Rendezvous Show : Preview of Paintings - A Feast for the Eyes

Two weeks left in March to see "Rendezvous" at Tay River Gallery featuring works by Kathy Haycock, Michel Pleau, Larry Ostrom and Stephen Snake... Here is a sneak peak at paintings currently on view posted to entice you to visit the gallery in Perth.























Four large oil landscapes by Michel Pleau from Quebec pictured above are just a few of the compelling works by this acclaimed landscape artist on view this month.






















Paintings above are lively landscapes animated with the effects of weather by feature artist Kathy Haycock of her favourite region to paint, Algonquin Park and the Opeongo Hills surrounding her home near Lake Clear













Pictured above are a few of the intriguing woodland style paintings on exhibit this month by feature artist Stephen Snake from Temagami Lake, Ontario






Pictured below are examples of the dramatic fine art photography of Larry Ostrom from Westport Ontario.










Read more about the featured artists in our previous blog titled " March Rendezvous" this month on the show or see the artists' biographies on the Tay River Gallery website. There are over 200 quality original paintings by some of the finest artists in the region available at Tay River Gallery for your viewing/purchasing pleasure!

March Rendezvous

During the month of March Tay River Gallery is pleased to present "Rendezvous" with the spotlight on works by new gallery artists Kathy Haycock, Larry Ostrom, Michel Pleau and Stephen Snake.



Kathy Haycock's oil landscapes capture the wilderness areas of Algonguin Park region near where she lives, as well as the Canadian Arctic and the American Southwest. Kathy Haycock is an accomplished oil painter influenced by the great Canadian Arctic painters. Working outside painting on site in all seasons, her landscapes capture the power, fragility, simplicity and enchantment of the natural world as she experiences it. Kathy Haycock is an elected member of the Society of Canadian Artists, an invited member of Artists for Conservation, and co-founder of both Arctic Quest and Polar Artists Group.


Larry Ostrom has worked as a photographer for over 3 decades in both the commercial and artistic world in the Toronto area, specializing in photographing world-renowned sculptures and paintings, high end portraiture as well as varied advertising work. With over 25 years experience in the “wet” darkroom and 10 yrs. with digital imagery, photo- based art is Ostrom's passion. Capturing motion with still images, death, rebirth and survival of nature have been recurring themes in his current photo- based art. Larry Ostrom's influence and inspiration is his world, 200 acres of rolling hills in Eastern Ontario and the rugged landscape of Northern Ontario.



Michel Pleau, inspired by the Group of Seven, paints Canadian wilderness scenes of Quebec in a spontaneous style with palette knife, rich colour, texture and movement that enchant the viewer with their magic. This month the gallery is pleased to exhibit a number of his new large landscape paintings. Previously the gallery has exhibited small landscape works by this popular artist. Michel Pleau is an accomplished and prolific landscape painter from Quebec who has been the recipient of various awards, including the Canadian painting Grand Prize in 1989 and is a member of Institute of Figurative Arts.


Stephen Snake was born on the Rama Ojibway Reserve near Orillia in 1966 and has been exhibiting his paintings in galleries since 1989. His artistic gift as a child was recognized and supported by his artist mother, Carol Shilling. Arthur Shilling became a strong influence on Stephen’s direction as an artist and he also introduced Stephen to the prolific works of Norval Morrisseau,one of Canada's foremost aboriginal artists and the founder of the Woodland style of painting. Stephen Snake lives on Lake Temagami and paints landscapes, portraits and woodland styles of work using oils and acrylics to capture and illustrate the spiritual and mystical nature of Temagami’s rocks, water and trees. An accomplished and recognized artist, some of his commissioned works can be found at the Orillia Chamber of Commerce, Rama’s First Nations Band Office, the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, and Canadian Embassy in Hungary. Tay River Gallery is pleased to introduce new vibrant paintings in the woodland style by Stephen Snake this month.

Thoughts on Winter Painting: Kathy Haycock comments

The Season of Snow! It is my favourite time to paint. Busy details in the foreground and beyond are covered with a gently rolling blanket, revealing patterns, shapes and lighting that can be interpreted with any colours of the palette. The weather changes constantly, the character of the landscape is refreshed daily. I can step out my door and never have to walk far for new material. Freezeup and thaw seasons are the most interesting on creeks and ponds. In January shadows are at their most delightfully longest and can stretch right across a pond. Compare that to painting in the harsh midday light of summer….. For winter painting I have a dedicated and unsightly painting outfit of warm clothes that is completely unfit for any other season or event. Oils are the only paints for winter, consistent through all temperatures, and in sleet, rain, snow and wind. In fact that’s one reason I use oils, because winter is my favourite time to paint.

Kathy Haycock
January 2009

Kathy Haycock's oil landscapes are painted on site in all seasons. Early Arctic trips with her father Arctic artist, Maurice Haycock introduced her to the lure of the North and inspired a sweeping and graceful rhythm in her work. Her subject matter is the wilderness around her – near her home close to Algonquin Park, the Canadian Arctic, and the American Southwest. Kathy Haycock is an elected member of Society of Canadian Artists (SCA) and is represented in private, public and corporate collections in Canada,USA, Europe, China and Australia.