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A Scottish Cow in the Canadian Rockies

The first weekend of the Banff Christmas Market is over, and I am pleasantly surprised by how well it went. It was well organized, my booth location is ideal, and sales were phenomenal.

The Calgary Expo in April has long been an important event for me. It’s a fun show, and I enjoy it. But, including the Wednesday setup, it’s five very long days, and I’m usually wiped at the end. However, It’s often my biggest single payday of the year, so the effort is worth it.

Shonna texted me Sunday asking how things were going, and I replied, “These are Expo numbers.”

From revenue alone, I did better than Expo 2019 this weekend, and that was an excellent year. But sales figures for different venues are sometimes apples and oranges. With Expo, I must pay for a hotel for four nights, parking, electricity for my lights, and dining out. My booth for a four-day Expo also costs more than twice what this four-day weekend cost for the Banff Christmas Market.

For anyone considering these kinds of shows for your own business or side hustle, your expenses directly affect how successful a market really is—location matters. Banff is only a 25-minute commute, something many Canmore residents do for work every day.

Factoring in the significant reduction in expenses makes this past weekend the best sales I’ve ever had anywhere, including Expo. And I’ve got three more weekends to go, though the rest are three days, not four. Winter arrived on Monday with more snow in the forecast this week, so that might affect attendance, but I remain cautiously optimistic.

Hey, that’s a big step for me.
If things continue this way, the stock I ordered for all four weeks will be just about right, aside from two exceptions. I will likely sell out of calendars before the final weekend, and given that I can’t sell them online while the postal strike is on, I won’t order more. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.

However, the biggest surprise with this show is that some bestselling prints didn’t perform as well as they usually do, but other designs took up the slack. I keep detailed sales records, so when all four weekends are done, I’ll have a better idea if this is an anomaly or an overall difference with this audience at this venue.

Some advice for prospective vendors. Keep track of everything! You won’t remember a year down the road, and your sales records will inform your ordering choices.

By a considerable margin, this show’s bestseller has been my Highland Cow painting. I ordered what I thought would be enough for four weekends, but I will easily sell out by this coming Saturday. I have a long history and excellent relationship with Art Ink Print in Victoria, and as I wrote this post, they let me know that a rush order of Highland Cow prints are on the way by courier. So, even if I sell out of them this weekend, I’ll have new stock for the following two.

One of the best parts of this show is that it’s dog-friendly. I regularly come out from behind my table to meet four-legged attendees, as do other vendors.

A happy surprise this weekend is that former commission clients Jeremy and Jenny brought their two big dogs, Luna and Sally with them from Calgary for a weekend in Banff. I saw them at Expo this year, but I haven’t seen Luna since I delivered her painting a couple of years ago; it was a real treat. Since I have her painting on display in my booth as an example of my custom paintings, I took the opportunity for a picture.

It’s not a great photo, but you get the idea. Her expression did not disappoint.

An especially nice feature of this market was being able to bring replacement stock each day. On Sunday, instead of having to tear it all down and pack it home, I spent twenty minutes taking inventory, covered the booth and left, knowing it’ll be secure all week. This Friday, all I need to do is show up, put a few things back in place, and I’m ready for another weekend.

I hope to see more of you over the next three weeks at the Banff Christmas Market. I’m in the Banff Train Station building, sharing the grounds with 150 other vendors selling exciting and interesting things. It’s a festive atmosphere with cozy outdoor fires, food and drink, surrounded by some of the most beautiful scenery on the planet.

Cheers,
Patrick

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Painting Timber

After seven years living in Banff, Shonna and I bought our modest townhouse condo in Canmore in 2001. We live in an end unit, which means only one neighbour. Anybody who has had the experience knows that whoever shares your walls has a direct impact on how you feel about your home.  Considerate neighbours are worth their weight in gold, and in an ideal world, you get what you give.

This brings me to Chris and Cindy, who rented the place next to us for the past eight years — the best neighbours we’ve ever had.

We didn’t socialize in each other’s homes, but we’d hang out in our shared driveway or backyard, drinking coffee and becoming friends. Chris was home all day like me, and in a bizarre twist of fate, he is also a digital cartoonist and animator, though not full-time. It was great to have somebody next door who spoke the same language.

About five years ago, in the middle of the day, I was walking back from taking the garbage to the dumpster and saw Chris sitting on his front step. Standing on the strip of grass beside his sidewalk was a large puppy.

As she saw me approach, she politely sat down, and that’s when I fell in love with Timber.
Cindy volunteered with the local SPCA shelter here. And though they had fostered another dog that eventually went to live with her parents in Calgary, they hadn’t found the right one for them until they met Timber.

