~ Marie Flynn Fine Art ~
~"The landscapes I paint are about where I have been, the impressions they leave on me. Inside there is an inspiration and desire to want to paint the beauty of that special place.
Paul's Place, Salmon Arm
It's not difficult to ascertain what this painting is all about and where. Our friend Paul lives there. My partner and I were visiting he and his wife a few years ago during a fire season in B.C. The mountain in the distance, which was surrounded by smoke, didn't affect us too much on the ground. They live just outside of Salmon Arm in a cozy little community nestled in the mountains. Did you notice the little birdhouse on the tree.? SOLD
Elbow Falls in Summer
This happens to be one of my favorite paintings that I did. It took a long time to accomplish because of the appearance of the rocks when standing closer to them. This is Elbow Falls west of Calgary and is very popular with the locals. It's a lovely place to spend the day and bring a picnic lunch. I took a picture of it and painted it in my studio. The rocks are just fantastic to paint, colorful and intricate in detail. It was a real challenge for me but I think I managed to get it as realistic as possible. This painting was the beginning of my love for painting rocks.
Columbia River, Kootenays
My partner is a contractor and he was sent on a job in the Fairmont Hot Springs area last summer and we packed up our RV and booked ourselves into a campground there. While he as away working, I spent my time with various activities but mainly with my painting. The lovely scenery around the campground that we were at was amazing and I took photographs of the area to take with me back to my studio as references.
I painted this one on location.
Mountain Park, Cypress Hills
An on location painting in the Cypress Hills Provincial Park, on the Alberta side of the park, since part of it over laps into Saskatchewan. I was camping there and it was a beautiful warm sunny day with visitors just strolling around taking in the scenery. Around the edge of the lake were all these bulrushes, hundreds of them and with the foothill in the distance, it made for a really nice composition.
Gone Astray, Okotoks Erratic
The Okotoks Glacial Erratic, according to the internet, occurred during the last ice age some 30,000 years ago. It's essentially a massive rock that travelled along from it's original location on a glacier for hundreds of miles to it's present location near the town of Okotoks in Alberta. It comprises of a big rock that has broken into many smaller pieces. It's a popular destination for travelers. I have been to it many times and always love looking at the rocks, which are mostly grey in color but have other colors mixed in on most of them which makes the colors and shapes attractive to artists. This is one of my favorite landscape paintings.
Entwined, Vancouver Island
The photo for this painting was taken on the beach near the Comox area on Vancouver Island. It was sort of strange looking by the way the driftwood was piled up like this and I'm thinking someone may have had fun arranging them like that but I found it visually interesting with sort of a ethereal feel to it.
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Early Fall Harvest
While out for a drive in the countryside outside of Calgary, I came across this farmers field. The hay bales resting just after cultivation was really a nice quiet scene to see. I initially found the flow of the resting bales leading up to the foothills in the distance interesting, something we call in art, Movement as per the Principals of Design. It caught my eye and this was going to be another painting to be done.
Private Collection
Winter Quietude
Birch Trees at Lake Newell
This was a storage shed at one time located south near Okotoks way. A small town south of Calgary. It stood there empty for a long time and last I looked it's now gone. I was fortunate to be able to stand close to it and take the picture. These types of buildings are also scattered around the countryside's in Alberta if you look for them, but I'm noticing they are becoming less and less part of the landscape. Many have disappeared or have fallen down in crumpled heaps of old weathered wood. They remind me of how some of the old wooden grain elevators are also slowly disappearing.
Two years ago, my partner and I made a day trip to Brooks, Alberta. We visited Kinbrook Island Provincial Park. It was a sunny day in April by the lake. It was quite windy that day and hard to tolerate. We stood by a small clearing near some birch trees where I took some pictures towards the lake. It wasn't until we got home that I looked at the photos and realized how lovely this scene was.
Gold Harvest
The image and inspiration for this painting came from a farmer's field next to a campground I stayed at in the Fort Qu'Appelle region in Saskatchewan.
Kootenay Valley
This is the view I had from the campground I was staying in at Fairmont Hot Springs in the Kootenay Valley, British Columbia. It was hazy the day I painted this caused by the forest fires that the wind blew in from the west. It's a lovely view regardless. SOLD
Late Harvest
This painting is of my own creation, sketched directly on the canvas. The inspiration comes from what the landscape in late fall typically looks like in Alberta. We often see the yellow fields of cultivated hay and also some green fields as well. Rows of conifers and other trees that divide the landscape act as windbreakers and keep the snow from accumulating too high. I hope you enjoy this painting.
Lighthouse at Peggy's Cove
I saw some images of the Lighthouse at Peggy's Cove and instantly I wanted to paint it in my own interpretation. I love the random rocks leading up to the light house and the stark white of it against the dark cloudy sky. Beautiful!
Grain Shed in Winter
These grain sheds are often seen on farmers fields in Alberta. Many are no longer in use and are dilapidated but they add to the beauty of the landscape.
Red Sheds
These were the storage sheds that once stood in a field when heading up to the Leighton Centre. They were painted by many artists over the years and was always interesting to see them lined up in this manner. They became old and tired looking by the elements which was the attraction for many.
White Pond Lilies
Lake Minnewanka (facing north)
I've always enjoyed this location on Lake Minnewanka inside Banff National Park. The view is spectacular. You can stand or sit on the large rocks, paint or sketch or even enjoy a your lunch while taking in the scenery. Such a great location to visit. Enjoy!
The Bow River, Banff
A new Landscape painting I just finished. Features the Bow River inside Banff National Park. This location is situated next to the Banff Spring Hotel and is a popular spot to take in the scenery and of the Falls located opposite to this image.
Off the Beaten Path in Winter
Taking a walk through the woods in Fish Creek Park one sunny afternoon, I was liking all the strong shadows and slivers of light coming though the trees as a result of the first snowfall of the season.
Lake Shore - Water & Rocks
My latest landscape painting is taken on the edge of Lake Newell, Alberta. Loved the color of the rocks and the small waves of lake water crashing against them.