Selkies of Salt Spring Island
“Salt Spring Island vistas from country roads, this
scene is a favourite across farm fields to distant Sunset Drive and the
glistening waters on Salt Spring Island’s west side.” J
Selkies Of Salt Spring Island
‘Foggy, mysterious days mean time in my snug studio. With the fire lit, the baseboard heater humming, and music filling the room, I settle into choosing delicious colours to conjure a painting. I dab and fiddle, sensing something is not quite right—until suddenly, I have it.
Selkies… harbour seals. I can feel their presence popping up beside resting skiffs, gathering together for a moment. Their indigo coats shine like polished stone, their coal-black eyes bright against their camouflaged fur. They cavort about the inner docks right beside my gallery. My gigantic luck!
Yet as I savour the moment, I notice passersby hardly give them a glance. How is it that with such magic all around—a grand natural water show no aquarium could match—I seem to be the only witness?
It becomes a private joke between me and the Selkies. I gurgle with laughter, hardly believing my good fortune. Clearly, I am their star audience as they perform with all they have.
Deep in these memories, seals begin to take shape on my canvas—a Payne’s grey paint form with opaque inky eyes staring back without a blink. In that instant I feel they remember me, too, from that long-ago gathering in the harbour.
Perhaps it is my Celtic lineage—ancient stories carried in watery memory, whispering through time. The painted Selkies could be ancestors from across the seas. Distance and time know no boundaries.
Over more than forty years living beside the Pacific Ocean, I have had many magical encounters with seals. Their fascination seems mutual. I remember one kayak paddle when an entourage of more than forty seals surfaced around me for most of the day, even following me from their sea world around a tiny island. Wherever I looked, Selkies were below the surface, gazing upward, calling me toward the sea.’
Jill
Colourful and vibrant canvas limited editions are each signed and numbered by Artist Jill Louise Campbell. Certificates are included. This canvas artwork is crafted on Salt Spring Island using archival inks and advanced printing technology. All prints are carefully top-coated for added UV protection, providing flexibility to hang in bright sun-filled spaces. *original enhancements are available.
The Small & Medium Limited Editions are stretched by hand onto Canadian-made wood stretcher bars, ready to hang on your wall and enjoy. The Large size is normally shipped rolled due to its size, with stretching easily done by your local framer.
General shipping is via Canada Post, connecting internationally through USPS and other national postal services.
Notes on Original Enhancing:
“Original Enhancing is available for many of my Limited Editions. It is with great pleasure to revisit a painting and give original layering in acrylic paint over top a fine art canvas that is a signed and numbered reproduction. The image is first reproduced using archival inks sprayed over top canvas, I then take back this canvas to my art studio and begin the exciting process of painting over top using thick acrylic paint perhaps enhancing an area previously quiet or soft, or pulling out areas to feature giving a whole new original feel and look. My finishing is the signature gold acrylic paint I use to line and define areas offering a soft yet enhanced clairity. I love photographing as the "new" look emerges along the way and send an email my client with a personable note and photoed images of the process from my studio art easel, giving lasting photo documenting of their unique "original enhanced" piece." J
https://www.jilllouisecampbell.com/collections/frames-for-limited-editions-
Original : Available