G A L L E R Y
A R C T U R U S
Looking at something off the page
What is she looking at?
Something that we cannot see,
something that is not found on the page she occupies.
that lies outside the edge of the board.
The subject of a painting or collage points with their
gaze to somewhere or something that often remains a mystery.
For the Love of Flying
Leonardo da Vinci drawings
Sae Kimura flying figure.
Gifts From Our Visiting Friends
Today we had visitors. This is what we did together!!
It's the Light that Unites Them
These are our first collages done together in 2022
A Triad (without the middle note)
Somewhere Over the Rainbow
collages by Eron Boyd
Two Heads Are Better Than One
One of our team is at home with a cold
and the other one is doing her best
Standing Tall
to be brave, proud,
unyeilding,
without retreating from hardship or adversity
confident in one's ability to meet
whatever may occur
Twas the night before Christmas when all through the house...
...a creature was stirring but it wasn't a mouse
An Alternative to Disney
During the Christmas season we are posting earlier videos for you to enjoy. This is the first of six.
If you have time over the holidays and would like to entertain yourself with more videos just click the link here.
The evolution and fine tuning of a space
...so it can be received and enjoyed by our visitors.
Where World Maintenence is an Ongoing Concern
...the title of the painting by E.J.Gold that we hung today amidst the plants in the library.
Street Life
Please click on our side menu to visit arcturus books.
Looks Like a Pocket Dial
We never moved off our stools today
Tempestuous Melody
Collage by Eron Boyd using a copy of the painting by Edward Burne Jones
Between the Covers
We have copies of this book available for viewing and or purchase
at the gallery for our discounted price of $55.00each.
Somewhere not too far from here
It is easy to forget that we live on a lake with a sky above.
Photo by Barbara Kellam on her morning walk
Creating a Reading Room
Now that we are taking on the making of books
we are creating spaces within the gallery where
the books can be enjoyed, spaces where the one
reading does not feel too exposed at the same
time they feel part of something bigger.
We didn't want to do it but we had fun
Today we took down the old and hung
up the new in the collage gallery.
There is always resistance to take down
something that you love but once started it is very great to rebuild the space.
We Can Finally See the Light!
5:45pm we just uploaded the book for publishing.
No computer screens for the whole weekend!
The Second of Three
This is the second book that we are publishing about Floyd.
It should be ready to send out to publisher tomorrow and
we may see the hardcover by next week. Soon as we have the link for the finished book we will post it here.
The third one will follow.
MoVing BaCkwaRds THrough TiMe
Today both Sae and I were very focused trying to recreate the happenings of the gallery through 2019 til the end of 2020.
Sae collecting images and I recording the dates and actual unfolding of exhibits. It is a strangely disorienting task
to go back in time but we seem to have survived. We agreed that this image conveys a sense of the experience.
Visiting Picasso
The Blue Period meets the Rose Period
"Who Are You?"
The question goes both ways.
It sounds so simple but finding the answer is not.
They call it mellow yellow..that's right
"I'm just mad about saffron, mmmmmm"
Six Feet Under
... but still standing
(click on images to see them larger)
Artists Together
This week we finished the book that we have
dedicated to Floyd Kuptana, our friend and
fellow artist who inspired and worked with us
on the drawings shown on these pages.
We invite you to click on the link and enjoy.
https://www.blurb.ca/books/10873186-artists-together
The book will be available in hardcover, (at a discount), from the Gallery within the next month.
Full and Happy
The day ended with the taste of love!
Places we are no longer allowed to visit
Collages by Eron Boyd
Keep Dancing
This is dedicated to Mark and Barbara
Sending out the surprise packets
...for the online collage workshop
A Mysterious Meeting
One and the Other
when meeting become transformed
neither obscured nor diminished
but subtly and inexplicably enhanced.
Our Book Making Muse
The studio organized and prepared
for book making.
The beginning of a new year
and a new project.
September Morning
Exaltation
Consider What is Happening
Actions motivated by fear
never end well
Variations on the 'Cellist' by Chagall
These collages were done by the participants of the Series #9 online collage workshop. Visit our website to see more.
The Architecture of Thought
The architecture of thought is a mysterious space
The architecture of thought has a noble character
The architecture of thought intersects the past and future
Death as our Advisor
Being aware of death,
our own and of everything that lives,
can frighten or enable us
to focus on what is possible now.
Shaped by the Wind
soft clay on the potters wheel.
fingers of wind curled around a frozen breath.
floating weightless above the trees.
Less Information More Observation
Removing most of the colour changes the way that we see, what we see. Shapes, patterns and textures stand out in a way that is often disguised when we are overwhelmed with colour.
Celery Juice
We all had a sip
celebrating being together again.
(that's because deborah is back)
Sunny Skies, Underwrap and Stacked
Still, no way in.
Social Distancing
West meets East
The dog park at Allan Gardens
A Meeting of the Guardians
from above and below
Facing one way or the other
Looking From Both Sides
Not Quite There
This extraordinary painting by Luke Gilliam is framed under glass
and reflects the the room it occupies.
The added layer seems to amplify the feeling of today... observing from the outside
'not quite there'
In Through the Back Door
Today we sat on a bench in small alley which surprisingly faces exactly onto the back wall of the gallery.
This back wall has many windows. In one of them we had the idea to put a painting facing out
so that those people living in the surrounding condos or, as we did, decide to sit on a bench to have their coffee,
can discover and perhaps even be inspired to visit us.
The Moment Lives On
And what is the moment?
It is a unity, a circle of beings,
content in that moment.
Not reflected
We see our selves most clearly, most truly, in the eyes of those we communicate with.
We reflect each other.
