Unleash your inner artist or gift a creative experience with these whimsical wooden Art Kits from McTavish Academy. Get some friends together or plan a family craft day over the holidays. Decorate together and enjoy the memories and hand made ornaments for years to come.

The tactile, 3D designs are so much more than ‘paint by number’. Explore your creativity and make each one unique using the included colour mixing guide. Make it a gift within a gift and send grandma home with artwork made with love.

McTavish Academy Art Kits are designed, made and packaged on Vancouver Island, BC. Each kit starts out as a drawing followed by a digital model separated into layers. The premium wood pieces are laser cut and boxed together with paints, brushes, wood glue, colour mixing guide and instructions. Ready to assemble and awaiting your creativity!

The McTavish Academy Of Art is a vibrant and inclusive creative arts facility located in a former elementary school building in North Saanich, BC.

Offering art classes, yoga, dance, event space rentals and more, it’s a place to explore creativity, discover new passions and experience a variety of events and activities. As a family owned and operated facility, they strive to provide space for our growing community to feel empowered and encouraged to express themselves through art, movement and community engagement.

Shop Art Kits Here

Maria Ida Designs is a Vancouver-based blown glass production company founded by Maria Struk in 2015. Every piece is hand-blown, melding creativity, danger, science and molten glass into one-of-a-kind pieces. Their effervescent colours and whimsical shapes bring joy everywhere they go, whether it’s the windowsill, bookshelf, or coffee table.

It’s been more than two years since we’ve hosted any significant events in the gallery, and we’re beyond thrilled to announce two upcoming exhibitions via our Supplementary Artists Program (dubbed “SAP” for short).

Our Supplementary Artists Program features emerging artists from Manitoba for a limited engagement, providing them with gallery exposure and mentorship while building on our mandate to support Canadian artists. This program also gives you the opportunity to survey and purchase work from local artists who are not (or not yet) on our roster of artists.

SAP was launched in September of 2016 with the inaugural exhibition, Rooted and continued annually in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. The acronym SAP connects playfully to the word sapling, likening emerging artists to young seedlings that need nurturing to foster growth. A great fit for Woodlands Gallery 😉

After a short hiatus, SAP is back in 2022 showcasing two incredible Manitoba artists. Well worth the wait, emerging artists Michelle Pereira and Megan Parkes are sure to impress!

Within just a couple months of one another Michelle Pereira and Megan Parkes both contacted the gallery expressing interest in SAP. Not only do they both have the initials M & P., both artists have backgrounds in design, are at similar stages in their careers and have similar painting styles. This back to back SAP pairing was meant to be.

Although both artists use a realistic and detailed approach to painting, their works are distinguished by colour and mood. Pereira creates cheery still life and landscape paintings soaked in sunlight with an idealistic and vibrant palette. Parkes’ contemplative landscapes with more naturalistic colouration fill us with quiet reverie.

Exhibitions SAP: Sun-Kissed and SAP: Reverie open Saturday May 28th and Saturday June 25th respectively.

We anticipate these fantastic collections will sell quickly! Don’t miss the opportunity to acquire a piece by one or both of these incredibly talented artists right now, at the beginning of their art careers!

Psssst…. their prices are low and likely will not stay that way for long!

If you’d like to be one of the first to receive a “sneak peek” preview of all available paintings, please contact us. We’ll add you to the list to receive a digital catalogue with images and artwork details once all of the artwork has arrived in the gallery.

• View artwork and exhibition details for SAP: Sun-Kissed
• View artwork and exhibition details for SAP: Reverie
• Learn more about our Supplementary Artist Program
• Review previous SAP exhibitions

Pictured above: Woodlands Gallery Director, Jennifer DeLury and gallerists with featured artists Tracey Kucheravy and Geneviève Levasseur at our inaugural SAP: Rooted opening reception, September 16th, 2016

Let us inspire you with our latest complimentary service!

