The aftermath

So I have lost count of the storms this pass week, there was one on Wednesday and then the weekend was just nasty! I didn't leave the the farm till the 24th and we had lost power for most of the day. We were the lucky ones has power was restored later that evening. So many in the surrounding area are still with out going on day 5+.
But the aftermath did provide opportunity for some awesome photos (some better then others)

 

Sunset Dec24

 

Xmas morning Keta ad I snowshoeing ~ everything incased in ice

2nd Snow Day of the month

Snow days are productive days for me.

Snow Day 1st for December

 

Love Snow Days!!!!

 

 

 And finished my second pair of socks - This pair for DH- Think I'm hooked have been dow loading patterns. But for now trying to finish  some other things fiber on a deadline.

 

Daily life in the studio

My goal is to keep working as much as possible with out distraction..... easier said then done.

view from the office window

 

Keta came to us from a rescue center and joined the crew in July, most days she is very patience

 

Beautiful Biscuit , she has out grown the pods

 

A selfie of Rudy

 

But I do have an up date on Something fiber

Bridging Waters opens at Saint John Art Center

The exhibit was very well received Friday night with an estimate of 300 (-/+) in a 2 hr period. That is considered a very good showing for the 5 exhibits that opened. Bridging Waters is on the first floor of the SJAC, in the largest room so you can’t miss it. I loved watching and listening to people as they viewed the pieces. One young man kept coming back a number of times, at first I thought it was for the cheese but He was always going to the same spot and would stand for a few minutes then leave and a few minutes later come back, I realize it wasn’t for the cheese when he didn’t pick any up. A couple from Wales was so pleased that they recognize some of the places in England. A lot of question about techniques – the tissue and felt were big hits – you could see people wanting to touch it, which they could with the “Fundy Fun”.   Lots of nice complements and many were genuinely interested in the fact that the pieces were in fibre. It’s a big room and Larry (0ffical hanger at SJAC) set the lights so everything looked great. it was great fun and now I am preparing a talk which I will be presenting 3 times over the next 4 weeks. If you are  in Saint John drop in and see the exhibit . My talks are on Thursday Nov 14^th, 28^th and Dec 12^th at 12pm ( noon).

 

About the Exhibit :

ARTICULATED MATERIALS: BRIDGING WATERS  

- a touring, trans-continental, fibre arts exhibition

Articulation, a Canadian exhibiting art group working with textiles and fibre as a fine art medium, takes traditional fiber art techniques in new and contemporary directions. Since 2004 they have organised annual study sessions to unique places in Canada, which serve to unify the resulting individual bodies of work when shown in their group exhibitions across Canada.

A recent study of the Bay of Fundy coastline has generated a new path forArticulation leading to exhibiting internationally with another contemporary fiber arts group, Material Girls, based in London, England, who were inspired by their iconic River Thames. The resulting combined body of work,  ARTICULATED MATERIALS: BRIDGING WATERS, consists of one 2D artwork each from ten Material Girls members and ten Articulation members. In addition, each group will have available more works to include in the exhibition while it is touring their respective country.

Material Girls is an exhibiting group of textile artists based on the borders of Essex and East London. The artists produce work using a diverse variety of textile disciplines from quilting and embroidery to felt making and mixed media. Formed in 2001, the group has exhibited regularly in the UK and is just beginning to venture into 'international waters'. website- www.the-materialgirls.co.uk

After a successful three-exhibition tour of London, UK, the work has arrived back in Canada and  begins its cross country tour. Starting in Winnipeg it will be hung in time for the National Embroiderers’ Association of Canada’s annual May seminar.  The next stop is a gallery on Vancouver Island that looks out over another historically important body of water, the Salish Sea. The work then travels to the Bay of Fundy where it will be exhibited in the Saint John Arts Centre, Saint John.

This exhibition will offer unique perspectives on both bodies of water encapsulating the local geological, environmental and social histories. In both groups there are members who have grown up living beside their waterway, while other members have responded as first time visitors to the shoreline.  Articulation’s work reflects the experiences of  seeing rapidly eroding  fossil bearing cliffs, walking on the ocean floor and viewing the history of European settlement through distinctive architecture.  Material Girls’ work  explores memories of watching rowers competing, locks operating and days spent on the river’s beaches.   It will remain for the viewer to make transAtlantic connections between places and people with long, interwoven histories.

