On This Day

In Memory

Kenneth George Chick

October 31, 1921-January 25, 2004

Happy Birthday Gramps. 

This will forever and always be your day.

Thanks for switching the lights on & off in the studio yesterday 

to let me know you're just on the other side.

xox

The Village

So about this time last year, my friend Lisa Ryder and I decided to make some small collaged houses, colour copy the originals onto cardstock and send them to one another. The other day, she showed me a photo of her wee houses beautifully framed. This was our plan, but somehow I hadn't managed to get it done. Seeing hers completed inspired me to hop in the car, zoom down to Ikea and get a frame. 

I started using Ribba frames about 5 years ago because I like how thick and chunky they are-almost like a shadow box and if you use the same type of frames for everything, when you hang it, it will look like a gallery, even if the artwork in each one is very different.

I spent about two hours last night framing mine. It took awhile for me to get the houses laid out "just so". I managed to create a combination of both our work that I think looks great together. I'm really pleased with how it turned out. The only thing is that I need to go back to Ikea for a second frame-I still have enough of our houses left to create another subdivision! (Lisa said the same thing.) She's going to post about our collaboration here later this morning. (She's in New Zealand, so it's not quite breakfast time tomorrow morning for her yet.)

Seeing as I was already shopping for frames, I picked up a couple other sizes to frame other pieces that I've been hanging onto for ages. I bought this sewing pattern crow printed on fabric years ago at Artfibrefest. It's by Carla Sonheim. It's been floating around the studio forever. I love how it looks in the frame.

I also had this pretty owl print by Cori Dantini that I bought 3 years ago. It's the same artist whose work became (with her permission) a tattoo. I have the bird print of the artwork that I had tattooed on my leg, which *ahem* also needs a frame. Yes, I'm going to have to make another trip to Ikea!

And finally, I framed this print of my own work, Diamond In the Rough. My goal is to print all my favourite photographs from the classes I've taken and do a gallery wall in the living room. My plan is to print them all different sizes, so it's interesting. I think that's going on my to-do list for 2013.

 I still have more artwork kicking around the studio that needs framing. Now that I've got a few favourite pieces finished, maybe I will be better about making the effort to get frames. I just need to figure out where I want to hang these pieces. While we're out and about today I'd better pick up some nails!

Thank you to everyone who sent their well wishes for our Anniversary yesterday. My husband worked a half day, we had some errands to run and the weather was ugly. Today it's sunny, so we're going to celebrate by taking Indy for a swim, having lunch together and just enjoying each other's company.

Also thank you for your good thoughts and prayers for us. It's so comforting to know so many people care and are supporting us. We really do feel the love. We have THE BEST friends on the planet and for that we are grateful.

xox

In Good Times & In Bad

I don't usually share really personal things on my blog, but this is a pretty big deal in my life right now.

 Today, my husband and I are celebrating 22 years of being happily married. This year's anniversary is especially poignant because just 7 weeks ago, we were blindsided by his diagnosis of kidney cancer. It was caught pretty much by accident during a routine yearly blood test which came back every so slightly off and required follow up testing. We never thought it was anything serious, so getting that news was (to say the least) a complete shock, that left us reeling.

We were quickly swept up into a frenzy of additional tests and appointments, which revealed a sizable tumor. The upshot of it all is that in less than three weeks, my husband will undergo surgery to remove his left kidney and will be off work for at least 6 weeks. Kidney cancer is rare. It's also very sneaky-usually there are no symptoms and by the time they find it, it's spread. In my husband's case, they believe he's had cancer for at least 3 years.

It's pretty sobering to face the uncertainty of the fate of someone you love so much. In fact, it's terrifying. I've felt like all the air has been sucked out of my lungs. Fortunately, we have dear friends who have circled their wagons for us. Their support means everything. As scary as this is, I know they've got our backs and that's immensely comforting.

We've been joking that we believe we got this "in sickness and in health" thing down pat. We'd like to NOT have to revisit to the whole concept any further- we've been there, done that, got the t-shirt, thank you very much.

Twenty-two years together will stand us good stead. We've been through bad times and survived. We will rise above. Together.

Happy Anniversary to my love. 

I am grateful for every single second of our lives together.

Forever & always.

xox

Right Now

Reading:

In the last week, I've read 3 novels by Tami Hoag: Deeper than Death, Secrets to the Grave and Down the Darkest Road, which are a trilogy of sorts. I love murder mysteries. There hasn't been alot of TV lately, so I've been consuming books. 

Watching:

As I've said, it's been a bit of a tv wasteland lately. Here's my fall lineup:

The Amazing Race, Flying Wild Alaska, Ice Road Truckers, Ice Pilots, Deadliest Catch, Grey's Anatomy (which is driving me nuts-the writers have lost their minds), Survivor and a new show called Chicago Fire, which so far is really good.

Listening:

Thanks to the 2012 Paralympics closing ceremony, I realized I do in fact really like Coldplay. I'd heard their music on my radio station, but just didn't really pay that much attention. After the Games, I had to go download their albums from iTunes. I'm playing them to death.

Anticipating:

Excited about getting my hands on the Nov/Dec issue of Somerset Studio with Seth's 10 page article & my art in it. I am on the hunt for a copy now. Hopefully they will be arriving at my local bookstore today or tomorrow. *fingers crossed*

Also excited to be having company for the November long weekend. Two photog friends are coming into town and staying with me briefly. We have loose plans to just hang out and make some art together. Should be a good time!

