Fay Rooke: Enamelist

Professor-Muse-Friend

Unbeknownst to her, she has had a continual and significant impact on my life and work.

Early in my teaching career, with my degree in drawing, painting, experimental directions and art history, I was escorted into my classroom- the glass studio. No clue.

There were five enamel kilns, a bunch of enamels, and a lot of unfamiliar looking tools. I quickly signed up for a course at St. Lawrence College and off I went that summer. I had no idea what I had signed up for. Thankfully there was no Google- ignorance is sometimes bliss. Had I known I had signed up for a master class, with one of the top enamelists in the world (who is a task master extraordinaire to boot) I may have been too intimidated to go! Ultimately, I returned for years. Fay, the incredible group of artists, and the spirit in the room provided so many learning opportunities, opened up new worlds, and instilled in me a love of glass.

The work tells stories. The narratives are personal and universal: a memory of a childhood dress, a feeling of a visit to an interment camp, a portrait of an artist friend,-Helga, the seasons, a walk through the world and of course…gardens. I know it sounds corny, but walking into the space and seeing the massive spectacular body of work before me, it took my breath away. As art can do. As her work does.

I had the absolute privilege to return to the gallery in March with Fay for some quiet time with the work. A great day- one to treasure.

Fay’s work was part of the first show at The Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery and now a solo show as part of their 30th anniversary celebrations. Go see this show. It is on until 12 May 2024. The catalogue ( she gave me permission to take a few shots but photographing glass is hard - get the catalogue.) and small pieces are for sale in the shop and online.

Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery

Fine Fern Fellows

The pandemic has not only reaffirmed our ephemeral condition, teaching us to live in the moment. It has also underlined the importance of art and culture as a positive reinforcement in life and as a way to deal with its difficulties. And it has most of all emphasized the adaptability of artists.

Sara Marin

 

The Art Gallery of Ontario has adapted and put out an open call for artists to share their pandemic work in an online show titled “Portraits of Resilience”. Hundreds of submissions were received from across Canada and around the world.  Four Fern Fine Fellows answered the call: Vanessa Storoniak, Eduardo Lee, Alison Leigh and Louise Moran. Here is our work:

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Vanessa’s Social Media here.

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Eduardo’s Social Media here.

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Alison’s Social Media here.

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Louise’s Social Media here.

The AGO virtual show with all submissions is on their site View here.

 

Also, Sara Marin’s article is a positive spin on how artists pivoted during the pandemic. It features my two favourite titans: Ai Weiwei and Banksy. Read here.

Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo

Between 1976-1983, under the dictatorship of Videla, 30,000 young people aged 16-35 disappeared in Argentina. The dictatorship deemed that targeting these youth for death would lessen the possibility of this generation growing up with left-leaning political ideals. About 3% of the women were pregnant. They were murdered after giving birth. The babies were unofficially adopted by military families and government supporters.

In 1977 the Grandmothers started meeting in Plaza de Mayo to protest the disappearances, a practice that continues to this day. You can recognize them by their white head scarves representing courage and justice. As the group became more organized, they fought through the courts to get answers, started a social media campaign, partnered with scientists to start the National Genetic Database, and in recent years have filmed their stories in the Identity Archive so their grandchildren may have the tools to find their families even after they are gone. 

Over the last 40 years, approximately 120 of the grandchildren have been reintroduced to their biological families. Throughout the country, one can witness the stories on posters, painted symbols, and large-scale murals.

Alberto

I thought about Caleb and Tom Chan twice in Vancouver, once as I walked past the gorgeous Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at UBC and again as I entered the Vancouver Art Gallery (VAG) wondering when the new gallery would be built (slated to be named Chan Centre for the Visual Arts). The brothers have donated about 50 million dollars to these projects. Their philanthropic efforts are global. Upon returning home this week, I was confronted with the news that they are being investigated by the CRA for tax evasion. It seems that they are caught up in the KPMG scandal where wealthy Canadians have decided that it is better to hide money in the Isle of Man than pay fair taxes. One should pay taxes. It confuses me that they can be so right and so wrong at exactly the same time. The CBC quoted Caleb as saying, “[our] goal was always to ensure the sustainability of [our] charitable giving,” and that, “our family has faith that our goal and genuine intentions, our values, and our contributions to make Canada and the world a better place will intimately shine through.” I certainly hope this is the case. 

