In my previous blog post I shared my Alberta landscape paintings from the particularly busy year of 2010. In this post, I share my landscape works from a couple years before and after that year.
“Red Deer Field and Trees (study)”, oil on hardboard, 20 x 25 cm, 2007
“Canola Fields I”, oil on canvas, 51 x 76 cm, 2008
“Canola Fields II”, oil on canvas, 76 x 51 cm, 2008
(See the previous blog post for Alberta landscape paintings from the year 2010)
“North Saskatchewan River”, oil on canvas, 61 x 91 cm, 2011
“Storm Approaches” acrylic on hardboard, 61 x 91 cm, 2012
“Dark Treeline”, acrylic on canvas, 61 x 91 cm, 2012
“Bend in the North Saskatchewan River”, water color on paper, 10 x 15 cm, 2012
2016/12/31 | Categories: acrylic painting, landscape painting, oil painting, painting, Randall Talbot, Series | Tags: Alberta, Bend in the North Saskatchewan River, Canadian landscape, canola, Canola Fields I, Canola Fields II, Dark Treeline, landscape, Landscape Painting, North Saskatchewan River, painting, prairie, Storm Approaches, Talbot | Leave a comment
Although landscapes are a theme I have always painted, there are periods when they become a particular focus. In around 2010, I developed a new series of landscapes from my home province of Alberta. Most of these again depict the prairies and parkland that dominates the central region of the province. I was painting primarily with oils during this period and this series was painted in the studio.
“Vanishing Prairie”, oil on hardboard, 31 x 41 cm, 2010
“Beside the Highway”, oil on canvas, 23 x 30 cm, 2010
“August Prairie and Sky”, oil on canvas, 76 x 51 cm, 2010
“Flat Prairie Horizon”, oil on canvas, 41 x 51 cm, 2010
“Prairie and Forest”, oil on canvas, 45 x 61 cm, 2010
Prairie Exit”, oil on canvas, 51 x 41 cm, 2010
Prairie Gold”, oil on canvas, 46 x 61 cm, 2010
“Prairie Hay”, oil on hardboard, 30 x 41 cm, 2010
“Prairie’s Edge”, oil on hardboard, 30 x 41 cm, 2010
“Sheltered Prairie”, oil on canvas, 41 x 51 cm, 2010
“Through the Trees”, oil on canvas, 41 x 51 cm, 2010
2016/12/30 | Categories: landscape painting, oil painting, painting, Randall Talbot, Series | Tags: 2010, Alberta, August Prairie and Sky, Beside the Highway, Canadian landscape, Flat Prairie Horizon, Landscape Painting, oil painting, painting, Prairie and Forest, Prairie Exit, Prairie Gold, Prairie Hay, prairie landscape, Prairie's Edge, prarie, Sheltered Prairie, Talbot, Through the Trees, Vanishing Prairie | Leave a comment
In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s the subject matter of my painting was primarily landscapes, and more specifically the prairies, parkland and foothills of central part of Alberta.
“Approaching Prairie Storm”, acrylic on canvas, 61 x 91 cm, c. 1989
“Central Alberta Summer Horizon”, acrylic on hardboard, 61 x 41 cm, c. 1989
“Central Alberta Landscape”, acrylic on hardboard, 46 x 61 cm, 1992
“Red Deer College”, acrylic on canvas, 91 x 121 cm, c. 1989
“Restless Foothills”, acrylic on hardboard, 41 x 61 cm, 1991
“Road to the Rockies”, acrylic on canvas, 61 x 91 cm, 1991
“Rolling Prairie with Fence”, acrylic on canvas, 61 x 91 cm, 1991
“Southern Alberta Foothills”, acrylic on canvas, 51 x 91 cm, 1991
“Thunder Cloud”, acrylic on hardboard, 20 x 25 cm, c. 1990
“Stripey Fields”, acrylic on hardboard, 41 x 61 cm, 1988
2016/12/29 | Categories: acrylic painting, landscape painting, painting, Randall Talbot, Series | Tags: 1990's, Alberta, Approaching Prairie Storm, Canadian landscape, Central Alberta Landscape, Central Alberta Summer Horizon, fence, foothills, Landscape Painting, painting, prarie, Red Deer College, Restless Foothills, road, Road to the Rockies, Rolling Prairie with Fence, Southern Alberta Foothills, Stripey Fields, Talbot, Thunder Cloud | Leave a comment
One of my weirdest (and by weird I mean quirky and fun) painting series was the abstract group of paintings that I did in 2010 and which I called “Whales Atrium”*. In this series I played around with various acrylic media and additive in a very exploratory and undirected way. Other than the lack of any direction other than to experiment, the common element to the 12 paintings in this series is the size – all works are on 30 by 30 cm (12 inch) hardboard panels.
“Eggman”
“English Garden”
“Ga Joob”
“I am He”
“If the Sun Don’t Shine”
“I’m Crying”
“Penguin Singing”
“See How They Fly”
“See How They Run”
“Sitting on a Cornflake”
“Smile Like Pigs”
“The Joker Laughs”
Don’t try to read too much into the titles of these works, they were largely an afterthought.
