A pot of petunia back lit by late afternoon sunlight

A quick oil sketch of the two pots of flowers back lit by late afternoon sunlight.

Late blooming

The roses are blooming again when leaves are falling from trees.

Sign of autumn

 An accumulation of fallen leaves , a sign of autumn.

Downtown Brandon-- a view on the 10th Street

Came to this part of Downtown Brandon in the morning to paint. This block of street had been closed down to traffic for a while due to the collapsing of the roof of one of the building on the street. Now not only is it reopen to the traffic but also  there is a new traffic configuration which allow so much more free parking space on the street! I personally enjoy it since it allows me to paint on the street without worrying so much over feeding the parking meter with coins every now and then.

A wedding ceremony at the International Peace Garden

Today is our  27th anniversary. We decided to do something special by driving all the way to Peace Garden where we last visited in 2002. It just happened that as soon as I set up my easel right on the demarcation line dividing Canada and the United States of America, I realized that there was going to be a wedding ceremony of a young American couple from North Dakota right in front of me!   What can be more fitting to paint a new wedding ceremony to mark incidentally our own 27th anniversary. 27 years ago tonight , we got married ten- thousands of miles away  in a most remote and isolated northwestern part of China close to the then China and Soviet Russia border. We could have never dreamed that 27 years later we would be in a totally different part of the world on a most peaceful and  most beautiful border ! Hope I have captured the most essential part of the ceremony where the couple stands there sharing their wedding vow, with the priest officiating, a lone guitarist playing Pachebell's canon, and family and friends sitting behind sharing the joy of the moment.

From the new campus of Assiniboine Community College

Obtained a special permission to paint on this ground today. Tucking  myself in the shade  of big old oaks trees with the set up of my easel,  I was able to capture the moment when late afternoon sunlight was pouring over the facade of the old and new building complex of what is now Len Evan's Trade and Technology Building.

An Aspen wood steeped in early morning sunlight from the Loon Island of Lake Katherine

Standing alone at this beautiful location; looking at the aspen wood steeped in early morning sunlight , and listening to the hauntingly beautiful distant calls from loons on Lake Katherine, I just felt a surge of joy gushing through my heart.

Noon hour at the main beach of Clear Lake of Riding Mountain National Park

What a wonderful day in many senses it is today! I drove over to Clear Lake again from Brandon in the morning. I located the cottage I was commissioned to paint , and to my pleasant surprise, I realized that this happened to be the cottage where the world famous violinist James Ehnes was staying for the annual Clear lake Chamber Music Festival where he gives performance. I felt so honored to be able to paint this beautiful cottage right on the lake. Around noon hour I stopped by the main beach after a short visit at Wasagaming Community Arts Centre where my show the Light and Colour of Summer Clear lake was still on, I set up my easel there near the path and started to paint.  Before supper I got back to my dear friends Jan and Alicja's cottage to have supper with them. Sitting and chatting with them on their deck surround by soaring aspens on a beautiful day like this , I felt myself on the edge of paradise. After supper I went to the second concert of Clear Lake Music Festival with Jan and Allicja where they volunteer every year and where every year Jan donates his beautiufl digital art prints for fund raising for the event. This year I have the honor to donate a few of my paintings to the event as well. The second concert tonight again showcases the  world famous violinist James Ehnes as well as the pianist and B.U music professor Alexander Tselyakov and also his most talent young son Daniel Tselyakov. From Johann Sebastian Bach , Haydn to Shostakovich , the audience indulged themselves in the lavishing beauty of classical music and the rare moment when you can meet and chat in person with the most talented world famous performers.

From Lake Katherine - turning of color for the fall

Painted this as a demonstration for my outdoor painting workshop group. More later.

The wooded area across from Wasagaming Community Art Centre

A quick oil sketch of the wooded spot across from the gallery early in the morning while waiting for my outdoor painting group.

A cottage with an intriguing history

I will write about why it is such an intriguing cottage on north -shore.

A cottage with a painterly link to the past

I will write more about this impressive cottage later.

Leisure of summer

A quick oil sketch from our patio in the morning. Just want this image be a reminder of how we have enjoyed every summer leisure surrounded by peace and tranquility.

A BCO gathering at Stanley Park

The Brandon Community Options has its annual picnic this year at Stanley Park with Staff and home members. I reached their a bit too late when most of them were ready to leave. Anyway a quick oil sketch of the gathering just before they started to leave.

