With Grateful Thanks

"The Gifts of the North" have been travelling and enjoying the care of museums and curators of southern Ontario and if it shows in the Numbers they have been well recieved. Above is Loon, who not only represents an Icon of Canadian summers and cottage/camp country, but also the Voyaguers , and the Metis that emerged as a separate rich culture of French and First Nations.

They have been at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum in Almonte, The Glanmore House in Bellville, The McCaully Museum in Picton, and now are in Perth, Ontario as the Christmas display, a gift from the north. I am so very thankful.
You can find them all and their stories at htttp://www.wix.com/janethannam/readytopretendgiftsofthenorth

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

The Gifts You Do Not Expect !

I just received and unexpected happy gift. What an amazing thing the telephone is and the sound of a voice you have not heard for ages and never expected to again until you are face to face, one day, may be.

In 1989 we moved to the North. We moved so far north that we knew there were people that we would not see again. But for any of you, who are young parents despairing, yes despairing of ever having a life again...........babies grow up. I have found that my friends babies grew too and so tonight, three friends called. One (J) ,I met 41 years ago. We went through all the stages together..........fell away during marriage, adjustments, and raising children.....and tonight we had to remind ourselves to even ask about all those people and things that took all those years.

(J) and I schooled together, shared an apartment, and I was her maid of honour. (M) took her place as roommates and stayed very good friend. And ( E) became the glue from school on that has held us all together. Yes we have had some friends die, and some leave and not look back, ever and Lord knows whatever brought us together this tightly...... but my heart leap to hear their voices, the voices of my youth and the time and laughter and whisperings flood back.

I thank them for including me in their evening. What a wonderful Christmas gift!

Janet

The Quiet of December.

This is I-am , the narrator to the FINISHED grant project. Did you hear that ? Finished !!!

I finished ! The " Gifts of the North" is finally done. Only the write up of each figure and the break down of the finances, and then I hope that I can share the work I have done for the last 3 years. The goal of 12 figures swelled to 18 vignettes containing almost 40 faces. I have never done something so large, and now I have to see how and where they will visit ( far and wide, I hope.)

The last 3 orders outstanding are a head for a doll, a dragon-fly (purple ) and a beaded gold fish. From then I hope to fill the shelves of my Etsy Store - Ready To Pretend with all the creations and toys I have been tempted by over the last 2 years for sure.

Having a studio is a great blessing. It is great to be able to be able to create and not let all the mess and clutter spill over into our home life and have time away, which is a luxury. I finally can step away to sketch, think, and mull instead of having to trash the living space.

I had an amazing experience a few weeks ago. The cedar log cottage that my Grandfather and family including my mother has always had a photo of White Otter Castle framed on the wall. Since moving to Thunder Bay, I had almost given up after 20 yrs hear of ever seeing it. My dh John and sailing friends organized an outing that found us in a little Otter Plane ( float plane) ( which means it lands on water) flying over the fall leaves of Poplar, Birch and yellow Tamarak trees and landing right in front of this font of many myths and stories. Fifteen minutes in that plane, that before we stepped in was hosed out after a moose hunt ( Sarah Palin has nothing on all the regions in Canada ).

There I stood in the clean fresh crisp air, looking up at this icon of my childhood. This whole area cleared by one man. Each tree felled by axe, squared with a broad axe and adz. Winched into place and each dovetailed end fitting together in a way that few know today. Chincked with oakum, and cement the building is now maintained by a passionate group of volunteers. The ceilings vaulted overhead, the kitchen outback ready for fresh lake fish. The walk the tower felt like looking out from a light hour over the lake 30 ft away. I could imagine the challenge and the dream.

We were told of a stand of huge white pine close by ( like the ones felled for the castle. John and I in one of our first outings in a year found ourselves melting into the forest and finding a patch of sunlight, away from the wind to munch our rustic meal. The time was not enough. We discovered the other had gone ahead and the second plane bobbed on the waves waiting for us. Before I could stop myself, I started to scour the ground for organic craft material to bring home. Mosses, branches, bark and leaves. I could not wait to work it into the last figure of The Gifts of the North.

Now a 6 ft. Balsam tree perfumes the house as the traditional scramble to get the parcels gone by tomorrow. I go to the studio tomorrow to sign the lease and pay the rent. 1$ a square ft. It is all mine.

Please on earth to all and remember, quilts, books, tea and cuddles are all we need at this time of year. After the financial of the last 2 yrs, it is amazing that people still feel they can buy Christmas.
Have peaceful winter days before the new years starts it all again.

Yours, Janet

Almost done!!!

It is amazing, that feeeling of knowing that you are so very close to finishing something. The Ontario Northern Arts Council Grant fiures are down to the last one to be done. It is amazing that all comes so quickly but sometimes I have discovered that my mulling, percolating, collecting and sketching ....when it comes to the actual work it is very automatic. You/I have worked it all out and there after a few hours the subject is done.
It is a very different way than I used to work. I would slash away at fabrics and waste materials an time and usinally not complete things. This Grant and having the studio has made memuch more aware of time and using it well.
I am so very happy...no very proud of the collection. It is my very best work to date and not shortcuts have been made. Next Thunrsday thay will be off to my daughter's studio Cinemotion Creative to be photographed so that I can start them on their travels.
I have 5 things to finish for customers and the front og of the Studio to paint but tomorrow is the day that we ready ourselves for the appraiser for our home and CELEBRATE Andrew and Jodie's ( my son and his wife ) first anniversary.
I must as wellthen take time to work on the stories behind each art piece. That... I can do while I am visiting mom andso I need to book a flight for Toby and me.
went and had my hair done today. Everything is blended softly but the natural silver and white sparkle through. I have earned it and it is time.
This net book that I am working from now in gret but does not have any photos for me to share. I have a stick and an external harddrive so I should be able to fix that soon.
So here I stand. One figure to complete......The spirit of the forest.......Some machine work, glue, necklaces and I need to create birds flying from his hands for the middle 2 of the six.
Last not to have here was the shaving of poor Tom Cat. A push faced persian. He has only his face and bib, boots and tail. But the reast is naked. He needs to be brushed everyday. $60 to shave a cat.
I am out here as I have much to do. I owe this blog day some photos.
Janet

Now is the time!

Iam bound and determined to start to use this blogging for myself. I have found myself alone at the cross roads of being what most would call letting go. I have spent 25 years, 1/4 of a century, and close to a thrid of my life trying to do things the correct and proper way. I have reached great mountains and valleys of dispair as I have tried to people please all my life and now I have reached my limit physically andemotionally. Where as I have spend every moment trying to remember all the have toos and filling in as others blythly went elsewhere. I am now lying that I have completed things and spending great lengths of time dreaming of running away, even from those that I love. Inded it is those same people that have presumed upon me for much too ladder and expect that their choice is what will be and have never chosen the oppisite or picked up on one social clue.
I am terribly angry about the positions I have found myself in, even to today.
So I expect I will find myself here sharing as much of my art as possible and I am afraid that the dream of Mississippi Lake has to be posponed until after it is impossible for us to go anywhere.
I have this new little computer and I mean to learn how ro keep financials straight and a journal of what was accomplished and a calender of things to come.
This is venting for me. I am 53 years old and it iss time to take a sabatical for me.
Thanks for listening.
Yours J

Now is the time!