She is what folks around here call a Morley mutt, named for the First Nations reserve just outside the mountains. They’re often strays or abandoned from the city, but many I’ve met have become the most friendly dogs around. Whether true or not, it’s a well-known joke around here that Canmore has more dogs than kids, and I love that about this town.

Chris and Cindy are doting dog parents, and Timber is their spoiled child. With two or three-hour walks each day and the best health and food she could ask for, that dog won the lottery. And so did they. She’s not a needy dog, doesn’t require your attention, and frankly, doesn’t tolerate it from many people. She’s not aggressive, just disinterested.

The best line I ever heard about her was from Cindy. “Timber is three cats in a dog’s body.”

Much to my welcome surprise, however, Timber likes Shonna and me, and the feeling is mutual. For Timber, that means she’ll tolerate the hugs, kisses and mauling for five minutes instead of no minutes. When she’d had enough, she’d go inside, leaving Chris and I out on the step with our coffee.

One of my favourite things was getting a text from Chris every day or two, with a photo of Timber sitting on the grass in front of our door, not hers, with the caption, “Dog on the lawn.”

I’d drop whatever I was doing, scurry down the two flights of stairs from my office, and open the door to a wagging tail, exclaiming, “Hi Baby!” or something like that, and then I’d maul and hug her and tell her she was pretty.

The running joke was only then would I offer a less than enthusiastic, “Oh, yeah…hi Chris.”

It was often the highlight of my day.

I think I only heard her bark three times in the years she lived next door. Two were playful; one was not.

Chris and I stood outside one night talking about a large black bear frequenting the neighbourhood. Timber suddenly started growling and let out a large bark at the fence next to our property. Knowing his dog, Chris guessed the bear was in the yard on the other side of the fence. We retreated into our homes.

Shonna and I often said if we ever heard Timber barking next door, we’d run over to check what was wrong. Thankfully, neither Chris nor Cindy ever fell down the well. (That’s a Lassie reference. Ask your grandparents.)

I have taken many pictures of Timber over the years and always planned to get to a painting. But as art is what I do for a living, I rarely have time for personal projects anymore. And with best-laid plans, I never got to it.

Life in this valley is ridiculously expensive, and when you’re paying a premium for rent, even the beauty of the Canadian Rockies can lose its lustre. Add to that a property management company that seemed to find any reason to target Chris and Cindy for the slightest infraction while letting others around here get away with everything; the day came when they’d had enough. Though we didn’t want to see them go, we couldn’t blame them.

Cindy and Chris bought a home in Calgary in the spring. Before they left, they hired me to paint a portrait of Timber in my style.

While they already liked my work and wanted to give me free rein, I asked for guidance, as with all my commission clients. Before long, I got the personal requests I like. Timber is always wearing a bandana; though she has many, they have a favourite. It has a faded hand-lettered label, and Chris sent me more reference pictures. Canmore dog tags are little hearts, whereas Calgary’s are rectangles. We opted not to put any writing on it, as it would be an unnecessary distraction.

Chris also wrote a long, sarcastic, entertaining email with hilarious details, telling me how many whiskers Timber has on each side of her muzzle, the exact Pantone colours I needed to match on different parts of her face, and other ridiculous technical specifics.

At some point in our many exchanges, I sent the following sketch with something like, “Done. Pay me.”
He printed and framed it and sent a photo of it hanging on their wall.

Because they knew I would undercut myself, they sent the first installment before I could uncomfortably ask for one. Their timeline was “sometime in the next five years.”

I wasn’t about to take advantage of their generosity, so I prioritized it as much as possible. I always want to give every client my best effort, but because I know this dog so well, I obsessed over this painting, probably for much longer than I needed to.
I sent the finished image, and they were thrilled, which made me doubly happy. Because they already had a shadowbox framed 18X24 canvas of my Wolf painting, they wanted Timber’s to match.
 
When it arrived, however, there was a slight blemish near the bottom of the canvas, a flaw that wasn’t on the image file. It was minor, but once you see that kind of thing, you never unsee it. While damage is rare, my printers have always been great with replacing problem prints. Still, the turnaround time meant I couldn’t deliver until the week before Christmas, as Shonna and I wouldn’t be able to get into Calgary together. We haven’t seen them since they moved.

I foolishly tried to repair the canvas with a gold paint pen, which probably worsened it. Without the materials or experience I’d need to fix it, I took it to my friend Derek Turcotte at Electric Grizzly Tattoo and asked if he could help. He’s an incredible airbrush artist.

Derek said he was willing to try. I assured him he couldn’t make it worse as I would have to replace it anyway.
I brought it to Derek’s house a couple of days later, and he matched the colour, finely sprayed the small area a few times, and saved the canvas. You can’t tell there was ever a problem, and you can still see my underlying brush strokes. I held the canvas while he painted with the airbrush, so we staged the above photo after the fact, knowing I’d want to write about it.

