Barb Sohn Art

 MERA (MacDonald's Corners Recreation and Fine Arts)  Award of Excellence in Fine Arts and Fine Crafts was created in 2008 to acknowledge local artists who demonstrate excellence in their work.  I'm happy to say I was the runner up in the 2019 MERA Award of Excellence for my work as an artist living in the Perth, Ontario area. The award was presented by Lyndal Neelin.  Thanks so much to MERA for this exciting opportunity! 

I am very happy and honoured to have been elected as a member of the Ontario Society of Artists after a 2 step jurying process in November, 2018 !

The OSA has a very long tradition which began with its founding in 1872. They are Canada's oldest continuously operating artists' society. 

The Society was instrumental in establishing major art institutions, including the Art Gallery of Ontario and the Ontario College of Art and Design. 
Today they are are a province-wide professional organization with over 260 members from many diverse backgrounds working in a wide range of media. 

It was an adventure getting to Toronto for the 2nd step- they invited me to bring a painting to the Arts and Letters Club for the second step of jurying.  I left Perth with the weather forecast of a snow storm on the way, and sure enough, about Trenton it began, just as it was getting dark.  By Port Hope, I pulled into a gas station parking lot, looked up and saw a hotel.  This was as far as I got that day.  The next morning, after a walk in the snow, I completed my trip to Toronto.

Luckily for me, it was well worth the trip to Toronto.  I look forward to participating in different events throughout the year.

It was one of the hotter weekends of the summer (wait, weren't they all hot?) when I set up at the Fine Arts Festival in Buckhorn, Ontario. But the benefit of having a show in the Kawartha Cottage County is that there is a lot of places to go swimming, which I managed to do before the vernissage in the evening.  It truly is a beautiful location - set in the community centre and in a string of cottages in the forest.  

I brought current paintings of Murphy's Point Provincial Park and the Yukon.

I had the honour of being an artist neighbour to Dave Rheaume, Catherine Schissel and Dwayne Richard James, all of whom kept me laughing all weekend.  It is a fun event for everyone.
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I also had the honour of being the 4th highest seller in the show! That was a surprise! And I will be back next year.

​​​Doesn't that painting look great hanging on the door? The painting is sold, as is the larger one on the right! And two little favourites on the mantle gone to new homes as well. Doesn't this scene look like a scene from the Friendly Giant?

After a wet and dreary summer, we took a break and left Canada for a few weeks in Scandinavia.  It was a hectic trip - and the highlight was a train ride to the mountains of Norway and then a boat trip into the fjords.  Lots of painting material you say? Yes, but as soon as we got back to Canada, a beautiful Indian Summer began, and I got carried away with the rich golden and red colours that speak to me in the early morning light.
So, finally, on October 24, I began to paint again - back into my fall colour paintings. may of these will be seen at my next upcoming show "Holly Jolly Art Show" at Algonquin College in Perth, Ontario.

We did a trip to Vancouver Island in March.  We hoped to get away from the dreary March weather in Ontario, but it was the exact same weather in BC;  maybe a couple of degrees warmer.
Anyways, we were based in Brentwood Bay for the 3 weeks that we were there, and we did trips up and down the island.  The highlight was our 3 day stay at Wickaninnish Inn at Tofino, where I photographed like crazy and came away with a ton of material.  What a stunning location!
Since March, I have been painting larger works from those few days at Tofino: Chesterman's Beach (above), Long Beach and the Wild Pacific Trail at Uclulet.  I'll be showing some of these works at upcoming shows, such as the Rideau Lakes Summer Show, in Perth in July, as well as the Buckhorn Fine Arts Festival in the Kawarthas at the end of August.
Looking forward to seeing you!

It's been a busy winter so far in 2016/2017!  After my Open Studio in October, I did two (or three?) Christmas shows.........It's a bit of a blur! 
And the Gallery on Gore in Perth moved across the street in Perth, Ontario into the most beautiful heritage space on the Tay River Basin.  It's a must see when you have time to make the drive out to Perth.  There was a gallery opening in December with wonderful wine and food and the gallery was packed for the evening.  It was nice to see old friends and to meet the other artists involved with the gallery.
Since then, I have been painting full time - what a privilege to be able to do this! Going to work now involves walking across the yard into the woods and turning on the lights!
I have done a lot of small 8 x 8, 12 x 12 paintings, and then moving on to 12 x 24.  They seem to sell before I can get them up on my website.  But this week I am moving into larger paintings. The painting on this page is my first larger painting of the season- "Tay River at Port Elmsley", 24 x 36.
And the fun news is the Maple Run Tour coming up on April 1st and 2nd in the area of Pakenham, Ontario. I am showing my work at Studio 9 on the tour, which is the Cartwright Springs Brewery! How great is that?  At the same location is the Jolly Hog Food Truck from Carleton Place, as well as Clement Hoek, my favourite potter.  This is a must-see stop on tour - maybe plan to come around lunch time?
Maps for the tour are available in Pakenham at the General Store, as well as online at www.mapleruntour.com.
In the meantime, I'll be doing a two week trip to Vancouver Island. Imagine the material I will get from this trip.  Can't wait!