Spring 2022

Spring is quickly approaching but there is a grey cloud as we process the dramatic events taking place around the world. It has been said that “art is an expression of the heart.” I have found that my work as an artist allows me to absorb world events and express my hearts desire for peace more poignantly. Whatever your craft, be it music, painting, drawing, sculpting or dance, embrace it with vigour and purpose. Below are a number of options to engage in artistic activities in the months to come. I look forward to welcoming you to several of these events!

OPEN STUDIO in Niagara-on-the-Lake

Book Your Visit

I will be opening my Niagara-on-the-Lake studio/gallery for visitors starting May 1st, Thursday to Saturday from 11AM - 4PM and Sundays 11AM - 2PM. If you are planning to come to the Niagara Region and would like to see some new work, please schedule your individual or group visit below.

In-person Studio Visit

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New Work for Spring

In the gallery I have select works from a new series showing figure and floral inspired by George Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion." Also, I have some larger landscape paintings in oil, inspired by protected land and iconic views of Northern Ontario and Niagara. Select works are also available in print in the studio and online.

Pygmalion Series by Sandra Iafrate

This painting series inspired by classical art and literature. It combines pencil and charcoal drawing with acrylic florals inspired by Dutch flower paintings. Entitled “Pygmalion” the series of 5 paintings evolved from the narrative of George Bernard Shaw’s play which was written to support the suffragette movement in the early 20th-Century, and to subtly influence the audience. Also, Shaw’s idea is based on the ancient poem by Ovid, Metamorphoses, Book X, where the artist, Pygmalion, creates out of ivory what he considers the most beautiful and perfect woman.

The composition takes the theme and character into a mix of a classical contemporary composition which conveys a confident woman who has discovered she can be herself in spite of having learned how to be something of a “perfect” person. The figure is a strong, confident, intelligent person who is really a regular “common” person inside. My hope is that the elements in these works are perceived as bold yet elegant and poignant. Here she takes pause surrounded by a contemporary rendition of classical floral paintings. It is an old meets new. Nostalgic yet fresh and current.

Behind the Scenes

As the lead-up to these works, I created several drawings and watercolour sketches to decide on positioning and colour. This involved a wonderful photoshoot in the studio, experimenting with vintage dresses, different positioning and gestures with a model.

Many thanks go to the Shaw Festival Theatre for the loan of the costumes for this photoshoot in my studio during the pandemic spring of 2021. Also credit goes to Rijksmuseum for several images and rights to the use of elements of Dutch Flower paintings as reference. I had also arranged several floral head dresses to be used as a reference prop.

By Leonardo da Vinci - File:Leonardo da vinci, testa di fanciulla detta la scapigliata, 1500-10 ca., disegno su tavola, 02.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=91970475

This series was also inspired by figure paintings by John Everett Millais, the ever so delicate da Vinci drawings such as La Scapigliata, Botticelli’s Portrait of a Young Woman and The Birth of Venus, and the drawings and figure paintings of Albrecht Durer. The work shows the figure in a surreal yet meaningful environment, visually aesthetic with the portraiture partially obscured at the focal point. Like these works I want my viewers to know and agree with the figure, feel the connection of that pause and gesture.

VISIT ME AT TORONTO ARTIST PROJECT BOOTH #605

Toronto Artist Project exhibit and sale is back live and I will be there along with over 240 contemporary artists from across Canada April 21 - 24, 2022 at Queen Elizabeth Building. You can find me at BOOTH #605. Please visit my exhibits page for tickets to this great event and use coupon code : EXHIBIT 16 to save 10% off!

WORKSHOP REGISTRATION BEGINS

If you are feeling creative and dream of experiencing an unforgettable holiday, join me as I will be offering an upcoming painting retreat in Italy this Fall, as well as a full-day retreat in Niagara-on-the-Lake this

August. These workshops fill quickly and space will be limited to 8 participants. So please let me know if you are interested. For more information visit my workshop page.

Tuscany Workshop

Countryside Near Siena, Italy

Oct. 1 - 9, 2022 (3 spots left!)

Only a few spots remaining for this wonderful week-long painting holiday at a private Tuscan villa amidst olive groves and vineyards. All you will need is your flight. Tuition, meals and excursions included.

Artist Retreat

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada

The 3rd annual artist retreat will take place in Niagara-on-the-Lake August 6, 2022 from 10AM - 4PM. The emphasis is on composition and abstract. All you need is your creative spirit and to dress for mess. Includes an artisan farm to table lunch, local wine and all art materials.

IN SUPPORT OF KIDS HELP PHONE

Last call to get art and GIVE! As you may know I have been selling small works from my 31-day painting challenge with 100% of proceeds going to benefit Kids Help Phone (KHP). All paintings are under $100 each and include shipping. They will be on sale for this very important fundraiser until the end of the month. See KHP fundraiser paintings here.

