It's this little oil on board painting. I bought it from the Artisan Christmas Market here in Canmore today and I really love it! When I arrived at the market with both kids in tow I did think for moment I should turn straight around and not bother. Both kids are a bit under the weather and neither of them was in the best of moods when we arrived at the market. I'd dragged them out of the house because I really wanted to check it out and having been cooped up in the house for a couple of days I thought it would do them good to get out even if it was to my choice of destination rather than theirs. The market took place in the high school ( a surprisingly lovely building full of rough hewn timber posts) and as soon as I walked in I saw a sign for the complimentary daycare provided for shoppers by the local pre-school.....Hooray! Within minutes I was strolling through the market with a silly smile on my face, believe me it is a rare occurrence for me to get a chance to enjoy something like this at my own pace without any worries of my kids trashing someones market stand, getting lost while I herd them through a crowd or just tugging on my arm to leave because they are sooo bored. Thank you anonymous-market-organizer-person! Your child care idea made my day! Anyway after stuffing my face with the tastiest waffle I've ever eaten I walked past a stall for the Canadian Mountain Arts Foundation. They had a whole wall of 10 x 10 boards all painted and donated by local artists with profits going to the foundation. Each one was priced at $20. As soon as I went by, this one caught my eye and I slowed down to have a look. It was the least colourful of all the paintings and the most simple almost undetailed piece. Theres something about it that just totally captures the essence of Canada that I see in my mind. It's by a Canmore artist but something about it reminds of Tofino too, the greyness and tree tops, so similar to what I would look out at from the windows of our house there. Anyway, just as I stopped, another lady started chatting to the woman running the stall and asked about the painting I liked, I listened in to the conversation hoping she didn't buy it and wondering if I should butt in and say I'd have it. She finished her chat and walked away and I decided on the spot to buy it. I would usually have walked away and thought about it and then most probably have lost out on it altogether. When I told the lady I'd like it she smiled and told me that she'd been thinking if it didn't sell today she was going to buy it herself. We laughed and I paid for my little painting. She told me about the artist and told me to look her up via the Elevation gallery in town. When I got home I was really surprised to see that Chrissy Nickerson's paintings sell in that gallery for anywhere between $600 to $1600 even for a piece not much bigger than mine! I think my $20 purchase was a total bargain but more than that, I just felt like I was meant to have it and that's what makes me love it.
I've been tinkering with things to put on our mantle and right now it's my new painting, a few pine cones and pieces of driftwood from various walks and this little jar.......
It's a bit of Mckenzie beach scooped up on a wet and blustery evening last April....our last evening as residents of Tofino :( I told you I am weirdly sentimental. I made it look a bit prettier with some washi tape just because otherwise it looked like a jar of grey mud. I'll keep it I think and return it one day......who knows we might end up there sometime :)
Speaking of talented artists....I've also managed to find a spot for a couple of my sisters pieces from Squid Ink designs and I think they look beautiful!
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