If you’re reading this, Derek, thanks again for your help, buddy. You’re awesome.
Of course, the best part of any commission is delivering it to the client, especially when it’s this personal. Shonna and I drove to Chris and Cindy’s place in Calgary last Saturday. Chris correctly advised that I leave the canvas in the car until after we saw Timber so it wouldn’t get damaged. We pulled up, and once out of the car, Chris let Timber loose on the front lawn. She was excited to see us and ran out for attention we were eager to give.

She was wearing the same bandanna.

They loved the painting, and we spent a great afternoon catching up and visiting. They also have Cindy’s parents’ dog now and she’s a real sweetheart. The two dogs get along great, and it’s nice that each has a buddy.

To her credit, Timber was very patient and accepted a lot more attention from us than she’d usually tolerate. Those old neighbours. So needy.

While we have a new neighbour who is considerate and quiet, it’s not the same without Chris, Cindy and Timber next door. We miss all three of them.

But people make mistakes. Theirs was telling us where they live now.

____
For more information about my custom pet portraits, please visit the Commissions page. Thanks!
____

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Canada Post and a Wrench in the Gears


Canada Post went on strike yesterday, which is just what every small business wanted to hear as holiday shopping gets going. Since courier shipping and pricing aren’t viable alternatives for anybody but Amazon, that will hurt many businesses.

The good news is, that the flurry of recent calendar and print sales have been filled and likely delivered already. If you haven’t received orders in the United States yet, there shouldn’t be a delay as they would have made it over the border by now.

I only had one order to get out when they announced the strike, and I offered that customer a refund because who knows how long this will last? It could be a few days or a month.

Unfortunately, even if this strike is short-lived, there will be a backlog to get through, which means that at a time when there’s already a seasonal delay, it’s about to get worse.

As a result, I’ve had to suspend orders and sales in my online store temporarily.

On a positive note, I set up my booth for the Banff Christmas Market yesterday, and the new venue at the Banff Train Station is beautiful. The organizers did a great job. Even though Warner Stables was a lovely setting, I prefer this new location.

My next door neighbour this year for the next four weekends is the same as last year. We get along great and have a good time, which always makes for a better show. They were nearby at the Calgary Expo as well. You see the same vendors at many of these shows, and there’s a nice sense of community.

Even though the first evening was only a four-hour preview, we were all pleasantly surprised at how busy it was. I figured it would be a tire-kicker kind of evening, but traffic was steady, and sales were great.

Thanks to subscribers who came to get a calendar in person, many who bought stickers, magnets, coasters and prints to go with it. It’s a humbling experience to hear in person that you enjoy the emails and my whimsical wildlife artwork. I love seeing the same people at different events, year after year, and meeting many of you person for the first time, hearing that you’ve been reading my emails for a while. You all say such nice things about the work, and I greatly appreciate your support.

I look forward to seeing more of you over the next four weeks—back to Banff this morning.

Cheers,
Patrick

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Bitter Blunders and Bedtime for Bears

Because I haven’t released a new painting in a while, I did not want to publish yet another post promising something new down the road. So, here’s a new piece: a weary-looking grizzly bear in the snow. I’m calling it Bedtime.

I had planned on sharing a different painting this week. Here’s why that changed.

Over the past twenty-plus years of my art career, both as a syndicated editorial cartoonist and a digital painter, there have been plenty of times when something I’ve drawn hasn’t worked out the way I had planned.

The beauty of digital drawing and painting is that it’s often easier to fix mistakes. I can create a new layer, play around and experiment; if I don’t like it, I delete it and try a different direction. Most creatives are familiar with happy accidents, something unexpected that improves an image. It happens all the time.

There’s always an element of discovery in any illustration or painting.

On the flip side, an image can sometimes become an exercise in frustration. Years ago, a bighorn sheep painting had me pulling out my hair. No matter what I did, I couldn’t get the curl of the horns to look right. They were either too flat, distorted, or just wrong, and every time I messed with them, I’d have to spend hours repainting the detailed texture I ruined.

It’s hardly a unique story. Every artist I know goes through this. For traditional artists who paint with oil, acrylic, watercolour or airbrush, it’s even worse. Sometimes, they try to fix something that isn’t working and get to a point where they’ve just ruined any chance of recovery. The canvas ends up in the trash, and they start over.

I began a painting of a group of Ring-tailed Lemurs months ago. I thought it would be finished this summer and again this week. I can’t begin to estimate how many hours I’ve spent on this painting. It has been one disappointment after another. But I finally got through the other work and deadlines holding up my progress and recently spent several mornings on it.

