Originally from France, Sandrine Pelissier has lived in Canada for the last 12 years. Her work has been exhibited in numerous juried exhibitions in Canada and the U.S, and she is currently working on a series showcasing the majestic forest, marshes, trees, mountains and rainforests of the British Columbian landscape.
Her unique mixed media process of watercolors and acrylic paint—which she refers to simply as “watermedia”—allows Sandrine to render light in a truly unique manner. This is spot-on in Princess Park below, which is a finalist in the Landscape competition of the upcoming August/September issue of International Artist Magazine.
With many layers of watercolor, Sandrine creates a sort of translucent transparency that makes the sun appear to waft through the trees from the depths of the paper itself. She then incorporates various mixed media into the background to add contour and definition to her work.
You can see all of these layers in the various consistencies of trees, from the very faint in the far back to those rich in olive, moss and grassy greens toward the front. Because the sun shimmers through fluttery full-leafed foliage, we are privy to the beautiful array of earthy green, dusty brown and silvery gray colors present in the forest that oftentimes are overlooked.
A Little Birdie Told Me contains similar forestry of Princess Park, but in a far simpler way. Simply shaded trees blend effortlessly into ornately patterned pine needles, leaves and twigs full of eccentricity.
Although heavily patterned and detailed, the trees don’t detract from the beautifully orchestrated portrait in the foreground, where an impish girl hunches downward, secretly delighted a cardinal has chosen her to be its latest rest stop!
The scarlet, jeweled bird and the girl’s auburn hair create a stunning focal point, as do the girl’s deep brown eyes that look directly at the viewer, twinkling as they share the wonder of this lovely encounter.
Drawn elements mixed with paint and other media are a hallmark of the composite paintings Sandrine is known for. In Steveston Wharf, you can see the subtle way Sandrine smudges the background to make it look like a dreary, wet day.
She draws thin lines that represent hundreds of masts in the harbor. Closer to the dock, we see the muddied water smearing into the depths of the wharf—where one leaves off, the other begins.
Hints of red, white and blue supercharge the painting, making it come alive with the movements of fishermen and yachtsmen busy securing their boats and heading home for dinner. Altogether, it’s a very real and honest look at the life of dedicated seafarers.
Make sure to visit Sandrine’s website for her other mixed media pieces, including Recycling Life—a 2013 winner of Best Mixed Media Painting Award in The Artist’s Magazine—as well as many other floral paintings and portraits.
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