Of course it’s fun to complain. There’s a kind of visceral satisfaction (not to mention guilt-trip mileage, if your situation is someone else’s fault) to be gotten from complaining. Complaining gets you noticed, and quite often, it gets sympathetic attention. It’s a kind of ego trip. Things didn’t go my way, you can say – and they should have.
But complaining also sucks the beauty out of life, and destroys your sense of gratitude, In the end, it takes away your joy. So, rather than complain when you’ve ended up someplace you didn’t mean to, look around and enjoy the view. Find something to be grateful for. Sit down, get out your sketch book, and make a drawing. Get your camera and take a photo. This moment will never come again. it almost didn’t come at all.
Each of the paintings in this exhibition is related to a moment in my life when I had to stop and wait for something to happen, or got turned around and had to find my way out of some little dead end.
Artist Statement
I have been inspired by German Expressionism and by Romantic Realism. I also like the Impressionists, especially Paul Cezanne, and I like Emily Carr and the Group of Seven, along with other Great Canadians of the West. I own a small collection of famous Canadian paintings and drawings, which I inherited from my father. These works, which reside in our dining room, are my daily inspiration.
Sometimes it’s just about getting the form, the colour, the proportion, and the light to look right.
My subject matter is related to the events of my daily life - my work, the practice of my Catholic faith, the drama of my family life, and my interactions with friends, as well as my encounters with the dramatic story-telling of the Fire Exit Theatre, among other exciting assignments from the Emmaus Group.
Biography
About Judith McRae
Judith McRae was born in Calgary, in 1961. She has been a painter all her life. She was educated at the Alberta College of Art in two periods - a diploma in Painting which she earned in 1984, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts, which she earned in 2004.
She has maintained a working art studio since 1984. She has been affiliated with a number of arts organizations, including the Calgary Burns Society, Off Centre Centre, and TRUCK: an artist-run centre. She has recently been involved with The Emmaus Group, and is currently hanging out from time to time with the Sacred Arts Guild of Alberta, and at the Coutts Centre in Nanton when the University of Lethbridge Art Department is hosting their plein aire events.
The best way to get hold of Judith is by e-mail at judith@judithmcrae.com.
The Studio is currently located at #105 1811 12th Avenue SW, Calgary, Alberta. It’s been at this location since May of 1999.
She has had a wide variety of work experiences, including computer programming, advertising, the printing industry, the non-profit sector, and education.