I was within what I thought was two or three hours of finishing, then realized I didn’t like it. That’s a hard truth to admit when I have invested so much time into a piece.

On my iPad, I took it to my buddy Derek at Electric Grizzly Tattoo. He’s a talented and skilled artist, and we sometimes ask each other for an unbiased eye. I can always count on his constructive criticism and willingness to help me produce a better piece of art. I do my best to return that generosity in kind, and when asked, offer my own thoughts on his paintings.

While Derek liked the individual faces, he agreed that the composition had problems. It was tough to hear, but it confirmed what I already knew.

After I got home, I spent a couple of hours messing with it, still trying to save it. But it was a gut-punch realization that I’d almost have to start from scratch. If I released the painting as is, knowing the obvious problems, even if others like it, I would hate it every time I looked at it.

So, while I’m not quite back at square one, it’s close. I’ve been sketching over the piece and trying new things, and I’m already much happier with the composition.

Reworking it, however, meant destroying what I had already painted. I must redo all the fur and hair, the detail in the muzzles and eyes, and add other elements that weren’t there before.

Whenever I finish the newer version, I will share more about this process, including what specifically I didn’t like and my thoughts on what I needed to change. I will also show you the piece I showed Derek and share why we both felt it didn’t work. But I don’t want to do that until I reveal the finished piece so you can see the comparison.

Anytime you do something creative, there’s a chance it won’t work. Authors have had to discard whole chapters and rehash plotlines when an editor has their way with a novel. Chefs have prepared complicated and ultimately inedible meals from experimental recipes. Filmmakers have spent years creating box office bombs.

As Benjamin Franklin said, “I didn’t fail the test; I just found 100 ways to do it wrong.”

If you’re not prepared to fail, you’ll never succeed.

So, I set the lemurs aside this week and began this bear piece on Tuesday as a palate cleanser before I jump back into the other works in progress I have yet to complete, including those lemurs.

Because when life hands you lemons, paint a grizzly bear.

That’s the saying, right?

Well, it works for me.

This Thursday, I’ll be one of 150 vendors setting up for the Banff Christmas Market. That evening, a locals’ preview event is already sold out. After that, from Friday to Sunday for the next four weeks, you’ll find me in my booth at the Banff Train Station, offering prints, calendars, coasters, magnets and stickers. Tickets are only available in advance on their website, and they go quickly, especially on Saturdays. I hope to see you there.

Thanks to so many of you who have purchased calendars already. I’ve been getting those orders out as soon as they come in, so if you’re waiting for yours, they’re on the way. If you still want one (or two, three, four…you get the idea), you can get them in the store while supplies last.

Cheers,
Patrick

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The End is Here

I haven’t been sleeping well, and I’m sure I’m not the only one.

I’m tempted to go off on a lengthy angry rant about the US election results. But I’d be screaming into a hurricane, and I don’t think anybody wants to hear it from me, anyway. Better thinkers, writers, and speakers have tried and failed to find the reason and sense for what has become of democracy in the Western world.

I’ve been trying to figure out how to cope with what I’m feeling, this overwhelming sense of despair.

The United States has elected a President who represents all the worst character flaws in a human being, and I don’t get it. He campaigned on a platform of tyranny. He promised to be a dictator, to take rights away from his citizens, and to grant power and position to people who will do the same and worse.

It has now become a tired cliché to compare him with the worst fascist dictators in history. It doesn’t shock anybody. They’re OK with it.

As we approach Remembrance Day, we’ll hear and read the usual rhetoric that we need to remember the lessons of two world wars so that it can never happen again.

It’s all bullshit.

We not only don’t care, we’re hungry for a reboot.

And I say we because Canada is heading down the same road as our neighbours to the south. We define ourselves by who we hate. Trump’s victory will only further embolden those in our own country to ramp up the vitriol and rage.

Because clearly, it works.

The land of the free just voted to take freedom away from millions of its citizens.

This was America’s opportunity to say, “OK, we’ve had our fun, hope you enjoyed the circus, but let’s be serious for a moment,” and tell the world who they are as a country.

I guess they did.

In World War II, the Allies saved Europe from itself.

Nobody’s coming to save us.

This is the part where I’m supposed to talk about resilience and continuing to fight the good fight. But the horses are long gone, the barn’s an inferno, and millions of people are laughing, taking selfies and roasting marshmallows.

I don’t imagine I’ll be sleeping well anytime soon.

____
©Patrick LaMontagne 2024

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A Little Calm Before the Storm

With a lot to do and feeling like I was way behind, a cabin trip seemed like a low priority. But it’s an inexpensive getaway, a relatively short drive, and I needed a break.

Though we don’t live that far away from each other, and we text or email most days, Darrel and I only see each other a few times a year, usually at the cabin we rent. But it’s one of those rare lifelong friendships where we just pick up where we left off. The only person who knows me better than Darrel is Shonna.

