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Carbon Art’s current exhibition features Ontario landscapes from near and far. It is the first solo show by Belleville’s Ian McKendry.

Many of the scenes painted will be familiar to local residents. The style evokes that of Tom Thomson, whose vivid renderings of Algonquin Park are recalled in paintings such as Mr. McKendry’s “Canadian Shield,” featured on the cover of last week’s Gazette.

Mr. McKendry has been painting since age twelve. One series of paintings is committed to working outdoors. He travels by bicycle, embracing the challenges and limitations that his portable painting kit imposes, and the demands of creating on site.

(Submitted Photo)

In focus is the sense of place. Looking at a wall of 8” x 10” oil panels, taken en plein air, that is, painted in the field, Mr. McKendry notes “I can remember the exact location of each of these.” That is no small feat, as he has produced over 450 such paintings.

Place draws in both viewers and painter. Carbon art’s curator, Hri Neil, was particularly attracted to “Nocturne: Trinity Bellwoods Park,” because it sparks a memory. For the painter, rendering a place links him to it. “I will sit there for 45 minutes or a couple of hours. It becomes a part of me.”

The artist also becomes a part of the landscape. A friend at last week’s opening, Hayley Austin, remarked that sometimes she will be out for a nature walk and unexpectedly encounter Mr. McKendry. At other times, she said, “I will be somewhere and think to myself, Ian should paint this.” She mentioned one particular instance when she called him to come and admire a local lake. To her surprise, when he arrived, he turned his back on the lake and painted the landscape of the Canadian shield behind it. The colours of the stone, the shadings of moss and lichen, the wind-bent evergreens against a stand-out red maple.

Mr. McKendry wears many hats. He is a schoolteacher. He is also a talented guitarist, playing with the Belleville band Bad Tractor, whose album covers (available at Carbon) feature his artwork. He has a friendly and down-to-earth demeanour. “My only method is not to get boxed in by what I did the day before, to attend to what’s there and let it take form.”

Curator Hri Neil’s gallery, Carbon Art and Design, features current and local artists, with an emphasis on contemporary aesthetics. The space also features a quirky retail selection of objects and artworks, including vinyl records by local musicians. The show runs until November 12 at Carbon Art and Design, 281b Main St., Picton, just down the lane next to Books & Company.