LOUISA LEES NEWMAN: 1898-1965

LOUISA LEES was born in SHROPSHIRE, England in 1898. She emigrated to Canada prior to the Second World War. Here, she met her (also British) husband-to-be, ALFRED CECIL NEWMAN.

LOUISA taught music in England. A HEINTZMAN upright piano stood prominently in her Montreal home. It produced delicate, crystal tones.

She loved the arts. LOUISA wrote poetry and spoke in exultant terms about painters who were able to capture the essence of beautiful things.

LOUISA and ALFRED produced three children.

The middle child was named CLARICE who, as a young woman, gave birth to a boy in 1952.

As the boy developed, LOUISA and CLARICE conspired to explore his artistic talent.

At a young age, he was provided with lessons in music (piano). LOUISA and CLARICE attended childhood recitals. CLARICE brought him to the McGill Conservatory to complete his childhood pianistic examinations, and LOUISA seized every opportunity to foster the boy's enthusiasm whenever he went near her HEINTZMAN.

When the boy was eight years old ALFRED, LOUISA's husband, purchased a gift for her; a set of oil paints.

The boy had already begun to paint, thanks to the foresight of his mother.

LOUISA and her grandson began painting together during the summer months. Daily, the boy would race his bicycle across many laneways with paints tackled to the frame of his bike in order to reach LOUISA and to 'help' her learn to paint.

More often than not, LOUISA prepared 'salmon sandwiches' for lunch. The boy always looked forward to seeing her more than he wished to be with friends of his own age.

LOUISA and her grandson spent countless hours together; painting, playing the piano and worshipping each other.

She gave to the boy all of the talents which he holds today.

LOUISA LEES NEWMAN died in 1965.

She was my grandmother.

I remember her with enormous affection.

STEPHEN CARON, February, 2010

YOUR HUMBLE PAINTER...

I am the 'Star' of my own show...

The face you see is neither a prince nor a pauper.

It is the face of a man who, to the best of his ability, strives to produce something of value as dusk approaches his horizon.

I play poker, as this particular 'uniform' suggests. I like to calculate 'odds' and then make decisions. I am a 'retired' BLACKJACK player. I used to count cards. This endeavour in Montreal was soon "nipped in the bud" as the Casino planted it's yellow card in the shoe... about 2 decks closer to middle.

I love to cook.

NASCAR auto racing intrigues me. I enjoy the speed and precision involved in this sport.

Tennis excites me. I appreciate individual sports, where one man or woman has talent and is brave enough to go 'all-out' before a world-wide audience.

I LOVE the arts. Classical music inspires me; BACH, BEETHOVEN, LISZT and so many other great composers. Great music stimulates a spiritual core that lingers above the tip of my spine. CHOPIN! Have I mentioned FREDERIC?

As I grow older, I find that simple things give me enormous pleasure. I might be standing in line at the 'check-out' counter... and when a sweet face smiles in my direction, I feel thankful.

I am somewhat of a philosopher. I have few answers and MANY questions. I somehow refuse to believe that my life is meaningless, yet (at the same time) I ponder in awe the extent and depth of the universe.

I recognize that my life is a grain of sand upon a VERY large beach.

When all of these things are packed into a box and sent to the attic, one thing remains; one thing that I hope will define my petty existance upon this planet. I hope to leave a thin trace of my presence after I have taken flight.

I PAINT!

I revel in a small world where there is a brush in my hand, some color upon my palette; and when a white field begs to be filled.

THANK-YOU for viewing my art.

STEPHEN CARON

December, 2009

caron.stephen@videotron.ca

HOMAGE TO FREDERIC...

When I was younger, FREDERIC CHOPIN was my god. He is still my favorite composer. I played (poorly) many of his piano works. Today as I paint, his Ballades, Scherzos, Nocturnes and Waltzes are loud and crisp in my background.

The most fabulous composer of the ROMANTIC era, Monsieur FREDERIC embodies the passion of our combined spiritual quest; the wistful, nostalgic yearnings of our innermost thoughts.

CHOPIN mesmerized his audiences.

Described by the harshest critics of his time as being pallid, frail and of having a "sick-room talent"; and while Polish-born FREDERIC performed in the most intimate interiors of elite Paris Salons during the formative years of the nineteenth century, his passages reek of the SPIRITUAL tremors in our dreams and of the magnificent glory of nature itself.

CHOPIN opened one of history's doors.

IMPRESSIONIST painters walked through it and took their seats.

Born in Warsaw in 1810, our master poet of the keyboard died in Paris in 1849. We can only wonder at the superb body of work we have been denied by his untimely death.

WE STRUT A FEW MOMENTS...

We strut across this planet for a short while...

and we leave a mark.

We offer our impressions because we believe that we have something to share.

I walk and I paint in our present time.

A few colors cast upon canvas shall endure beyond my counted days.

My gift is what I see and feel...

as I strut a few short steps upon this earth.

(Thank you for a borrowed word, Mr. Shakespeare.)

STEPHEN CARON, September, 2009

VIEWERS OF MY ART...

Dear readers;

I've been told that, in person, I appear somewhat menacing, rather inapproachable...

I assure you that I am built of only the softest, most pliable materials.

I've walked proud and confident at times, and I've sat cross-legged in wonder on other occasions. My bundle of flesh and bones has rested upon our planet for 57 years..

I am resilient, but I wonder if others enjoy my work, if they have questions or suggestions.

I paint to please myself; but of more importance, I paint to please others.

It's important to me that I understand what you think!

Please leave comments or questions concerning any of the paintings featured. (Under each post, there is a small space marked '0 comments'. You need only click on this, then enter your question or comment.)

I can be contacted by email at caron.stephen@videotron.ca

THANK YOU for your interest!

And now I'm off to sign the SALLY'S POND painting, to frame it; and then to begin another artistic voyage!

Your humble Painter,

STEPHEN CARON

THE TOOLS OF MY TRADE...

Whether or not my work pleases you, I wish to assure potential patrons that I use only the FINEST quality materials in all of my paintings...

Starting with the ground, all of my works are presented in oils upon stretched canvas unless otherwise specified. I either stretch the canvas myself or purchase highest quality (acid free) pre-stretched material.

As for my brushes, I spend a small fortune... although these are of less importance to you the viewer. (Paint could be applied with a wooden spatula and, in the hands of a master, the result would be spectacular.)

I use FAT OVER LEAN techinique. The underpainting is completed using a thinner mixture than the finishing (external) layers. Oil paint is flexible. Imagine applying a thin layer of paint over an elastic band and then stretching the elastic band! The paint would CRACK, I believe! Any artist who does not understand this principle cannot create works that will ENDURE...

My paints are of the HIGHEST QUALITY. I favor the REMBRANDT series, manufactured by TALENS; although I also use oils created by HOLBEIN and a few other manufacturers. All are EXTRA FINE in quality.

Finally, a painting must be protected in order to endure. Although oil paintings may be "dry to the touch" after several days, a work must be allowed to dry thoroughly for at least six months before a protective veneer can be applied. All of my works are varnished according to this principle, which assures stability and LONGEVITY. My paintings will greatly outlast the life expectancy of your humble painter!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATRONAGE AND FOR YOUR INTEREST IN MY ART!

Stephen Caron, August, 2009

THE 'PATH' IN MY PAINTINGS...

The PATH in my landscapes reminds us of our journey.

It is a road, a sidewalk, a bicycle path...

We stand along the way.

We advance toward a distant point, where all things vanish.

I paint the things along our journey; quiet things, things which live and breathe...

as we approach the horizon.

STEPHEN CARON: APRIL, 2009

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

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