Great and North - Imago Mundi in Canada

You may recall that last fall Great and North was debuting at the Venice Biennale. The Imago Mundi Project has brought the Canadian and First Nation's of North America art collections to the OCAD's Onsite Gallery in Toronto Ontario Canada this fall.
It is always a pleasure to see your artwork take on its own life. If you are in the Toronto area, I hope you can make it out to see it. Details in the links above.

Looking for Center: 2017 in Review

It is that reflection and goal setting time of year again. I shared 16 posts in this space in 2017. I think I'm ok with that. Considering that it was one of the busiest years of my adult life. I've gathered some numbers for taking stock of the year.  I do not usually do this but I felt like it would help me put things in perspective.

Taken on Salt Spring Island, BC July 2017

I often felt a sensation of being in limbo despite pushing myself further than I ever had before. Looking back on the year this way has given me piece of mind that I have indeed achieved more than I thought. That is a reassuring feeling and it is helping to keep the limbo feeling in the background. Here are some numbers about my year.

Number of Completed Pieces: 5
Grants Written & Applied for: 2
Grants Received: 1
Art Sales: 2
Exhibitions Applied For: 10
Exhibitions: 4
Exhibition Rejections: 7
Art Related Articles Published: 2 (SAQA Journal Summer & Fall issues)
Press Coverage: 2 (Friendship Show UDHR Embroidery)
Art Exhibitions visited: 7 (a number I'd like to increase for 2018)
Attended SAQA Western Canada Regional Retreat in Kelowna, BC
Became SAQA Western Canada Regional Representative
Began my first Artist Residency at Forest Grove Elementary School
Began a part-time job at Mackin House Museum
Craftivist project artist for UDHR Quilt Project
Set up a Monthly newsletter
Set up a Facebook artist's page

These are career related accomplishments of course. There were many more parts to this life. Turning 40, sharing time with family, reading 36 books, travelling to some lovely locations, raising two boys and maintaining our crazy family of 4 life.

Installation view of Look In, Reach Out at the Zack Gallery, Vancouver BC, May 2017

A few thoughts to ponder as we move forward in 2018.

Why think about the rejections?  They are just as important as the acceptances.
Do you reflect on the passing years in your art practice? I do.  My project is called Memory Keeper and is now going into its 10th year.  Here are some past examples of the small pieces I make to mark each year.
2008 2010 2011 2012

Here's to an art filled 2018.

JJ

Behind the Art - Inheritance

Today I want to share the journey of a small series of works, one of which is soon to be installed in an exhibit called Great and North at the Palazzo Loredan in Venice Italy from August 29 to October 29, 2017. The beginnings of this work are more humble than where it has ended up but that is the magic of putting yourself out there and taking chances.  You never know where those risks can get you.

This is the original photo of my maternal great grandmother on her wedding day.  I love this photo for its nostalgia but also because of Alice Rogers' story.  She came to Canada from England after training as a baby nurse. Her desire to come here was based on the chance to rise above the class system of English culture that would keep her "in her place." She was coming to join two of her sisters who had already made the trip. It was a leap into the great unknown. It was a difficult sea crossing, it was the early 1900's. Her sole contact with her family back home was letters.  No Facetime like I have the luxury of now. I believe that she, and all my ancestors that braved moving to a new land, had adventurous hearts. Something compels you to move.  To explore, to go. That is not an easy impulse to follow. It is often frightening and lonely but you go because if you stayed it would not be true to who you are or who you could become. Alice met a lovely English bloke named Stephen Adams and they married and birthed two lovely girls.  One of whom is my grandmother Margaret now in her 90's. I did not have the privilege to meet Alice but I feel that she passed something down to me through her DNA. 

I made a series of works featuring fabric that I designed based on this photo of Alice and two of my other grandparents. 

This is Alice I, that was displayed at the Richmond Art Gallery and swapped in a Mail Art exhibition.

This is Alice II, a smaller version with lace and bead embellishments.

And this is Inheritance: Adventurous Heart, that is now part of the Imago Mundi collection and featured in the art book Oh West Canada!

Using the same imagery several times was an exploration of ways to bring out her character and story and relate it to my own. I feel a connection to her despite never having met her in person. It is a great honour to carry her story and those of other family members forward in this time. I am grateful for the legacy that they have passed on to me. And I think most of us can feel the impact of our ancestors if we listen closely enough.

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JJ