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Canadian Visual Artist

What is a Canadian Visual Artist?

Artist is a term that is used broadly across The Arts. But what is a Canadian Visual Artist? Simply put this term refers to an artist born or living in Canada that creates something tangible or visual, something you can pick up, touch and feel. The visual arts include painting, photography, sculpture, printmaking, digital video, film and a range of arts and crafts. A visual artist creates something you can enjoy mostly with your eyes. Visual arts are made for observation by an audience that looks at them. They are generally complete prior to the audience encountering them. A visual artwork exists typically in permanent and lasting form, like a painting you hang on your wall. Canadian Visual Artist is a profession, an artist who is considered a professional in their field of Art, as opposed to a hobbyist, who creates for the joy of it. A professional visual artist typically has some form of training in their field of Art.

Approximately 160,000 people in Canada are professional Artists and roughly 21,000 are visual artists. Average income for a Canadian Visual Artist is $24,000 and they are mostly self employed and representing. The largest concentration of visual artists in Canada is in the city of Toronto. The largest concentration of artists in British Columbia are in the cities of Victoria and Vancouver.

adele campbell fine art

Top Canadian Visual Artist, Brandy Saturley.

Visual Artist Skills & Competencies

Successful visual artists possess certain soft skills or personal qualities which are required for success;

  • Artistic Talent: Artists create works of art and other objects that have visual appeal or provoke certain emotions. While almost anyone can learn how to paint, a true Artist produces work daily and on a schedule. An Artist produces lasting and meaningful works that will endure.
  • Business skills: Artists must promote their art and themselves to gain a reputation, garner attention for their creations, and increase sales of their art through developing relationships. Artists analyze the market for their artwork so that they can gain more insight into the type of art potential customers might want. Developing an online presence has become an important part of sales for many artists.
  • Creativity: Artists must be able to imagine and develop new, original ideas for their work projects, DAILY
  • Customer-service and interpersonal skills: Artists, especially those who sell their own work, work well with existing customers and potential buyers. Artists also interact with many types of people, including fellow artists, gallery owners, and the public.

Canadian Visual Artist

Some of our favourite visual artists of today include painters, photographers, sculptors, film-makers and installation artists. One Canadian visual artist that produces something across all these genres of visual art is Vancouver’s Douglas Coupland. A Canadian artist, novelist and designer, his art named a generation X and pokes fun at Canadian popular culture.

Canadian Visual Artist

PERSISTENCE PAYS

Rejection is a big part of being an artist, as is the ability to give and take criticism. Remember when talking with an artist about their work or about purchasing their work, creativity takes courage. We will not break, but we are sensitive creatures wearing armour of steel. Occasionally a bullet will make it through.

brandy saturley Canadian Artist

See more great Canadian Art from A Famous Canadian Visual Artist here.

What is a Canadian Artist?

What is a Canadian Artist?

Simply put, a Canadian Artist is an Artist who makes Art in Canada. A Canadian Artist is an Artist born or living in Canada that makes distinctive art influenced by their cultural, natural, and even social surroundings. Canadian Art created by a Canadian Visual Artist can include paintings, photography, sculpture, fine craft, and cultural arts. From Art rooted in Indigenous culture and the first peoples of Canada, to more Contemporary themes; Canadian Art is vibrant and filled with emotion, pride and even our distinctive brand of Canadian humour. Our Art can be serious, and quirky at times.

The Canadian Artist as Painter

From the Group of Seven to Alex Colville , and abstraction to realism, there are no limits when it comes to the visual Arts in Canada.

canadian artist

There is a great lineage of painters in Canada. Emily Carr painted masterful and dramatic landscapes from representational works to more dramatic abstractions of British Columbia forests. Her signature palettes of deep greens, are recognized worldwide.

canadian painter

The indigenous and vivid narratives of Norval Morisseau, are dreamy landscapes and portraits with spiritual themes. Portraits from Prudence Heward and the Beaver Hall Group of Painters are filled with drama and emotion.

prudence heward painting

The pop art style painters bring the bold and the Canadian dry and wry humour to the canvas; with the distinctive army blue and red palettes of Charles Pachter to the advertising infused paintings and prints of Chris Cran, to the pop art outlined representational works of Canadian painter Brandy Saturley, the Canadian Pop artists put our distinctive Canadian culture on view for all to enjoy.

canadian artist

And then there are the paintings of Kent Monkman. Subversive, bold, unapologetic, and unforgiving, the work of Kent Monkman has left an unmistakable mark on contemporary Canadian art.

canadian artist monkman

As of 2022 there are approximately 158, 100 professional artists in Canada, with 21,000 recognized as visual artists. In a country with a population of 37 million, this makes Canadian painters a rare breed. Acquiring a painting by a professional Canadian artist is a rare opportunity and a valuable object of beauty. More distinctive Canadian Paintings here.

