Category — Arts and culture

Lorna Dueck and Preston Manning together at the Glenn Gould Studio, CBC, May 30.

Follow this link for more information.

So, my birthday came and went in April — the week we moved to Toronto, in fact. And some wonderful family members gave me some cash gifts that I’ve been holding onto for just the right occasion. And I’ve found it! I’m LEARNING TO SEW at The Workroom — an amazing sew and craft by the hour space on Queen Street.

Photo care of Toronto Craft Alert

SO excited.

I am very much looking forward to a stellar night out tomorrow.

Image Journal presents…

An evening of Readings, Music, and Discussion with Musician Miranda Stone and Writers Deborah Joy Corey, Luci Shaw (!!!), and John Terpstra. If you’re in the Toronto area head to the Glenn Gould Studio, 250 Front Street West - April 28, 7pm.

Details here.

Bible Belts, husband-and-wife duo Alison Therriault + Chris Alscher (Photo by Ming Wu, Ottawa)

Favourite moment of the day:

Stopped in late morning traffic a block from Main and Hastings, spotting my friend Chris aka Chris-A-Riffic (full-time musician, part-time Radio3 DJ, longtime CiTR host, avid husband) standing on the sidewalk, one hand holding up his bike, another reaching out to a man with a handwritten sign, all the while his not-yet-two-year wedding band (he married his drummer) glistening in the February sun.

Chris is one of those people who has the uncanny ability to make me smile no matter what the circumstance.

Happy Day, Sir Chris. You are one of the most sincere, humble, and unbelievably talented men I have had the good luck of knowing.

It has been a whirlwind month and a half of travel, sickness and no childcare. The combined onslaught has left me very little time to work or dabble in other creative projects except for one:

My friend Wendy and I are co-hosting a vision board retreat this coming Saturday. There are a few spots left if you’re interested. We’d love to have you!

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Casting vision for the days ahead.

The new year is a time of new life. The year has reset itself. The clock has restarted. It is a time of fixing our eyes on the horizon and setting our course.

Nothing concretes our commitments better than setting them on paper and placing them in a spot we can see. That’s why we are inviting you to spend an afternoon on the peaceful shores of beautiful Bowen Island and creating a vision board with your hopes, dreams and goals for 2011. Think of it as a serene escape in a place where you can relax and create.

Over the course of three hours you will be welcomed into a waterside home with unobstructed views of the ocean, lush forest and snow-dusted mountains. Here you will be shown how to create a personal vision board: a visual representation of your vision for the year ahead.

A vision board (or creativity collage) is a poster in which you paste or collage images. The idea behind it is that when you surround yourself with images of your goals or dreams, your life changes to match those images.

In a day, make a year.

When: Saturday, January 29

Time: 1 to 4 PM

(Catch the 12 Noon ferry from Horseshoe Bay. Please let us know if you are walking on and need to arrange pick-up.)

Cost: $40 (includes all supplies and afternoon refreshments) To sign up, simply click here.

Your hosts: Wendy Meades & Christina Crook

Wendy is an occupational therapist and has a fine arts certificate from Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design. Christina is editor of the Arts & Cultural Guide to British Columbia and a freelance writer of eclectic subject matter.

We can’t wait to create with you,
Wendy & Christina

An author friend of mine (Chris Meades, The Three Fates of Henrik Nordmark) recently gave me a signed copy of his friend Bren Simmer’s new book of poetry, Night Gears. The stunning cover was created by none other than Nikki McClure, the Oregonian paper cuts artist best-known for her annual calendar and collection of journals.

Bren’s book is beautiful. “Brimming with “side of the road wonder” and equipped with a discerning intelligence, Bren Simmers goes panning for gold in the day-to-day and the out-of-the-way and considers both the gravel and the glitter she finds there. A generous spirit rescues the moments we’re most likely to forget, the places we’re least likely to visit.” — Sue Sinclair

Here is an excerpt:

Cottonwoods

On the porch, we lean
into the street’s new palette,
a canopy of gold

lanterns, latent colour stirring
under green. Low angle sun ignites
branch tips, your eyelashes. Evening

approaches like a timid suitor.
We shiver and stall, watch night
turn on the houses one by one.

The inscription: “Dear Christina, I can’t wait to read your words in the world.” Thank you, Bren. And thank you Chris and Wendy for this wonderful gift.

On an aside: Wendy and I will be co-hosting a vision board retreat in late January. Details coming soon.

Veritas. Truth.

In Roman mythology, Veritas, meaning truth, was the goddess of truth, a daughter of Saturn and the mother of Virtue. It was believed that she hid in the bottom of a holy well because she was so elusive.

Last week I interviewed Ty Clark, a man who only two short years ago launched an ambitious project connecting art, fashion, and film in the name of Truth. I’ve been inspired. Watch the 2011 trailer above. I hope you are too.

Parul Arora: You are a genius. A adore these coasters and might try my hand at a similar project. This year’s Christmas gift collection, perhaps?

Thank you, as always, to UPPERCASE (aka Janine) for faithfully leading me to the creative and curious.