Bluenose II comes to Pictou

The Bluenose is in Pictou this weekend. Read more in the Evening News. Come visit Pictou this weekend and see this historic replica of the original race winning schooner.


Technorati Tags: Bluenose, Pictou, schooner, Nova Scotia

Designer crafts and art collecting

Toni Sikes, founder of The Guild, reports that young artists working in craft media today are seeking respect for their design skills rather than to be recognised as an artist. This is going against the trend of the 80's which saw craft moving into fine art. The blog post is illustrated with 'Leaf Clocks' by Emi Ozawa. Personally I much prefer Emi's "Pendulum Box". It has a really neat idea for making the lid of a box.

The Guild blog also has a link to The Intrepid Art Collector Blog. Artists; be sure to list your exhibitions on this blog's monthly bulletin board. Lisa's new book, THE INTREPID ART COLLECTOR: How to Find, Buy and Appreciate Art on a Budget, will be published this October. Although writen from a collectors perspective, I think it will be a useful read for artists too as an aid to marketing.


Technorati Tags: art, craft, design, art collector, artists

Summer Sounds of Nova Scotia

Last night I went to the deCoste Centre in Pictou to catch the first show in the season of Summer Sounds in Nova Scotia. John 'Spyder' MacDonald hosted the show and was joined by fiddler Fleur Mainville, guitarist Ross MacVicar and multi-instrumentalist Mark Haines. In this ceilidh style presentation all the musicians stay on stage throughout the show and often join in with each other's tunes. I had a terrific evening, and it was enjoyed by visitors from as far afield as the USA, Alberta and Scotland.

You can catch this show every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evening throughout July and August. It's a must see if you are in the area this summer and an experience not to be missed. Every week there is a different line-up of musicians, and I will be going back at every chance I get. Next week the line up is Jimmy Sweeney, Alycia Putnam & family, and Ardyth & Jennifer.

See you there.


Technorati Tags: pictou, nova scotia, deCoste centre, music

Art in a Flash

I just watched a program on CBC TV about an artist book featuring Gros Morne National Park in Newfoundland. They have set up a webpage with links to several wonderful Flash presentations: Artist Book

I found this interesting on many levels. First of all there is the art aspect of the book itself, a collaboration between three artists. Then there is the interactive presentations created for this website. They are wonderful examples of what can be done with Flash. They include graphics, video and audio.

Before getting broadband I was anti-Flash. Maybe because I had seen very few good presentations, and definitely because of the long downloads! Now everything has changed:) I'd be interested to know if any of you on dialup find these useable? I think that this style could provide a very persuasive sales pitch. Who wants to go to Gros Morne on vacation this year?

Technorati Tags: art, Flash, artist book, Gros Morne, Newfoundland

Found art

Every now and then an artist finds a new way to present their art to the public. In April of 2005 Margaret Nicholson placed 100 pieces of her clay sculpture at spots around the coastline of Nova Scotia. Each one carries a tag directing the finder to the website where they can contact Margaret and tell her about their find. Forty six are still unaccounted for.

For those who don't want to search the whole coast, Margaret has created a CD with pictures of the sculptures and a treasure map showing their locations. The CD will be launched on Thursday at the St. FX Art Gallery in Antigonish.


Technorati Tags: art, sculpture, clay, Nova Scotia

A private viewing

I am just back from a trip home to England where I had the chance to see some recent works of my friend Margaret Micklewright. Working in acrylics and inks, the works I had seen before were largely atmospheric seascapes inspired by her childhood home on the island of Arran.

Since then Margaret's work has broadened in style and subject. Perhaps her boldest new direction is the very colourful harbour scenes, such as Mousehole, a small village in Cornwall. Margaret has had an liking of horses for most of her life, so it was no surprise that she recently started painting them. White Horse is a beautifully dreamy painting in acrylic.

Having settled now in Somerset, there are many West Country influences in Margaret's work. Glastonbury Abbey - Study in Gold is one such subject in ink, one of many strong images of architectural subjects. Also in ink is Summer Wood, inspired by sketches and photos taken near my home town of Wells.

There are many more pictures of Margaret Micklewright's work at on her website. I was in awe at the diverse directions her work has taken since I last saw her work, and pleased to learn that her work is sought after in gallerys and at her website. I look forward to my next visit.