New Hamburg artist wins top prize at Paint Ontario
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
By Galen Simmons
For New Hamburg artist Sarah Clarke, the beauty of the natural world is often found in the quiet moments others might walk past without noticing.
It is the way light catches on a leaf, the sparkle of frost on twigs or the reflection of trees on the water – small, fleeting scenes Clarke captures in oil paint and offers back to others as a reminder there is still beauty and hope in the world.
That attention to detail recently earned Clarke first prize and $3,000 at the Paint Ontario 2026 juried art show and sale, hosted by the Grand Bend Art Centre, for her oil painting, “Holy Noticing.”
“I think what people pay attention to in the world really matters right now,” Clarke said. “Our attention is constantly being pulled toward the negative. … When I’m out in the world just noticing the way the light catches on a leaf or something, it just brings your focus into the joy.”
“Holy Noticing” depicts a scene in Huron Park in Kitchener, a natural preserve Clarke described as “amazing.” The piece focuses on a frosty landscape filled with twigs, light and sparkle – the kind of everyday scene she said many people might pass by without a second look.
“It’s magic when you pay attention to the landscape,” Clarke said. “I think that is my art practice. … It’s sacred, noticing things most people just walk by.”
A 2011 graduate of the University of Waterloo, Clarke has been painting since graduation, aside from a brief period working as an interior-design assistant. She now works as both an artist and stay-at-home mother, something she said has deeply influenced the way she sees and paints the world.
While Clarke said she once painted broader landscape scenes, having children helped draw her attention to the smaller, close-up moments in nature.
“Their wonder for the world … especially when they’re toddlers, you go to the forest with them and there is no hurrying by it,” Clarke said. “You’re just in the present moment with them.”
Clarke said becoming a mother added another layer to her work by helping her slow down and focus on the kinds of details children naturally stop to appreciate.
This year marked Clarke’s first time submitting work to juried art shows. She said she had always been hesitant because of the possibility of rejection, but this spring she decided to take a chance and entered three shows. She was accepted into all three, including Paint Ontario.
“I was not anticipating that at all,” Clarke said of winning first prize. “I went to the show with my husband and there were so many gorgeous pieces and pieces by artists I’ve followed and admired forever. … Just to get among them and meet some of the people I’ve looked up to on my journey, it was really cool.”
Hosted at the Grand Bend Legion Hall from May 2-17, Paint Ontario is an annual exhibition and sale that supports both emerging and professional artists. According to the Grand Bend Art Centre, the show was founded by artist Barry Richman and has continued to grow while maintaining its focus on representational art.
The 2026 show featured more than $14,000 in painting and sculpture awards and prizes, including the $3,000 grand prize Clarke received.
For Clarke, original art carries with it the life and experience of the person who created it.
“People often ask how long a piece takes,” she said. “It takes a lifetime. It’s all my history … emotion and effort.”
Clarke said she hopes those who see or purchase her work connect with the landscapes she paints and begin noticing similar moments of beauty in their own lives.
“It’s always my hope that people will resonate with a piece and either see something familiar, a landscape they pass by without really paying attention to it, or mostly that the light speaks to people in my pieces,” she said. “And then that it will bring them joy in their home.”
Comments