Art Inspiration

I’d like to share the work of a few talented artists whose work graces the walls of my room. I’ve collected a few pieces over the years and seeing their talent on the walls inspires me.

The lead image shows four images on my “art wall”:

• “Prairie Sunset”, an acrylic painting of a grain elevator silhouetted at sunset, by Iris Galas.
• “All Aboard” and “Prairie Survivors”, two small oil paintings on canvas by Sharon Larson.
• CN 318 by Liam MacDougall (@TrainsInToronto on Instagram) (this image)
• Lisbon tram painting by Stefan Zaporozhan (@Zaporozhan_art)

I bought “Prairie Sunset” at a local art fair several years ago. I bought the two Sharon Larson paintings at a museum in Regina, I believe… it was almost 20 years ago so unfortunately I don’t remember which one.

Liam was running a contest on Instagram and I won my choice of image from his feed. I chose this one because I liked the lighting in the photo.

I bought the Lisbon tram painting in Lisbon at Mr. Zaporozhan’s store / studio. He has some amazing, colourful work.

Continuing my “art wall” on the right:

These four images:

• The same Lisbon tram painting by Stefan Zaporozhan
• Stony Beach grain elevator by Jen Grégoire
• Agawa Canyon tour train by David McCormack (@davidmccormack on Instagram)
• Pleasant Valley depot by Edd Fuller

I met Jen at the Signatures Christmas market in Winnipeg in late 2022. She has some wonderful work, including many trains and grain elevators and abandoned places. Her site: Jen Grégoire

I’m happy to call David McCormack a friend. We’ve met once so far when he was en route to Churchill for VIA Rail adventures; you can see his photo series here. We did a print exchange and the Agawa Canyon train was the print I chose. The colour and light are outstanding.

Edd Fuller is the editor at The Trackside Photographer, a great site that I have been honoured to contribute to. This was another print exchange. I love this moody image of the Pleasant Valley train depot.

Finally, these art works are right in front of me when I am working:

The two calendars:

• The left calendar is by Spencer Montgomery (@sjm_railphotography on Instagram)
• The right calenadr is by Emily Kewageshig (@emilykewageshig on Instagram)
• The art work on the far left was made by Jamie, my youngest child
• The art work on the far right was made by Lauren, “the middle child”

Spencer is super talented and I love his train photography. You should follow him on Instagram or on Flickr.

I’ve followed Emily’s work on Instagram for some time. She’s an Anishinaabe artist from Saugeen First Nation No. 12 along the shores of Lake Huron in Ontario. I love the colours and patterns in her work and I asked for her calendar for Christmas. I’m thrilled that I have it on my wall. See her work!

Jamie and Lauren’s art was obviously made when they were a lot younger than they are now. I still treasure them.

Who Else?

What artists inspire you? Whose work do you have on your walls? Share in the comments!