Posted by Sudbury Northern Life Reporter Janet Gibson  
Following in the footsteps of the Group of Seven, members of the Sudbury Art Club are painting the north.
"Take a look around at the landscape," said president Raechel Reid. "It's quite inspiring. We recreate it and bring it into our homes."
The club of 80 working artists and raw beginners hosted its fall show and sale on Friday and Saturday at the northern headquarters of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind on York Street.
"I love the club," said member Jim Cook. "I love the people in the club."
The former teacher didn't paint until after he retired. He now teaches watercolour and carving classes at the Older Adult Centre.
That's where he painted Birch Road, a road lined with birch trees in the dead of winter. "Ten students were standing around me when I did it a year ago," he said.
Members build confidence in each other, Nicole Brault said. "There's a willingness to exchange talents."
Cook said much of the freedom he feels when he paints comes from workshops with international artist Brian Atyeo, a former resident of Killarney.
The club meets on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. at Carmichael Community Centre. Occasionally members meet on Wednesday mornings at 10 a.m. They also go on excursions to nearby places such as Yesterday's Resort and Fielding Memorial Park and faraway destinations such as P.E.I. and France.
"My whole life is a classroom," said Kim McGibbon, standing beside a painting she did on an east coast beach. Painting helps her understand her place in the world, she said - "being connected to something bigger than herself."
Shehnaz Pabani joined the club six years ago after hearing about it when taking a summer course at LaCloche Art School. She's loved painting her whole life. "I'd put the kids to sleep and paint all night," she said.
She loves the camaraderie and down-to-earth atmosphere of the club where members park their occupations at the door.
The weekend event showcased 220 original pieces, Reid said. A Storm is Brewing by Colette Harwardt, Autumn Breeze by Bonnie Halladay and The Day is Done by Hulda Dumont were three of the paintings that stopped visitors as they sauntered up and down the aisles.
If you missed the event, you can catch the spring show next April. To learn more about the club, one of 15 in the Northern Ontario Art Association, call Reid at 524-0947.
