Duane Gordon 2008   Whistler is renowned for its beauty and its heavy snowfall. Under the early light of the rising sun creeping down the valley wall opposite, we see the trees bowing under the weight of last night’s snow. The silence is almost absolute, with the thick blanket of snow absorbing all sounds except the crisp snow crunching under your boots.   Height: 20 inches / 51 cm Width: 16 inches / 40.5 cm Thickness: ¾ inches / 2 cm Media: Oil on canvas Price: $225SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "It’s Snow Heavy / Que c’est lourd", url: "http://www.duanegordon.com/?p=118" });

Posted in British Columbia, Completed works, For Sale, Landscapes | No Comments »

On a Clear Day You Can See / On peut voir

April 30, 2008 – 10:44 am
© Duane Gordon 2008   In the spring 2008, after a long hard winter, I just wanted to warm up. I had been painting snow-covered trees until I was sick of them and it was time for a vacation. You can easily lose yourself in this scene. It’s a clear day so you can see into the valley where perhaps a country village nestles below the thick cover of the trees. Or perhaps you can see the hills behind that, the perfect spot for a hike and a picnic lunch. Maybe you’re gazing at the purple mountains in the distance, thinking of the adventure that awaits the intrepid explorer with the courage and curiosity to go further than most.   Height: 24 inches / 51 cm Width: 30 inches / 76 cm Thickness: ¾ inches / 2 cm Media: Oil on canvas Price: $650SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "On a Clear Day You Can See / On peut voir", url: "http://www.duanegordon.com/?p=117" ...

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High Summer Sun / Soleil chaud d’été

April 26, 2008 – 11:09 am
  © Duane Gordon 2008   The winter of 2007-2008 was a hard one. We came within a few centimeters of breaking the record for snowfall in Montreal, and by Easter, I’d had enough of it. I painted this picture to warm up after a long, cold winter. I especially wanted to capture the heat of the high summer sun as it blazes down on the countryside and casts dark, dramatic and sharply-defined shadows. Imagine yourself strolling along the dirt road. Perhaps you’re barefoot and carrying a fishing pole. You’re certainly whistling. Don’t you fee warmer now?   Height: 30 inches / 76 cm Width: 24 inches / 61 cm Thickness: ¾ inches / 2 cm Media: Oil on canvas Price: $650SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "High Summer Sun / Soleil chaud d’été", url: "http://www.duanegordon.com/?p=116" });

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