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Art in Homes

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Peek Inside: The Reality of Art in Homes

You may have seen the photos in your favourite interior design magazine or on artist and art gallery websites, photos of paintings hanging in perfectly paired environments. The reality of art in collector homes is often VERY different than what magazines present. The paintings of Canadian Artist Brandy Saturley hang in some pretty eclectic and remarkable interiors. Art in homes and corporate collections across the country. Sometimes clients like to share where they have installed their new art purchase, and we love getting the opportunity to peek inside a clients home or office.

art in homes

Buying art online can be a daunting process, but it doesn’t have to be, thanks to technology it is easier than ever to get a sense of how the work will look in your space. Simply by taking a photo with your digital device, and emailing it to us with wall dimensions, we can superimpose the artwork on your wall, virtually. This will give you an accurate sense of how the art will ‘fit’ in the space you have available. Different clients have different needs and personal tastes, some prefer to match the couch or choose a piece that pops with their wall colour. Other art collectors want a piece that blends into a space, or fits on a salon style wall. (numerous paintings of varied sizes hanging on a wall randomly)

art in homes

Many art collectors who buy the paintings of Brandy Saturley, buy what they love, and do not worry about how a piece will fit into their space. These are adventurous art lovers who tend to change the couch or wall colour, to go with the art. There is also the opportunity to commission the Artist to create something custom made for your home. Whatever your preference, it is always nice to see how other people hang their art and decorate their interiors. A bit of art collecting voyeurism here, we hope you will enjoy. Perhaps they will inspire you, or even take the pressure off. Collecting Art is not about perfect, it’s about what YOU love, what MOVES you, what REFLECTS your personal tastes. Buying Art should be fun, not hard work. Enjoy it! Here are a few more photos of collected paintings in homes and corporate offices across Canada.

art in homes

Why do we need art in our homes? in the most simple terms, because Art makes our homes more human. Amongst all of the machine-made items in our homes, it brings life to have something that is one-of-a-kind and made with human hands in the most intimate of ways. Even if you never meet the artist in person, seeing the fingerprints, brush strokes or marks on the work serves as a reminder of the person behind the work of art.

art in homes

In simple terms, Art adds beauty, pause, décor, style, energy, a story, and value. Art is an investment in good health, culture, and your home or business.

art installation

For me, the most important thing art adds is an inception point for future conversations. A well-crafted piece of art offers a starting point for conversation, a reflection of one’s tastes, and escape. Original art on your wall offers a vacation from reality and the stresses of the day.

art interior victoria bc

When you cannot get outside, or take that vacation, Art provides a place for your mind to escape.

Art helps sell a home.

Art reflects YOU.

Art in Homes

Art offers a moment of meditation, a place where your mind can wander and rejuvenate.

See more paintings by Canadian Artist Brandy Saturley

Celebrating Art in Canada

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Celebrating 15 years, 400 paintings – Making Art in Canada

Fifteen years ago I committed to my Art career full-time, and I have made over 400 paintings informed by my travels and obsession with my country, Canada. Reflecting the collective Canadian consciousness, filtered through my eyes and ears, and brush to canvas. July 1st marks a very important day in my life and the collective consciousness of Canadians. Celebrating 15 years, making Art in Canada.

In 2019, I spent the summer studying contemporary art practices at the Royal College of Art in London, UK. This year I joined the artist roster at Adele Campbell Fine Art in Whistler, Canada.

Recently I spoke with YAM Magazine Victoria about about my distinctive style of Canadian Pop Art and what original art adds to a home.

The Peninsula News Review Sidney and North Saanich, popped into my studio and I shared some of the paintings I made during 2020, and the initial COVID-19 shutdown.

In support of the annual Art Gallery of Greater Victoria fundraiser, the TD Canada Trust Paint-In, you will find my work in this year’s virtual guide.

For the 35th Anniversary of the Sooke Fine Arts – my hometown, I will be showing two paintings as part of this years’ virtual programming. This show has become a world-class annual exhibition of Vancouver Island and coastal artists of British Columbia.

More to come!

