When life gives you lemons, draw them, 11 x 14 inches dry pastels, graphite on paper

"When life gives you lemons, draw them." (Nikki)

"Color! What a deep and mysterious language." (Paul Gauguin)

Smile

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Our Power, Our Planet

Friday, April 17th, 2026


Prairie Dogs, Drumheller, AB - 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper
Prairie Dogs, the Badlands Hoodoos near Drumheller, Alberta Canada. 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper, 27H x 33W” framed size – white mat and custom-built white wood frame with crackle finish. Showcased online at KBM Art Gallery, presenting “Our Power, Our Planet 2026” April 18th through May 29th.

The Canadian Badlands in Alberta and Saskatchewan are recognized for unusual mudstone and sandstone landscape formations, and also for having the largest deposits of dinosaur bones in the world. The geography in Horseshoe Canyon, Alberta is ancient, unique and incredible, and the prairie dogs – locals call them “gophers” – are an impactful part of prairie ecology, having extensive influence on vegetation and animal life. They live in colonies of up to several thousand, burrowing in networks of tunnels where other ground-dwelling creatures move in, various grass species are maintained, and rainwater is reserved and redirected.
They are cute to be sure, sitting up on their haunches chirping at one another, but they can be a nuisance to farmers whose horses and cattle can trip in the holes. Pest control programs during the 1900’s meant their numbers have declined, which congruently reduced acres of grasslands they helped sustain. As their own highways became populated with humans and cars, particularly during Springtime they are a road hazard.

In Torrington, Alberta, one lady has found a creative way to utilize the unfortunate casualties. You must visit The World-Famous Gopher Hole Museum located in the middle of nowhere, in a small hamlet where there is not even a gas station, along a seemingly endless dusty gravel road about an hour Northwest of Drumheller. Gophers are stuffed, sporting handmade costumes and placed in small cubicles displaying historic scenes. Completely bizarre, but actually very well done and absolutely worth the conversation-provoking side-trip if you are planning to visit Drumheller and the Tyrell Dinosaur Museum.

Monte

Monday, February 23rd, 2026


 

Monte in How's The Weather animated video, by Adrian Coulombe, featuring Paul CoulombeMy oldest son created a fun new children’s video featuring our grandson Paul’s voice, called How’s the Weather? (watch Monte Studios link) If I could choose a voice for Monte, it would be this one! 5-year-old Paul’s Mandarin accent gives Monte such personality. Apparently when they were dubbing the audio for the final scene, Paul was very concerned that, “Baba (daddy), the ice cream is melting!”, so Adrian left that part in without translation. Very cute!

Who is Monte?

 

Humorous 2025

Friday, May 23rd, 2025


 

Sleepy Kitty, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper
Certificate for Humorous 2025 ExhibitionSleepy Kitty, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper, framed size 27H x 33W” (2021), white mat and white wood frame with crackle finish. Showing in Exhibizone’s “Humorous 2025” May 24 – July 24, 2025.

 

Exhibizone: Humorous 2024

Friday, May 10th, 2024


 

Peace On Earth, Pen and Ink drawing, 1999. Limited edition prints available.

Peace On Earth amidst the changes, Pen and Ink drawing, 1999. Limited edition prints available. Showcased in Exhibizone’s “Humorous 2024” online exhibition May 10 – July 10th.

Cam’s crab shell

Tuesday, February 6th, 2024


 

Cam's Crab Shell, taped then painted with acrylics

Who sees a crab shell on the beach and thinks, “I wanna paint that thing!”? … my 12-year-old grandson. We took him to see the Pacific Ocean for the first time when he visited us during Thanksgiving last year. He also gathered a lot of shells to create a video of smashing. When I go to the beach, my imagination only ventures as far as how pretty it would be as a pastels-on-paper seascape, but true creativity knows no bounds. I love it!

The Strawberry

Saturday, June 10th, 2023


 

The Strawberry, 24H x 18W inches graphite on paper

The Strawberry, 24H x 18W inches graphite on paper.

Tobias – Jia Xin

Thursday, April 6th, 2023


 

Tobias - Jia Xin, born March 9th, 2023 - 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper
Sweet Dreams,  18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper.

First Time in the Garden

Thursday, February 9th, 2023


 

First Time in the Garden, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper
First Time in the Garden, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper. The images below are three phases of the work in progress. I liked the garden details but chose to blur some of them at the edges in order to keep the emphasis on the chick.

  First Time in the Garden, Phase 01 in progress   First Time in the Garden, Phase 02 in progress   First Time in the Garden, Phase 03 in progress

A Pretty Tail

Sunday, September 18th, 2022


 

A Pretty Tail, 16H x 23W inches soft pastels on paper
A Pretty Tail, 16H x 23W inches soft pastels on paper, 22H x 29W inches framed size.

Soccer Mom

Sunday, May 8th, 2022


 

Soccer Mom, 12 x 18 graphite and digital
Soccer Mom, 16 x 20 graphite and digital

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