My Memory of the Perch Hole
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This egg tempera was created in 2026. It was painted on a gessoed board. The framed dimensions are 17.5 in. in diameter.
Why I paint in Egg Tempera
Egg tempera is the most beautiful and sensitive painting medium that I have ever used. The paint is a simple mixture of fine artist pigments, egg yolk and distilled water. It can be used in extremely thin layers giving it wonderful glazing capabilities. The white gessoed panel, underneath the paint film, reflects light back through the painting giving it a beautiful glowing effect.
Egg tempera is one of the oldest painting media known to mankind, dating back to antiquity. Tempera painting was surpassed in popularity by the newly invented oil paint in the fourteenth century, which was more convenient for artists to work with. However, during the twentieth century, egg tempera painting saw a revival, particularly with realist painters who enjoyed its natural earthy quality and its ability to render fine detail.
The medium is best painted on rigid panels that are first primed with numerous layers of traditional gesso. The dried gesso resembles plaster but is harder and can be smoothed to a degree similar to that of polished marble! It is this smooth surface that allows the artist to paint extremely thin layers of paint and delicate fine lines. The paint film dries in minutes but continues to cure and harden for years after the artist finishes the artwork. The surface of an egg tempera painting displays a slight natural sheen and the many layers of paint and the thousands (perhaps millions) of tiny brush strokes combine to give an egg tempera painting its distinctive finish.
Given minimal care, egg tempera is more permanent than other painting media. There are examples of tempera paintings many hundreds of years old in museums and art galleries. An occasional gentle dusting or polishing with a dry soft cloth is usually all the maintenance that is required.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY -
David McKay has been painting on a full-time basis in Fredericton, New Brunswick for over fifty years. He graduated from Fredericton High School and the Saint John Institute of Technology and is self-taught as an artist.
Early in his career, McKay established himself by exhibiting in regional art galleries and as early as 1976 began showing in Montreal and Toronto. Also in 1976, he was included in an internationally touring exhibition titled Atlantic Coast that was organized by the National Gallery of Canada.
Throughout the seventies and eighties the artist worked diligently honing his skills and continued showing throughout Canada (Hollander York Gallery in Toronto, The Shayne Gallery in Montreal, The Gallery in St. John’s Newfoundland, Ferntree Gallery in Calgary, The Ring Gallery in Saint John, Gallery One in Moncton and Gallery 78 in Fredericton).
David has been featured nationally on both radio and television (Anthology on CBC radio, 1987, Spirited Artists on Bravo TV, 2003, Studio Tour on Bell Aliant Community Channel, 2013). He has been the subject of dozens of interviews for the press and for television and radio.
McKay’s artwork was selected for inclusion in The N.B. Juried Exhibition (1985), The N.B. Art Competition (1987), and received an honourable mention in The Marion McCain Juried Exhibition (1989) at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery. David McKay’s work was shown at The Toronto International Art Fair in 2007 and The Boston International Fine Art Show in 2008. In 2010 the artist was invited to participate in the exhibition Wolastoq (Beautiful River): The Saint John River Project at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery and Portraits-New Brunswick Artists at the New Brunswick Museum in 2009. In 2019-2020, his work was included in the Marion McCain Exhibition of Atlantic Canadian Art at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery.
David McKay’s artwork is in numerous private collections and is in the following public collections: The Beaverbrook Art Gallery, His Royal Highness Prince Andrew, Mount Allison University, l'Université de Moncton, Irving Oil Limited, the New Brunswick Art Bank, the Confederation Centre Art Gallery, Charlottetown, the University of New Brunswick, the New Brunswick Museum, Esso Resource Centre, McCain Foods (Canada) and the City of Fredericton.
David McKay has completed service of a four-year term on the board of directors of The Canada Council for the Arts. He was elected to the Royal Academy of Arts (RCA) in 2006. In 2019 David was honoured with the Fredericton Arts Achievement Award for his outstanding achievement in and contribution to, the arts and cultural landscape in the city.
