Judy McLaren, B.A., A.O.C.A.
I have worked largely in the figurative tradition for over thirty years. My early training included studies at the Ontario College of Art in the late 70s under the tutelage of master Canadian painter, Hugh Mackenzie, and then later refining my skills in the disciplined world as an artist at the Royal Ontario Museum. My painting style is often characterized by energetic, directional brushwork with big, bold compositions and expressive use of colour. Light is always paramount, ever influencing the composition and form.
Mine is a responsive, reactive art. I find material everywhere – from cloud formations to conversations. Images are channeled through my head and heart to the brush and onto the canvas. In the crucible that is my art, I eliminate the fleeting and insignificant so that the core, the elemental and the monumental are rendered. I find the absolute in the mundane, the truth behind the facade. My work is a transformative celebration.
Recently I have been exploring waterscapes. I like to think that being born on a small island off the coast of France and living on a larger island in the Pacific North West has influenced my passion for the ever-changing confluence of planes and surfaces of the ocean. I have been applying my experience and familiarity with working on the human figure to explore the tensions, rhythms and sculptural qualities of the sea, which like skin, molds and forms over underlying structural surfaces. My intention is to engage the viewer both emotionally as well as intellectually.
Exhibitions:
2017 - Brentwood Bay Resort and Spa, Solo Show - Shorelines
2017 - 2016 – Sooke Fine Art Show, Sooke, BC
2017 - TD Art Gallery Moss Street Paint, Victoria, BC
2016 – Sooke Fine Art Show, Sooke, BC: Honourable Mention for Testing, Oil on Canvas
2016 – TD Art Gallery Moss Street Paint, Victoria, BC
2015 – Dales Gallery, Victoria, BC, Group Show – Raincoast Reflections
2015 – Eclectic Gallery, Victoria, BC, Solo Show – Summer Heat
2015 – Dales Art Gallery, Victoria, BC, Solo Show – Shorelines
2015 – Sooke Fine Art Show, Sooke, BC: First Prize for Barista, Oil on Canvas
2014 – TD Art Gallery Moss Street Paint, Victoria, BC
2014 – Creative Bonds, Victoria, BC, Group Show, CACGV Main Gallery
2014 – Victoria Baroque Festival, Alix Goolden Hall, Artist in Residence
2013 – TD Art Gallery Moss Street Paint, Victoria, BC
2013 – Sooke Fine Art Show, Sooke, BC: First prize for The Unmade Bed, Oil on Canvas.
2012 – Muse Winery, North Saanich, BC: Judy Mclaren, Catherine McAvity and Joanna Hadfield, Group Show
2012 – TD Art Gallery Moss Street Paint, Victoria, BC
2012 – Sidney Plein Air Paint Out, Sidney, BC, First Prize
2011 – TD Art Gallery Moss Street Paint, Victoria, BC
2011/12 – Fairmont Empress Hotel, Victoria, BC – Artist in Residence
2010 – TD Art Gallery Moss Street Paint, Victoria, BC
2009 – Main St. Gallery, Sidney BC
2009 – TD Art Gallery Moss Street Paint, Victoria, BC
2008 – Main St. Gallery, Sidney BC
2008 – Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, Victoria, BC: Small Works Show
2008 – TD Art Gallery Moss Street Paint, Victoria, BC
2007 – Maltwood Gallery: Group Show, Artists in Their Studios
2006 – Fran Willis Gallery, Victoria BC, Group Show
2003 – Canadian Institute of Portrait Artists, West Vancouver BC: Group Show
2003 – Sidney Fine Art Show First Prize, Morning Coffee, Oil on Canvas
2003 – Winchester Gallery, Victoria, BC: Solo Show
2002 – Winchester Gallery, Victoria, BC
2001 – Winchester Gallery, Victoria, BC
1998 – Winchester Gallery, Victoria, BC
1998 – Artspring Gallery, Salt Spring Island, BC: Opening Group Show
1998 – Winchester Gallery, Victoria, BC
1997 – Winchester Gallery, Victoria, BC: Solo Show
1996 – Winchester Gallery, Victoria, BC: Canadian Women Artists
1992 – Barton Leier Gallery, Victoria, BC: Solo show
1991 – Art Gallery of Greater Victoria Moss Street Paint In, Victoria, BC
1988 – North Park Gallery, Victoria, BC
1979 – Prince Arthur Galleries, Toronto, Ontario
1978 – Prince Arthur Galleries, Toronto, Ontario
My work hangs in major institutions and private collections in Canada, the United States and Europe.