Sincerely Yours,

Brandy Saturley (a.k.a #iconiccanuck)

Available Paintings Montreal Canadiens

Painting Stories Influenced by Hockey History – Montreal Canadiens Paintings

What excites you? is it a great novel, a heartfelt documentary, an energetic work of art, or maybe an exciting game of hockey? I am excited about all of these things, and they have all found their way into my work as a painter. The Montreal Canadiens have a storied history, an artist could focus their entire oeuvre on these historical moments of hockey. Over the years I have painted over a dozen works influenced by the history of the Habs. Currently there are six paintings available, telling stories of the Montreal Canadiens, hockey and Canada. Six available paintings about the Montreal Canadiens and their effect on Canadian culture.

1. Habitant – 60×40 inches – acrylic painting on canvas – Brandy Saturley

montreal canadiens in art

2. Lovers in a Dangerous Time – 36×36 inches – acrylic painting on canvas – Brandy Saturley

available paintings montreal canadiens

3. Canadiens Gothic – 48×36 inches – acrylic painting on canvas – Brandy Saturley

available paintings montreal canadiens

4. Saint Kanata – 48×36 inches – acrylic painting on canvas – Brandy Saturley

montreal canadiens in art

5. The Goalie’s Mask Painting – 48×36 inches – acrylic painting on canvas – Brandy Saturley

famous Canadian painting by Brandy Saturley

6. Plante Rises – 36×60 inches – acrylic painting on canvas – Brandy Saturley

 

A decade ago I read a book called, ‘The Game’ by Ken Dryden, the rest is history. Six available paintings, celebrating the influence of the Montreal Canadiens in Canadian Art. From the blue, white and red to the punch line, and the goal tenders perspective to the fans. From Jacques Plante to the Target Mask, celebrating the Habs in Art.

See more paintings by Brandy Saturley.

Canadian Pop Art style paintings, visual stories on canvas.

Mountain Paintings With People

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Paintings of mountains: beyond the Group of Seven

I remember the first time I saw a painting of a mountain, I was about four and it was hanging on our wall. It was a painting by my grandmother, a minimalist palette of blues to grey and white. Heavy oils and palette knife scratches. Then a decade later I had my first experience with paintings of mountains by Group of Seven founder, Lawren Harris, these were much softer looking mountains, they had a modern feel.

Mountain paintings with people

Even though I could appreciate these Canadian landscapes, I had not yet fallen in love with the mountains. Perhaps growing up on an island, where beaches, ocean, and rainforests were my backyard, I never really thought about mountains much.

I recall my first time putting on skis and taking a bus to visit the only ski area on our island, Mount Washington was further North than my hometown of Victoria. Still not a mountain lover, those slopes had my attention as I was first learning to ski down hills.

Even family trips through the mountains from BC to Alberta were lost on me, maybe it was the fighting with my sister, and the weird things my Dad would do and say, not unlike the National Lampoon Vacation films.

It really wasn’t until about 2010 that I really fell for the mountains. Driving from BC to Alberta to deliver paintings to a gallery in Canmore. In winter, these mountains take on a whole new persona, draped in glistening blankets of shiny ice and snow, with the odd bit of rock peaking its way through, these mountains now became animalistic. These mountains were watching me, as I was staring into their folds of shadow and light. It’s as if these mountains were people, and I wanted to paint their portraits. So, I began to paint the character of the mountains and I began to add humans, sometimes staring, and often having silent conversations with these behemoths of the landscape.

Fast forward to my most recent painting, again I have positioned people in the landscape, with the mountain looking on, because sometimes we see mountains and sometimes they see us.

This is ‘The Kiss’ (love in the Rockies)

Mountain paintings

Art in Whistler Canada

The Art of Brandy Saturley, now in Whistler.

Brandy Saturley is an internationally exhibited and collected contemporary painter, based in Victoria, Canada. Showing in public and private galleries, and in combination with unique corporate events; the Artist has carved out a niche with her distinctive brand of ‘Canadian Pop Art’. Now, you can also see The Art of Brandy Saturley at Adele Campbell Fine Art, in Whistler, BC, Canada. You can even view, virtually install, and purchase Saturley’s paintings through the gallery website.

adele campbell fine art

Art in the world-renowned resort town of Whistler Blackcomb, one of the largest ski resorts in North America, and a hub town for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. I believe in ‘gut’ feelings, and serendipitous moments. I am excited to join the vibrant Artist roster at Adele Campbell Fine Art, and see where this new opportunity will take my work.”

The gallery is located in the beautiful Westin Resort & Spa, in Whistler village. Established in 1993, Adele Campbell Fine Art is dedicated to showcasing the best of contemporary Canadian art. Owner and Director Elizabeth Harris, and her team of experienced advisors, curates and manages a diverse collection of established and emerging Canadian artists; a comprehensive collection showcasing uniquely Canadian art.

