ARTFINDER: An Old Fashioned Christmas by Richard De Wolfe - At the turn of the century, the main mode of wi...

ARTFINDER: An Old Fashioned Christmas by Richard De Wolfe - At the turn of the century, the main mode of wi...

 "An Old Fashioned Christmas" by Richard De Wolfe 30" x 48" alkyd on canvas

At the turn of the century, the main mode of winter
transportation was by horse drawn sleigh or “cutter” as depicted here.  The scene is typical of many
communities in Eastern Canada and the North Eastern United States.  It is dawn on Christmas morning, and
people are gathering at the church for an early Christmas service.

 Many modern day Amish and Mennonite families still travel in horse drawn vehicles and sleighs in winter, though the type that they favour are much less flambouyant than this one.

ARTFINDER: Days of Gold by Richard De Wolfe - Clydesdale horses have been used to work the la...

ARTFINDER: Days of Gold by Richard De Wolfe - Clydesdale horses have been used to work the la...

"Day of Gold" by Richard De Wolfe 18"x24" alkyd on canvas

Clydesdale horses have been used to work the land on farms in the British Isles, Europe and North America for centuries.  For the most part, these powerful work horses have been replaced by modern tractors and other machinery, but there are many people who still keep these mighty draft animals for logging, small farm operations, parades, horse pulls and ploughing matches, and even just for pets.

The team pictured here are pulling a "Scottish rig", single-furrow plow, turning the sod for the ancient farmer who holds the reins and guides them with a steady hand.  I painted this picture in memory of my father, who was born in 1906 and worked with heavy horses much of his life.

I do a lot of farm and horse paintings, which is natural enough, since my wife and I have operated an equestrian riding and training facility for many years.  Most of our horses are either for show or lessons, but occasionally we board a heavy horse for one of our clients.  I am always awed by the size and power of these gentle draft animals.

The painting is available for sale directly, or through www.artfinder.com.  Prints in various sizes and in many configurations, framed or otherwise, are available at www.rdewolfe.com.

ARTFINDER: Getting Aquainted by Richard De Wolfe - When I was a very young boy, my father kept a f...

ARTFINDER: Getting Aquainted by Richard De Wolfe - When I was a very young boy, my father kept a f...

"Getting Acquainted" by Richard De Wolfe 18 x 24 alkyd oil on canvas

When I was a very young boy, my father kept a few farm animals, as well as flocks of chickens, ducks and turkeys to help provide for our large family.  He had already stopped keeping cattle by that time, but I was very familiar with cows and calves on neighbouring farms in our rural community as I was growing up.

"Getting Acquainted" is a fanciful interpretation of my father introducing a 3year old 'me' to a young calf in the barnyard in spring.  For many poeple, it represents a nostalgic memory of life on the family farm in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s.

I love creating paintings that bring back memories of my childhood in farm country along the St. Lawrence River, in Ontario, Canada.  Life seemed so simple then, but that is more a product of the innocence of childhood than the reality of those times.  We had polio, World War 2, DDT, the Korean War, Vietnam, the Cuban missile crisis and many more life-threatening situations to cope with, not so different from today.  I think the difference is that the past is 'known' and the future must always remain 'unknown'.  Enjoy life and tell someone that you love them.

ARTFINDER: Evening Run by Richard De Wolfe - One of the nicest times of the day to take a le...

ARTFINDER: Evening Run by Richard De Wolfe - One of the nicest times of the day to take a le...

"Evening Run" by Richard De Wolfe 16 x 24 alkyd on canvas

I can't wait for spring to come, the ice to thaw and boating season to begin!  Winter here has been long and arduous this year and just about everyone I know is ready for a change.  There is nothing I enjoy more than a warm summer evening, cruising happily among the Thousand Islands and just loving the life.

This painting is a scene only about one mile from where I grew up on the banks of the St. Lawrence River.  It is a place that is very dear to my heart and one that I return to often.  Just counting the days now!

ARTFINDER: Freighter Inviken by Richard De Wolfe - I love the water and boating, and soon I will b...

ARTFINDER: Freighter Inviken by Richard De Wolfe - I love the water and boating, and soon I will b...

"Freighter Inviken" by Richard De Wolfe  16 x 20 oil on canvas 

I love the water and boating, and soon I will be launching my own craft once again.  The St. Lawrence Seaway will  open to shipping in early spring and will remain open until late autumn, alllowing ships from all over the world to reach ports all around the Great Lakes, deep in the interior of Canada and the United States .

This is a freighter from Europe that I saw several years ago as it was approaching the Thousand Island Bridge, between the U.S. mianland and Wellesley Island, N.Y.  I loved the powerful mass of the ship, rising off of the water like some displaced, highrise architecture.  I found the persepective leading to the arch span of the bridge in the distance to be an interesting design that appealed to me.  The rolling clouds overhead seemed to enforce the energy and power of the massive ship churning upstream to Toronto, Detroit  and perhaps  many ports beyond.

ARTFINDER: On the Podium by Richard De Wolfe - This old tractor belongs to a friend of mine. F...

On the Podium 24x30 oil on canvas by Richard De Wolfe

I have been away from the blog for some time, but I will try to get back to it as often as I can.  It is amazing how much of my that time social media uses up these days!  Juggling posts, web sites and painting sometimes requires more than I have available in my day!

This is an older painting of mine, but one that I still enjoy very much.  I love painting country art and farm subjects and this one falls squarely into that catagorey, very nicely.  I hope this old tractor, acting as a sound stage for a very melodious performer will brighten your day.  There is nothing more uplifting than the golden voice of the song sparrow.

Creating a Silver Coin for the Royal Canadian Mint

It has been a year since I was commissioned by the Royal Canadian Mint to design and produce a painting for a 20 dollar silver coin.  Now that the official release has finally arrived, I can take the wraps off of the art and tell the story behind the project and the painting that I created!

It all began in October, 2013 when a product manager at the Mint came across one of my hockey paintings on rdewolfe.com and decided that this was something they would like to see on a Canadian collector coin.  I was then contacted and commissioned to come up with a new design featuring Canadian children playing the much loved game of pond hockey.

The production work for a new coin is long and arduous, so it was imperative that I immediately begin working out the design for the new coin.  Country, kids and hockey are favourite subjects of mine, so I eagerly began working on the project.  Sketches were soon approved and painting commenced!

Original sketch for Pond Hockey painting

The first sketch was received with enthusiasm but because it was decided to reproduce the background buildings in bas-relief rather than full colour, it was necessary to separate the figures in the foreground from the objects in the distance.  I submitted a new drawing that was then deemed perfect for the job!

Final sketch for Pond Hockey painting

Once I received final approval for the drawing, I transferred it to canvas to begin the painting.  The next step was to apply a thin blue wash overall to create a 'cool' atmosphere.

Now I begin painting in dark areas using acrylic paint for speedy drying.  This allows me to move forward quickly.

When I begin adding local colour throughout the painting, things start to come together.  At this point I have switched to alkyd oil paint.

Now I add in colour and texture on the ice surface and the background scene.  All the basics are there, so now it is a matter of finishing up by adding more colour and detail to the painting.  Originally, I intended to do a circular painting as indicated by the initial painting of the sky.  In the end, however, I decided it would be more attractive to extend the scene into a square format, resulting in a more complete, square painting.

Finished painting "Pond Hockey" 

And here it is....the finished one ounce silver coin, available for purchase at themint.ca or one of the dealers listed on their web site, including Canada Post Corporation.  One of the really neat features of this limited edition silver coin is the full colour treatment, making it a very unique collectible!