Morrisburg Leader
May 30 2001

Samantha Thompson

WILLIAMSBURG - Picture looking at the Seaway Locks from the Iroquois Golf Course with an ocean liner coming out and a passenger boad waiting to go through the locks. Now picture that image on a 10x5 foot canvass displayed at the Canadian Tulip Festival.

South Dundas artist, Cathie Scrivener, was commissioned by Glen Cunningham to paint this scene. The banner, created from Scrivener's artwork, will be erected beside the South Dundas booth in Major's Hill Park for the duration of the festival.

Cunningham met Scriveners when she and fellow South Dundas Artists Guild members participated in the Country Christmas Tour in December.

"He must have kept me in mind," said Scrivener in an interview on May 4. "He asked me to paint a proof for the banner last month. I started on it as soon as he gave me the go ahead."

With prepping the canvas and painting, it took her a week to complete the small scale painting. It was laser copied onto the banner-sized canvass by Shane Signs of Crysler.

The St. Lawrence Bed & Breakfast commissioned Scrivener to paint signage for their float in the Tulip Gateway Parade.

"They are interested in hanging my work in their B&B."

Scrivener, who signs under the last name Cooper, has been "painting and drawing ever since I could hold a pencil."

She doesn't limit her artwork, which she presently sells through Libby's Art Gallery in Toronto, to any one specialty.

"I paint wildlife, landscapes, portraits, murals, signage, businesses, homes, buildings, anything."

Her favourite subjects are scenes from Algonquin Park and Algoma area. She and her family take four trips a year; a trip during every season to capture nature's beauty.

"My entire family paints, my father (Rudy Cooper), my mother (Lois Cooper) and my brother (Chris Cooper). We will be showing together this year at Libby's.

Of painting for a living, Scrivener says, "The first thing I had to learn was to take myself seriously. It's a nine to five job. I can't let other people distract me."

Scrivener has a good body of work, and is preparing for the future. Each piece is photographed on transparency. The transparencies are on file at Artek Printing for print ordering. Each piece costs her approximately $130 to archive.

"It's worth it. I am investing in my own business. This way I don't have to track down my paintings when I have orders down the road. Whether it pays off, comes down the road."

One of her prints is in the Manager's office at the Bank of Montreal in Morrisburg.

"It's hard to tell the difference between my prints and my original paintings. Each print is printed on canvass and glazed like a painting would be."

"Cathie's Art Studio" is where Scrivener displays her collection of work online. Interested people may view her work by calling 543-3395.