 

Bridging Waters

Fibre Art in New Brunswick

At Hoopers Gallery in Hampton NB

 

 

New Chapter

We have finally got to move with the house in town closing date July 29th. The old farm house is still in need of many updates but I am enjoying the peace and quite out here in the country. Just walking the fields and taking pictures is inspiring.

Have already picked some golden rod for a future project

 Having the open fields and being on a slight knoll we get to see the sunsets now.

 

A chapter closing

Another chapter in my life has closed very unexpectedly – My Father passed away on July 02 2013. He had a terminal cancer that was not detected until it was to late and due to his age, he would have been 88 in December this year, there was nothing that could be done except to make him comfortable and let him go with dignity and respect. He died the way he lived his life, on his terms. Father was a very smart individual, a hard worker right up to the end. He was self taught in many of his skills including learning to use and later repair computers. He was intrigued with the digital world and kept up with all the latest news about it. He was in his mid 70’s when he took up furniture making, using wood from his own wood lot which he worked in till his early 80s, and my siblings and I have a number of his creations that were made in his favorite wood, oak. I think he accepted my oddities of preferring maple because I am the middle child. Wood working brought out his creative side and we had many chats about the design process. Miss him.......

Dad and I on my wedding day

Dad , my oldest sister Dianne and me 

Dad 1948

 

Kaleidoscopes

It isn't like I have nothing to do at the Studio, on the contrary life is busy but just nothing to exciting to post so I thought I would share a bit of my passion that I haven't played with for awhile. These where made from images of threads and the black, white and red material.

A letter from Robert

Biscuit reminds me  how important it is to take time out to relax and enjoy life.

 

I receive Roberts letters twice a week and they normally hit home on what ever I have been thinking about.Being the first day of a new year the one thing on my mind is how I am I going to achive everything I want to do this year and Roberts letter helps me to put things in to perspective . I just may complete a few of those goals this year as long as I focus on what is important.

Dear ReBecca,

 

Being largely self-employed, we artists don't have the problems of group stubbornness or committee incompetence. In gratitude and joy we make our private mistakes in an atmosphere of personal reflection, even in the face of self-doubt. Artists are pretty well masters of their own rise or demise. For artists, all attempts to improve standards are of interest. For those among us who might be thinking of New Year's resolutions, here are a few thoughts:

People don't always do what they tell themselves to do, even when they know it's best for them. We all have a contrarian within us--like a mole in the lawn. The stubborn little guy gnaws away at the grass from its roots and makes a mess of the place. In other words, keep an eye out for resolutions that your inner mole may thwart. 

Beware of reaping the opposite of what you intended. Funny thing about human nature, people who set out to get wealthy often find themselves systematically getting poorer. Oddly, others who set their sights on joy can surprise themselves with wealth. Similarly, folks who seek truth can find themselves tangled up in webs of falsehood. Play it as we may, within all of us lies the potential for sloth, ignorance, stupidity, hubris and pride. 

If you do set goals set short, achievable ones and give yourself a star when you complete. The short-goal habit is key to larger success and is at the root of human greatness. Life is think and do, think and do, think and do. Small steps can be greater than great leaps. 

Risk-taking for artists is not like skydiving or catapulting over parked cars on a Ducati. Risk in art is experimentation. There is no sorrow in self-driven experimentation. If it doesn't work, so what? We try again. 

No matter what your calling, no matter what your profession, the coming year will bring new challenges. While we are in difficult times, change is in the air and green shoots are poking through. As self-governing entities, artists have a profound interest in change. Embracing change, we embrace growth and we embrace our future. We grow into our jobs. The head governs, the heart assists, the body acts. 

Best regards,

Robert 

PS: "The Lincoln who is a lawyer in Springfield, Illinois, isn't the same Lincoln as the one who addresses Gettysburg." (Barack Obama)

Esoterica: To live, to grow, to take risks, we need to understand ourselves and our spiritual nature. We need to be our own spark and know well of our high calling. As artists, we need to cherish art's democratic nature and hold dear its nobility for all peoples. If you include music, theatre and literature, art is probably the most civilizing thing we'll ever do. With an honest prejudice for quality above all, we artists, among others, are going to have to be above ourselves. It's my sincere wish that your New Year be filled with gratitude and joy. 

 

You can always read more of Roberts letters at The Painter's Keys