City Scape Paintings

I usually don't go looking for subjects to paint, they almost always find me! Sometimes it's an interesting looking tree or atmospheric light. Sometimes it's an unusual burst of color in an object or an interesting compositional geometry as in the case of cityscapes and buildings. Architectural subjects, particularly old ones can be fascinating and inviting. Below are a few of my favorites and others may already be in the works!

Original acrylic paintings on gallery wrapped canvas $ as marked
Giclée prints on gallery wrapped canvas (enhanced with acrylic)
28x38”= $490, 16x20"= $255 

Original acrylic on canvas paintings are made with the best artist grade, light fast pigments available and can be hung in brightly lit areas. The painting extends over to finish the edges so framing is optional. My 30 x 40" originals weigh a mere 2 1/2lb (less than a cup of coffee) so hanging is simple and easy using conventional picture hooks. Because part of the image is on the edge, the face dimensions are reduced. 30x40” = 28x38” and 18x22” = 16x20”

Acrylic giclée prints on canvas look very similar to original paintings and are the best type of reproductions available today. I finish each print with artist-grade acrylic and a special mirrored edge treatment that simulates the painted edge of the original. They are ready to hang as is.

Purchase guarantee: If you are not completely happy with your purchase, I will refund 100% of your sale. 

Bird Cages Walk is a painting of the oldest grocery store in Victoria BC.

Bird Cages Walk 
30 x 40” acrylic on canvas, $ sold 
(prints available)

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Built in 1915, Birdcages Walk is the oldest grocery store still operating in Victoria. It is located at the corner of Government Street and Michigan, just behind the Parliament buildings (where the store got it's name). The domed tops of the parliament buildings used to be referred to as "bird cages", as they looked a lot like the old bird cages of days gone by. One of the hardest yet most rewarding paintings I've done, the drawing was tricky. Years of sagging and warping has caused the facing boards to bend gently in and out of original alignment!
This is an acrylic painting of Bastion Square in Victoria BC by local artist Barry Tate

Bastion Square 
30 x 40” acrylic on canvas, $ sold 
(prints available)

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An ancient part of the original down town core of Victoria BC, Bastion Square now serves as a chic area for shops, restaurants and the Maritime Museum above. In the summer from May to September, the square is transformed by local artisans into a thriving arts and crafts market. Robert Whittle a local author made popular through his Lizzie series books, can be seen standing near his yellow folded tent on the left.
This is a painting of Fan Tan Alley, Victoria BC by Barry Tate

Fan Tan Alley 
30 x 40” acrylic on canvas, $ sold 
(prints available)

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Fan Tan Alley is one of the oldest and most narrow shopping districts in North America. It is in the heart of China Town Victoria BC.
This is a painting of China Town in Victoria BC with the historic Foo Hongs restaurant in the forground.

Foo Hongs
30 x 40” acrylic on canvas, $ sold 
(prints available)

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Foo Hongs restaurant was perhaps the most famous chinese food establishment in Victoria.
This is a painting of an old homestead in Donegal Ireland, by Barry Tate

Donegal Homestead 
30 x 40” acrylic on canvas, $2400  
(prints available)

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Situated on the beautiful northwest coast of Ireland, this Donegal homestead makes us long for the days when life was simpler. No cell phones, computers and personal pocket assistants to fuss with. Pegs can be see protruding from under the eves- the traditional way of anchoring down the grass of the thatched roofs.
This is an acrylic city scape painting of Calgary Alberta, by Barry Tate

Calgary Alive
30 x 40” acrylic on canvas, $ sold 
(prints available)

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One of most rewarding elements for me as an artist, is the infinite range of subject ideas I get from my clients. "You should paint Bird Cages Walk, a rooster, my dog, crazy cows doing something... I love to paint and I love variety so it is a wonderfully natural synergy. Calgary Alive was inspired this way. I wasn't long into the painting when it hit me like my other cityscapes. This is going to take a very long time! Cityscapes like portraits demand a certain accuracy but there's no point in just painting what a camera can do. Interpreting the scene through one's own experience is what creates the art and in the end makes the whole process rewarding. Calgary isn't new. It's been one of the fastest growing cities in North America since I was in grade school- a long time ago! Still the city seems young, clean and vibrant. A workable blend of corporate head quarters and generous green spaces along the river. Very busy, very alive.

Impressions Of Chinatown 
30 x 40” acrylic on canvas, $ sold 
(prints available)

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This is an interpretive style painting of Victoria's China Town viewed from the "Gates Of Harmonious Interest".
Barry Tate at work on a new painting

A Day In Vallarta
30 x 40” Acrylic On Canvas, $ sold
prints available

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Mexico is a wonderful place and abounds with great scenery, especially when one ventures off the main tourists routes. One day in Puerto Vallarta while my wife Patti was taking an art course, I ventured off  into the back streets armed with my camera. The climb up and down the steep and bumpy roadways was treacherous but more than worth it! They are lined with fabulous old stone and plaster buildings dripping with cascades of brightly colored flowers. Everything has a comfortable, hand-made look so refreshing from modern standards. I liked this particular street immediately for the inviting contrast of the sunlit Spanish home framed against the  cool blue shadows of the wobbly street.