The Giacometti show is front and center at the VAG this summer. The show was a stroll through memory lane thinking back to my daughter’s existential university days and an amazing essay that she wrote on this artist (truth be known she didn’t remember the brilliant essay and existential discussions persist to this day). The show was quiet: time for reflection and memory. One must trust the artists’ own interpretation of the work and believe that through his obsessive subtractive sculptural works he was capturing the essence of the person and as he put it the “shadow”. I just can’t avoid making the connections to the images of Holocaust survivors and the vision of their emaciated bodies emerging from the camps. Having lived through both tragic World Wars, and having completed the most famous figurative work following WWII, I struggle to understand that the artist doesn’t make these observations about his work. As I write this I feel that I have no right to have this opinion, yet I also know that we often stand in front of artworks knowing nothing of the artist, not always knowledgeable about the time period, unfamiliar with the style, yet we are free to analyze and make judgments. I will cut myself some slack on this work and just feel what I feel.

Vancouver is beautiful. I have come to believe that it is because of its vibrant, independent art scene. Artist influence is everywhere. The city is thoughtfully designed: manhole covers, parks and gardens, hydro boxes, buildings, boats, storefronts, signage, craft beer logos, menus, etc. I happened to be there during the mural festival. Did you know that it has been alive and well for years and to date, according to the map, 100 murals have been painted to adorn the city.  Granville’s Railspur district is a thriving area for the arts and houses textile, ceramic, woodworking, and metalworking craftsmen. It is always a pleasure to spend time with the artists to talk about their work. If you are heading to Granville, don’t miss The Hang Out Place and treat yourself to the most comfortable hammocks on the planet. I have one in my studio and others in the forest.

I must mention that I was introduced to two lovely entrepreneurs - both women - on Main Street who run Rath, an independent art supply store, and Urban Source, a most exciting recycled art supply store. Both are worth a trip for great conversation and art finds.

Good-bye Vancouver, until we meet again.

Tammi

Take a really close look, and then look again.

Walking into the gallery, I was quickly brought back to those university days, the ones many of us have lived through, where we struggled our way through Design 100 with Josef Albers and Wucius Wong as our spiritual guides. Why do art schools continue to insist that every first year student master these exercises? I personally went through a lot of masking tape! I would argue that from this foundation, we can move beyond to produce masterful works of art like Tammi Campbell’s paintings. The show brought a smile to my face.

The work itself is meticulous: paintings of bubble wrap, cardboard, and masking tape that look exactly like the subject materials. But why? Yes, the debate goes on: what is painting? Can you imagine debating the worth of it in the late 18oo’s after the development of the camera? Why would an artist spend hours upon hours repeating the same patterns? Why was it so important to attain the exact replication of the subject? There is no questioning the perfection of technique, but the subject? There are so many questions that this work evokes.

I was stopped at the reception desk on my way out. The lady said to me, “do you know what you just saw?” She went on to explain that she sends 90% of the visitors back into the gallery to look again.

If you have time, I have included some extra reading below, provided by the Maclaren Art Centre.

Note: The Maclaren Art Centre in Barrie is impressive. I don’t stop there often enough on my travels up north. Yesterday, I thoroughly enjoyed my introduction to this jaw dropping work by Tammi Campbell. In the next gallery were four 1960’s abstract landscapes by Doris McCarthy. It was lovely to visit these old friends!

Master Moulay Ahmed Serghini

I went to Morocco.

