The Peninsula B次元官网网址 Review continues a series of artist profiles leading up to the Sidney Fine Art Show Oct. 13 to 15 at the Mary Winspear Centre. ItB次元官网网址檚 part of the annual ArtSea Festival on the Saanich Peninsula the runs Oct. 13 to 22.
For Sandhu Singh and his 14 year-old son Liam, art is a shared hobby. Though Sandhu paints with watercolours and Liam is a wildlife photographer, they rely on each other for honest advice and inspiration.
B次元官网网址淚f I do a painting, it doesnB次元官网网址檛 matter if heB次元官网网址檚 sleeping or not,B次元官网网址� said Sandhu. B次元官网网址淚 always yell, B次元官网网址楲iam!B次元官网网址� He has to come and look at it and tell me whatB次元官网网址檚 missing. He has a very good eye, so he can say, B次元官网网址楧ad, it looks busy,B次元官网网址� or B次元官网网址榙ad, it need something,B次元官网网址� or he might say, B次元官网网址榳ow, dad thatB次元官网网址檚 good!B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址� I donB次元官网网址檛 do it by myself.B次元官网网址�
Both were accepted into the Sidney Fine Art Show this year, where they were patrons for years. Sandhu said the show is special to both of them.
B次元官网网址淲hen I first went there, I had no idea what it was all about. I entered three paintings, I went there and I walked up to the lady, and she said, B次元官网网址榶ou didnB次元官网网址檛 fill out this paperwork out properly.B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址�
As it turned out, he failed to name a price for his work. He whispered to the clerk to B次元官网网址渏ust be honestB次元官网网址� and tell him what she thought it was worth, and she said she couldnB次元官网网址檛 since it wasnB次元官网网址檛 her job. He ended up writing a number somewhat arbitrarily, which allowed him to enter and eventually win Best In Show in 2011.
Sandhu, who is a full-time cardiac nurse, has been interested in art for a long time. He grew up north of New Delhi in Chardigarh, which was then a small town.
B次元官网网址淚 grew up fantasizing about big cities like London and New York,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淭all buildings, traffic, Datsun cars.B次元官网网址�
He immigrated to Canada in 1990, and started painting watercolors as a hobby in 2004.
B次元官网网址淚 was hanging around the house and my wife Emily said, B次元官网网址榊ou gotta go do something! You gotta pursue what you want to pursue.B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址�
She bought him his first set of paints, and he just carried on from there, dedicating himself more seriously in 2009.
Liam, 14, first got his hands on a camera at the age of 2. He got serious about photography in Grade 5, just before his trip to Churchill, Manitoba B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址渢he polar bear capital of the world.B次元官网网址� Since then, he has gone to the Galapagos, Madagascar, Australia, and the Aleutian Islands with his grandmother.
He photographs birds as part of his ornithological research and for enjoyment. He volunteers at the Royal B.C. Museum, and puts tracking bands on birds at 2 a.m. at Rocky Point some weekends.
B次元官网网址淯sually I have a few species in mind that I want to go photograph, and IB次元官网网址檒l go to those particular places.B次元官网网址�
He went to Island View Beach specifically to look for Habronattus americanus, a type of jumping spider with a black back and a bright red front. Liam enjoys showing that photo to people because he said B次元官网网址渕ost people donB次元官网网址檛 know that a spider that brightly coloured lives in Victoria.B次元官网网址�
Sandhu said that he gets shy when people praise his work at shows.
B次元官网网址淚f people say, B次元官网网址榊our work is beautiful, I say thank you. And if they keep saying it, I get a little uncomfortable. I just want to hide in a hole,B次元官网网址� he laughed.
B次元官网网址淚t can be daunting,B次元官网网址� said Liam, B次元官网网址渂ut usually itB次元官网网址檚 pretty fun to see your work and just be proud of what you see up there.B次元官网网址�
The Singhs have also experienced rejection, too, which was a lesson for both father and son.
B次元官网网址淥ne year, they didnB次元官网网址檛 take a single one of my paintings. And Liam learned not to take the disappointment too personally. ThatB次元官网网址檚 just the way it goes, sometimes.B次元官网网址�
Sandhu realizes that they are both relatively new to the art, and they are humble about their early success.
B次元官网网址淭o be with people whoB次元官网网址檝e been painting 40 years, 50 years ahead of us, itB次元官网网址檚 inspiring in many ways,B次元官网网址� said Sandhu.
reporter@peninsulanewsreview.com
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