When I’ve mentioned this regular guys weekend escape in passing, people often say, “What do you do there?”

It’s pretty boring, really. That’s the point.

We talk and catch up. Darrel’s one of the smartest people I know, so we have interesting conversations. We play guitar, some trips more than others. We go for long walks through the woods and pastures, hoping to see wildlife. We walked a little slower this trip, as Darrel is still recovering from knee surgery. The wildlife was limited to squirrels, whiskey jacks, woodpeckers, and skittish deer way off in the distance.
Not the most exciting critter encounters, but I got some good squirrel pics. This amusing little chatterbox might very well inspire a painting.
I took photos of wind-broken tree stumps where I might place an owl or eagle. A natural doorway created by curved and fallen branches has potential. You never know what might spark a new piece.Though we had visited with them earlier, the owners texted us Sunday evening that the Atlas comet was barely visible over the pasture. It had been brighter and more evident days earlier, but this was the last chance to see it. We walked out in the dark, not wanting to use flashlights that might ruin our night vision and found the faint anomaly among the sea of stars. Darrel took this shot on his newer phone. I couldn’t get a good capture with mine. You can just see the comet tail on the left.
We had nice fall weather for most of our time there, but it got cold and windy Sunday night and Monday. A snowstorm hit Calgary and Canmore, and given the road reports and Shonna’s texts, I was thrilled I didn’t have to drive back until Tuesday.

We spent most evenings sitting in the kitchen or by the wood stove, chatting or playing Scrabble or card games. I even brought a chess board, the first time I’d played in years. I lost but held my own and look forward to playing again.

I could have easily stayed another week, hiding from work. But it was a nice break before everything kicks into holiday season high gear, so I certainly won’t complain.
My order from Pacific Music & Art was waiting for me when I got home, and it contained calendars, ceramic coasters, and magnets for the Banff Christmas Market. Added to the large order of prints that arrived a couple of weeks ago, I’ve never had this much product at one time. It’s both exciting and frightening.
On the one hand, it shows that this side of my business continues to grow. As it’s the work I enjoy most and has the best chance of ensuring my financial future, I’m grateful. But it’s a significant investment of time and money that comes with no small amount of anxiety.

So, I keep reminding myself of all those sayings and platitudes. No reward without risk. Change never happens when you’re comfortable. Fortune favours the bold.

Fear is temporary. Regret is forever.

Be the ball.

Back to the drawing board.

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2025 Calendars Are Here!

After many inquiries over the past few months, I’m pleased to announce that the coming year’s Wild Animals calendar is now available in the store!

While the calendar is a Pacific Music & Art licensed product, I always have a hand in choosing which animals make the cut. In the 2025 calendar, you’ll find a gallery of popular paintings and images appearing for the first time.I love the cover this year. Big Bear on Blue is the latest print I issued earlier this summer and it’s already looking like it will be a bestseller.

My (sea) Otter is a perennial favourite, but my River Otter painting is also included this year. New pieces like Spa Day, Highland Cow, and Meerkat also made the final selection.
I’m pleased to see a couple of my personal favourites, too. One in Every Family is a painting close to my heart. Not only did I paint the great horned owls in that image from reference I took up at Grassi Lakes here in Canmore, but the piece won the Best In Show award at Photoshop World Las Vegas in 2014. Has it been that long?

The prize that came with that award was the Canon 5D Mark III camera I still use today to take many of my reference images, and it’s now an old friend. Professional photographers might consider it to be a little long in the tooth, but for me, it’s a workhorse that gets the job done. Who knew it would become such a big part of my process?
Each calendar purchased in the store will be hand-signed by me on the back. Whether you get 1 or 2 calendars, shipping is a flat rate of $6.50 in Canada or $9.50 for the US, all in Canadian funds. But as always, anything over $48 in the store qualifies for FREE SHIPPING. So, if you’re looking for prints, postcard sets, or stickers to go with your calendar purchase, feel free to mix and match. Get yours early to beat the holiday rush.

I will also have calendars available at the Banff Christmas Market every weekend from November 14th to December 8th. Hope to see you there.

Cheers,
Patrick

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Failure to Launch

With a website and email list, keeping up with regular posts is important, especially when there’s an implied promise to anyone who subscribes.

But what if it’s been weeks, and I haven’t got any new work to share? Or what if I’ve got nothing upbeat and positive to write about? Everybody talks about the value of authenticity, but when you’re struggling with unrealized expectations and unmet goals, is it better to go a month without posting, or do you bare it all and risk the unsubscribes from people who just want to see another funny-looking animal painting?

