Satisfying his soul

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 08/03/2018 (2985 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Andrew Mendoza’s art is all about the process.

“There is a joy in painting,” said Mendoza, who moved to East Kildonan with his family from the Philippines eight years ago. “I get a connection to what I’m doing, and I’m able to express what’s in my mind.”

Mendoza started his life as an artist while studying civil engineering in college in the Philippines. He started working with charcoal, then moved on to watercolours and oils.

“Oil is very challenging,” he said. “You can do a lot with oil. But I also love soft pastel.”

Recently Mendoza, who works as a design draftsman for Star Ready to Move Homes (1066 Springfield Rd.), won the Barbara Cook Endres Award at the annual Manitoba Society of Artists Open Juried Competition for a self-portrait he painted using soft pastels.

“Soft pastel is very challenging too,” Mendoza said. “You have a limited number of colours to work with. You have to really think about the available colours. You can’t mix, you can blend, but it’s not similar to oil paint. It’s a very different process.”

The Barbara Cook Endres Award came with a $1,500 prize. The exhibition runs until March 29 at the Warehouse Artworks Gallery (222 McDermot Ave.).

A self-taught artist, Mendoza said he enjoys entering competitions because they challenge him.

“I’ve been doing the (MSA) juried shows for five years now,” he said. “Only in Canada was I able to really nurture my talent. I started watching YouTube tutorials, and now I have been exposed to many great artists. I’ve been able to expand my knowledge through research on the internet. Before, we didn’t have that access.”

Mendoza, who paints at home, said he hopes one day to have a studio of his own.

“I paint beside the furnace,” he said with a laugh. In the midst of a commissioned portrait, Mendoza allowed himself a small upgrade. “Now, actually, I’m working in our master bedroom. I removed our bed and put my canvas on the wall.”

While Mendoza said he spends a great deal of time working on portraits of his friends and family, he also really enjoys painting landscapes.

“I’m planning on doing some plein air paintings when the weather is better,” he said, adding in the past he’s painted landscapes from photographs he’d taken. While he is satisfied with the result, he wants to push himself further.

“It didn’t make me happy enough,” he said. “I believe working on location, it gives you more satisfaction. It gives you a better reference than the photo. And you enjoy nature. That is a total package of stress releasing!”

This summer, Mendoza plans to bring his family out to paint with him in nearby Kilcona Park or Birds Hill Provincial Park to paint.

“My kids love to paint, they want to do what I’m doing too,” he said, pointing to landscapes in his office that his son Marten, 12, and daughter Pauline, seven, had painted.

“I can imagine, one day maybe, they will be side by side with me out there, doing plein air painting,” Mendoza added. “That will be very satisfying.”

Until then, Mendoza will continue to work at his craft, ever eager to work on the next painting.
“I have to make more,” he said. “That’s a thing in my soul that makes me happy. I just can’t stop.”

Visit www.andrewmendoza.ca to view more of Mendoza’s artwork.