acrylic painting | Maxine Wolodko Artwork

Jan 17

Low Tide

Low Tide 8" x 8"

I recently did a painting similar to this one at a smaller size (see it here). That painting was posted on Etsy, which gave rise to a message from a new client with a request to do a customized painting, as a gift for her mother.

The image reminded my client, Carrie, of the landscape where she grew up. She asked me if I would consider adding a hawk to the image, and explained the meaning behind it:

my grandma died when my mom was 5 or so. Whenever she sees a hawk, she feels like it is her mom keeping an eye on her and letting her know everything is o.k. Consequently, I now think of my mom when I see a hawk.

Knowing that this painting had a personal meaning to someone else made it extra special to work on. I hope Carrie and her mom enjoy this painting as much I enjoyed working on it.

Jan 14

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Grainery and a Chicken

Here are a couple more small paintings – 3” x 3”.

I gave away lots of little paintings for Christmas and I can’t seem to stop doing them. They do make perfect gifts!

Find them here.

Dec 8

Cat Nap

Cat Nap 3" x 3"

As I painted this little cat, I kept thinking that I need to put more animals into my artwork. When I was younger, I drew only animals – cats and horses were my favourites. Below you’ll see a glimpse into my sketchbook from 1998. That seems like such a long time ago, yet I can still remember working on these drawings. Somehow my passion for filling up sketchbooks with animals has evolved into my obsession with capturing beautiful little scenes around me. If, in 13 years, I look back on the artwork I did today, I wonder what I will think. I wonder where it will take me?

Nov 24

Painting Twins and Multiples

When I work on tiny paintings, I often do 2 or 3 at the same time. I have found that there is a large time investment for one, but to do an additional one or two does not add that much time to the process. For instance, if 1 tiny painting takes 2 hours to complete, I can probably finish a set of 3 in 2.5 to 3 hours. Of course, each painting does not come out the same. They share the same general colours and composition, but I try not to be too picky about making all the details match. Each one is truly an original. Can you spot the differences?

Low Tide - two 3" x 3" acrylic paintings

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Nov 21

Two Tiny Paintings

Snowed In - 3" x 3"

Walk in the Park - 3" x 3"

With all this cold rainy weather there’s not much to do but stay in and paint. Fine by me. These two tiny paintings are for sale on my Etsy page.

Nov 11

New Little Paintings and Anonymous Art

I will soon be delivering these tiny paintings to Oh Brothers. They are 3” x 3”. I love working on these little canvases and hope to finish a bunch more before Christmas (might be perfect for that hard-to-buy-for person on your list…).

In other news, I just finished another painting, but I can’t post it here yet. I have submitted it to the Anonymous Show put on by the North Vancouver Arts Council. The show will consist of over 600 unsigned 8” x 8” paintings, all priced at $100. The sale and opening is on Nov. 24, 7-9:30pm. All the info is here.

Oct 6

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Icy Alberta Spring

The Icy Spring 11"x14"

I photographed this Alberta landscape a couple of years ago on a cold, sunny spring day. The colour of these red graineries seems to hold the promise of warmer days. I love the way the red siding contrasts with the crisp, dry field and the icy pond.

It seems that I have mainly used the three primary colours here. I could pretend that it was deliberate, but I only realized it as I was finishing up.

Sep 27

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Both sides of the Road

East Side of the Road & West Side of the Road, 4" x 6"

These are two paintings of the same road on Westham Island, near Delta, BC. One is a view of east side and the other is the west. They are little (4″ x 6″) and I finished both in one day. My goal was that each one would work on it’s own, or they could be displayed together – as sort of a diptych. I love to paint old buildings, power poles and power lines, so I had a lot of fun with these paintings.

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Sep 13

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Knowing When to Stop

Retired in Nova Scotia 18" x "24

Sometimes I have trouble knowing when a painting is finished. When the painting is nearing completion, I have this need to tinker – brightening here, darkening there, adding more detail, fine-tuning the colour, and on and on it goes. The trick is knowing when to stop, before the painting becomes overworked. So, I am taking a break from this one. I think it might be done, but I’m not sure. I have to look at it for a while.

By the way, I’ve painted this boat before (several years ago). You can see the first version on my home page or here.

Aug 2

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