Winnipeg, Manitoba

Congratulations to my darlin’ Evelin re: the acceptance of her ceramic sculptural piece, entitled (no fixed address), into the Manitoba Crafts Council 2010 Juried Exhibition: Home. Not only that, her work was also chosen to grace the invitation (image above). For anyone interested, the dates and times of the touring exhibition (it would be great to see you at the openings) are as follows:

St. Norbert, 3-22 June 2010
St. Norbert Arts Centre
100 Ruinesdumonastere, St. Norbert, MB
Gallery Hours: 11am-7pm | Wed.-Sun.
Opening reception 3 June, 7pm

Wasagaming, 16 July-11 August 2010
110 Wasagaming Drive, Wasagaming, MB
Gallery Hours: 11am-6pm | Daily
Opening reception 16 July, 7pm

Brandon, 9-30 September 2010
Glen P. Sutherland Gallery of Art
2021 Victoria Avenue (between 20th-21st) Brandon, MB
Gallery Hours: 2-6pm | Wed.-Sat. / 2-8pm Thurs.
Opening reception 9 September, 7pm

Winnipeg, Canada

Some friends of mine were trying to remember what I looked like with a beard (I used to grow one each winter and then shave it off for the summer)—so here you go… get your chuckles.

“He that hath a beard is more than a youth,
and he that hath no beard is less than a man.”

—William Shakespeare

Winnipeg Beach, Manitoba

Hey, little buddy… it was hard to let you go today—but we’re relieved to know you’re breathing easier somewhere off in those (mythical?) happy hunting grounds. Just in case you’ve somehow got cyberspace access up there, following are a few nice words about you (somewhat maudlin, yes, but also cathartic for those you’ve left behind).

You and your non-identical sextuplet siblings were seemingly abandoned mere days after being born six years ago (in that neglected shack in the woods that will some day be turned back into a summer-kitchen behind Jen and Derek’s place on Hwy. #9). Cute as you were, it was inevitable that you’d be adopted right off the hop (together with your photo-grey brother Franklin) and you spent the next few years in the care of Nicki, Jay, and wee Jayden (who had named you after an animated toy train)… before ending up back here in Winnipeg Beach at Ev’s place. In the ensuing years you were literally the life of the party, offering us times of great hilarity (at your antics and odd quirks), lots of quiet companionship (we’ll miss your impressive purring), as well as more than your share of dramatic moments (remember the time you got the full facial blast from that nasty skunk in the culvert—and then you turned pink and black for a few weeks after we had washed you down with tomato juice to neutralize the skunk smell)?

We’ve made you a nice wooden box (from those boards we salvaged from the beach last month after the ice break-up) and we’ll be burying you this evening beside that bent little spruce tree where the deer sleep in the wild asparagus field back at Jen and Derek’s place… about a hundred meters from where you were born. Ev’s going to plant a clump of those daisies you always liked to hide in to mark the spot.

Don’t let this go to your head, Thomas… but you truly were the coolest of cats!

Victoria, British Columbia

If you’ve visited this/my blog in the past, you probably already know that I’m somewhat of a fan of unusual and vintage ephemera, oddball ideas, and assorted graphic juxtapositions and eccentricities… so of course I was happy about the serendipitous encounter I had today with an engaging and creatively stimulating online collection of “wacky” imagery.

Enjoy, eh?

Georgian Bay, Ontario

Stretching from the vast wilderness of Algonquin Park in the east to the windswept shores of the Georgian Bay Islands in the west, the famed District of Muskoka includes the treasured towns of Gravenhurst, Bracebridge, and Huntsville, and the townships of Georgian Bay, Lake of Bays, and Muskoka Lakes.

The handsome new coffee-table book Muskoka captures the rugged beauty, pristine lakes, and charming settlements of this favoured cottage destination over four dramatic seasons. Translated from the Algonquin native language, ‘Muskoka’ means ‘land of the red earth’—unforgettable sunsets, stunning autumn tree foliage, and the region’s signature crop of cranberries—all relate back to the red earth theme and become the canvas for this keepsake photographic collection of one of Canada’s most cherished regions.

Author/photographer Mike Grandmaison (a close personal friend, a long-time client, and a former partner of mine some 20 years ago, when we both taught together as part of Praxis Photographic Workshops) is an award-winning Canadian photographer specializing in nature and landscapes. Working in the biological sciences for several decades instilled in Mike a deep appreciation for nature and the great outdoors. His work has been widely published in leading magazines and books and has been used by some of North America’s top corporations and organizations. Mike travels from coast to coast to coast in search of evocative images that capture the spirit of this great land we call Canada.

Look for Muskoka at top-quality local book vendors (ISBN-13: 978-1-55470-260-2).

Congratulations, Mike!

Vancouver, Canada

I’m pleased to be participating in the Design Currency: Defining the Value of Design event here this week. Davin Greenwell has been documenting this multidisciplinary design conference…

Photo: ‘Yours truly’ moderating the Sustainable Cities session on Wednesday morning—photo by Davin Greenwell.

Vancouver, BC

I’m out on the west coast of Canada today, enjoying the family and fellowship of designer colleagues attending the Design Currency event… couldn’t be more timely, given that today is also World Graphics Day.

Cheers, mates!

Winnipeg, Canada

Dad—you were born on this day in 1920 into the tough conditions of the Russian Civil War,—then happily escaped that conflicted land with your nuclear family to the new frontier of Western Canada a few years later. As I understand it, you’ve been smiling pretty much ever since… at least that’s the most pervasive and enduring trait that comes to my mind and memory (photos don’t lie either :-)  I remember a line from a magazine article (back about 40 years ago) that described you as “the genial jut-jawed John Jacob Peters”—still as apt and appropriate a descriptor as anyone could possibly pen, methinks.

Thanks for the faith and positive energy you’ve imbued in my brothers and me (along with the thousands of others whom you have given the better part of your life to)… may the next ten years be your best yet—and may your smile continue to warm the hearts and souls of everyone you meet!

I love you Dad. Happy, happy birthday…

(Thanks to brother Jim for the image scans, from last summer’s momentous family get-together in Pinawa.)

Steinbach, Manitoba

Best wishes for the next 60, Jim!

Winnipeg Beach, Manitoba

I’ve been helping my girlfriend Evelin Richter assemble and photograph some of her ceramic sculptures recently. She’s just entered a piece entitled (no fixed address) into the “Home”-themed Manitoba Crafts Council 2010 Annual Juried Exhibition. A slab-built stoneware sculpture with iron oxide stain, low-fire glazes, and assemblage elements (brass ring, antique key, jewelry-box base), the piece measures 280mm x 220mm x 380mm.

Ev’s comment: “It’s thought to be a great honour to receive the “key to the city”… the very streets of which so many call “home” today—(no fixed address) speaks to this irony.”

You can see more of Ev’s work and activities here.