It’s amazing how often people think art-for-a-living is drawing and colouring all day. I spend more time on business activities surrounding the art than I ever do creating it, as do most creatives I know. Knowing that reality ahead of time is essential if you’re ever considering this profession.

It has become clear that I’ve bitten off more than I can chew this year. I began 2024 with big plans and projects and feel I’ve mostly failed. I work long hours almost every day, but I’m not getting enough done.

The editorial cartoon work can be incredibly frustrating as those deadlines always take priority over the painted work, even though it’s the side of my business with no chance of increasing revenue. Newspapers aren’t about to bounce back.

So the first weekly task, beginning Sunday morning, is to get five syndicated cartoons done before Wednesday for my daily and weekly newspaper clients and one local exclusive cartoon done for Tuesday evening for the Rocky Mountain Outlook. Then, if breaking news doesn’t disrupt the schedule, I can work on administrative work like invoicing, print packaging and shipping, promotional material, writing, and hopefully painting.

I wanted at least two new puzzles for the Banff Christmas Market this year. But because I needed to finish two very involved paintings that still aren’t done, that won’t happen. There’s a long lead time to have them printed and packaged, and I missed that deadline.

Puzzles come with a significant initial expense, and I had to ask myself if I needed to spend more when I already have plenty invested in other stock.

I drove into the city on Sunday morning to drop off a large print and sticker order to the Calgary Zoo. Usually, that’s an opportunity to take reference photos, but with no extra time, I didn’t go beyond the gift shop. After a quick detour to Costco, I was back at my desk drawing cartoons by early afternoon.

Because of the work that goes into selling and marketing my art, with the runup to the Banff Christmas Market, I’m not getting enough painting done, and I don’t know how to solve this problem.

From early November until mid-December, there won’t be any time off. I’ll be at my booth at the Christmas Market from Friday to Sunday every weekend. From Monday to Thursday, I’ll be drawing editorial cartoons, packaging and shipping orders, and the usual admin work, plus the extra with a gift show. That doesn’t leave time for painting.

I’m trying to keep the proper perspective on this. I still have 50 animal paintings available in prints. That’s more than enough for the upcoming market. Though I wanted some paintings in progress finished for this event, I don’t need them. Those I added earlier this year for the Calgary Expo will still be new to people at this venue.

I did two weekends for the first time at the Banff Christmas Market last year. This year, I’m doing four. Unlike at the Calgary Expo, I don’t yet have a following at this event. That means my classic and bestselling paintings are still new to this audience. I will meet plenty of people who have never seen my Smiling Tiger, Otter, Winter Wolf or the grinning gallery of grizzly bears.

I need to retire some paintings in my current catalogue. When you put too many choices in front of people, it gets overwhelming. My printer in Victoria has minimum order requirements, so if I only sell two of an average selling image at Christmas, that costs me more than I made because of how many I had to order.

Art-for-a-living is a business and requires difficult choices. When a painting is no longer popular, it’s time to let it go in favour of testing the waters with new work.

In the past, I’ve put prints in the store as soon as I painted them. In 2025, I will only do print releases twice a year. This will hopefully allow me to get several paintings done, build anticipation, and have a bunch of new releases to promote before the Calgary Expo in the spring and the holiday season in the fall.

It also means I can build new art collections for potential licensing rather than offer new paintings individually. Licensing revenue hasn’t been as reliable as I’d like this year, and it is even down for some clients.

Even with non-exclusive licenses, many companies don’t want to offer the same paintings on the same type of products. So, when images are already spoken for, they’re less likely to attract new clients.

To solicit new contracts, I need to offer them new paintings.

En route to Thanksgiving dinner with family this coming weekend, we’ll detour to Discovery Wildlife Park to drop off a print order, but there won’t be time for a visit there, either. Thankfully, I do have a cabin trip coming up for a weekend break before the holiday frenzy begins.

Then, I’ll get my flu and COVID shots to do my best to stay healthy for the rest of the year. I have a recurring worry that I’ll get sick for one of the market weekends, and my booth will sit empty.

In silver lining news, because of the large print orders I just filled for the Calgary Zoo and Discovery Wildlife Park, and not wanting to leave anything until the last minute, all my prints have arrived for the rest of the year. The online store is fully stocked with prints, stickers and postcard sets. I am still waiting on calendars.

If you haven’t checked out the store for a while, please do, as I’ll retire many of these after they sell at the Banff Christmas Market. Don’t miss out on what might be your favourite. My prints are 11×14, an easy-to-find frame size wherever you buy yours. It’s never too early to start thinking about office gift exchanges or spreading happy animal art around to your friends and family.

As for sharing new work, I won’t promise anything right now for fear I won’t be able to deliver. All I can do is ask for your patience. There’s nobody who wants to see more finished work than me.

