Whether he’s capturing the scene or the moment, Adam Meikle is happiest working with oils.
Meikle and his wife Jenna have recently arrived from Alberta and have opened Meikle Art Studio at 311 Ross St. NE, across from the Ross Street Plaza.
“We have family here and we wanted to focus on slowing down and enjoying our kids while they’re still young,” he says, noting that he got his start as a youngster at an art club in Red Deer. “I worked with talented adults; they inspired me and I have been painting ever since.”
Meikle has worked with oils for about 15 years and with watercolours for a bit longer.
“I learned by trial and error, painting over the same canvas, over and over,” says the self-taught artist. “Watercolour is a one-time thing; you paint it once and that’s it. With oil, you can change it the next day, the next month.”
Meikle says oil paint is fluid and pliable, almost akin to carving or sculpting.
“You smear paint on the canvas and shape it until you get what you want,” he says.
Meikle specializes in realism and impressionism and is currently working on a commission for a client on Vancouver Island, who has asked for a portrait of himself with his wife and family dog.
Landscapes are also popular commission requests.
Art classes will soon be in the offing.
Meikle has joined the Mt. Ida Painter’s Guild and was surprised the group hadn’t had any workshops for several years.
“I want to fill that need and will also give classes, hopefully beginning in February.” And Meikle also wants to have feature artists display in the studio and, if they want to, give their own classes.
“It seems like there’s never enough space to display art work, there’s always the need for room to display more.”
The studio’s website www.meikle.studio.
The studio is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturday by appointment only.
The couple will celebrate the grand opening of their Ross Street location on Friday, March 11.
For more information or to book an appointment, call 1-587-343-1745, or send an email to meiklestudios@gmail.com.