* I am still waiting for someone to “get” the significance of this series title. Let me know if you think you do.
2016/12/28 | Categories: abstract painting, acrylic painting, painting, Randall Talbot, Series | Tags: abstract, acrylic, Eggman, English Garden, Ga Joob, I am He, I'm Crying, If the Sun Don't Shine, non-representational, painting, Penguin Singing, See How They Fly, See How They Run, Sitting on a Cornflake, Smile Like Pigs, Talbot, The Joker Laughs, Whales Atrium | Leave a comment
In Part 1, I shared some plein air paintings I made during a 3 week stay in a small village in the Auvergne region of central France. I was captivated by the area and it continued to be an influence on my painting for years. Not only did I paint while there but I also sketched and took many photos. These references and my memories inspired these paintings:
“Montaigut” oil on hardboard, 61 x 41 cm, c. 1986
“Steve Painting in Field”, acrylic on hardboard, 46 x 61 cm, c. 1986
“Evening Stroll Back to Montaigut”, acrylic on canvas, 51 x 76 cm, c. 1988
“Auvergne Landscape”, acrylic on hardboard, 46 x 61 cm, 1984 AoM
There are a few other paintings I have done of rural France that I count in this series, although I can’t be sure the scenes are from my 1984 visit to Auvergne or from another of my two trips to France during the eighties.
“Country Road”, acrylic on hardboard, 41 x 30 cm, c. 1985
“Maison dans la Campagne”, acrylic on canvas, 46 x 30 cm, c. 1986
“Red Roof in French Landscape”, acrylic on hardboard, 30 x 46 cm, c. 1988
2016/12/27 | Categories: acrylic painting, landscape painting, painting, Randall Talbot, Series, Travel | Tags: 1980's, Auvergne, Auvergne Landscape, Country Road, Evening Stroll Back to Montaigut, France, Landscape Painting, Maison dans la Campagne, Montaigut, Red Roof in French Landscape, rural, Steve Painting in Field, Talbot | 1 Comment
The creation of my first painting series (a group of works based on a common theme and style), was an important point for my artistic development. In August of 1984 I attended a “Painting in France” course put on by Paul Deggan (in conjunction with Capilano College in Vancouver). I and three other students stayed at Deggan’s home / art studio in the small, medieval village of Montaigut-le-Blanc in central France (the Auvergne region). For three weeks (after a week in Paris) we explored and painted this picturesque village (with it’s old chateau, a church and village walls) and surrounding rural areas.
The paintings in Part 1 of this series blog post are works that were painted “en plein air”, right there looking directly at the scene.
“Countryside View from Chateau” Oil on canvas board 45 x 56 cm
“L’Eglise”, oil on canvas board 33 x 41 cm
“In the Field”, oil on canvas board, 28 x 41 cm
“Arch in Montaigut-le-Blanc” – oil on canvas board, 38 x 56 cm
A number of other paintings were created as part of this series but they were done after the trip, back in the studio, from sketches and reference photos. These other paintings are featured in part 2 of this blog.
2016/12/26 | Categories: landscape painting, painting, plein air painting, Randall Talbot, Series, Travel | Tags: 1984, Arch in Montaigut-le-Blanc, Auvergne, Countryside View from Chateau, France, French Landscape, In the Field, L'Eglise, Landscape Painting, Montaigut, oil painting, painting, Paul Deggan, plein air, Series, village | 1 Comment
In 2009, I painted a series inspired by a train trip from Toronto to Edmonton in December of 2008. The first day and a half of the trip covered southern and northern (northwest) Ontario (actually not very far north in terms of Canada’s geography but feeling very far removed compared to the Toronto region). I took many photos of the rugged terrain of the Canadian Shield to use as reference images for paintings. As a series this is one of my personal favorites. Here are the key works:
“Evening from the Canadian”, oil on canvas, 61 by 122 cm (24×48″), 2009
“Leaning”, oil on canvas, 41 by 41 cm (16×16″), 2009
“Northern Survivor”, oil on canvas, 51 by 76 cm (20 x 30″), 2009
“Winter Sunrise on the Rails”, oil on canvas, 61 by 61 cm (24 x 24″), 2009
“December Sunset (Northern Ontario)”, oil on canvas, 61 by 61 cm (24×24″), 2009
“Leaning II”, oil on canvas, 61 by 61 cm (24×24″), 2009
“Northern Sunset Over Unknown Lake”, oil on canvas, 61 by 91 cm (24×36″), 2009
2016/12/25 | Categories: landscape painting, North, oil painting, painting, Randall Talbot, Series, Travel | Tags: Canada, Canadian art, Canadian landscape, Canadian Shield, December Sunset, Evening from the Canadian, Landscape Painting, Leaning, Northern Ontario, Northern Sunset Over Unknown Lake, Northern Survivor, painting, sunset, trees | 3 Comments