Original Painting
![dog_-_done_at_age_8-web_0 Dog painting](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/dog_-_done_at_age_8-web_0.jpg)
![cat_-_done_at_age_8-web_0 Cat painting](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/cat_-_done_at_age_8-web_0.jpg)
![princess_elizabeth-1](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/princess_elizabeth-1.jpg)
One day when I was six-years-old, I was intrigued by a photo of (then) Princess Elizabeth as a little girl. I sat down at the kitchen table with a pencil and a piece of paper and discovered a part of myself I had not before known. It was so much fun making something look like something else. When my dad arrived home that night, I remember my mother showing him, in quiet tones, what I had done.
I guess that was why, at the age of eight, I found myself in the home of a local artist enjoying the accomplishment of painting my first cat and dog. I loved the smell of linseed oil and the mellow tones of the oils.I loved the way I could take a smudge of thick paint and blend it into dusky shadows and three-dimensional highlights. I could hardly wait for Tuesday afternoons, by which time the previous week’s oil paint would be dry and I could continue my ‘masterpieces.’ The lessons continued for only one season, as we moved and life went in a different direction. Nevertheless, when I got older and out on my own, the seeds that had been planted continued to germinate and, from time to time, I would get my paints out. On my 60th Christmas, my sister gave me a set of acrylic paints for Christmas. I began to paint on Saturdays and discovered the joy of not having to wait for paint to dry. I could paint all day, if life permitted. Portraits began to happen and, once again, the challenge of making something look like something else, captivated me.
If you’re looking for a custom painting – if you want something to look like something else, whether portrait or landscape, please feel free to give me a call. My rates start at $700 and vary with the degree of difficulty.
Most of the paintings below are accompanied by the original photos from which I worked.
![the_hands_of_jesus Hands painting](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/the_hands_of_jesus.jpg)
![img_0228 Flower bouquet painting one](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/img_0228.jpg)
![blue_flowers Flower bouquet painting two](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/blue_flowers.jpg)
Photo to Portrait or Painting
![Man portrait](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/josiah_small-768x1024-1.jpg)
![Man with tie painting](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/josiah_small.jpg)
![Girl portrait](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/bethany_small-768x1024-1.jpg)
![Woman painting two](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/bethany_small.jpg)
![man with facial tattoos portrait](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/539361_10151482200335153_208056562_n-1.jpg)
![Man with facial tattoos painting](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/michael_bull_roberts_painting-_walmart.jpg)
![Blonde woman photo](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/304687_10150289209610108_941480625_n.jpg)
![Blonde woman painting](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/mariah_digital2.jpg)
![Man with plaid bucket hat photo](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/lin_photo.jpg)
![Old man with plaid bucket hat painting](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/lin_-_tribute.jpg)
![Windmill ice skating photo](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/windmill_-_4_girls.jpg)
![Windmill ice skating painting](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/1069192_10153053561890078_104348681_n.jpg)
![Windmill photo two](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/windmill_2.jpg)
![Windmill painting](https://www.bydesignmedia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/thumb_dutch_windmills_-_1024.jpg)