Local Artist Celebrates Wildlife in Art
Tara A. Spears
Canadian naturalist and artist, Tosia Polomski Archer, uses her talent to capture the local exotic wildlife that inhabits the coastal jungles of Jaltemba Bay in beautiful paintings. “The subject matter in Mexico is so plentiful that it’s easy to just sit anywhere and sketch/paint away!” said Tosia. “I was instantly overwhelmed by the variety and tropical colours of flowering plants in our bountiful area of Nayarit. It didn’t take much for me to get my camera and paints to capture them.” Tosia’s intelligence and keen eye provide a realistic snapshot of wildlife in each captivating watercolor or acrylic painting.
This professional artist resides in Mexico and near where she grew up in a small village called Kirkfield, Ontario, in the beautiful Kawartha region. According to Wikipedia, the Kawartha Lakes are a chain of lakes in south-central Ontario, Canada that form the upper watershed of the Trent River. Tosia enjoys living in the midst of the diversity of birds and wildlife in two different climates.
While Tosia always loved art and taking classes in high school, it wasn’t until about 2006 when she and her husband, David, began spending time in Mexico during the winter months that she was able to become serious about creating her art. Tosia has taken water color classes with the GAC and she also subscribed to online courses. “I have a fantastically successful artist friend and mentor here in the Kawarthas. She pushes me past my comfort zone and it was her influence that got me to using deeper, fuller, undiluted colours. My mentor also got me interested in acrylic paint.”
Tosia realized “that sketching out my subjects from my own photographs as reference worked best for me.” Utilizing this strategy for capturing her subject-especially something fast moving such as a humming bird, or wild life scampering off in the jungle-in a digital photo allows her to work unhurriedly on her paintings in her studio and not harm the subject. The following photos show the Ontario studio, the artist with camera, and painting in Kawartha.
“After meeting Lin Chimes when volunteering at one of the JBAR spay and nueter clinics in 2008, Lin told me about a local painting group, The Guayabitos Artist Collective. After being invited to participate in the GAC and a ladies’ yoga group, I enjoyed both. For the most part our painting classes involved water colours with some drawing lessons as well.” Of course Tosia’s natural talent and love for animals found lots of stimulation for painting subjects.
“The GAC had a gallery show and sale at Xaltemba Gallery the first year I painted with them. I was so nervous, sweaty, and excited to participate! I was happy our painting group was invited to participate in a Mermaid Exhibit at the Xaltemba Gallery. Many different artists and mediums. I submitted two watercolour paintings of mermaids, that I still have,” explained Tosia. “Participating in a real artist exhibit motivated me to begin to offer my work for sale.”
Another step towards developing my artistic scope resulted from the GAC being invited to participate in an exhibit in Guadalajara. Tosia chose her longtime fur baby friend, Agua Chili Bob (named after one of her fav Mexican shrimp dishes) as her model Her acrylic painting was published in a book after the show.
One year Tosia decided to paint a picture of a friend’s cat to give them as a Christmas gift. Shortly thereafter, the cat died so the couple was thrilled to have this remembrance. “People remarked how much it looked just like her… So I practiced by painting a few more friends and family members’ cats and my own dog.” From this one painting Tosia began getting commissions to create portraits of deceased pets. “It took off from there, mostly by word of mouth, but also from my posts on Facebook. I then started a Facebook page, Tosia Polomski-Archer Art” to provide a means of contacting her to request a painting. Commission a painting for your home or purchase a painting as a unique gift!
Tosia humbly credits her husband, two dogs, and a cat for encouraging me to paint more. “The fact that David loves MY art gives me a lot of much needed confidence. I sometimes sit back and stare at some of my paintings and think to myself, “I did that, that art work was from my hands and my mind.” I guess I would have to say I am proud of having an ability that is both pleasurable and puts some money in my pocket.”
Art is integral in our culture because it provides us with a deeper understanding of emotions, self-awareness or it can capture a beloved object for eternity; what better way to combine beauty and have a loving reminder of your four legged friend than with a Tosia Archer portrait?
Art is powerful, not just for its beauty or the talent needed for its creation, but because it can cause emotion, make political statements, or challenge preconceived ideas. Good art should appeal to you. It will be skillfully made with the composition, color and line, drawing the viewer into the picture. Good art is understandable, although it may make you think in ways you never expected to. 
The best art has meaning beyond just an image; perhaps it will bring you to tears, make you laugh, or remind you of something you’d almost forgotten. Quality art stands out in a crowd, and dares to be different. The original paintings by Tosia Archer have all these qualities.
For more information or to commission a painting, contact Tosia:
https://www.facebook.com/TosiaPolomskiArcherArt/ or
email address; archertosia@gmail.com