Doing:

I'm doing my annual autumn house purge. Today I've been dusting the zillion and one things in my studio, moving things around, reorganizing and tossing the junk. Can I just say I hate dusting? I do however love working in a clean space, so I suppose that makes it worth it...almost. The photo posted above is a stack of favourite books in my collection. For some reason, seeing them stacked like that makes me feel stupidly happy. (There are a combination of photography books and journalling books & zines.)

Creating:

Working on a swap with a friend for Hallowe'en. I'm working on finishing it up and hoping to get it into the mail over the weekend. 

I'm also taking another online photography class with Kat Sloma, called Finding Your Eye. I happened to win a spot, lucky me!

Moving Forward

Photos from week 2 of Rose Coloured Glasses. The first 4 were taken at Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden the day I went to see the Tibetan Monks. 

 Rainy Day

 Lanterns

 Framed

 Golden Orange

And lastly, a self-portrait:

Tired

(On the day we were doing them, I was tired and stressed and in desperate need of a nap. Some days are just like that.)

It's been difficult shooting through this class. I've been having problems with my vision for some time now and recently found out that it's because I've had at least 4 attacks of optic neuritis since February. Over the summer, I'd finally learned how to shoot manually, but with the damage to my vision, everything I was shooting was coming out blurry, even with my glasses on. What I perceived as focused wasn't. Vivienne, ever the supportive teacher that she is, encouraged me to go back to shooting on auto. (Unless, of course, I am trying to achieve blur.) 

Despite setbacks, I still feel I learned something: I always feel better when I am creating, even if that becomes a challenge. I just have to keep moving forward.

Birthday Wishes

Happy Birthday to my love.

This year when you blow out the candles, 

we will all be wishing the same thing.

May it be so.

xoxox

Ancient Art

On Friday, I discovered that the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden was hosting Tibetan monks who were going to be creating a sand mandala. I've always wanted to see this, so I quickly emailed my friend Carol to see if she wanted to come with me. She did, so yesterday, we braved the weather (it was pouring and windy) and went to meet them.

When we arrived, we discovered that the monks had not yet arrived. The docent explained that they were on "Tibetan time", which made me laugh. You cannot expect those that live in the now to be the slave of a schedule. She needn't have worried though-they arrived right after she'd said it, smiling and in good spirits despite the dismal weather.

They'd begun working on the sand mandala the day before so we were able to see the amazing progress they had already made. The mandala is drawn from memory and then they begin the painstaking work of filling it in using colourful sands.

They have two tapering medal rods that are ribbed. The top end of the rod is wide and open and they scoop the sand into the rod from this end. The other end is narrow and this is where the sand comes out. They rub the second rod up and down the one full of sand, to create vibration to make the sand come out. It's like a sand version of paint by numbers.

They create intricate patterns and outlines, using the different colours and though it's hard to tell from the photos, there are also a variety of textures created. It's really incredible the amount of skill and patience required to do this. The knowledge of this art has been handed down through the ages. 

Each element of the design has meaning. Mandalas are symmetric with a series of concentric circles and square. The center point is where the deity resides. The finished mandalas have four gates, which symbolize the four virtues: compassion, kindness, sympathy and equanimity. Sand mandalas are for purification and healing and the act of their creation is a form of meditation. Once completed, the mandala will be consecrated and then ceremoniously wiped away and dispersed into flowing water, symbolizing the impermanent nature of existence.

Before they began their work the day before, they also held a puja ceremony, honouring Buddha. Offerings were made and incense was burned. Usually I am not a fan of incense because I have allergies but the incense they used was really lovely. It didn't bother me at all.

The Abbot, Jampa Sopa created this butter sculpture. Butter sculptures are a made from a mixture of Yak butter, wax and dyes. When you're working with it, you have to dip your fingers in cold water to keep it from sticking to you. Butter sculptures are given as offerings. This one stood about a foot high, but for special ceremonies, they can reach several meters high. Again, each of the colours and designs holds special meaning.

I was able to shoot a short video of the monks working on the mandala. I wanted to be able to share with you the sound of what they were doing. It was oddly mesmerizing. Carol and I found that we lost all track of time watching them work.

During the Chinese Cultural Revolution, (1950-1959) the monk's monastery was razed to the ground. Of the 600 monks of the Dzongkar Choede monastery, only 5% survived, fleeing to Southern India with the Dalai Lama. Today they are a community of 300 monk and run a school for young monks, many of whom are orphans or semi-orphans from poor families. The monks have come to Canada to raise funds to support their school and to provide health care. I believe everyone should have access to an education and health care. It felt good making a donation to support this.

It was an amazing opportunity to be able to experience Tibetan culture right in my own back yard. I have read about the struggle of the Tibetan people for years. 7 Years in Tibet is my all time favourite movie. I never dreamed that someday, I would be sitting in a scholar's garden in the heart of Vancouver, watching ancient history and tradition unfold before me. The world seems a little bit smaller now and certainly more beautiful. Yesterday was magical and mystical and I'll never forget it. 

To see what Carol had to say about our experience, click here. Her photos are fantastic.