I saw this nifty thing in the Post today. You can get a poster (or order a mug) with a Pantone colour to match the shade you like your tea. Smarty smart, that british boy.
So Nice
Today had to one of the most beautiful days for skating on the canal: not too cold, not windy, not busy. Just great. Oh ya, except for yesterday, and the day before that. Its has really been quite lovely in the past few days. I may have to skate again tonight.
Illustration Friday
I am not an illustrator, in fact I'm not even sure I really like drawing, but I've recently discovered doing marker drawings and then putting them in photoshop and adding colour. I know a few people who are moving and I thought of making a New House greeting card to send them. So I drew this:
Vernissage
Tonight's the opening for my show at Helsinki. If you live in Ottawa, please come!
Shadow
One thing about this time of year, is that the sun is low on the horizon in the late afternoon, making for really long shadows. I think my shadow in this picture is about 20m!
Taylor
I don't know if there is anything cuter and sader than this. Maybe we can all look through the snowbanks and bushes in the hopes of returning Taylor.
Politics
I spoke at the Ottawa City Council Meeting today, trying to have the Public Art Aquisition Fund re-instated. It was cancelled last year from all the budget cuts. Silly City! How do I get myself into these things? I'm not sure if I made a big impact on the Councelors as many of them had taken off for lunch already, but it was a good experience never-the-less.
Daytime
Today I had 7 minutes (of fame? Where's my other 8 minutes?!!!) on Daytime, Ottawa's local Rogers 22, to talk about my upcoming art shows. It was fun. This is a picture of the set with my art: the pieces on the table and the framed flowers that the guy is looking at. Yay for TV. I don't have cable, so I haven't even seen it myself.
Fabric
Yesterday I bought some fabric for World Rivers, as I wanted to get started in the winter. I bought 20m at $2.00p/m. What a deal! I took some pitcures outside on the canal today. It was pretty windy, so it was tricky to take pictures of the fabric with the ice, it seems to want to interact more with the wind. So I helped it out a bit.
Blog
When in doubt, refer visitors to someone's else blog. This is a really great site I've been reading for a while now, but I'm always too shy to comment on other people's blogs. Great pictures of Ottawa and delightful observations.
Mittens...Mainstream
This was on the Simpsons on Sunday. hahahaha!
Skiing
We went skiing at Mont St Marie on Saturday, taking the Super Bus (super deal). It was fun until Emily raced down the hill and had an accident, which we later found out was a fractured tibia (leg bone, near the knee). Poor Emily! Ouch, that looks like a painful position to land in. Sometimes Winter Fun can be too fun...I am going to bring her treats and sign the cast (if she gets one).
Painting
More painting today. All I see when close my eyes is White white white.
Painting
I have taken on a job...I am painting the walls at Gallery 101. First I sanded, then I washed, then I painted. Second coat tomorow and then I head downstairs to work on the walls on the first floor. Note the Napoleon Dynamite-ish walkman in my back pocket. I had some great mixed tapes from 1987 to listen to.
Night Ski
Night skiing does not make for very good pictures.
But it sure is FUN!!! This took place last night at Camp Fortune, as it was two for one Tuesday nights.
Cheap and fun!
Quikie Update
The National Post will be running a story tomorow (Tues, Jan 11) with some mention of my Lost Mitten Project in the Arts section. Pick up a copy if you get a chance!
Poutine
With Ottawa's proximity to Quebec, we are lucky be influenced by Quebec culture and tasty food. Poutine is a good example. You can get poutine across the country, but no one makes it as good as in Quebec (or Ottawa). French fries, fresh cheese curds and gravy. So yummy. The only place to get the best poutine is from a chip wagon. I think I need to get some more right now.
Angels
I don't know what it is, but lately, I have been rather inspired by winter. I think its that this 'stuff' comes out of the sky and changes the landscape, almost daily. Whether its snowing or melting or raining, or just plain really cold, its always different. Change is constant. I have been emailing with Chaminda Gamage in Sri Lanka for a while now, I have been asked to participate in World Rivers, a global artist project organized by Lee Tracy in Chicago. I love her fearlessness in taking on a project that just an idea, a concept that could lead into many directions. Beautiful.
So last night, I've had an idea perculating that I'd like to make a series of snow angels. The fresh snow and an available parking lot were tempting to begin the project. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with yet, if anything, but it is was fun to have a vision for something and do it. Thank you, Jason for coming to watch and help with the camera!
YAY!
More SNOW!
This is my street:
More...
I didn't go out for a major 20km bike ride to day. I just had to get to grocery store and I wanted to get there fast (not slow). It was pretty a good little ride, and only -20 or so. Fresh!
