Pinawa, Manitoba

I’ve spent the past few days with Evelin and my entire Peters family at the Wilderness Edge resort (in Pinawa, on the Winnipeg River) participating in a get-away weekend in honour of my 89-year-old father, our patriarch John Jacob Peters. With my brother Phil and his clan here from Germany, this provided the first opportunity in several years for us all to be together in one place.

Highlights of the weekend have been an incredible audio-visual presentation my brother Jim assembled from hundreds of old family photographs he had scanned, a well-written life-history presented by Doreen, Dad’s wife (who also took care of all weekend arrangements—thanks!), a musical tribute by brother Phil et al, and the open sharing and good fellowship that takes place when a geographically dispersed family comes together for some quality time. The weather cooperated (for the most part) for the outdoor activities (a hay ride, canoeing, biking, swimming, evening camp-fires) and it seems a good time was had by all. Life is good…

Family photos (from those that surfaced on the weekend): the ship Dad came to Canada on from Russia in 1925; a hand-coloured “John the lumberjack” on Vancouver Island (serving as a Conscientious Objector during World War II); our family stuffed into a Heinkel Kabine (Frankfurt, 1957); brother Jim and I, 1958; Dad enjoying the mountain view (Swiss Alps, c. 1978); and an informal family photo here in Pinawa yesterday.

Winnipeg Beach, Manitoba

I’ve had the pleasure and privilege during the past year of collaborating on a variety of sculptural pieces (and in the process, re-discovering a long-lost sense of tactility) with the talented (and smart, and lovely :-) ceramist Evelin Richter. This is one of our latest completed co-productions, The Vamp. You can see more sculptural works at Ev’s website: www.whatclayart.com

The Vamp: Voluptuous coil-built stoneware sculpture, wood-fired to ∆ 12 (vitrified, unglazed—the coloration is natural ash and flashing), mounted on a cast iron pedestal base, with woodstove-tarnished nickel ball-chain skirt; 280mm x 280mm x 630mm high.

Portage la Prairie, Manitoba

The Manitoba Agricultural Hall of Fame has officially announced its inductees for 2009—among the nine individuals “judged to have made a significant and lasting contribution to agriculture in Manitoba within their lifetimes” is my dad’s older brother, my ‘Uncle Pete,’ Peter Jacob Peters, now 95. He’ll be giving a 5-minute speech (though he insists he needs 20 :-) at 1:30pm on 16 July at a ceremony open to the public at the William Glesby Center (11-2nd St. NE) in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba.

Peter J. Peters immigrated to Canada from the Ukraine with his family at age eleven (when my father was six). He took his schooling at Gretna in Southern Manitoba, and later enrolled in teacher training. At the outbreak of World War II, Pete enlisted in the RCAF—upon his eventual return from overseas service he attained his BSc. in Agriculture. Following graduation, he worked with the Extension Service of Manitoba Agriculture as a potato specialist (where he became known as “Potato Pete” to those in the field)—among other significant achievements he is credited with paving the way for the commercial potato industry in Manitoba. He also applied himself to the Strawberry Experimental Demonstration program at Hadashville in Eastern Manitoba, and as a direct result of his efforts, the Strawberry Growers Association of Manitoba came into being. Pete served as Secretary-Treasurer of the Manitoba Horticultural Association, was President of the Western Canadian Society for Horticulture, revitalized the periodical The Prairie Gardener, and wrote and published A Century of Horticulture in Manitoba. Aside from his horticultural pursuits, Pete is also a prolific poet (with too many published books to list here) and was active throughout his adult life in church and community activities, renowned for his entertaining hundreds with his photography-poetry-musical presentations.

Photo: Peter J. Peters in 1945 (while requisitioned to serve as a tri-lingual interpreter at the Nuremberg Trials after the war [on account of his fluency in Russian, German, and English]—a time he prefers not to speak about to this day). Thanks to my brother Jim for the scan from an old photographic print.

Winnipeg Beach, Manitoba

The last few days have been a blur of activity, helping Ev prepare for the 8th WAVE Artists Studio Tour. More than 130 visitors dropped by for a studio visit, and it was good to receive feedback on the figurative sculptures and other works Ev and I have collaborated on since last summer. Read more information about the event at What? Clay Art & Curios—there’s another chance to take in the self-guided WAVE tour on the September long weekend (5 & 6 September 2009)…

Images above: a tired Ev poses with Wallflower after the tour ended last night; the outdoor display of Uncultured Enigmas proved to be popular with visitors once again; the wall-mounted sculpture Darwin’s Creation (Enigmas offer clues to missing links, in honour of Charles Darwin’s 200th birthday this year); and Peer Pressure, Ev’s social commentary re: failing corporatism and the workaholics who drive themselves down along with sinking enterprise.

Winnipeg Beach, Manitoba

It’s been a busy art weekend, helping Ev prepare for the upcoming 8th WAVE Artists Studio Tour this next weekend (13/14 June and then again on 5/6 September)—essentially a self-guided tour of artists’ studios and galleries along the western shores of Lake Winnipeg. We were able to put the finishing touches on several sculptural pieces, including Many more of us live next door… (shown above), our first truly collaborative sculptural work, which went to the Fishfly Gallery yesterday. Ev is hoping this piece might also be cathartic—she’s had the Beatles’ Yellow Submarine song stuck in her head since she first heard it as a young teen some 40 years ago (this ‘song in the head’ is the conceptual premise for this particular sculpture).

Falcon Lake, Manitoba

Word just in from “my muddy little half-brother” John Paul, who it seems is getting faster with age… he just finished in 2nd place(!) in the latest Manitoba Cup race at Falcon Ridge Ski Resort—the only one to beat him in the ‘Expert Men’ category was Paul Benson, who races at the Elite/Nationals level. Congratulations!

When he’s not on his mountain bike or chasing after his hyperactive kids, JP can be found at the controls of Private Ear, a new recording studio in Winnipeg where he is an audio engineer and partner (producing albums for the likes of The Waking Eyes).

(that’s my wee bro with the determined look on his face, number 303…)

A premonition I had in my twenties that I wouldn’t
live beyond forty obviously didn’t pan out…
(message to self—don’t bank on your intuition, OK?)

Thanks to the many friends from far and near
who have sent their regards…

Steinbach, Manitoba

My uncle Jacob Jacob Peters (shown above with his bride Margaret Klassen in August 1949) was born 100 years ago today in Russia, at the height of the Bolshevik revolution. ‘Uncle Jake’ passed on September 18th, 1979… time sure does fly.

(Thanks to cousin Herbert J. Peters [Uncle Jake’s oldest son], a lawyer at Aikins, MacAulay & Thorvaldson LLP, for the heads-up and some old photos; thanks to my brother Jim for the scanned wedding photo).

Winnipeg, Canada

Best wishes go out on this special day to my father, John Jacob Peters (born in Russia in 1920 amidst the turmoil following the Bolshevik revolution). May your 90th year bring you ongoing peace, joy, and fulfillment!

This photo of dad is from the late 1940s (scanned by my brother Jim, thanks). Within the past month dad’s undergone successful cataract surgery on both eyes—and can once again see perfectly without glasses for the first time in nearly 50 years!

Winnipeg Beach, Manitoba

Well… it’s been a fun weekend of making art. Ev has been working on some awesome sculptural pieces, and I’ve been enjoying experimenting with a combination of ceramic techniques, illustration, and assemblage. The blizzard-like weather conditions of late January hardly seem to matter… :-)

Photos: Evelin Richter hard at work on her latest sculptural pieces.