Growing up on a farm in southern Saskatchewan has given me a great appreciation for the prairie and the landscape. Having parents as farmers meant you were always looking at the crops, the garden, creeks, sloughs, bushes in the fields, long gravel roads, and the sky – will it rain, hail, be excessively windy or hot in the summer, how much snow will we get?
I was very aware of the landscape and spent many hours outside on the farm either working or playing. As a child we were enlisted to help plant the garden, weed, drive the truck out to the field during seeding or combining, burn flax straw, pick rocks, or move cattle. I feel a deep connection to the landscape because of my upbringing. I remember laying on the grass and staring up at the clouds, watching the sunset through my west bedroom window, and going for drives with my parents to ‘check the crops’. We lived on the land and depended on it to make our living.
When I see a bright blue sky with a variety of clouds, a sunset with vibrant pinks and oranges, or a field of canola in the distance it reminds me of growing up and the connection I will always have with the land. I believe that is why I am drawn to painting landscapes, it’s like a magnet pulling me in beckoning me to paint it, and reminding me of my roots. When I paint I feel a connection to the earth and sky and it will always be a part of me.
Artists' Workshop Saskatoon 