Artists open studios to share their art

From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., people are invited to take a peak at the artists’ studios filled with paintings, sculptures, jewelery, textiles, ceramics, pottery and wooden telescopes. Admission is free.

“Being an artist is a lonely occupation. We paint alone in our studio and the Studio Tour gives us a chance to show people how and what we paint. I like meeting new people and find the experience very interesting. Even though it rained last year, I had lots of visitors from Hudson, Saint-Lazare and Rigaud, and sold many of my paintings,” said artist Denise Paquette. Ms. Paquette is exhibiting 75 of her works in her studio, a former aviary, located at 3210 Pinetree in Saint-Lazare. Until she turned the aviary into an art studio four years ago, she had a collection of peacocks, ducks, chickens and all kinds of birds, including canaries. She has been painting for 16 years and now does more abstract painting. She served as president of the Hudson Artists for three years. This is the second year she participates in the Studio Tour. @ST:Painter of the sea @R:Daniel Gautier labels himself a “Painter of the Sea”. He is a professional artist who is opening his home studio, at 52 Côte St. Charles in Hudson, for the first time. His works have been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions in Canada, the United States and Europe and are in private and public collections. “I started painting at the age of 12. I have always felt the call of the sea. Although I was born in Longueuil, we went to the East Coast every summer, where I would always sketch when on the beach. I spend my summers in the Maritimes, in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and the Magdalene Islands. I paint boats of the sea. The waterfront is always an inspiration for me whether it is the salt water of the ocean or the non-salt water of the Lake of Two Mountains. I am looking forward to welcoming people to my studio to see my works,” said Mr. Gautier. @ST:Jewelery design & painting “I am a painter, first of all, and thus, am interested in color and design, which is why I first started to work with glass and make beads, because of the colors I could use. I use a torch to melt the glass, and then put it in a kiln to anneal the glass to give it strength and durability. While I was learning the process of making glass into beads, I taught myself how to create jewelery with precious metals. I now design and create silver jewelery and am making chains of metal, as knights of armour used. Visitors will be able to see my paintings in progress when they come to my studio,” said Joanna Olson. She has participated in Studio Tour since it started four years ago. “I find it exciting to get in touch with people directly. There is no other venue where you can have an interaction and share with people your interest in art; how you do art and why you do it. People always like to look behind the scenes, and watch the process, as when a documentary shows how a movie is made,” explained Ms. Olson.