Ted Stuckless, Twillingate’s homegrown artistic talent

In July of this year, I was fortunate to be invited to tour some of the coastal villages and islands of Newfoundland.  After driving from Gander airport, our trip began in the stunning town of Twillingate.

The hosts of the B & B we stayed in insisted we go to see the art of Ted Stuckless.  We found Ted in his gallery, had a lovely chat with him, and were invited to see the studio upstairs where he works.  The gallery space and studio used to house his grandfather’s general store.

An incredibly talented painter, Ted rarely moves from his studio space as he is constantly inspired by surrounding Twillingate, and is quite  happy to “paint upstairs, because everything changes, and I just accept it”  .

We climbed steep stairs to see his studio,   which  according to his wife was a rare treat to be invited to view.   Part of the cluttered creative space was dedicated to his art, the other corner, a fascinating jumble of electronic parts, where he experiments with gravity.  “Every new adventure creates clutter”, he said.

Self taught , he began painting as a child. As his parents had no money for brushes, so determined to paint, he tore the hair off his own head to  paint with.  He  had only white paint, which  he mixed with soot  to create dark paint. A fascinating man, totally immersed in his art .

Driftwood Art Studio, 125 Main Street, Twillingate, Newfoundland, http://www.tedstuckless.com

Where to stay:  There are quite a few choices in Twillingate. We stayed with the delightful Winston and Wavey Cutler, Hillside  B & B, 14 Blandford’s Lane, a home away from home; www.bbcanada.com/nfhillside, email: waveycutler@gmail.com, 1-709-884-1666

Melody’s trip was sponsored by Adventure Central Newfoundland, http://www.adventurecentralnewfoundland.ca