You’ve likely seen the giant “Q” over Lonsdale Quay lit up by the hues of a glowing sunset, but not quite like this.
A new painting by North Vancouver artist Sarah Afskoven captures the landmark in a rich palate that evokes the iconic object and probably something grander too.
Afskoven said she started painting Quayside on Saturday on-site, and finished it Monday in her home studio in Lynn Valley.
“I decided to paint it less for the subject matter and more because I needed to get some sun – I paint full time and my workload has been heavy lately, so I’ve not been spending enough time outdoors,” she said.
Painting the subject live also led to some interactions with online admirers of her work. Sometimes, Afskoven posts her work on the forum website Reddit.
“I always have a little sign up on my easel when live painting with my name/social media/website and the Redditors mentioned they’d seen previous paintings of mine, presumably on the Vancouver or North Vancouver subreddits,” she said. Between the two subreddits, Quayside has been upvoted mpre than 1,000 times.
Apart from urban landmarks, Afskoven likes to reproduce landscapes, and paints the North Shore mountains frequently.
Several observers have pointed out the vibrancy of the colours in her works. Afskoven said a possible explanation is that she is what’s called a tetrachromat, but she’s never been medically tested to confirm.
“It means one has an extra type of cone cell in their eyes (the parts that perceive colours), so my ability to pick up minute variations in shades of any colour is evidently much higher than average,” she said. “I’ve always heard comments on the vibrance of my landscapes, but to me, they just look the way I see the world.”
