Snow Dropping

Last week it looked so like spring but this week it is snowing; but it is heavy wet snow and dropping not flaking. I didn't take the good camera out with me in the wet weather so apologize as the pictures are not quite up to my standard.

 

The star of the show last week was looking much the worse for wear after a day and a half of the soggy stuff.

 

The snowdrops were drooping under the wet snow, but will certainly rebound once it is finished.



 

Snow drops that fall on my nose and eyelashes? What about on hare, actually a rabbit.

 



 

Berries and "hips" with a coat of snow:

 

I thought these looked almost abstract:

 

 

.. and down on the beach this shell nestled in the snow near the tide line.

 

And now for something quite different. It is a watercolour painting on Aquabord (a board with a clay surface that accepts watercolours. I have never used this before, an advantage is that it can be fixed and varnished so that it does not have to go under glass.

Sometimes I see something that just begs to be painted, the following scene is one such. The shells were caught in a battered piece of driftwood that was washed up by a storm and lit up by the bright late afternoon sunshine. It is a watercolour that I call "Catch of the Day":

 

 

That's my Whimsy for this week, thanks for dropping by,

 

Gillian.



 



 



Just a little bit of fluff?

The day was predicted to be cloudy with showers, but the sun shone.

A piece of fluff, a clematis seed head really, caught my eye as it danced in the breeze so you know I had to reach for the camera.



Catching the light so perfectly.

 
Not being poetically gifted myself I offer these quotes:

"Every problem contains within itself the seeds of its own solution."

Stanley Arnold

Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds that you plant.

Robert Louis Stevenson

 

 

It is only the farmer who faithfully plants seeds in the Spring,
who reaps a harvest in the Autumn.
- B. C. Forbes

 

 

 

So delicate and so pretty, caught in the sunshine, they made me stop, take notice and smile. I hope they brought a smile to your day as well.

Maybe it is not too early to start looking at seed catalogues and dreaming of spring.


On the art front I have recently started painting portraits. Here are two quite different subjects; the first is a singer at a country fair and the second is a small child peering out of her stroller.

 

 "Hey Mr. Guitar Man play a song for me" (sorry I didn't get a very good picture of this one):

 

"Guitar Man", watercolour. 13" X 10"

And a small girl peering out from her stroller:

"Small Wonder"

 

That's your Whimsy for this Wednesday, thanks for dropping by,

 

Gillian

Lost Whimsy?

Whimsy on a Wednesday?

I have spent the last few months feeling a bit lost. Lost in space, cyberspace that is.

In the fall our old, and usually reliable computer, died or so it seemed. Were the files gone with it? What about all my pictures?

A new computer promised improved speed and storage and the technician promise all our files were safe and had been transferred. Well, not so much.

First time I turned it on, the mail program didn't work, all our saved mail was not there and the screen looked very different. No start button?

Hey Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore.

Nothing is the same!

We had gone from a 32 bit operating system to a 64 bit one. None of my old reliable and efficient photo storage and editing tools worked anymore.

 

..and I admit I just gave up for quite a while.

 

So I have "found" my pictures, got new editing software and am gradually getting used to it. Maybe I might just get this blog off the ground again.

 





 

 

 

Well at last!

I have some paintings to share and some art news.

First here is are a couple of new paintings:

Coming and Going, watercolour, 14" X 20"

 

"Alight", watercolour, 20" X 14"



My art news: 

Two of my paintings have been accept in a juried exhibit titled "Works on Paper" at the Federation (of Canadian Artists) Gallery on Granville Island in Vancouver.

"Aurora", watercolour 14" X 20"

 

"Echoes", watercolour 20" X 14"

 

 

The show is on February 11 to 23, 2014; here is the link to the online gallery.  I am thrilled to report that "Aurora" was given an "Award of Excellence".

I am happy to say that I have a surgery date soon which should resolve the medical issue that has been hanging over my head for some time now.

Happy Wednesday, until next time, with whimsy,

Gillian

 

 

 

 

 

Totem Poles

The Museum of Anthropology (MOA) at the University of British Columbia is a very interesting place to visit. There is an extensive collection in the museum as well as an outdoor collection including many totem poles and a long house.

 

 I took these pictures when I last visited: 

 

Welcoming poles outside: 

Outside the Museum of Anthropology:



"Totem poles may recount familiar legends, clan lineages, or notable events. Some poles celebrate cultural beliefs, but others are mostly artistic. Certain types of totem poles are part of mortuary structures, and incorporate grave boxes with carved supporting poles, or recessed backs for grave boxes. Poles illustrate stories that commemorate historic persons, represent shamanic powers, or provide objects of public ridicule." (Wikipedia)

Poles are usually carved of western red cedar because it is resistant to decay (containing a natural fungicide), but still there are not many poles that are more than 100 years old still standing.

 

"The vertical order of images is widely believed to be a significant representation of importance. This idea is so pervasive that it has entered into common parlance with the phrase "low man on the totem pole." " (Wikipedia)

 

 

"Erection of a totem pole is almost never done using modern methods, even for poles installed in modern settings on the outside of public and private buildings. Instead, the traditional ceremony and process of erection is still followed scrupulously by most artists, in that a great wooden scaffold is built, and hundreds of strong men haul the pole upright into its footing, while others steady the pole from side ropes and brace it with cross beams.

 

Once the pole is complete, a potlatch is typically held where the carver is formally paid and other traditional activities are conducted. The carver will usually, once the pole is freestanding, perform a celebratory and propitiatory dance next to the pole while wielding the tools used to carve it. Also, the base of the pole is burnt before erection to provide a sort of rot resistance." (Wikipedia)

 

 

 

 

"Totem poles are typically not well maintained after their erection. 

The beliefs behind the lack of maintenance vary among individuals, but generally it is believed that the deterioration of the pole is representative of natural processes of decay and death that occur with all living things, and attempts to prevent this are seen as somehow denying or ignoring the nature of the world." (Wikipedia)

Inside the museum is a huge collection of art from cultures around the world.

MOA describes itself as: "A place of extraordinary architectural beauty. A place of provocative programming and vibrant, contemporary exhibitions. A place of active exploration and quiet contemplation. A place of world arts and cultures."

Bill Reid's sculpture "The Raven and the First Men":

Cooking box lids:

 

I have always been fascinated by the imagery on totem poles and other First Nations' carvings and I sure found some inspiration in my visit to the MOA.

 

Here are two paintings that I have finished recently.

 

Both are watercolours; the first I call "Aurora":

 

the second "Echoes":

 

Both are part of my art show at "Pane e Formaggio", on now until early November.

 

For more information on these paintings or others in my show visit GillianOlsonArt.blogspot.com

 

Thank you for stopping by, yours with whimsy, Gillian.