Ray Ophoff

I share a studio with painter Dana Cromie and Framing By Estrella, which is in the Paneficio Studio building at 800 Keefer (at Hawks Ave.) in the heart of beautiful Strathcona, on the edge of Chinatown and across from MacLean Park.

When I started painting again I was blessed by having no expectations of a career in art.

As a child, I was lucky enough to be raised in the semi-wilderness that was suburban North Surrey during a time when kids were expected to stay outside until dinner at 5 o’clock—sharp!

I remember being shocked to discover that not all homes were filled with books and artworks.

My dad was a gifted painter and photographer his entire adult life and was an adventurous colourist. When my mother took up painting, she emerged as a natural draftsman with a great eye for composition.

The seeming chaos in nature belies an order and structure that I see over and over again. There are no random branches on trees.

I’m either cramming the entire horizon onto a 9” x 12” panel or painting a crocus bigger than your head. It’s all in an effort to make some sense of a small corner of the world.

Come find me through the teal door on Hawks Ave. across from the park, adjacent to some of the last free parking in the city.