In addition to bringing paintings home on trial, we now offer complimentary digital mock-ups for your walls. If you feel overwhelmed by options and aren’t ready to try artwork at home just yet, this is a great option to get things in motion!

Simply email us a photo of the space(s) you’re looking to fill, showing as much of the wall as possible (ideally with floor and/or ceiling within the photo), and total wall height measurement (ie. 8 ft).

Let us know which Gallery Artists or styles you’re attracted to, any paintings you’re interested in, or if there are any colours you’re looking to bring out in the space. We’ll send you a private, personalized catalogue of our best suggestions!

Save time and energy and consult the experts!

We regularly rotate the artwork in the gallery, finding unique pairings and displays for each wall. Allow us to provide suggestions with a fresh set of eyes and you may find you’re pleasantly surprised!

Contact us to get started!

“Weiming Zhao began painting scenes of Manitoba city in 2003 and has rarely gone a day without painting since.” CBC News

With the stroke of a brush, Weiming Zhao begins another painting. 

A seemingly simple scene, the sunset over the Assiniboine River in the southwestern Manitoba city of Brandon. A family canoes by, a couple sits on the dock watching the day wind down. 

For Zhao, painting is also how he winds down his day — so much so, his easel and brushes have barely missed a day since 2003.

“Once I started, I never stopped,” said Zhao.

He moved to Canada from China nearly 30 years ago to attend Brandon University. He decided to take up art as a hobby, first drawing simple pencil sketches of downtown Brandon — scenes of people, landmarks and everyday life.

“I just somehow couldn’t stop,” he said. “In one year, I ended up with 500 pencil sketches.

“It was just such a boost.”

Portfolio contains thousands of pieces

Zhao began painting on Remembrance Day in 2003.

Why that day in particular? He isn’t sure. But his portfolio now has more than 6,600 paintings. 

He also isn’t sure how many days he has missed, but it isn’t many. 

“As long as I feel physically OK that day, I hardly miss a day,” he said. “Even in winter, even when it was snowing outside.

“I always spend a short amount of time outdoors painting.”

Zhao said even on the coldest days, he’d bring a palm-sized easel with him and paint while looking out the windshield of his vehicle. On dark winter nights, he straps a flashlight to his head. 

“Now, it’s almost part of my life,” said Zhao, not wanting to think about what would happen if he ever had to stop painting for whatever reason. 

“It’s a way of life.”

Most of Zhao’s portfolio consists of scenes of Brandon.

“I have been painting here every day,” he said. “Each time I start with something different. There is always something very exciting. 

“I have never felt bored with the subject matter. There is always something.”

But when he travels, his easel and paints go along with him — as he’s painted while on vacation in Mexico or Europe. 

“I’ve been to a wedding in Maui, in Hawaii. It is a very exotic place to paint,” Zhao said.

And while some may find painting outdoors daunting, he said he doesn’t mind if a crowd forms.

“People always feel very positive and excited at the sight of me painting outdoors, he said. “I was very nervous when I started. Now I am so used to it.

“It’s part [of] the process of a painting,” he added. “You can strike up a conversation, a chat, with people. It’s very rewarding, in a way.” 

‘Be bold’

Zhao said he’s fortunate to have painting as a hobby, which kept him busy during the pandemic. It’s a simple hobby to take up, as long as you’re prepared to make mistakes and have fun with it, he says.

“Take your easel and a brush and a canvas outside,” he said. “Paint outside, be bold and just don’t always try to create a masterpiece.”

Zhao plans to continue painting as long as he is physically able to. 

“I can’t imagine stopping it,” he said. “I would be very depressed if I grew out of this, and lose interest. 

“That would be the most dreadful thing to even contemplate.”

Art a ‘way of life’ for Brandon man whose portfolio spans more than 6,600 paintings and counting
by Riley Laychuk CBC News · Posted: Jun 16, 2021

Source: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/weiming-zhao-brandon-manitoba-painter-artist-1.6061314

Congratulations! You’ve just acquired a beautiful new piece of artwork and you can’t wait for it to bring new life to your home or office. You unwrap the painting, admire it in your own space… when suddenly you feel a flood of questions.