View paintings by Brandy Saturley at Adele Campbell Fine Art Gallery.

adele campbell fine art

The Whistler Art Gallery is a supporter of the Audain Art Museum and the upcoming Illuminate Gala & Auction fundraiser. Established in 2016, the Audain Art Museum is a leading arts organization founded upon the major philanthropic gift of Michael Audain and Yoshiko Karasawa. Located in Whistler, British Columbia and designed by the internationally-renowned firm Patkau Architects, the AAM boasts a comprehensive Permanent Collection of the province’s most celebrated artists.

Spring Paintings

Paintings Celebrating the Emotion, Energy and Colours of Spring.

Winters on the west coast of Canada are typically grey; interspersed with rain showers, dramatic ocean skies, filtered light and the random snowfall lasting for very short periods. As a painter, every season inspires, but no season inspires quite like Spring. For me it is the season of re-birth, blossoms and birds. It is a time when the light lasts longer and the damp cold rotates with summer-like moments of warmth. Spring in my studio means an open door and light filtering in through side windows, and sometimes a bird flies in, and draws my attention away from painting, jus for a moment. Like Snow White, the animals are drawn to the open studio door. From squirrels to deer and birds to curious European wall lizards (yes those are a thing here) Spring surrounds me and it’s hard not to oblige. This is when Spring finds it’s way into my paintings.

“In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” ― Margaret Atwood 

In the spring, at the end of the day I smell like paint, and then dirt. Putting my hands in the earth, it is grounding, it brings me back to reality as I discharge from the studio.

Over the years these seasonal changes have injected themselves into my work, how could they not? For this Spring of 2021, looking back at some of my favourite paintings I have created over the years, that were influenced of all the nature that surrounds. Ten paintings that celebrate Spring;

  1. Sustenance, 2017

spring paintings brandy saturley

2. Yin Rising, 2018

spring paintings Brandy Saturley

3. Dandi, 2018

canadian paintings Brandy Saturley

4. Charity, 2017

spring paintings Brandy Saturley

5. Poppies for Louise, 2011

spring paintings Brandy Saturley

6. Ukrainian Idol, 2011

painting by Brandy Saturley

7. Canadian Subconscious, 2015

canadian paintings brandy saturley

8. Kissed, 2013

canadian artist brandy saturley

9. Dreaming in The Colours of Eh, 2014

spring paintings Brandy Saturley

10. Empressed, 2016

canadian paintings brandy saturley

Love these colourful paintings? See more now.

Sincerely Yours,

Brandy Saturley

Art Benefits

Art Benefits: spring home issue YAM Magazine

The March/April issue of YAM Magazine includes a feature about the benefits of art, and how a well chosen original piece of Art enriches your home. The selected artworks come from a number of Vancouver Island and local Victoria fine artists; painters, sculptors, wood and glass artists. I’m delighted to say the feature includes one of my landscape paintings, created in Summer 2020. A painting of the road to Red Rocks in Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta. In the feature I talk about my distinct style of Canadian Pop Art painting, what art adds to a home and how I feel about seeing my work on the wall of a collectors beautiful home. You can read more including what I think about matching art to the couch, online here.

If you are in the greater Victoria area, you can pick up a copy of the current issue at the following locations.

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See more detailed images of the featured painting, ‘A Long and Winding Road’ here.

art benefits

YAM Magazine – full interview with Victoria, BC based artist Brandy Saturley

What mediums do you work in and how do you describe your work?

My primary medium is Acrylic paint on canvas. I prefer large format; most of my work is 4×3 feet in size. My practice includes photography for reference. In between paintings I enjoy exploring outside, with my Nikon camera in tow. Photography offers the opportunity to get out and experience life from a new perspective and new vantage points, fueling future creativity back home in my studio.

I paint Canadian Pop Art style paintings. My palette is vivid, stylized and contains elements of realism set against abstract backgrounds. I coined the term ‘Pop Canadianisms’ which refers to my series of paintings which comment on Canadian popular culture and the landscape.

Signature subjects include:
Canadiana, Landscapes, Hockey, & Portraits

What do you think art adds to a home? Is there anything specific that paintings bring in this regard?

As an artist I live with a lot of Art! In simple terms, Art adds beauty, pause, décor, style, energy, and value. Art is an investment in good health, culture, and your home. A few years ago, I sold several paintings to a collector in Cordova Bay who had just finished building their dream home. When it came time to sell their home, they kept the art in place for real estate tours, and most clients wanted to buy the art with the house. The collector declined selling the art with the home, taking it with them to their new home in Edmonton.

