A painting by Summerland artist Peter Steuart has earned him prestigious recognition through Ducks Unlimited Canada.
Steuart’s painting, Northern Landscape, depicts a snowy owl, painted from a reference photograph he had taken in the B.C. Southern Interior.
The painting was submitted to the Ducks Unlimited Canada National Art Portfolio. Of the 1,211 entries received this year, 20 were made into high quality limited edition prints, used for fundraising initiatives for Ducks Unlimited Canada.
Steuart, a self-taught painter, was named Artist of the Year for his painting.
“Getting the Ducks Unlimited title was incredible,” he said “I just couldn’t believe it.”
After a career as a photographer, Steuart made the switch to painting when he was 43.
At the time, photography was undergoing a transition from film to digital images.
“It’s so different from the way it used to be,” Steuart said of digital photography. “I wanted something new to get into.”
He had done a lot of drawing while he was growing up. Combined with his love of wildlife and nature, he began to draw wildlife he saw in the area, later making the transition to painting.
Steuart said his knowledge of composition and lighting from his years as a photographer have helped him as a painter.
Organizers of the Ducks Unlimited art program say the annual competition helps to preserve artists and highlight the need to conserve Canada’s natural areas.
“We are very fortunate to have the support of some of the greatest artists from Canada and beyond, including Peter Steuart, and we are very excited to celebrate his accomplishments as a first-time National Art Portfolio artist and the 2014 Artist of the Year,” said Scott Baker, Ducks Unlimited Canada’s national manager of retail programs.
The National Art Portfolio has been in place for more than 30 years.