Cheers,
Patrick

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Last Call for Critter Captures

As the colder weather approaches, animal photo opportunities become less plentiful, and that scarcity, real or imagined, makes me want to take more pictures.

Considering I have thousands of neatly organized reference photos I have never used, for well over a hundred animals, running out has never been a problem. But it’s hard to ignore the impulse to stock up, just in case.

Hey, squirrels store way more than they need for the winter, too.

Time ticking was the prime motivation for my trip to the Alberta Birds of Prey Sanctuary in Coaldale last month. Releasing two hawks into the wild was worth the trip alone, but after editing and sorting my pictures, I’ve also got dozens of new photos I can paint from.

Still open until September 30th, Discovery Wildlife Park usually closes from October to the end of April. But during the pandemic, they created a holiday lights drive-through feature. With the worst of the health crisis thankfully over, their impressive Light The Night experience has continued to grow, open this year from November 15th to January 5th.

With winter gift shop stock in mind, they placed a surprising end-of-season order for prints and stickers. I always like to deliver those in person so I have an excuse to take photos.

I had driven to Coaldale in a torrential rainstorm, but that meant great light for pictures when I arrived. In an unwelcome repeat, but with the same result, I drove to Innisfail last week in another storm. When I got there, the weather was so foul I was the only person in the park.
While I had lunch with my zookeeper friend, Serena, a couple of other people arrived. Coincidentally, they were also longtime friends of the park. Rather than the usual bear education presentation we’d seen several times, Serena gave the three of us a behind-the-scenes personal tour and visit with the bears.
Cold, dark, and windy, the rain at least let up for a few hours. While the pictures I got weren’t impressive photographs on their own, some of these shots will be amazing for reference. I’ve written before about how sunny days aren’t great because they can wash out detail in the highlights and shadows, but an overcast day provided some very exciting photos of bear fur and features.
If that weren’t enough, Serena has been hand-raising an orphaned raccoon since he was tiny. Shonna I got to see him earlier this summer, but on this day, he was getting his first look at a much bigger world, as he was let loose for a bit to run and play in a large enclosure. If you’ve ever seen a cat or dog with the zoomies, imagine that with a raccoon. He was having a very good time.
After the park, I took my parents out to dinner in Red Deer and spent the night at their place for a nice, albeit short, visit.

This past week, the cool fall weather has shown up. Though I’m not a fan of the winter that follows, fall is my favourite time of year. The light on the mountains around here is softer and ever-changing, and we get some beautiful sunrises, which I can see from my office window. And when the larches change colour, it’s like somebody spilled brilliant yellow and orange paint all over the place.

Though I generally dislike driving, the route south on Highway 40 through Kananaskis, up to the Highwood Pass is an exception. It’s the highest paved road in Canada and the spectacular scenery is some of the most beautiful in the world. While busy on weekends, self-employment affords me the luxury of going during the week. Thursday was a pretty day for a drive, and even though the larches haven’t changed yet, they’re beginning to. Traffic was light, the weather was great, and I enjoyed the 40-minute climb from Highway 1.
Several years ago, a local photographer told me about Rock Glacier, just off the highway below the Highwood Pass. He had said that if I wanted to see pikas, that was the place. It’s a massive scree slope of rocks, and I can’t even guess how many of the little ‘rock rabbits’ call it home.

It’s hardly a secret, as the site has two extra parking lanes and several Alberta Parks educational signs about the critters.

Their peeping is unmistakable, but it can be hard to see them as they’re very small and perfectly camouflaged among the rocks. It’s only their darting movements that give them away. I’ll admit that chasing them around the rocks is part of the fun. They’ll scurry along routes only they can see, pausing on rocks along their path, perfect for photo ops.
Their primary motivation is food, so they’re usually en route to one of the small patches of grass and vegetation among the rocks, where they’ll stuff their faces before running back to their stash. It’s fun to watch.

The challenge is usually to get a few pictures before they run out of range, but twice on this visit, I was delighted to see one running toward me. With each pause, I’d get a better shot until one eventually ran right by my foot, intent on a patch of green behind me. All I had to do was circle it and take more photos. They didn’t seem to mind my presence as long as I avoided quick movements.
It can get cold up there at 2200m (7200 ft), and I always pack extra layers, but it was a pleasant fall morning, and I only needed a light jacket. On a few visits, there’ve been ten or 12 other people, often photographers with much bigger lenses than my 70-300mm, doing the same thing. But on this visit, I spent an hour and a half crawling over the rocks and snapping pics with the whole place to myself. Nobody else stopped.
On each drive up to Rock Glacier, I usually see black bears or grizzlies, but none this time. They’re likely still low in the valleys, eating as much as possible before winter. But they can show up anywhere around here, and on these excursions, I’ve always got bear spray on my hip. Aside from the above pic of a line of bighorn sheep walking the top of the ridge, I only saw the wildlife I came for.
Though I have kept dozens of pika photos over the years, I’ve always felt I hadn’t quite got the one I wanted, that perfect photo to paint from. I finally got one on this trip, but I haven’t shared it in this post. It’ll just have to be a surprise.

