Chalk Pastel on Paper 16” x 10” 2007 (Age 11) At the time I did this chalk pastel at age eleven we were living in a rented home, which sat next to a ravine on 32 acres of land. My brother Zac and I enjoyed building forts down in the woods and mucking around in the stream. We loved to watch the squirrels scurrying through the trees, hiding nuts in hollowed-out trunks. I was inspired by a photo in a children’s wildlife magazine and decided to draw this Red Squirrel. Before I hung it for my first exhibition in the Artway on Two at Joseph Brant Hospital it was sold... to my grandmother. At her request, I had already done a portrait of her cat Miss Sally, and I gave that to her as a gift. When she saw this squirrel and said she would like to buy it, I offered to give it to her too. However, she insisted on purchasing it so I gave her a good deal. She proudly displays it in her dining room, showing photos of this and the rest of my pieces in a purse album she carries wherever she goes... typical grandma! Giclée Print Available