Monday, October 13, 2025

I'm grateful for my wonderful mother

Isabel Muir
by Christopher Muir
Christopher Muir © 

This is the anniversary of my mother's death.  I miss her so much!
Here's what I said in a former blog, with the date updated: 

"My mother died 12 years ago on this date.  It was Thanksgiving Day. We were
in Ottawa where she lived, and were in the hospital with her the night before
she died.  Our family who were in the city, had lunch together, then we drove
home to Toronto for another Thanksgiving dinner. All in her honour.

The beautiful portrait photo I'm showing you is by my son, Christopher.
I love it because it shows her strength, her beauty, and the nature she protected
with letters, her voice on call-in radio on CBC, in protest marches even when
she had a serious chronic lung condition, and with donations.

Here's what I wrote about her in a former tribute:

"A couple of weeks before she died, I sat with my mother, who
was totally blind, helping her fill out cheques to organizations she
believed in that protected the environment -- wolves, whales, parkland.
Those weren't her only passions -- she gave to women's shelters, money
for hurricane and famine victims.  Small amounts to be sure -- but this
mattered.

She was a good, kind and supportive mother. What shone through with
 her was her love for her family, her intellect, (she had a Masters in
 Bacteriology), her concern about the future of the planet."

We miss you Mommy.  You made the best Thanksgiving dinner.

Have a loving your life day. 

Sunday, October 12, 2025

Happy Thanksgiving weekend -- and thank you family

 

Thank you family and friends
Photo: 
© Barbara Muir

This weekend is Canadian Thanksgiving weekend, and today we went 
on a long, beautiful drive to celebrate with family.  The best time.  We
brought some parts of the meal, and the whole thing was delicious.
And so much fun.

A bit tired tonight, as we just got home.  I love Thanksgiving and feel so
grateful for my family and friends.  Thank you all of you.  It is one of my
favourite holidays as I'm sure I've said many times.

Have a loving your life day!

Saturday, October 11, 2025

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving weekend

Today's flowers from the garden
Watercolour and black marker on 
watercolour paper
6 x 9.5 inches
Barbara Muir © 

I’m a firm believer in gratitude — being grateful for the
people in my life, 
and for what life has given me. That’s
why I love Canadian Thanksgiving, 
a celebration that happens
this weekend. 

Canadian Thanksgiving is a celebration of the harvest.
We give thanks for a great harvest, for our unusually
blessed lifestyle, and in honour of that, eat a meal
together. It is not about religion, or history, or which
culture you grew up in.  And that's what I love about it.
Everyone can share in the harvest.  Everyone can get in
the spirit together, 
and we all understand the meaning of
the holiday.

Judging from the run on turkeys, that part of the meal may
be the same in 
many homes. 

Happy Thanksgiving weekend!


Friday, October 10, 2025

What kind of coffee cup do you like?


 Coffee with milk in
a cup
Acrylic on canvas
8 x 8 inches
Barbara Muir © 
(This painting seems perfect
for today.  And I like that it
went to live in
Texas with my friend, 
the artist Susan Carlin.) 


I'm pretty sure I drank this cup of coffee in a restaurant.  On
a normal day I drink at least 3 large mugs of coffee, and my
preferred mugs are straight up and down, with maybe a slight curve
at the top and bottom of the mug.

What do you like?  I like white coffee cups.  Though my favourite
ones are hard to find now, and they were horizontal turquoise and
white striped mugs.

At night when I'm watching TV with Steven, and I've had more
than the three cups of coffee, plus a couple of decaf coffees, I drink
sugar free hot chocolate. 

Of course in Europe everything is different -- espresso mainly.
But coffee -- I love it.  It is the fuel I run on. Speaking of which -- walk 
time, and then back to painting.  I had a great day painting.

Have a loving your life day!

Thursday, October 9, 2025

Let's invent one -- International I'd like to paint day

 

See what I mean?
Acrylic on canvas
30 x 30 inches
Barbara Muir © 2019
SOLD 

I've spent most of the day today working on organizing journals
and sketchbooks.  Needless to say I have quite a few. I'd
love an International holiday called, I'd like to paint day.
I'm pretty sure we can invent one.  Let's make it today!

So I thought I'd write this before I begin to paint.  The painting
above started out as a simple landscape.  Then I saw this adorable couple
in the park, and had to add them in.  The result? Pretty good.

The painting tells the story of a beautiful fall day in a
gorgeous park 
on Lake Ontario.  The woman is telling
the young man 
that this is why she brought him here -- to see
this incredibly magnificent
 scene.

We are not seeing the bright fall colours for the most part 
here.  The hot summer weather just cooled off yesterday.
But here's hoping.  Meanwhile -- back to work for me.

Have a loving your life day!

Wednesday, October 8, 2025

This sketch was for a painting

 


Sketch study for kitchen table painting
marker on bond paper
8 1/2 x 11 inches
Barbara Muir ©

I was scrolling through my blog and saw this, and thought, 'Aha! So that's how 
I solve my current painting -- do a drawing of where I want to go.'  It sounds 
so simple, but sometimes I have complete clarity, until I don't.  Tired,
busy, a lot going on -- I might come into my studio and go, "Wait a minute!
Now what?"

Solution -- plan.  So I will.  I love this simple drawing because it describes
certain times in our lives when the kitchen table is crammed with objects
that are significant to us.  The big Victorian sugar bowl, the small glass 
mini-candle holder, the bottom of a silver candlestick, and stems of flowers
in a glass vase. Plus a cream jug with pansies on top of a cookbook. Man
it's almost like the dance of the kitchen table.

Our kitchen table is the center of family life, so it does mean a lot to us.

Have a loving your life day!

Tuesday, October 7, 2025

Looking back to the beginning

Kitchen China
Acrylic on canvas
24" x 48"
Barbara Muir © 
SOLD ♥ 

I've been painting today, and every time I walk into the studio
I feel as happy as I must have been when I painted this
painting.  I started blogging in 2008, and I am so grateful
to my son who helped me start the blog, and my friend who
urged me to create one. So of course I was painting before 
that, but as I've said before blogging has changed my life as an
artist -- all in positive ways.

I was interested to see that Alyson Stanfield thinks we should 
bring back blogging. I'm still enjoying it, and still enjoying 
people's reactions.

Here's a bit of the story behind this:
"My model came into the kitchen, sat down and had some
chocolate cake that Steven had just baked, and that was that.
A painting was born."

Have a loving your life day!

Portrait Artist

My photo
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
I paint and draw on commission and for shows. To commission a portrait, or purchase one of my paintings please contact me at: barbara.muir@sympatico.ca
A major highlight in my career? Drawing Oprah Winfrey live via Skype for her show "Where in the Skype are you? Galleries: Studio Vogue Gallery, Toronto, Canada. The Amsterdam Whitney Gallery, New York City. Gallery at the Porch Door, Kingston, Canada. Your positive comments on this blog mean the world to me. I'd love to hear from you!