MORE OF "THE APPLE" IN PROGRESS (DETAIL)

The man's face is now just taking form. (He still has 6 fingers. I cut it down from 7, but I won't show them yet.)

There will be much more to come...

This is a large work, 4 feet X 3 feet. I'm used to working a much smaller format, but I enjoy using a large brush (for some things) and being more liberal with the application of paint.

VIEW FROM LAKESHORE: STEPHEN CARON, 1993

VIEW FROM LAKESHORE: STEPHEN CARON, 1993

Oil on Canvas, 10" X 12"

This is another plein-air painting which I completed 'on the spot' on the West Island of Montreal some 15 years ago. On this occasion, I painted alone... 'sans' my friend, J-P. I remember a fine, sunny afternoon; people basking in the sun, sailboats on the distant water and everything being just as it should be during our Montreal summer.

THIS PAINTING IS SOLD.

A WORK IN PROGRESS (DETAIL): "THE APPLE"

A WORK IN PROGRESS (DETAIL): "THE APPLE"

This is a large commissioned painting, 4' X 3', which will hang on a very high wall. It depicts an elderly couple on a balcony. The woman drops an apple over the railing toward the viewers below.

The subject matter intrigues me. I imagined it while considering that the painting will hang far above the viewer. I was inspired by one of the Italian Baroque masters who adorned the lofty interior dome of a church with a very charming 'trompe l'oeil' effect... cherubs who peer down from their ledges while firing arrows and dropping apples onto the visitors below.

I've been working on this painting 'on and off' for several months. I am in the process of articulating many of the details and finalizing the color scheme. Then I will enter the 'home stretch', with completion in sight...

STE. ANNE DE BELLEVUE: STEPHEN CARON: 1993

STE. ANNE DE BELLEVUE: STEPHEN CARON: 1993

Oil on Canvas, 9" X 11"

This is another work which was completed on site several years ago, during one of many excursions with my friend, Jean-Paul. (He is mentioned during an earlier post.)

It depicts a scene at the locks in Ste. Anne de Bellevue, a lively community on the western tip of the island of Montreal

We began painting in mid morning, when people were slow and sparse. Around noon a few onlookers developed into a thick flock, full of questions and comments. J-P quit his painting and began holding court with several of the more attractive members of our entourage. It was always pleasant. I remember finishing the painting later the same day once I had arrived downtown and closed my door upon the outer world.

This small work is spontaneous. It caricatures people within the afternoon setting.

It has a certain charm, I believe...

The work is for sale: $395

VILLAGE SCENE: A. BANNET; date unknown

VILLAGE SCENE: A. BANNET; date unknown

Oil on Canvas, 15" X 23

This painting has been in my possession for the past 25 years. I have not been able to determine the artist's origins. I believe he was British, given the style of the work and the subject matter. It reeks of English countryside... The date is also unknown to me, though I believe it to have originated during the 1920's or 30's (an educated guess).

The painting is exquisite. Attention to detail, the rich colors and the successful capture of LIGHT are captivating.

Current framing is inadequate, given the quality of the painting.

The work is for sale: $2,400

WELCOME TO MY ART...

WELCOME TO MY GALLERY AND THOUGHTS FOR ART LOVERS.

My interests revolve primarily around the arts. Recently retired from an unrelated field, I can now devote myself to my first love... PAINTING. I possess a diploma in APPLIED ART and earned a university degree in FINE ART and ART HISTORY (Montreal).

I have painted all my life since the age of 5 when my mother purchased my first set of oil paints. I studied classical piano from an early age but, suffering from EXTREME bouts of stage-fright as I grew older, I developed an acceptance of the fact that my talent is best 'performed' with paint... so that the results can be displayed without stress to potential 'victims'... as a completed canvas upon the wall.

During my university years I held dear many of the 'old masters', with artists such as REMBRANDT, VERMEER, INGRES, GERICAULT and DELACROIX holding me fast within their grip.

During my later years I developed a devotion to the IMPRESSIONISTS. Like most artists after the late 19th century I understood that with the development of photography, painters needed to re-establish their goals BEYOND the representation of outward appearances, a pursuit in which the new medium of photography rendered the reproduction of our 'outer' world obsolete!

Like the IMPRESSIONISTS, I believe that the painter's task is to portray that which is INVISIBLE and INTANGIBLE... the SPIRITUAL qualities of LIGHT and ATMOSPHERE, things which cannot be touched or photographed, the sense of BEING in a specific place at a specific time in conditions which are specific to THE MOMENT... the IMPRESSION of being ALIVE within a certain space and time.

I welcome all comments regarding my work and the other painters who are displayed. Please feel free to email me for more information.

Thank you for visiting.

STEPHEN CARON

BROSSARD BICYCLE PATH: STEPHEN CARON, 2008

BROSSARD BICYCLE PATH: STEPHEN CARON, 2008

Oil on canvas, 10" X 12"

This is the result of a morning walk along the 'bicycle path' in August, 2008.

I recently moved to the south shore of Montreal.

Morning light in Brossard is no less spectacular than anywhere else.

The work is for sale: $390

SOME THOUGHTS ON 'LINE'...

There is no 'LINE'

'LINE' is a man-made concept.

'LINES' do not exist.

There are only borders where LIGHT distinguishes one object from another, and while these are called 'lines', the concept is purely hypothetical.

A 'STRAIGHT LINE' does not exist, except under man-made circumstances.

"I, STEPHEN CARON, cannot draw a straight line..."

