Every Painting Has a Story: April 2023 – “From Whom All Blessings Flow”

It’s April! This month’s painting is one of my more recent ones and I’m excited to share the story behind it!

“From Whom All Blessings Flow” is a 16″x20″ acrylic painting that was commissioned to me by a client who wanted to thank their friends for many years of support. My client asked me if I could paint a scene from Guizhou, a province of China that was dear to the recipients’ hearts. I had known about this project for at least a year and hadn’t quite landed on any particular image despite having researched and brainstormed several times. Then I found out my client would be visiting their friends and somehow everything clicked into place and I went from having no idea to a finished painting within two weeks!

The painting features the Huangguoshu waterfall, a popular destination for locals and tourists alike. The waterfall is one of the largest ones in China and also the world. My client had actually visited this waterfall with their friends so it held extra special meaning for them. They had gone at a dry point in the summer and this painting in its earlier stages looked similar to the trickling water they had seen.

From Whom All Blessings Flow, 16″x20″, Acrylic on Deep Canvas (sold)

This was the first time painting a waterfall for me and I learned a lot and enjoyed the process. I combined the references from three stock images to create this piece. It was fun to paint the flowing water and watch it come to life.

The title for this piece is borrowed from a line of an old hymn known as the Doxology. It goes, “Praise God from whom all blessings flow.” I picture the flowing water as blessings and hope that this painting will always remind the recipients of both the blessings in their lives and the Source of these blessings.

For those with the Scripture calendar

This month’s artwork is paired with John 1:16 which says, “From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another.” A reminder for us to notice and remember the blessings we are given.

Questions for reflection, if you want to go deeper: If you were to picture your life as this waterfall, how much water is flowing at this moment? What blessings are you experiencing today? Take a moment to pause in gratitude.

{This post is dedicated in honour of Rev. Henry Numan. Henry was the one person who replied to every single email newsletter I sent. His presence in my life and inbox will be missed.}

On now until April 28: Tiny Expanses Art Show!

Tiny Expanses – Olive’s first solo art show – Apr 15-28

The Tiny Expanses art show is open! Thank you to the many of you who are coming over the opening weekend to enjoy the 100 tiny sky paintings and for those of you who are browsing online and participating from afar. I’m grateful to everyone who supported the show and especially to those who bought pieces for themselves or as gifts for others. If you’re local, you can still make an appointment to see the show until April 28. All the pieces can be viewed and purchased at my web shop.

If you enjoyed this post and want to read a monthly art story, remember to sign up so future posts get delivered to your email! I usually post them the second Friday of each month. (You might need to check your promotions or junk folders if you don’t see it.)

As always, I love to hear from you! If something in this story resonated with you, if you’re interested in commissioning a painting, or if you have other thoughts, feel free to email, or connect with me on Facebook or Instagram. Thanks for being part of my journey and for letting me be a part of yours!

Every Painting Has a Story: February 2023 – “At Ease”

Hello friends! Here we are in February already. I’m excited to share the story behind the painting “At Ease,” which is featured this month on my Art Calendar. It’s a pretty personal story. I love the circumstances surrounding this painting and I think the theme of this piece is applicable to our lives (I know it certainly is for mine!). I hope you enjoy the next few minutes of story time.

Back in 2017, I was coming out of the fog of having babies and I knew it was time for me to take some practical steps toward restoring my body. I booked myself an appointment with Dr. Lois Lochhead, a highly recommended pelvic floor physiotherapist in my area. While getting to know each other, I told her that my husband, Tim, and I had a small marketing company. Not long after, she hired us to help with launching her new clinic.

Her new business partner happened to offer Osteopathic treatment and I soon started to see her for my own healthcare needs. One day while I was at their clinic, Lois approached me and asked if I might be able to create a painting for her treatment room. The wall above the plinth (treatment bed) had been empty for a few years and it was time to have something there. Of course I said I would be thrilled and honoured.

At Ease, 24″x30″, Acrylic on canvas (sold)

The image we came up with was based on a photo she had taken of a spot along the Pitt River where she would often walk with her son’s dog. We combined it with a morning sky that coordinated with the lavender colour of the plinth in her treatment room and added small silhouettes of herself and the dog. The wall decoration in her previous clinic room had a Where’s Waldo poster which everybody loved (including me). As an ode to that, she asked if I could hide Waldo inside this painting too. That thought delighted me so much I ended up hiding three Waldos in the painting. (Can you find them? Don’t look at the image below if you don’t want spoilers.)

Close ups of the painting with the hidden Waldos circled in yellow.

I titled the painting, “At Ease,” because that’s what I wanted her clients to feel when they came into her treatment room. Seeking help from a pelvic floor physiotherapist can feel vulnerable and I hoped that my art could help ease some of the anxiety. I also wanted the piece to bring rest to Lois throughout her busy days.

The painting “At Ease” in the treatment room

In this shortest month of the year, I hope that this painting can give you moments of rest as well. I hope it invites you to a calm space where you can feel at ease.

