The Farm by Hugh Cronyn

 

Anne Philpot

Oil Painter

Anne Philpot | Flickr

Painting by Bruno Cote

It was the year 2002.  I was walking through the Royal York Hotel in Toronto when I noticed in the art gallery there a collection of paintings by the Quebec artist,  Bruno Cote.  I was mesmerized,  but there was no hope of  purchasing one of his works, so I settled on buying the book.  I had recently inherited  a paint box from Hugh Cronyn,  artist and cousin,  so I had been thinking of dabbling in oil paints,  although art had never been a part of my life.  But looking through Bruno's book,  and staring at Hugh's paintbox,  I thought,  I can do this.  I had two good mentors.  It's just a matter of giving it a whirl.  It has been over a decade and the whirl continues.  It turns out that "oil painting"  is a small expression for a wide variety of styles and it takes years to blunder your way through them.  I'm still working on it,  but it has been, and always will be,   an eye-opening experience.  It's all about learning to see.