Naming Paintings

“The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.” Aristotle”

In my last post I started writing about the struggle I have naming paintings and then I accidentally deleted it after uploading photos and having it nearly completed. So instead I wrote a quick little post about one of my latest paintings asking all of you out there if you could name where the painting is inspired by.

The response was amazing and thank you so much! Comments varied from the many different regions in British Columbia from the Okanagan to the Gulf Islands and up the West Coast. This is just beautiful for me and I'll tell you why.

I used to really struggle with naming paintings. I used to name them according to where they were inspired from, I thought this would create an instant connection with people and sometimes I still do but overall I've changed the way I've named my paintings. Instead of pinpointing the exact location I call them something that is reminiscent of the area. My dream is to create these paintings that people can connect to and I started to feel that if they are named to the exact place then I might LOOSE people's connections. So I conducted a little experiment. I created this painting below which was inspired by the view from Tower Ranch Golf Course in Kelowna.

Instead of calling it 'View From Tower Ranch' I called it 'April' as that was the month that it was painted in and with the green hills and burst of sun coming through the clouds I though it felt very spring-like. I posted it on my website and within two days it was sold and the person who bought it told me it reminded him of a hike he takes on the Sunshine Coast.

This has changed the way I paint, or that I think about painting. I always try and capture the simple beauty in our landscapes but I also try and capture that feeling of exploring British Columbia. Of driving through our amazing towering mountains, seeing that river/lake valley and taking in the beautiful Pacific Ocean. Those moments where the sun finally comes out, or when you hiked that incredible viewpoint. These are the feelings I try and capture in my paintings. As cheesy as it sounds, I really just try and celebrate British Columbia. So what did I name the first painting above? 'Hazy Summer Days'. What do you think?

These are a few paintings that aren't of anywhere specifically but inspired from our adventures exploring this beautiful province.