Monday, October 25, 2010

I see a red door and I want it painted grey

In Toronto grey is the new black.  In fact it's the new
red, blue, yellow -- all purpose colour -- like beige
without the warmth.  Canadians are already overly
gung-ho on beige because it's neutral.  But this year
grey is edging out every other colour.  I was in a
store the other day that normally sells lovely gift
items in beautiful colours, shawls, and pretty
bowls, even seasonal decorations, and office
organizers.  Usually the colours are so delicious
you might want to take everything home.  Not this
year --grey has taken over like an invading army.
Grey objects scream depression -- both psychological and
financial.  True I own a grey dress, and will buy a
beautiful grey jacket while they're in style.  Next
year we can expect the come back of zingy colour.
Reading the bird book with the cat
Charcoal on bond paper
18 x 24 inches
Barbara Muir © 2010
Meanwhile in keeping with the trends my drawing tonight
is all in greys.  I found a lovely photo of one of
our cats draped over my husband's shoulder while
he read a bird book.  Pretty funny.  The photo is
brimming with colour, from the flowers
on the table, to the curtains in the background, but
I was working in charcoal -- and that produces
greys.  I love the greys charcoal creates, and this
type of grey is one I very much enjoy, both
in the creating, and afterwards looking at it.

P.S.  It's grey in Canada, gray in the United States.

2 comments:

CHRIS MURRAY said...

gray...puddles of mud...one of the many things I love about your art and a lot of Canadian art is the gorgeous, juicy, celebration of pure color and keep those youtubes coming.

Barbara Muir said...

Hi Chris,

Then I went into another store today and there was colour everywhere. So.
Grey is cool -- just not too much of it, especially as winter approached, when we pretty much live under grey full time.

Take care,

Barbara

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!