Drop Box

Meet Our Artists: Linda Rupp

Linda works with glass. She loves the colour, the texture and sparkle. In 1995 she started working with stained glass. In 2004 she took her first glass fusing course and was hooked.

As well as Dichroic Glass jewelry, which is her most popular item, she fuses plates, bowls and panels. Most of her panels include birds or other scenes from nature.

She has just returned from the Glass Expo in Las Vegas in April with lots of new ideas. Come and see some of her Glass at Sunset Arts.

The Gallery Painting Group

Several of the artists of Sunet Arts, namely, Amelia Husnik, Len Hughes, Christopher Grimes, Mary Lynn Smith and Susan Garrington, belong to The Gallery Painting Group, a London based organization of painters who get together twice a week from May to September in order to sketch and paint on location. This group was formed over 50 years ago. They gather to work in private and public spaces. Every Year they have a public showing of their work from the year's "paint outs". Some of the work currently on display in the gallery has been done on location at The Gallery Painting Group paint outs.

Meet our Artists: Mary Lynn Smith

Meet Our Atists: Maria Gotz

Meet Our Artists: Lynn Bickell

Meet Our Artists: Catherine Weber

Meet Our Artists: Sue Shurish

"Current work features collage pieces of various papers stained and decorated using different techniques with fluid acrylic paints. Most works begin as abstracts, and some remain so while others suggest something more objective. Pieces are started intuitively, continued with decisions about rhythm, contrast, and movement until there is a sense of being finished. Some pieces remain simple and others become more complicated. The intensity and subtlety of the colours, patterns and textures continue to interest me."

Meet Our Artists: Willem (Bill) Nieuland

        Born in 1944 in a small rural town on a Dutch Island, Bill remembers drawing clouds reflected in shimmering waters as early as age seven. A self taught painter from an artistic family, Bill experimented in oils, capturing the images of his youth, windmills, churches, historic houses, and tree-lined dykes beneath scudding clouds.

        Bill immigrated to Canada in 1959, settled in St. Thomas, and soon became fascinated by the wilder and relatively uncultivated Great Lakes shorelines and Northern Ontario's wilderness. With the photographer's eye for realism, Bill excels in depicting unexpected detail in his painting, from the rose and orange of sunset clouds reflected in water to local wildlife in its natural habitat.  

        Always drawn to local history and lore, Bill also developed a knowledgeable interest in North American Indian culture, and has recreated various authentic replicas of artifacts and crafts, from hunting tools to complete ceremonial dress hide garments.

        From his studio in Huron Woods overlooking the Old Ausable River, Bill finds both relaxation and inspiration, recreating various local scenes on canvas as well as images from his travels across North America.

                     

Meet Our Artists: Len Hughes

LEN HUGHES


Len was born in England where he first became interested in painting at school. A busy career prevented him from following his interest in art but in 1985 that changed when he started to purse his interest in painting once more. He now lives in London, Ontario with his wife, Sheila.
Len particularly enjoys the transparency, fluidity and speed of watercolour, his favourite medium. He tends to use watercolours boldly with pure colours in rich washes exploiting and exploring the vibrancy and capabilities of the medium.
He has been influenced by the works of the French Impressionists and the Group of Seven in their use of colour to convey the effect of sunlight. His philosophy towards painting is modelled on that of Sir Winston Churchill, an accomplished artist, who said; “contentment is a joyride in a paint-box for which audacity is the only ticket.”
Landscapes featuring water and reflections are one of his favourite subjects. So too, are the town and village scenes of the Languedoc region of southern France which he frequently visits.
Len has frequently exhibited his work alone and in group exhibitions at various locations including Museum London. He has received various awards for his work. Len has work at Museum London’s Art Rental and Sales as well as private and corporate collections.

Meet Our Artists: Christopher Grimes

River Road, Grand Bend

Christopher splits his time between Grand Bend and Bermuda, painting outdoors as much as possible. He paints primarily in oils and has a realistic style.

He paints virtually every day, and after over 30 years still enjoys learning all there is to know about painting, which is a more than a lifetime project!

Christopher is now exhibiting at Sunset Arts for the third year.

Meet Our Artists: Amelia Husnik

Grand Bend , acrylic

New to Sunset Arts this year, Amelia is a resident of London, Ontario. Amelia works in oil, watercolour and acrylic. Amelia loves to sketch and paint "plein air" and travels extensively in Canada and Europe, sketching as she goes. Amelia is also a member of The Gallery Painting Group.

"As long as I remember I loved to look at pictures, first in children’s books, later at paintings, architecture and street scenes. Getting involved in painting I became much more aware of the influence of light and dark, colour andcomposition. Taking workshops, going on painting trips and joining an outdoor painting group helped me to loose all fear of working on location, helping me to develop the skills needed to put on paper or canvas whatever the eye sees.

For the last 5 or 6 years I have had the privilege of going with a small group of friends on painting trips to different locations in Canada and in Europe. Our goal is to paint and sketch as much as we can, sacrificing only a fraction of our time to sightseeing or museum visits. Working on location is the best thing an artist can do in my opinion; it makes you observe with greater intensity, and many a detail is only discovered during sketching or painting.We’ve been in Northern Ontario, Muskoka district, France, The Netherlands, England and Newfoundland. Filled with wonderful memories, photographs and a great number of sketches and paintings, we return, inspired to produce much more. These “holidays” are very precious to me, and I hope that many more will follow."

Meet Our Artists: Susan Garrington

Sunflower Field, watercolour

Susan is a resident of London, Ontario who works in watercolour, acrylic, graphite and mixed media. Many of her paintings,such as the one above, are done "plein air" with the Gallery Painting Group. Susan has been a member of the GPG since the year 2000. She often travels to paint with other artists and several of her paintings on display this year are the result of a painting trip to Newfoundland undertaken last summer. This is Susan's third year at Sunset Arts.

"My landscapes are inspired by plein air sketching sessions and sometimes paintings are completed on site. I walk through the landscape until I feel a physical reaction to what I am seeing. My goal is to capture that moment and produce an image with a personal resonance. Working on location allows me to absorb the sights, sounds, shapes and rhythms that present themselves, to be in the moment, to attempt to understand the spirit of the place. I work primarily in watercolour because its range of values from ephemeral to intensely saturated can produce both luminous light and mysterious dark which I use as vehicles to intensify my interpretation of the spirit of a particular place and time. "

Susan has exhibited her work in many solo and group exhibitions. She has been the recipient of several awards for her work which can be found in several galleries as well as in private collections.