Giving away her paintings: How a Saskatoon businesswoman found her ‘life’s work’

As fast as Lloanne Pinel can create her abstract paintings, she’s giving them away.

The Saskatoon woman and her family have owned a children’s party and entertainment company called Fantastic Facepainting for the past 20 years.

But when the pandemic hit nearly one year ago, bookings quickly dried up, and there haven’t been any since then.

“So we basically had the corner on the corporate market; Christmas parties, summer events. It was packed with just all sorts of fun activities for kids. And then the pandemic hit and everybody cancelled,” she said.

A talented painter, Pinel says she had a lot of time on her hands and she began pouring her heart into painting canvasses rather than faces, which brought her joy. In December, she decided to give away one of those paintings.

“I was just reaching out to people and finding out a lot of people have really suffered,” she said. “Our (family’s) mental health has been relatively very healthy and we’ve been sort of able to ride the wave and keep our heads far above the water and I wanted to give back to some people.”

She said it was so fulfilling giving away the painting and seeing the person’s reaction that she decided to continue to do it in February.

(Lloanne Pinel/Facebook)

“I was just so overwhelmed with the response to it … So then February just went so well and I just decided, ‘OK, let’s do this for March. I’m kind of hooked,’ ” she explained.

She loves hearing people’s stories when she delivers the paintings, and seeing their happiness when they receive the artwork.

She so far has given away 55 paintings and has requests for 35 more. All of the costs incurred — including buying brushes, paints, canvasses, and even the gas and time it takes to deliver the paintings — come out of Pinel’s own pocket.

“We have just been so blessed in our life and money drives everybody,” she said. “I just feel like to do it for free means that people can actually believe that it’s authentic and genuine.”

She hopes those she gives her paintings to feel encouraged and lifted up, which is why she says she’ll continue. Pinel believes she may have found her calling and will continue to create and give away her paintings for as long as she’s able.

“I really think I may have found my life’s work,” she said.

Pinel has an Instagram account where people who would like to request a painting can connect with her called ‘my_heart_myart.’ She also has a website with a similar name.