Looking across the street

A quick oil sketch from our front yard towards noon hours

Our patio with hanging baskets of petunia

Another quick oil sketch from our patio late in the afternoon

Looking out of the window into the backyard at noon

A quick oil sketch from the window at noon.

In the early morning sunlight

From our backyard early in the morning I can see the trees are starting to change colour in their leaves. The lone poplar tree behind our hedges standing there soaking up the morning sunlight is the focus of my quick oil sketch for today.

a pot of pink petunia

Came back from Becky's place after supper , and  standing on the deck, seeing the hanging basket of pink petunia in the fading sunlight, I did this very quick oil sketch before I stepped inside the house.

Three pots of tomato plant in the glare of sun

A quick oil sketch of the three pots of tomato plant in the glare of noon hour sunlight.

The quiet corner behind our hedges early in the morning

How many times have I painted at this secluded spot over the years? I have lost account. Each time I paint there I feel peace and serenity surrounding me while I get lost  in the share joy of painting there.

At the opening reception of my show " Light and Colour of Summer Clear Lake

My opening reception went well last night at Wasagaming Community Arts. Here is an image from the show opening.

Sign of Fall ?

After a drizzle of rain, there is a shimmering glare on the street when the sun starts to break out of the clouds. A quick oil sketch of the street of Balmoral bay where there are fallen leaves already, Sing of fall?

From our backyard

A quick oil sketch from our backyard early in the afternoon. Noticed the change of colors in some of the trees there already. Also noticed that Fengping's tomatoes started to ripe

A neighborhood in Cornwallis Crescent viewed from an open space

Have not been back to this spot for over a month even though I pass through this place on a daily basis before summer holiday starts. Noticed the change of the color on the walls of one of the houses there.

Hanging basket of petunia and gerania against setting sunlight

A quick oil sketch of the two pots of flowers against setting sunlight from our patio late in the afternoon.

A window view on this late summer morning

Finally feel better after a day of migraine headache. Pulling  up the curtain, I was dazzled this morning by this sunny window view , and decided to paint right  at home instead.

A pot of flower on our dining table on our patio

Had to confine myself to bed the whole day almost due to migraine headache. Sitting at the table on our patio, I did this quick oil sketch of the pot of flower in front of me after supper.

Hay bales in the field

Right along the first street close to  the Veteran Way you will find an open expanse of field dotted with hay bales always at this time of the year, a  sign of coming fall. I stepped into the field with my easel , and did this quick oil sketch after a drizzle of rain this morning .

A view of Downtown Brandon after a shower of rain

It was so quiet early in the afternoon when I came to this section of 9th street looking north. After a shower of rain I set up my easel there and painted this view. Right across the street is the new setting for the dancing studio Steppinn' Dance Studio  Noticed its cute and lovely 3-D logo right in front of its door.

Painting the Old Church -Pottery and Gift

Stopped by the Old Church -Pottery & Gift on my way home early in the afternoon , and started to paint this unique building which used to be a church now a pottery and gift store owned by Jeff Bettle the well known  pottery artist and craftsman  from Manitoba.

At Wasagaming Community Arts Centre

I drove all the way this morning to deliver my paintings for the coming show at Wasagaming Community Arts. It happened to be the Wasagaming Chamber Day with lots of activities going on. One of them is the face painting which attracted  lots of young kids to its door. The three young ladies working there in the summer started to do the face painting right in front of the centre, and I did a quick oil sketch to mark the occasion.

A view of our front yard on Balmoral Bay

A quick oil sketch of our front yard with Fengping's flower  blooming in her garden

A path on Balmoral Bay

The crab apple trees in John Gross's yard are loaded with crab apples now. A quick oil sketch in the afternoon against the dazzling sunlight.

Our patio , Barbecue grill and flowerbed

Hope this image will always evoke a memory for the prairie summer moment. A quick oil sketch from our quiet and cozy backyard.

A sense of home - a view from our patio

A quick oil sketch from our patio this afternoon

A sense of home- a view from our front yard in the morning

Sarah is leaving for Edmonton this afternoon after her short stay with us. It is always sad to see her leaving. Stepped out in the morning and did this quick oil sketch from our front yard. Can not believe that we have lived in this house for a total of 13 years now.