The Painted Narrative

Take To The Water With Gallery 133 In Toronto’s Design District

Buoyancy, oil on canvas, 36x60

  A canoe may have been her vehicle, but it’s the artist’s brush that transports you to the beauty of the riverbank in Gallery 133’s new collection of large paintings.

 Grand enough to fill any art lovers heart with joy, the work promises to turn the heads of visitors to the gallery. Located in Toronto’s Castlefield Design District, where art collectors and designers alike go to find must-have treasures, the gallery boasts a friendly and well-informed staff.

 The collection: Views from my Canoe, created by artist Laura den Hertog captures the essence of peaceful days spent on the water, exploring otherwise inaccessible areas. Done in oils, den Hertog’s masterful use of subtle pigments and watercolor-like translucency adds to the work’s atmosphere of tranquility. Dividing her time between the outdoors and the studio, the artist translates the grandeur of the Canadian landscape onto canvas.

 Spring 2013 heralds the arrival den Hertog’s work to Gallery 133, but there’s plenty of time for Toronto’s art collectors to view the paintings in this on going display.

Gallery 133

1260 Castlefield Avenue, Toronto ON M6B 1G3 416.504.6099

Email: info@gallery133.com 

Website: www.gallery133.com 

Hours: Monday to Friday 9:30 – 5:30, Saturday 10:00 – 5:00, Sunday 12:00 – 5:00

Plumb Bob, an ancient tool to symbolize man's ingenuity.

Plum Bob, oil on canvas, 10 x 14 (SOLD)

A Plumb Bob is a weight that is suspended from a string or plumb-line. It's a tool that has been used since ancient times and is still used today. Without this little tool, the pyramids of Egypt would not have stood the test of time, the high spires of the worlds great cathedrals might have been crooked.

The line created by a plumb bob gives us a perfectly vertical line and so builders all over the world can be sure that what they create is straight and vertical. Land surveyors also use this tool and it has long been used by artists to find the center of gravity when drawing a figure.

That's a pretty illustrious history for such a simple tool. So lets hear it for plumb bobs in the toolboxes and art kits of people all over the world.

Cheers,

Laura

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Laura

Annie Blooming, a simmering sensuality

Annie Blooming, 24 x 30 (SOLD)

My daughter has been posing for me since she was a child and so she is a natural by now. She was just over 18 when we worked on this painting and much to my surprise she consented to pose nude for me. I think that’s a testament to her vibrant personality and self-confidence.

  I had a very specific idea for what pose I wanted, but as sometimes happens, the model does something that’s so much better and more natural than what I had in mind. So when she paused to pull her long hair away from her face, magic happened. From that moment on, the painting took on a life of it’s own.

  The pose and atmosphere express a young woman coming of age. While she is still part teenager, she is mostly a woman. I called the painting Annie Blooming because the shape of the duvet across her lap reminds me of a blooming flower.

Her open legs do not reveal any secrets, but there is the hint of a simmering sensuality. The chain bracelet she is wearing and in its placement slightly in front of her legs is an allusion to chastity.

 The basket beside the couch has a pattern woven into it that is reminiscent of an animal print. This is symbolic of our primal selves or wilder nature and it is placed off to the side, where it is in easy reach but not in use.

A certain amount of tension can be seen in her body as well. While her face tells us that she is contemplating something, her feet seem to be ready for action.

Annie Blooming is available though The Bucks County Gallery of Fine Art in New Hope, PA.

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Cheers,
Laura

The cooling waters

Encircle

This painting was inspired by a hot day and the relief that comes as you step into cool water. A young girl rinses the hem of her dress and creates waves that reflect the surrounding cool green of foliage.
Encircle is painted on wood panel and measures 16 x 20 inches. It can be found on my Paintings page under In Studio.