I will be following up with another update next month and will be including some more information on work-in-progress as well as some great tips on how to hang and install art in your home or business. Until then, take good care.

- Sandra Iafrate

B-r-r-r-r-r Get Inside and Paint!

Let's welcome winter with more studio time. This is a great time to work indoors; find some forgotten work-in-progress (we all have those), try something new, or even clean up the studio. So if you are not into extreme plein-air painting, then its ok to hibernate for a while and let it snow! Winter for me is a time for reinvention. The post-holiday calmness brings opportunity to evolve as an artist, and I must say I do most of my evolving during winter.

I kicked it off this season with a winter landscape.

First off, I drew with fluid acrylic paint, blocking in the horizon with the focal point being just right of centre, where the creek meets the horizon. Then I washed the background with a very pale Alizarine Crimson and Hansa yellow, later covering most of it with an atmospheric haze of light blue/grey. Then I lightly suggested trees in the distance, lots of them, bringing the trees closer to the forefront with stronger contrast. The creek and rocks were mainly done with a pallet knife as was the settling snow. I brought more texture in the forefront with titanium white and light molding paste, yet I kept the background thin and grey. For the interesting texture of the bark and snow, I have GOLDEN Artist Colours to thank. I used the GOLDEN acrylic line of colours, mediums and grounds and found their molding and shaping mediums ideal for this. I loved getting the bulkiness of the snow using light molding paste and pouring mediums and conversly using the thin fluid acrylics for water and backgrounds.

I will be adding some of these techniques to my mixed media and landscape classes, and most definitely to my workshop in Italy this summer. Visit my workshop page and I hope you join me as we evolve in the studio this winter!

Discovery Trail in Winter - 30"x48" acrylic on canvas by Sandra Iafrate

Autumn and Art

The studio is busy as autumn art season approaches. I've been busy adding to my Abundance series; bold and busy flower painting series which I began painting in 2012. Now I've added 2 more to the series, making it six in total. The two recent works, plus the first of the series are currently on display at PI Fine Art in Toronto from Sept. 12 - Dec. 1, 2016.

This fun, busy floral series has been one of my favorite themes as it challenges me as a painter. I have had few references and had to resort to much ad-libing along the way. The two new oil paintings are 4ft x 6 ft canvases and is exhibited along side a 7ft x 9ft oversized work. The color palette of these paintings are very chromatic, with roses, lilies, tulips, leaves, branches and berries.

(Left: Abundance IV as a work in progress.)

Adding to this, I have been preparing for the upcoming McLean Project for the Arts (MPA) Artfest 2016 which will be held Oct. 2, 2016 at McLean Central Park, in McLean, VA. In its 10th year now, Artfest celebrates visual arts in the DMV area (D.C., Maryland, VA). During MPAartfest, the Park is transformed into a lively landscape of mini art galleries showcasing and offering for sale the work of 52 juried acclaimed artists from the Mid-Atlantic region. This free event also features local live musicians, food and an open air art studio for adults and kids to enjoy. Check out my Exhibits page for details.

Following Artfest on Oct. 7th and 8th, I will be offering two workshops at McLean Project for the Arts. Friday, Oct. 7th, we will be having a very fun and very different paint night entitled Arts and Crafts: Painting Art and Craft Beer. This workshop will run from 7 - 9:30pm at MPA and each participant will complete a rustic work on barn-board. Beer tasting will take place during drying time. And yes, our barn-boards are authentically from barns: cleaned and kiln dried. Ready for our project!

Below are samples of completed work for the Arts and Craft: painting art and craft beer. For more information visit my workshop page.

Also at MPA, I will be running a two-day fall foliage and landscape workshop: Changing of the Season with a Twist! This workshop runs Oct. 7th and 8th: 9:30am - 12:30pm. The focus is painting a fall scene and extending our selves as artists and exploring with color and composition. For registration, visit the MPA link.

Also last but most certainly not least! Registration is now open for June 2017 Chianti Hills! Our hosts, Il Chiostro are offering a discount of $100. per person for early bird booking prior to January 1st. This 7-day workshop/holiday runs June 3 - 10th, 2017. We stay in a beautifully restored 12th-century monastery right in the heart of Tuscany. I will be instructing daily classes and we will have visits to nearby Tuscan towns during the week, returning each evening to a meal prepared by our Italian chef. Its going to be delicious!

(Left: Il Chriostro's Tuscan Renaissance Centre where workshop and stay is held in Chianti.)

To learn more about The Tuscan Palette workshop head to il Chiostro or visit my workshop page.

Hope to see you this autumn!