Octopus Vs Ship June 2023
I love the idea of oversized octopus playing with passing ships! Octopus are amazing creatures, I thoroughly enjoyed studying them through my painting, and learned some interesting facts along the way… like the Giant Pacific Octopus has 280 suction cups on EACH arm! And each suction cup is individually controlled, and can touch, smell and taste!
“There once was a ship…”
mixed media on vintage canvas
2x3 ft vintage canvas + frame
Original : My own collection
Prints | Digital Download
Watch the reel of this being painted
Never take away an octopus’ toy! The kraken is not going to let this passing ship slip by quietly. I love how real octopus have control over every suction cup on every tentacle, each of them absorbing sensory information for the inquisitive creature. This one was a lot of fun to paint… I enjoyed taking the risk of not carefully drawing it ahead of time, but jumping right in with paint, which produced a more loose, carefree composition.
Originally purchased from The Art House in Toronto (not in business anymore?), I collected this painting from its original owner in the Simcoe area. The painting is in good condition, with minor fine cracking across the surface. The frame looks to have been finely splattered with dark paint, but I think it adds character. The artist did a fantastic job of this ship… though they forgot one mast, I had to add that in between the sails! There are a lot of amazing artists out there who enjoy replicating the masters, and this is a fantastic example of their mastery of the medium and attention to detail.
“Octopus Vs The Harris…”
mixed media on vintage canvas
2x3 ft vintage canvas + frame
Original : My own collection (I'm not ready to part with her just yet!)
Prints | Digital Download
Watch the reel of this being painted
I have had this painting for close to a year now… collected it up in Burk’s Falls in my cousin’s gorgeous antique shop. This painting was also a bit of a turning point in my octopus paintings, as with it being so large, I could really delve into studying the skin and textures of the octopus to make it more realistic.
This painting was a little dirty when I bought it… so much so that I couldn’t see the signature until I had given it a clean. Also discovered there was a fine rip developing, so I patched that. The frame had been painting a cream colour, so I gave it a coat of matte white paint to freshen it up a bit.
A bit about the original artist : Edwin Harris was born in England and emigrated to Canada about 1906. Lived in Toronto till he passed about 1980. He was a hobby artist and copied other paintings. He was quite prolific, painting ships, cavaliers, flower still life, birds. He sold his paintings to friends and people he worked with at Bell Canada.
The Flying Dutchman
8x10 mixed media on canvas
Original : Available
Prints | Digital Download
Watch the reel of this being painted
I enjoy a good pirate movie, and when I found this very tatty ship painting, I right away thought this would make a fantastic ghost ship. It was a lot of fun turning this into The Flying Dutchman. This painting was rescued along with another, and both were in rough shape. They were very, very dirty! No hanging wire, bit dented. So I gently cleaned them, put them in new frames. These are replica paintings, created to replicate the old European masters. I have found similar paintings before, almost identical, examples of mass produced “original” artwork. I’m pretty sure pen names are used, as the painting looks like it is done by the same artist.
The Kraken Vs The Black Pearl
8x10 mixed media on canvas
Original : SOLD
Prints | Digital Download
Watch the reel of this being painted
While I’m on a pirate kick, this faded ship painting lent itself to being transformed into The Black Pearl. I usually like to paint octopus playing with passing ships, but The Black Pearl had it coming, and the kraken is winning this one!
Lego Fishing Village
8x10 mixed media on canvas
Original : Available
Prints | Digital Download
Watch the reel of this being painted
I thrifted this piece of art a couple years ago, and had been waiting for a special idea for it... and just kept coming back to how much I love LEGO, and how when you play with it, your imagination fills in all the gaps. So I added in bits of LEGO (seagull, helm, bumpers on side of boat, fisherman catching a big fish) into this painting as an affectionate nod to my favourite childhood toy.
Thaumoctopus Mimicus (Mimic Octopus)
8x10 mixed media on canvas
framed in reclaimed lobster traps beachcombed from Nova Scotia
Original : SOLD
Prints | Digital Download
Watch the reel of this being painted
I love mimic octopus! They are brilliant in how they use trickery and camouflage to evade predators… or to sneak up on prey!
Orange Crush
8x10 mixed media on canvas
framed in reclaimed lobster traps beachcombed from Nova Scotia
Original : My own collection
Prints | Digital Download
One of my favourite upcycled pieces is this little orange octopus “playing” with a passing ship! I only have a few left from the collection, and have kept this one as it makes me smile when I see it! I especially love it in this frame… I found this lobster trap driftwood while beach combing in Nova Scotia… and my Dad custom made it into a unique frame for me.
Antique Ship Painting
by Unknown Artist
30 x 25 cm painting on board
42 x 47 cm frame
Original : Available
This painting was imported years ago from Scotland. It was in very dirty condition, so I gave it a gentle clean to lift off food splatters. A specialist could restore it fully. The gorgeous detailed frame has some pieces missing. I think the tarnishing and damage to the frame are part of the charm. I may yet alter this one, but if I thought I'd offer it here first in case someone loves it as is!
Antique Ship Painting
The Pengarian (?) by R. W. Taylor 1914
46 x 30.5 cm painting on canvas
58 x 43 cm frame
Original : Available
This piece was also imported years ago from Scotland. It was in very dirty condition, so I gave it a gentle clean to lift off the yellowing varnish, and am happy with the brighter sky and sails. It had previously been repaired from a puncture which has been neatly fixed. A specialist could restore it fully. The frame is very sturdy. I may yet alter this one, but if I thought I'd offer it here first in case someone loves it as is!
cast off canvas
8x10 acrylic on canvas
Original : Available (Octopus not included!)
This is the canvas I use to brush off excess paint as I work. So it has a bit of each painting in it. I like to mix abstracts like this in with paintings on the wall for a pop of colour and interest.
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