STEPHEN CARON, NOVEMBER, 2008

TERREBONNE: STEPHEN CARON, 1993

TERREBONNE: STEPHEN CARON, 1993.

Oil on Canvas: 16" X 20"

This is a 'Plein-air' painting created in 1993 during one of my afternoon excursions with a painter friend, Jean-Paul. Once in Terrebonne, I remember setting up our easels and beginning to dabble our paint; drinking wine as we told each other ridiculous stories...

Loud passers-by were oblivious to the fact that J-P and I were not the real focus of attention... THEY were!

Jean-Paul painted faster than I did, and once he believed he had finished his painting, he was more than content to sit back and comment to me regarding the dress and demeanor of each of our 'fans'.

This work is EXTREMELY spontaneous. There are broad 'W's' and zigzags poked at the canvas, sweeping downstrokes and horizontal wipes; and colors that don't make any real sense in terms of our true environment.

I believe the painting has merit; It's my recollection of an afternoon in Terrebonne with J-P.

The work is for sale. $750

ST. LAMBERT: STEPHEN CARON, 2008

ST. LAMBERT: STEPHEN CARON, 2008.

Oil on Canvas, 16" X 20"

St. Lambert on the south shore facing Montreal is an urbane, thriving and picturesque community. In the center of town, there is a small park, which inspired this painting. The colors and brushstrokes are loose. I tried to capture (as always) a sense of immediacy, tranquility; the quality of morning light which easily escapes our hurried experiences.

The work is for sale: $425

AUTUMN LANDSCAPE: GORDON GEZA MARICH, date unknown.

AUTUMN LANDSCAPE: GORDON GEZA MARICH, date unknown.

Oil on Canvas, 20" X 23"

GORDON GEZA MARICH was born in Hungary in 1913. He studied art in BUDAPEST, emmigrating to Canada in 1957. It is generally acknowledged that his death occured in 1975, although some conflicting reports indicate that he died in 1985.

Widely collected, MARICH painted many different subjects, including depictions of downtown Montreal, Quebec. His paintings hang in the NATIONAL ART MUSEUM in BUDAPEST, in galleries in OTTAWA and TORONTO, and in private collections world-wide. His later works evolved toward abstraction, including the broad use of a palette knife.

The work is immaculate and well framed. It is more expressive, impressionistic than 'abstract'. I believe it was painted during the 1960's, and this is based upon testimony regarding purchase from the original owner. The colors are bold and harmonic, as is the application of paint. It is a superb work.

The work is for sale: $1,400

THOUGHTS ABOUT COLOR...

For the painter, colors are his notes. For the musician, notes are his colors.

There are thousands of colors... and a multitude of notes.

Any one of us might open a tube of red paint, mix it with white... then apply 'pink' to our chosen surface.

Any one of us can sit at the piano and depress the keys, several at once or in sequence, either loudly or softly.

But to achieve harmony, the experience of completion which we all seek, a master is required to organize his tools...

Beethoven painted his triumphant masterpieces with notes; while Rembrandt composed our glorious symphonies in color.

That is what we admire. That is what we seek.

Stephen Caron, November, 2008

ILE PERROT YACHT CLUB, EARLY MORNING: STEPHEN CARON, 2008

ILE PERROT YACHT CLUB, EARLY MORNING: STEPHEN CARON, 2008.

Oil on Canvas, 20" X 16"

This is a recent work, depicting 'early morning' at the 'Ile Perrot Yacht Club' on the western tip of the island of Montreal. My intent was that warm colors and subtle transitions should convey the light and tranquility of an early summer morning by the water, when sunlight causes our world to sparkle...

The work is for sale: $750

MONTREAL LANE SCENE: PAUL A. DE BAGOSSY, DATE UNKNOWN

MONTREAL LANE SCENE: PAUL A. DE BAGOSSY, DATE UNKNOWN, but probably recent.

Oil on Canvas, 20" X 24"

PAUL A. DE BAGOSSY is a well known artist who, born in Hungary in 1920, studied at the ACADEMY of FINE ARTS in Budapest. He arrived in Montreal in 1966 and is collected world-wide. He has painted a variety of subjects, but BAGOSSY is perhaps best loved for his Montreal street scenes, which he renders with enormous charm and expertise.

This work portrays 3 boys playing hockey in a laneway in the district around 'Rachel Street' in downtown Montreal. It is absolutely magnetic. The palette is warm and inviting, the brushwork masterful and cohesive.

The work is for sale (custom frame), $1,750

PARC LAFONTAINE: STEPHEN CARON, 1993

PARC LAFONTAINE: STEPHEN CARON, 1993

Oil on Canvas, 16" X 20"

This painting was completed 'on site' in downtown Montreal one sunny afternoon during the summer of 1993. Hence, the colors and brushstrokes are bold and spontaneous. I was situated on one of the park's paths, looking north toward Sherbrooke Street.

This work is very well framed: $800

TAVERN SCENE: STEPHEN CARON, 1971

TAVERN SCENE: STEPHEN CARON, 1971.

Oil on canvas

20" X 30"

This painting was completed during the winter of my second year at Dawson College (Montreal) in 1971. It was given as a gift to my parents. Years later it was returned to me when they began to travel extensively. I reframed it. I was heavily influenced by the 'Old Masters' during my first years in college and (then) university. I loved the play of light/dark and the intimacy portrayed in works by Rembrandt and others. While this earlier work is subdued in tone, I believe I set forth a richness of color; and the subject matter has drawn interest from many viewers over the years.

THIS PAINTING IS NOT FOR SALE.