Some photos from a vintage fashion show at Osler Brook about 10 years ago..
These are composite / collage images pulling together photographs of both Toronto and the Collingwood and Blue Mountain area.
Some photos of Castle Glen and the Blue Mountain area for use by those who want to showcase and preserve the beauty of the forests and waterways.
Longest visit yet, to our place in Costa Rica, near Tambor (Brisas del Mar in Los Delfines) from early Jan to mid Feb. This time, we made a trip to Arenal and La Fortuna.
First October trip to Costa Rica during the rainy season. It’s actually a beautiful time for a visit, still hot everyday but it also rains most days. Some of these rains are quite heavy. The skies can be quite beautiful and the it’s greener on the Pacific coast where it can get dry during their summer months (Dec-Apr).
My son, Tyler, and his fiancé, Robyn, had planned to get married in our backyard this summer. Original invitations included over 100 people however, in April, when the coronavirus pandemic changed our lives, they cancelled their reception, still committed to a small ceremony in the back in August 2020.
They’ve been busy since early spring creating a beautiful ceremony space in the woods, by the creek, at the edge of our property. They have also been working with us on the backyard for the past couple of months. We’ve built a beautiful garden and they even planted sunflowers. They are so tall now but still not quite burst forth. We hope they will be in time for the wedding. We have also done some work to extend the deck and the some landscaping to create a new fire pit area.
As the rules have evolved, and most recently we are in Stage 3 in Ontario, there will be 25 people for the ceremony and dinner (including wedding party and dates). We are hosting a bonfire after the dinner and have invited people on the original guest list who live in the area. At this point, by 9pm, we expect there will be 40-45 people in our back and it’s large enough that we will be able to create 3-4 distant spaces to hang out. We will have hand sanitizers and masks but we hope with respectful social distancing, everyone will feel comfortable. It’s not practical to include people who would need to stay in a hotel for only a late evening event. We are praying it will not rain but of course, a week away, and there is rain in the forecast… we will see. If it rains, we will have to postpone the bonfire part of the evening but have some plans for managing the earlier festivities.
Enjoy these photos of the work that was done for the ceremony space as well as some drone shots as it has evolved.
We’ve been in isolation for two months now, with just short trips to the market or walks in the woods. So, I’ve had a lot of time to explore this art form which has captivated me – Encaustic wax painting and collage.
I am most intrigued with gathering natural materials – birch bark, shells, shale, leaves, cedar, etc. and working them into my pictures, along with my photographic images.
Here are some recent examples of work:
Encaustic art, involves using hot wax (heated beeswax with resin) and coloured wax (heated) pigments or paints along with various elements, including photographic images or other materials, such as birch bark or flower petals or lace embedded. The liquid wax can be applied to wooden boards or other prepared surfaces. Use of stencils can also enhance the pieces.
I first heard about encaustic painting from my sister, Rebecca, who is an artist and has experimented with many mediums. More recently, I came across a local artist and studio who hosts various encaustic workshops, bringing in artists for weekend retreats – Heather Laidlaw of “Big Dramatic Questions”. I wasn’t able to attend her workshop but she spent time with me to tutor me in this art form and later, we had another workshop with a group of friends. I was inspired. I have since taken over my dining room and turned it into my encaustic studio, especially during this pandemic while we are all isolated and not able to have dinner parties anyway!
The first piece that I did at Heather’s studio used a black and white image that I’d taken of swans in the Collingwood Harbour.
For me, it’s been a new outlet to make use of my countless photographs as well as to incorporate many of the natural elements in the trails and woods behind my home. Although I’ve never considered myself to be an artist in the fine art sense, it is quite engrossing and I am happy with some of the pieces I have created. Others are experiments. The nice thing about this medium is that, if something is not working, you can just turn on your hot air gun and melt it off. 🙂
I will post some more recent works soon.