A Portrait in Profile II
Veils Suite: A Portrait in Profile II
monotype (oil-based inks) and watercolour pencil drawing
76 x 57 cm.
by Marja-Leena
by Marja-Leena Made In India
Another exhibition by the very busy printmakers Tomoyo Ihaya and Taiga Chiba is opening this week at Dundarave Print Work Shop Gallery,1640 Johnston Street, Granville Island, Vancouver, BC. The exhibition is on from March 17 to April 9, 2006, with the opening on March 18th 5-7pm. The gallery is open Friday, Saturday and Sunday or by appointment at 604-689-1650.
Tomoyo and Taiga were in India this past winter, attending artist’s residencies and workshops, making prints and travelling. They are now back in Vancouver making more prints and teaching at Dundarave Print Workshop. This is their exhibition of works inpired by India.
Tomoyo says she will be donating her sales to Ladakh Childrens Home Society, to help the children with free education in the remote area of Ladakh, India. She would like to do that since all images are connected with her experience in Ladakh in 2006.
These prolific artists have graced these pages many times. New readers may be interested in earlier posts about Tomoyo Ihaya’s other shows: Fountain, Searching for Agua and Recent Works.
And Taiga Chiba’s ‘Tis the Season and Duet.
by Marja-Leena The Tommy Douglas Story
Wow – we’ve just finished viewing a very moving film Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story, a two-part drama on CBC-TV. It’s a fascinating biography of the man who became a long time premier of Saskatchewan and then the first federal NDP leader, and a pioneer of universal health care in Canada. The movie has some of Canada’s best actors with Michael Therriault doing a fantastic job in the lead role and it is beautifully filmed in Saskatchewan, with 3000 extras donating their time for the privilege!
Though we remember Tommy Douglas from our youth, we learned some new and shocking Canadian history, about a bloody riot and the oppression of the farmers and workers, dirty politics (what’s new?) and the rise of social democracy. Saskatchewan, under Douglas’ five term leadership, brought forth the first provincial car insurance, free education, electricity to farms, medicare against the objection of doctors, Bill of Rights and more. Nationally Douglas’ NDP fought for national medicare, old age pensions, unemployment insurance, five-day work weeks with paid holidays and more. You don’t have be an NDP member to admire this man’s contributions to our country. This film impressed us so much that we’re going to order the DVD (something we don’t often do!)
I really enjoyed the online information about Prairie Giant, including the official movie site. In 2004, Tommy Douglas was voted greatest Canadian in a special CBC television series, which (I think) provided the impetus to make this movie.
Wikipedia also has an excellent biography from where, for example, I was able to confirm a recollection that Tommy Douglas is the father of actress Shirley Douglas, and the grandfather of actor Kiefer Sutherland and a twin sister. She was married to their father, actor Donald Sutherland, from 1966 to 1970.
Chandrasutra* has more at her blog.
Addendum: March 14th: A commenter at Chandrasutra points out the Tommy Douglas Research Institute. Read Mouseland, one of Douglas’ most famous speeches that we heard, chuckled over and admired in the movie.
* sadly, her blog no longer exists
by Marja-Leena A Portrait in Profile I
Veils Suite: A Portrait in Profile I
monotype (oil-based inks) and watercolour pencil drawing
76 x 57 cm.
Recently I’ve been looking through a series of monotypes that I haven’t visited in a long time. I did quite a few of these in the early part of 1989, a kind of a mini-series within the very large Veils Suite series. I remember doing these very quickly, eager to bring these images forth in a way that was spontaneous and far less time consuming than etching. It’s an interesting experience for me to see these with fresh eyes now, and I thought it would be good to post them to my online portfolio over the next few weeks.
by Marja-Leena cherry blossoms & snow
A new cultural event taking place right now in Vancouver is the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival, a celebration of the 36,000 cherry trees in the city’s parks, boulevards, and private gardens, more than in any other Canadian city. According to the short history of our trees, these have been planted over a period of sixty years.
Sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?
How about the snow we’ve been having on and off since Wednesday? A strange mix of weather patterns has brought us windstorms, rainstorms, overnight freezing temperatures, sleet and snow, and sunny warm periods of melting snow, and repeats of that cycle! Snow is rather unusual out here on the West Coast in March except on the mountains. I love snow, especially when it comes down in thick fluffy flakes, but not in March! Our only other snowfall this winter was back in November, but it’s been a long cold wet winter. I’ve been longing for warm dry weather to get out in the garden. We’ll see how the cherry blossoms have fared through this snow when we go into town tomorrow.
by Marja-Leena Steven Dixon: Spare
Steven Dixon: Desert Structure No. 1, 2006
Digital print on Japanese paper mounted on panel
The Art Gallery of Alberta, formerly the Edmonton Art Gallery, is featuring an exhibition of prints by Steven Dixon called Spare:
Steven Dixon’s large-scale works record the consequences of human activity, documenting the shift from a natural resource based economy to one focused largely on information and technology. This change has left in its wake a legacy of disused industrial structures: abandoned mines, mills and factories and related town-sites. Dixon has been exploring these ruins with a camera, photographing the traces of activity left behind by those employed in these industries, and tracing the detritus of past activity. This exhibition, Spare, features three new works, comprised of digital photographs printed on Japanese paper and mounted on panels.
Steven has worked in moderate sized photogravures for many years, so I was curious about his large scale digital work. In emails, I asked Steven about his new direction. He’s allowed me to quote his responses here.
