I've been enjoying the amazing weather we've had. I couldn't resist having one last paddle in the sunshiune last week before I put my kayak away for winter. Benji seemed to enjoy it as well! If you are thinking about drawing more, I will be offering a drawing class (for any level, but particularly for beginners or those wishing to refresh their skills), on Saturdays starting in late January. Please get in touch if I can help you. I will be accepting mostly adults, but als

Our Tuesday evening painters are all doing well, experimenting, learning color concepts, using wet and dry paint, and tricks and tecniques. Benji has them trained too, he even gets his favourite treats on Tuesday nights, bits of carrot! If you've wondered what goes on in a painting class please do come and try one out, at no cost, be my guest for a week. Next week is gong to be a little different, as I've had a request to show folks how to create their own holiday greeting c

My Opening at Dr Chris Schell's office was good. Lots of my friends and some unexpected people came and enjoyed my art, Patty McLaughlan's music and our refreshments. This photo has me beside "From Himal" which is 28x22", a lovely textural piece I did remembering my times in the wind in the Himalayan mountains of Nepal. As you look at my art please keep in mind that you CAN have a Sandy Brand in your home, you can rent or lease to own any of my paintings. The "I wish I could

OK, "cat and dog", they just had their summer holiday too though. Preened and pampered walked and waited on; in fact just loved to pieces! I am SO lucky to have friends who love my pets as much as I do. They seem to revel in being part-time pet owners, and I get that. Fall's approaching, and if you haven't registered for my drawing or painting classes yet please do. I still have space for you. Come and play with me! I'm just back from playing in Nanaimo on Vancouver Isla

​ Somebody once said "the past is a place of reference, not a place of residence". Being in the still, silence of Lake Temagami, especially in a canoe in the evening, brought me very much into "now". Frida Kahlo asked her father "Remind me what I wanted to be" to which he answered "You wanted to be your own person". Doing a few little drawings and paintings in this place last week I felt in my own person. #sandybrand #mural #kids #wallpainting #paintings #trees #rappel #cav

Watercolour does need water, but it needs colour just as much, so start by droping a little water on each colour in your pallette to soften them a bit. Using my brush, I may dampen parts of my paper, (not all of it); some large patches and some small, with clean water. Time to load up that brush - I like to really work the blob with my brush to get lots of paint on it before I spread it on the paper. Make sure you have piles of rich colour on that brush and sloosh it over pa

"ABOVE THE WAVES" Sandy Brand acrylic on canvas 48x60" So often I find I walk past my paintings in my home and really don't see them any more; that's when I know I need to change them, or rotate them. They deserve to be noticed and loved just as yours do. I want to remind those of you who are not renting art from me yet that rental and lease IS still available from my Studio Gallery. For about the cost of a cup of coffee a day you can have my original art in your home or o

"The Well in Alliston is attracting so much attention with Sandy Brand's paintings in it." "I know, I really think we should fly down and check it out. I'm told we can see them through the window they're so big. The coffee shop is open later now too, so perhaps we can even wing on in!. "I wonder if her colours are as pretty as mine? I really do have rather a shine on today." "Let's go, they're only there till the end of the month." Photo by Mary Lucky #sandybrand #mural #

This is "We Played", a 42x72" acrylic on canvas I created. The colors are playful and everything seems to be moving around. I've been receiving lots of positive feedback on the exhibition at The Well, and it was a hive of action at lunch time today when I went down with friends. What a lovely thing to be able to do on rainy July day. I recommend The Well's natchos with cheese, salsa and sour cream! #sandybrand #mural #kids #wallpainting #paintings #trees #rappel #cave #Mik

Everything I see and experience can be a trigger. It may be a conversation, spaces in a tree between the branches making a lovely shape, the color of a sunset, the sound of a bird, the russle of leaves; I never know what it will be. But every one of my paintings tells a story of some part of my life, otherwise it couldn't exist. My paintings are finished when they tell me their title; and their title is what it's all about. By the time I'm done, whether it's two hours, two