An Amazing Finish !!!!!

In 2007 I was given a generous grant from the provincial government under the Ontario Northern Arts Council. The money was for me to complete my inspiration of a collection of figurative sculptures that would anthropomorphically represent the "Gifts of the North". The expectation of 12-16 figures was settled on.

But the number of figures was not enough to tell the story of the huge area of Northwestern Ontario. And because of real life and the increased number of figures I asked and was generously given more time. So as of today, since November 1st 2007. And instead of 16 figures I ended up with more than 18 vignettes or single figures such as "Boreal" here, and those on bases with multiple figures brought the count up to over 40.

It has truly been a labor of love and now I look for palaces for the collection to travel. My DH helped/ did an amazing power point presentation and I wrote for days what each figure was saying , its importance and the materials used. My daughter who is a photographer did studio shots of all of the figures for the presentation on the disc.. She Meghan Hannam-Arpin is an award winning Photographer and her work can be found here cinemotioncreative.com and on flicker.

So tomorrow I meet with someone at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery and I am very excited. I truly know that dolls are pieces of Art. There is something about a doll that everyone gravitates to. There is so much heart in every small sculpture that tell us about ourselves.

The figure "Boreal" is the floor of the forest. Right across Eastern Canada is a layer of bedrock, much of it exposed. Some is deep enough to farm on but some is all exposed. In our region there are many large floaters. You can see the earths crust and rounded stones that came loose in the last ice age and are where they were then. Rocks the size of Cars, scars deep in the rock they are on from the dragging. "Boreal" is that and although we cannot grow things on rocks . moss, fungus and lichen do, which is representative in his clothes. He is visited by the small forms of life, mice, bugs, caterpillars etc. His feet are based on shelf-fungus that grows on the forest floor.

He is a meter/ 37" tall and fully jointed and smells amazing because moss has a musky sweet smell. He has a morel mushroom named Mike to talk to in one hand. I find when people get to hold him, he feels very cosy because of all the soft layers of wool clothing, they don't want to put him down.

As so I am finished and it feels wonderful !!!! Now my Ready To Pretend Studio can move onto other things for request or to put in my etsy store. It feels wonderful to know I got it all done and took no shortcuts at all. What a blessing the grant was ! It was a great way to launch into my Fabulous Fifties and they are fabulous.

Would someone come and clean my house now ?????

Yours, Janet