Before leaving, I of course researched all things Moroccan art, and ran across a potter from Safi named Serghini. He is a master potter whose amazing work is displayed at the British Museum and celebrated around the world. His family heritage spans the Moroccan pottery divide between the two competitive pottery centers of Fez and Safi. He is the seventh generation pottery master from his family. I requested that the tour stop at this small village on the Atlantic on our way to Casablanca so that I could search for his work. In the end I didn’t find his work but found HIM!

I was star struck.

It didn’t dawn on me that he would be there. I casually mentioned his name to our guide and he said, “come.” I quickly followed him down the village hill and into a shop where he ran through to the back, with me trying desperately to keep up, and he simply said “this is him!” Despite our language barriers I did find out that he had travelled to Montreal for a show. I invited him to visit Toronto. We can hope. To my great disappointment he had no personal work in the shop to share; all of the work was done by his studio apprentices.

I invite you to view this video featuring the Master and Safi.

Morocco has a rich craft tradition in multiple disciplines. I hope you to enjoy the following photographs that show a small sampling of craftsmanship in the country including: metalwork, basketry, rubber, and textiles.

Note: I bought back pure pigments made from poppy, mint, seashells, indigo, and cobalt. Out of my mind excited to start using them!

Jeff and Julia

Winter Stations is a not-for-profit organization that runs an international competition each year to beautify Toronto’s Woodbine Beach, utilizing the lifeguard stations that are not in use during the winter months. It is a special outing only requiring some warm winter clothing and a positive, adventurous spirit.

Since it started in 2014, I’ve not missed the opportunity to view the work. My friends Jeff and Julia often invite us to experience the blistering cold winds and cool water splashings of Lake Ontario while enjoying the installations. The hot chocolate and croissants afterwards always help to fade the weather memories.

The artworks - often interactive - capture the imagination. Each year, a different theme is explored and executed. This year’s theme was “Migration” and the artists didn’t fail to explore all definitions of the term including: mind migration of thoughts; the longest migration on earth; monarch butterflies; and human migration to a seemingly hopeful better place/life.

This is a must-experience show that runs from February to April each year. If you haven’t participated, definitely put it on your to-do list for next year. The call for submissions for all you architects, designers, and artists will be available in September.

Enjoy these images from the past few years!

Janet

A twenty-four hour period last week with Janet Hunter allowed me to cross one item off my bucket list and experience a celebration of sculpture. Thank-you Janet!

The Arts and Letters Club

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Janet invited some friends and colleagues to the historic Arts and Letters Club (ALC) for their annual Christmas lunch. I was giddy to be included. Never in a million years did I think I would have the opportunity to dine within the walls of this exclusive hang-out. As I approached the front façade, I was pinching myself. I waited a minute for the front steps to clear before I started taking pictures, proud of my stealthiness. Of course, as I approached the beautiful, oversized doors, they miraculously opened. A porter welcomed me, graciously not saying a word about my behaviour. Busted.

Once inside, I experienced the magic that I had always known was held within the walls of this space. There is history everywhere. You can breathe it in with all of your senses. Organized in 1908, ALC has been housed in three different locations, has brought together various art disciplines and personalities including the Group of Seven members Vincent Massey, Marshall McLuhan, and Robertson Davies. Portraits of past club presidents, including a few women (ALC was a male-exclusive club until 1985) adorn the walls. There were three stories of art works by former members, many instantly recognizable. The venue, food, drink, and of course the company were outstanding.

The Al Green Sculpture Studio and School

The next day involved the second “Janet” invitation to the Al Green Sculpture Studio and School Open House. Al Green was a builder of the city and of sculpture. He opened the studio in 2000, affording sculptors  a studio and community to produce three dimensional work. Unfortunately the members lost their benefactor in 2016, but his spirit and vision lives on in the 3000 square foot space in Leslieville. The opening in the studio allowed the viewers to experience both finished sculptures and works in process. It is an engaging space, filled with evocative art and committed artists. Janet Hunter is one of them.

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Janet Hunter with her Goddesses/ Warriors                                 

Photo Credit: Patricia M.

Check out Janet Hunter’s work and thoughtful contemporary art commentary on her website.