I have gone digital with the latest work because of the scale. The largest piece in the show is 240 x 300 cm and I am making the files by scanning internegs in order to get the files large enough to work with. With the limitations of my scanner I needed to take that extra step. The file for that image was about 1.2 gigabytes. The smaller images are scanned directly from 4×5 negs.
At this point in time I don’t know anybody who is straight digital…..I just went to a lecture by Ed Burtynski and he has tested it but gone back to film because it is easier to deal with in the field. He said it is much easier and quicker to use a Polaroid back to check results than to lug around a laptop along with all the other equipment. The lens quality of digital cameras may never approach the quality of conventional lenses (at any reasonable price anyway).
What is an interneg?, I asked.
The interneg is just an enlargement on film from the original negative. In my case I guess it really isn’t an interneg because it is positive. What I did was make an enlarged positive transparency so I could scan it. I went from a 4×5 negative to an 8×10 positive, then cut that into 4 – 4x5s and scanned them individually and rebuilt the image in photoshop. That way I could get a larger file than just going from the 4×5.
Thanks for this information, Steven, and congratulations on your show, I wish I could be there!
Readers, if you are in Edmonton, do see Steven’s excellent work. The opening reception is on Friday, March 10th at 7 pm and the exhibition continues until June 10th, 2006.
Long-time readers might recall my friend Steven’s name – he is one of the artists in the Traces exhibition that Steven, Bonnie Jordan and I presented in Pohjanmaan Museum in Vaasa, Finland in 2002. We even travelled together to Finland and Estonia. I’ve also mentioned his show at the Lando Gallery, where you can see some of his earlier photogravure work.
by Marja-Leena update on batik show
batik by Annabel Carey, photo by Valeri
Following up on a suggestion in the comments to my post about a batik exhibition in Cornwall, UK, I emailed Valeri of dyeing 2 sew, because she lives in Cornwall. I told her about this show and expressed a hope that she might visit it and perhaps post some pictures on her blog.
Valeri kindly did go see it, even took photos and blogged about her impressions along with several photos here plus more here.
Go have a look! Valeri even sent me the above photo of Carey’s batik. A big thank you, Valeri!!
by Marja-Leena WOMAN
(image scanned from invitation – designed by Andrew Cairns)
WOMAN is an art exhibition in celebration of International Women’s Day at the Ferry Building Gallery, 1414 Argyle Ave, in West Vancouver, BC. The opening reception is tonight, Tuesday, March 7th, 6-8 pm. The exhibition continues to March 26th, 2006 – Hours: 10-6pm Tuesday – Sunday
Thirty-three artists’ works are featured, including that of Jean Morrison.
I admit I’m not much of an activist but I like this kind of event to recognize women! International Women’s Day is on March 8th and is celebrated in Canada from March 5th to 11th, 2006.
ADDENDUM: On a related and very interesting note, haihatus, a Finnish artist’s blog, has reminded me that women in Finland have had the right to vote for 100 years as of this year! Finland was not yet an independent country one hundred years ago, but a duchy of Russia. Here’s some of that history.*
(*Link expired and deleted)
by Marja-Leena introducing poplar road
© Anita Rathje
Warning: the following story is not suitable for young readers or anyone with a sentimental attachment to rodents (or chocolates, for that matter).
[…] I felt inspired to relate the latest in our little Nutcracker battle, which began, appropriately, just after Christmas. The onset of the warm weather must have encouraged a new mouse dynasty to move into the neighbourhood, because we hadn’t been plagued with them for quite a while and thinking them vanquished, I’d forgotten to be vigilant. The first sign that while we were away for Christmas, creatures were, in fact, stirring quite boldly, came when we arrived home on the 27th.
Continue reading Hickory Dickory Dock – it is hilarious!
This is the funniest post coming out of poplar road, which is written by our daughter Anita. She started this blog in the fall of 2004 when she and her partner moved to the interior of BC, far from family and friends. Anita says it is a venue for her to share their new life in a rural community and an opportunity to write creatively in a relaxed way. She combines lots of beautiful photos with her descriptions of their renovation adventures, the definite and changing seasons, the surrounding countryside, and the neighbour’s darling llamas, goats and their babies.
Because her intended audience consists of family and friends, Anita has been shy to let me tell strangers/my readers about her blog but now, with her approval, I’m proud to introduce you to poplar road – ta da! Please visit and say hello! Anita is a wonderful writer with a degree in creative writing from the University of Victoria.
You may recall my post about our visit to poplar road last Thanksgiving. Anita posted some photos of our visit too.
by Marja-Leena introducing appleturnover
i am finding that one way to connect my children together and to myself is to find something very simple to do. today my big girl built a nest out of bedding and was a robin in it, and i sat the babe in the nest, a visiting chickadee. yesterday, reminded of the game by a dear friend with the same aged children, we blew up a lovely pink balloon to bat around and keep up in the air together. the moment we began, the baby burst into delightful laughter!
as a child i loved spinning tops, cats cradle, jump rope. i once spent weeks playing with a piece of silicone which had solidified in its tube; it would bounce in unpredictable ways, almost impossible to catch.
(excerpt from simple pleasures**)
I am very proud to introduce our daughter Elisa’s blog appleturnover**. As a mother of two young ones, she writes in a gentle and thoughtful way about parenting and homelearning, about home, family and community in the environment and culture of the Pacific Northwest. I love reading about how she plays with her little girls and remembers her own childhood, which in turn brings back memories for me too. Coming soon are some stories and games. Elisa is an artist too. Please welcome her with a comment on her blog, especially if you are also a parent (or grandparent!) of young children.
**UPDATE April 13th, 2009: Elisa’s revised blog and website is now here. The starred expired links have been removed.