For those with the Scripture calendar

I paired this month’s painting with the verse from Mark 6:31 which is Jesus’ invitation: “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” In the midst of the hustle and bustle of life, I need the reminder to enter the quiet and also to rest, and I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one.

Questions for reflection, if you want to go deeper: What is your response when you hear Jesus’ invitation to come away to a quiet place and get some rest? Recall a time when you felt at ease, how did it feel in your body? What is one way you can incorporate quiet, rest, or ease into your days this month?

Coming Soon: My First Solo Art Exhibition

These days I have been living and breathing 2-inch squares in preparation for my first solo art exhibition. Tiny Expanses will feature a collection of 100 original mini paintings exploring the vastness of skies on very small surfaces. If you are following me on Instagram or Facebook, you may have seen some of the paintings already.

The first 25 Tiny Expanses paintings for Olive’s first solo exhibition in April

The show will take place from April 15-28 at Braid Street Gallery in Port Coquitlam, BC and online on my website here. The in-person opening reception will be on Saturday April 15 from 1-4pm. All pieces will be available for sale at $85 CAD each (tax included). Subscribers to my newsletter will get a special first-dibs email with early access to the collection. More details to come in my March newsletter!

Thank you to everyone who is cheering me on in this process preparing for my first art show!

If you enjoyed this post and want to read about the stories behind all the paintings in this year’s calendar, remember to sign up so future posts get delivered to your email! I usually post them the second Friday of each month. (You might need to check your promotions or junk folders if you don’t see it.)

As always, I love to hear from you! If something in this story resonated with you, if you’re interested in commissioning a painting, or if you have other thoughts, feel free to email, or connect with me on Facebook or Instagram. Thanks for being part of my journey and for letting me be a part of yours!

Every Painting Has a Story: January 2023 – “The Promise of Spring”

Hello friends and welcome to a new year! I am excited to be starting off this year with the painting, “The Promise of Spring.” For folks who are new to this blog series, I typically tell the story behind each month’s painting and include a section at the end for those with the Scripture version of my calendar where I explain why I chose the particular verse for the month. I also include some reflection questions for those who want to go deeper. If I have any art news, I will announce it at the very end. This month’s is a beautiful story and I hope you enjoy it!

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Every Painting Has a Story: July 2022 – “Irresistible Grace”

For the month of July, I chose to feature (what I think is) my best work from 2021. It is also the cover for my calendar this year. I painted it while taking a Sabbatical and it was a deeply personal project. “Irresistible Grace” is on a 3-feet by 5-feet large canvas and took about 24 hours of painting time to complete.

The image of this painting is based on a photo I took at French Beach, on the coast of Vancouver Island. Our family had travelled there last summer with our parents for a getaway and one of the evenings, we decided to go sunset chasing at the nearby beach. I wanted to remember our time by the ocean and during our vacation, I did a small 6″x6″ painting of this moment. When we returned home, I knew I wanted to try a larger version of it.

A couple weeks later, I had two weeks set aside for resting and personal rejuvenation. I had bought the large canvas a while ago and was waiting for the opportunity to create something with it. The first week, I worked on setting up the groundwork for this painting and the second week, I stayed by myself at my in-laws’ apartment and focused entirely on completing this painting. I had never painted such a large image featuring water before so it was a new challenge for me.

The journey of creating this painting reflected my personal journey of that week. I had decided to be offline and to spend it in solitude, which I knew would be stretching but good for me. Initially, there was excitement, and then it felt terribly difficult, and ultimately, it turned into something beautiful.

Me with the completed painting at the end of my Sabbatical

After I completed the painting, I pondered what to name it. The title, “Irresistible Grace,” came to me while I was on a walk. I reflected on how ocean waves are relentless and how God’s pursuit of us is also relentless. I thought about how vast God’s grace is and how I cannot resist it, try as I might. I thought about my experience of creating the piece and of everything it symbolized for me, and the title was born.

I chose the verse 2 Corinthians 13:14 to go with the painting this month because it speaks to the theme of grace. It says, “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” I love these words of blessing because they call on all three members of the Trinity and remind me of the unique gifts each member offers to us. 

I hope that when you see this painting, you would be invited into the movement of grace and hear the beckoning of Love.

Questions for reflection, if you want to go deeper: What draws you in about this image? Which element(s) speak to you of God’s presence? Where in your life do you long for these waves of grace to touch?

If you enjoyed this post and want to read about the stories behind all the paintings in this year’s calendar, remember to sign up so future posts get delivered to your email! I am aiming to post them the second Friday of each month. (You might need to check your promotions or junk folders if you don’t see it.)

As always, I love to hear from you! If something in this story resonated with you, if you’re interested in commissioning a painting, or if you have other thoughts, feel free to email, or connect with me on Facebook or Instagram. Thanks for being part of my journey and for letting me be a part of yours!