Don’t worry, you’re not alone! There are a number of reasons, people can feel overwhelmed when hanging a new piece of artwork. 

Below we break down five simple steps for hanging an average medium sized painting on basic drywall.

Before You Start:

Once you’ve decided on a wall to hang your artwork, clear a workspace by moving furniture, lamps and breakables out of the way. Remove any old picture hooks from the wall and gather your tools to hang the new artwork.

Inspect the back of the artwork to ensure the wire and or hardware is secure and appropriate for the work(s) in question. Contact us if you are unsure or need additional hanging hardware. 

Measure, Measure, Measure:

3) Top of Artwork – Measure the entire height of the artwork you plan to hang including the frame. Divide the artwork height in half and add that to your desired centre height on the wall. Mark this measurement with another piece of painters tape as this will be the top of your artwork on the wall.

4) Picture Hook Placement – Measure the distance between the wire (pulled taught) and the top of the artwork. Now measure the same distance down from the tape marking top of the artwork on the wall and add another piece of tape to mark the hook placement.

Line up the bottom of the picture hook with the top the tape you just added for the hook placement. Keeping the back brace of the picture hook flush against the wall and the nail facing down at a 45 degree angle, hammer the nail through the slot in the hook into the wall. 

Ready for Installation:

5) Hang Your Artwork: Bending at the knees, carefully lift the artwork with one hand supporting the bottom of the artwork as close as possible to the centre, and the other hand on the side of the artwork or outer frame close to the hanging hardware.

Reach around the back of the artwork and wrap your hand around the wire so that you can properly guide it onto the picture hook. Make sure the wire sits correctly in the groove of the hook and the back of the hook is flush against the wall with the nail pointing down at 45 degrees.

TIP: If you are happy with the artwork placement, you may want to take it down and remove the painters tape before making your final adjustments to level the artwork.

Make sure the wire is centred on the picture hook and let go slowly. Stand back to view and then make adjustments to level the artwork visually. Finally grab your level to double check your accuracy.

Voila! You’re Done!

Watch for more posts about hanging oversized artwork, pairs and groupings! Sign Up for Artful E-news & Events to receive expert tips on collecting, hanging and framing artwork and be the first to hear about new artists, artwork and special events.

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NOTE: The advise offered in this post is intended as a guide only. These instructions do not apply to every piece of artwork or space. There are most definitely circumstances in which hiring a professional would be advised.

Remember: There is no right or wrong way to enjoy artwork in your own space. These are a few starting points so you can determine what feels right for you.

Since we can’t invite you to visit the gallery this year, we’re getting creative and bringing smaller gift-able paintings to you! In lieu of our Annual Holiday Exhibition we’ve put together a three part series of “The Gift Shelf”. Tune in Saturdays December 6th, 12th and 19th to see what’s made its way onto our gift shelf…

Give us a call for personal service. We’re always happy to make suggestions based on budget and interests to help bring joy to you or your loved ones. Complimentary gift wrapping and curb-side pick up is available during our regular hours Tuesday to Friday 10:00 to 5:30 and Saturday 10:00 to 5:00 until December 23rd. 

Happy Holidays!
Jenny & Hollande

Let’s end this year with some Holiday cheer! Send your loved ones something meaningful and support Canadian artists and makers at the same time.

Holiday shopping is much different this year and although we’re closed to in-person shopping, we are still here in the gallery offering personal service over the phone or by email. We’re always happy to make suggestions based on budget and interests to help bring joy to you or your loved ones. Complimentary gift wrapping and curb-side pick up is available during our regular hours.

Happy Holidays!

Roman Swiderek, Manitoba artist, outdoorsman and local legend passed peacefully on April 8th, 2020 at the age of 83.

