Janice Moorhead

As a graduate from the University of Ottawa's visual arts program (over 40 years ago), I have divided my practice equally between fine craft (glass art) and visual art (painting). However, with the onset of the pandemic, I began to focus exclusively on painting. In 2020 I began a series of emotionally evocative portraits that reveal our unique and fleeting nature as we try to navigate the particularly difficult time in history that we now currently face. Recently I began adding text as a means to explore irony and to add another layer of meaning to the work. I like to employ brilliant, highly contrasting colors in order to enhance a harsh reality or intense emotion. Sponges, drywall tools, and textures such as lace are often used to apply the paint. Sometimes I include small areas of printer ink. Although the paintings are not framed, they are ready to hang, as they all have a 4.4cm edge which is painted. Some of the paintings may be listed as "Not for Sale". This may just mean they are not for sale "on line" because I plan to bring them to Nathan Philips Square July 7-9.