Hi folks, I’ll be at the show opening on Friday night at Gallery 8 (Nov 28) on Saltspring Island! This is the gallery’s annual small works show where my small painting “Radiant Bear” and miniature “Winter Walk” (which I don’t have a picture of yet – sorry!) will be featured. These larger paintings will be there too. The opening is from 5-8pm and lots of fun so come by if you’re in the area and say hi!
How quickly the years pass! 25 Years ago I painted my very first miniature with great excitement. The idea of rendering the world in tiny detail was both fascinating and an excellent creative challenge I couldn’t resist! This is one of the first four miniature paintings I created: “Geese At The Fence” (2.5 x 4 inches), acrylic on art board.
I remember how nervous and excited I was to enter it at a local art show with the Federation of Canadian Artists, a great bunch to work with. Twenty five years and hundreds of miniatures later, I am deeply grateful for this experience, for friends made along the way and for students who taught me more than I taught them! So many good memories, good laughs and always more to learn.
Many kind thanks to everyone who has supported my artwork and this site over the years. Cheers!
Most days in the studio boil down to one question for me: will it be the tiny brush or the big brush first? Will the day start with the cultivation of a miniature world or the abstraction of an observation? And sometimes the answer is: no brush. Instead, a walk, a course of errands, a pattern of bricks in a sidewalk, a conversation with a friend will fill the well of being-ness that I need to create.
My new painting titled “The Bridge” represents the crossing over to something different, something important perhaps, or safe passage through an uncertainty. This piece speaks to me personally as I enter my 25th year of painting miniatures and feel the pull to pursue new creative ideas. It isn’t always easy to cross into new territory and keep your footing, but sometimes it’s necessary to try – if for no other reason than to view more clearly, where you’ve been.
The Bridge (30 x 40 inches), acrylic on canvas.
After many years of studying and painting external landscapes it has been an adventure of a new kind to reflect on the curious nature of internal landscapes and what existential aspects of them might look like painted in a simple form.
Block paintings – What are they about?
My purpose for this series of paintings is to create an expression of the dynamism of the human spirit (represented by the circle) as it navigates a journey through the experience of life (represented by the blocks). The black line surrounding all objects signifies the great mystery that holds things together, and yet separate from each other, creating a perfectly imperfect motif of existence and what one makes of it.
Below is one of the images from my new series for the current Spot Light show at Peninsula Gallery in Syndey, BC. The show continues to July 11th.
Journey (30 x 40 inches), acrylic on canvas.
Newest mini: “Bird on a Fence” (2.25 x 3.5 inches), acrylic on paperboard. I love painting wood and texture and this old barn was a lot of fun. The tiny bird on the fencepost was less fun and a bit more tricky!
When painting a bird this small (just a few millimeters), the goal is really to capture the essence and presence with just a few brush strokes as the extremely small area does not allow for much reworking, without distorting the image. Painting these little details can be trying sometimes but they always present a good challenge.
This little painting is available at Excellent Frameworks in Duncan BC.
This year I am delighted to donate the miniature painting “West Coast Rhapsody” (2.5 x 6 inches), to the annual MERS online auction (Marine Education & Research Society), in support of the tremendous work that they do. A big thank you to Jackie Hildering for sharing her beautiful photo with me as reference material for this painting!
If you would like to purchase this framed miniature painting, please follow this link to the MERS website to learn more about the online auction held Friday, April 22nd at 5pm until Sunday, May 1st at 7pm, PDT.
This is female Humpback Whale “Jigger” (BCX1188). Reference photo by Jackie Hildering aka @TheMarineDetective in her work as a researcher for @mersociety.
Below is a series of progressive images of the painting from start to finish. “West Coast Rhapsody” (2.5 x 6 inches), acrylic on paper board:
For me, a day on the west coast of Vancouver Island is usually a grand adventure out on the trails, through the trees and across the beaches. And yes, more often than not, a rainy one too. But when the sun is shining, it is absolutely glorious!
Here is a miniature painting I did of a day spent on the beautiful west coast titled: “Summer Shore” (measuring a tiny 1.75 x 4.25 inches in size), painted with acrylic on art board.
Here’s a new miniature painting titled: “At Rest”, measuring 1.75 x 4.25 inches in size.
This little acrylic painting features a scene of Vancouver Island and Newcastle Island, also known as Saysutshun, a wonderful place to boat to, hike over and just spend a day exploring.
I’m very pleased to share that Peninsula Gallery in Sidney BC is opening their new show today! I have six miniature paintings in the show, along with many beautiful works created by several gallery artists. Here are the details below, and you are most welcome to visit the gallery or view the show online
Or view the gallery here
Spring time in pretty Beacon Hill park on Vancouver Island, where lovely camas blooms in the grass and blue skies shine overhead. Lovely spot for a ramble on a sunny day!
“Spring Meadow” (1.75 x 4.25 inches), acrylic on art board, second image with coin to show scale.
Tiffany Hastie Art 
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