For me, the most important thing art adds is an inception point for future conversations. A well-crafted piece of art offers a starting point for conversation, a reflection of one’s tastes, and escape. Original art on your wall offers a vacation from reality and the stresses of the day. Art offers a moment of meditation, a place where your mind can wander and rejuvenate. When you cannot get outside, or take that vacation, Art provides a place for your mind to escape. 

How do you feel when you see a piece of your art displayed in someone else’s home?

Grateful! A piece of my art in someone else’s home means SOLD. It means my art and my voice will live on and be passed down through generations of family. It means a collector connected to something in the work, enough to want to display it in their beautiful home or business.

Do you have a favourite space in a home to be displayed?

My work is made for a large wall, a feature wall, a place where people gather or enter. My work is for collectors who change the couch to go with the art, and not the Art that goes with the couch.

Feature wall at a front entrance, dining room wall, a room where you entertain. My work features well in eclectic and custom spaces, my vivid palettes work well with a range of interior decors and styles. People buy my work because they love it.

Do you ever do commissions? Yes, when I have time in my schedule. Most recently I created a custom piece for a client in Oak Bay.

Where can people find your art to buy? I am a full-time self-representing artist You can begin with viewing the artwork on my website: https://www.brandysaturley.com/

My work is also available with Adele Campbell Fine Art in Whistler, Canada.

Ice Skating Paintings

Exhilarating ice skating paintings exude feelings of freedom and joy!

Continuing on with a year exploring outdoor sports and pastimes of winter, these active paintings celebrate ice skating on glacial lakes. Beginning in January this year, the celebration kicked off with two new paintings exploring the playful discovery of hockey outdoors. These pond hockey paintings created in the first month of 2021, feature glacial hues and the joy of play, bursting with colour and enthusiasm. Moving through this new body of work, my attention turned to figure skates and the romance, energy, and grace of figure skaters on outdoor ice.

Even though I am tucked away in a basement studio with augmented lighting, I was able to escape to the outdoor skating rinks provided by glacial lakes of the Canadian Rockies, and Lake Louise in particular. It is a place I have visited a few times, both in Winter and Summer, and it continues to command my attention. Perhaps some of the reasons we are continually drawn to this beautiful location, from places all over the globe, are the beautiful color palette, the crisp mountain air, the sounds of nature and the lake. But could we also be drawn to this place for another reason? Recently I did some digging and discovered some very deep ideas about the energy found in this place. There is an energetic geometry found at Lake Louise, which to anyone with a camera, a brush, or a sense of symmetry, you will see immediately. Lake Louise is one of many ‘energy vortex’ locations on Earth which acts as a swirling center of energy, containing more earthly energy than most places. Many believe that energy vortexes exist at the intersections of ley lines or the random lines of natural energy that make up the Earth’s electromagnetic field.

Some other well known energy vortex locations on Earth include Stonehenge, Sedona Cathedral Rock, Haleakala Volcano, Great Pyramid of Giza, Mayan Ruins at Tulum and the Bermuda Triangle. Many vortexes continue to be reported to bring feelings of peace, harmony, balance, and tranquility; while others are believed to promote personal reflection, deep insight, and a clear mind. Others still act as powerful centers of physical or emotional rejuvenation. Some even say they may be the healthiest spots on Earth. It is no wonder that droves of tourists are attracted to Lake Louise annually.

Here are the third and fourth paintings of 2021; filled with scenery, energy, escape and joyful hues. Celebrating ice skating outdoors.

TWIRL: a figure skater twirls and jumps as her blades sketch stories into the glacial lake ice. Aerial views offering a unique abstract perspective.

ice skating paintings

VORTEX: twin skaters with long auburn hair and a lone hockey puck. Dreamy in Canada.

ice skating paintings

These paintings celebrating outdoor ice skating are alive with vivid colours of teal, lime, violet, red and orange against a range of blues. With the palette of each my goal was to capture the electricity and energy of skating outdoors in Winter and specifically the energy found at Lake Louise. To create my signature smoothness and texture, I utilized a myriad of painting techniques I have developed over the last twenty years as an artist. These pieces were created using my handmade Rosemary paintbrushes from England, my gloved hands blending with fingers on canvas, as well as random household bristle brushes to produce the snow and ice effects.

brandy saturley studio

All over the planet humans know how to celebrate long Winters, through making the outdoors our indoors. I hope these paintings transport you to these locations, much like they did during my process of painting them on canvas. These paintings are for sale; add them to your art collection today.

Sincerely Yours,

Brandy Saturley (a.k.a #iconiccanuck )