Now, you might be thinking, “I’m seeing plenty of photos lately, but where’s some new artwork on this artist’s website?”

I am working on several pieces and a commission right now. However, taking photos for future paintings is also a big part of my work. I can’t paint ‘cartoony, but real,’ if I don’t know what real looks like, and taking photos always inspires new paintings. Though I often plan to paint a critter and then go looking for reference, it’s frequently the photos that come first, inspiring the paintings that follow.

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Painting Lucas – A Commission

I’m happy to share my latest custom painting of a cute little fellow named Lucas.

This was a memorial piece. That anyone commissions me to paint their furry-faced loved one to help them with their grief, and eventually turn sadness into happy memories, isn’t something I take lightly.

Sarah has been following my work for some time. In a recent issue of A Wilder View, I mentioned and shared my commission of Santé from a couple of years ago, prompting Sarah to ask about a painting of her little guy in my style.

She sent one photo with her inquiry, and I was instantly smitten with his little face. Lucas was a tiny little Yorkie who looked like a real-life cartoon character. I tempered my enthusiasm, wanting to see more photos and discuss Sarah’s expectations.

People often think that commissions are cut and dry. Here’s a photo, paint my dog. Several times in my career, I’ve had people ask for a very short deadline and balk that a custom painting costs more than $50. It’s one of the main reasons I turn down more commissions than I accept.

But when I’m working with a client who not only knows my art style and realizes the amount of time and effort a custom painting takes, it’s a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Sarah was a pleasure to work with.

Just a few of the more than a dozen reference photos I had to work from. Just a haircut can make the same dog look like a different pup. It’s then up to the client to point me in the right direction.

For the first month, before I even began sketching, she sent me several photos in different poses. Lucas often looked different from one photo to the next because of the length of his hair, age, and the colouring that had changed throughout his life. With these variables, I needed to narrow down how Sarah wanted him to look. Short or long hair? More grey hair than tan? Puppy, senior, or somewhere in between?

Communication is key with every commission. I can’t do my best work if I don’t know which details are essential to the client.

Finally, Sarah suggested an outdoor setting and mentioned that she had wanted to take him for a photo shoot with dandelions but never got to do that. I thought posing him in that environment sounded like a wonderful idea.

When I sent the final image at the beginning of August, Sarah responded, “I’m overwhelmed with your portrait of my little man, his eyes and all that hair! His cute little head tilt and the hint of a smile as he sits in the flowers is just perfect. I showed my Mom and she said she had a smile through tears and that was me too. What an incredible amount of work, I probably can’t really imagine but it is very obvious in the finished image!”

However…

“There isn’t anything wrong, but I am wondering how difficult it might be to make a small change to Lucas’ nose? He had a wee dimple at the top centre that gave it even more of a “heart” shaped appearance.”

I had painted Lucas with more of a rounded nose at the top like I do with some of my whimsical wildlife images. It’s often a feature of my cartoony style. But going back through the reference images, I saw that dimple detail in all the photos. I just didn’t put the weight into it that someone who knew Lucas would. In my opinion, that means I got it wrong.

Back to the drawing board, I corrected my mistake, and Sarah was pleased when I sent the revision. I’m genuinely relieved she mentioned it. Had she not, I expect it would be a distraction each time she looked at the painting, thinking, ‘Too bad he got the nose wrong.’Though Sarah and her spouse live near Edmonton, and I could ship the painting, she and her Mom had planned for a couple of nights in Canmore this past weekend, and I delivered the 18”X24” stretched canvas to their hotel. I took them outside into the sunlight for the reveal so they could see the bright colours and the details. Whether on paper, metal or canvas, my work always looks better in print than on a screen. People have been saying that to me for years. Sarah said it, too.

She started to cry and finally managed, “It’s him.”

I don’t get better compliments than happy tears.

The 18″X24″ canvas, which of course looks better in real life. Blame the photographer.

 

Thanks again for trusting me with this most personal of paintings, Sarah. I’m so pleased you’re happy with it.

I’m working on another commission that I hope to finish soon. With my current workload, they’re taking a little longer than usual, but thankfully, Sarah and my other client didn’t have deadlines. That’s an important factor when I consider taking on a custom piece, whether I can deliver what I promise.

If you’d like to learn more about what’s involved with hiring me for a custom pet portrait in my whimsical style, please visit my Commissions page.

Cheers,
Patrick