Renowned for his impressionistic scenes of Winnipeg and its iconic landmarks, Roman Świderek’s artwork can be found across Canada and abroad. His images serve as reminders of home and mementos of Manitoba, linking us to our past and making marks in our historical timeline.

For many Winnipeggers, images of Assiniboine Park, the Bridge Drive-Inn, The Forks and Morning Practice on the rink, conjure a familiar rhythm. Skillfully rendered in oils, these finely observed paintings frame Winnipeg through the past decades and present a view of our great city through the eyes of an exceptional artist.

Born in Poland, Roman Świderek began his career painting backdrops for the professional theatre group in his town, Lodz. His talents received early recognition and he refined his skills in a studio provided by his company. After immigrating to Canada in 1961, his artistic skills evolved while painting religious icons for churches, portraits of national leaders and set designs for theaters including Rainbow Stage, the Manitoba Theater Centre and the Royal Winnipeg Ballet. From 1965 to 1989, Świderek founded four companies with a design focus for the fashion industry in Winnipeg including the Hudson’s Bay Company blanket division. In 1989, he put aside the business world to focus on his art career. “I came here for a better life: to improve myself and my family,” and he did; quoted from an interview with the artist in preparation for his retrospective solo exhibition ‘Roman Swiderek’s Winnipeg’ March 2018.

“I came here for a better life: to improve myself and my family”

A steadfast Winnipegger for almost 60 years, Roman Świderek was liberated by the outdoors and embraced our notorious winters. For many years and with great passion, Swiderek would dog sled with his huskies along his favourite Winnipeg feature, the Red River, enjoying the snow and the open sky above him. “It always amazed me that, here I was mushing dogs on the same river mentioned in Jack London’s books that I read as a child in Poland.” Roman Swiderek’s Winnipeg, March 2018.

While in Canada, Świderek became an avid adventurer and explorer, painting scenes from northern Manitoba, to Victoria, and across the country to the east coast. One of his favourite places to visit and paint were the Rocky Mountains. For thirteen years, Świderek travelled to the Columbia Icefields in spring and fall to paint and display his artwork. “In the spring I would visit, paint, and set up a show in the Icefields iconic red chalet. The majesty of the Rockies and the quiet and peacefulness of nature when off the beaten path, made those hours of painting seem but moments,” Świderek March 2018. His time in the Rockies ended when the Chalet was demolished to make way for a new building.

Shortly thereafter, the 1997 Red River Flood of the Century was happening at home in Winnipeg. Moved to help his beloved city, Świderek created a series of watercolour paintings which were marketed in a calendar and fundraiser for Manitobans who were flooded from their homes. He raised over $100,000 for Manitoba flood relief. The original paintings were purchased by Wawanesa Insurance and donated to the City of Winnipeg.

“I paint because I am compelled to do so”

An artist to his core, “I paint because I am compelled to do so” Świderek March 2018, he chose his images carefully, painting landmarks and images of his city that people can recognize and relate to. With purpose, Roman Świderek crafted his work within a familiar tradition and aimed his art at a common viewer. The works invite us to connect in the honesty and mutuality of his experience. Świderek’s paintings of Winnipeg began with many plein-air studies. He would spend hours at the site drawing, getting a feel for the location and the activity of the area. In pencil, he would sketch different perspectives and the small details of the buildings he later painted. Sometimes he would thoroughly research a building, referring to historical details and the buildings origins. Like setting a stage, each painting took months to complete and together now, they form a monumental heritage.

Woodlands Gallery and Roman Świderek have a long history together. We have supported his career through the years by carrying his limited-edition reproductions and art cards featuring iconic images of Winnipeg. For many of these iconic images, the commercial availability of their original paintings was a first during his retrospective exhibition ‘Roman Swiderek’s Winnipeg’ in March 2018; several of the originals had previously never been exhibited publicly or available for purchase.

Roman Świderek’s dedication to artistic excellence serves as an inspiration and incentive for other Manitoban artists to follow. He will be greatly missed and always remembered.