Waking Up
Sorry we were late.
Moved by Wind
This is a gift of spacious
Castillon writes:-
« Listening to Hania's music over and over, I began to dream of a single sequence shot that would follow her music floating in the wind of an unreal Icelandic landscape. I asked each dancer to give a personal interpretation of Hania's song. We were very lucky to succeed in this insane artistic performance despite the great cold (minus 7 celsius), it was such a moment of truth. Shot in Iceland on February 23, 2020. »
Directed by Neels Castillon
Music by Hania Rani
Dancers — Mellina Boubetra, Janina Sarantšina, Fanny Sage
"Caught in a web of contending forces..."
If Only We Were Pigeons...
"I guess a lot of people are feeling that" says Sae.
"Yes, a lot of people are wishing they were pigeons!!!" says I.
For the new blue flowers
Tis is the season for raking leaves and some of us are very enthusiastic about this task.
Unfortunately, the city has suspended the pick up of yard waste and so....
This morning we made a platform for the bags to sit on so that the grass and small flowers
will not be crushed while waiting, wrapping them with canvas in case of rain and tying them
'round with rope so that they will not fall and spill all over everywhere. Practical creativity.
Not particularly beautiful but somehow satisfying.
In the Twilight Zone
...trying to find the light
For Our Dear Friend Eron...
...in memory of his beloved mother Georgia Boyd - December 1939 - March 27 2020
Reconnecting 'Round the Table
It seems that what can be expressed through art cannot be translated into words.
None of us spoke while we were working today
even though we have not seen each other together for many days.
But the work speaks for us in inexplicable ways.
It is a mystery.
cOFFEE IS eSSENTIAL
Today we made this flyer for Stuart, the proprietor of our neighborhood cafe in hopes that he can stay open and solvent through this shutdown.
If you want to pick up a truly great coffee drop by B U L L D O G.
Don't Be Scared It's Just Us
It seems we are all a bit confused and shy to follow the directions for COVID 19 but it is our duty to be responsible
not only for our self but for those who share the world with us, those we love and care for and those who are unknown.
Many lives depend upon our correct action, this situation may be the shock needed to shift our awareness.
It gets easier if we are all in this together. (that's why Sae and I are practicing and trying to get you onboard)
Preparing
...it's not all bad
Remember to Step Outside
Today we walked and walked and remembered how good it is to breathe the air outside.
We are being asked by the conditions at hand to stay close to home and avoid crowds and travel.
A moment or two of this is advisable.
Today was a difficult day
...confusing and messy
ragged and sharp edged
There is a lot happening that we have not encountered before
inside and outside
we are challenged to be balanced
to use our common sense
to remain calm and disciplined
Today we were not quite there yet.
How Differently We Each Interpret The World!
Often we think that it is important that someone share our opinions but not so with art.
In art we can appreciate our differences, in fact we celebrate them.
Maybe it is not so vital that we all think and say the same thing.
Maybe we can look and listen and learn.
A Different Blue A Different Circus
The objects and subjects of the gallery basement.
The World is a Blue Circus
Marc Chagall
Blue Circus
1950
Pacino di Bonaguida
The Creation of the World
1309 - 1347
How the Body Remembers
After using collage with this Medieval set we went out on the street and photographed an old building in the state of demolition and salvation
and found that we had somehow created almost exactly the same construction as in the painting, (seen in our Feb 27th blog).
This was unconscious and therefore surprising, the way we take in impressions and remember them in our bodies.
Becoming Animated
... thanks to Eron Boyd
Picasso Steps Upon the Medieval Stage
St Francis Renouncing Worldly Goods 1295
The Mountebanks by Picasso 1905
The First Star I See Tonight...
Today Sae 'n' I worked on designing a new web page.
We will let you know when it's up and running, should be in two to three weeks.
Fishing for Mary
Night Fishing at Antibes by Picasso 1939 The Disembarkation of Mary Magdalene
possibly by Pietro Lorenzetti 1310
Collage by Sae Kimura
Collage by deborah harris
The Near and Distant Past
Vivian Felsen
Le Duo The Presentation in the Temple
Georges Braque Giotto di Bondone
1937 1267 - 1337
deborah harris Sae Kimura
For these collages we each had a copy of the two paintings shown above which we combined.
All in all we were able to finish thirteen collages using the same material.
These are the first three.
Not sure where the forest ends and I begin
and home is a thought I can't quite touch
Illuminated
Illuminate: To enlighten; to throw light upon; to light up with festal lamps
Cardboard is our new canvas
This strange coming together of elements to make what could be called a sculpture,
is a playful and spontaneous response to the objects and materials present in the space
but also to the inquiry itself. Irrefutable alteration provides a framework to
explore and to perceive variations on a theme.
Looking at the different images on the blog will give you a hint of those possibilities.
Alteration #8
This show that is currently evolving began as P R I M A L J O U R N E Y
with a solitary boat figure in a tumultuous sea.The figure descended and turned,
M E E T I N G W H A L E.
"And then what? we asked. How does this story continue?
Even whales must come up for air. Gravity below our feet keeps us standing or pulls us over.
As you probably saw in earlier blogs we cut the boat and stood it on its end.
A ladder of sorts leaning on the ramparts, an effort to climb away from earth's concerns.
The truth is, after meeting whale one is irrefutably altered and that is the new title;-
I R R E F U T A B L Y A L T E R E D.
The Space Where We Work... Lit by the Sun
This is where your blogs are born.
The Story Must Continue
One cannot stay forever underwater with the whale. One must come up for air.
What was once a vehicle becomes a shelter, perhaps a home, albeit somewhat quirky.
Still Life with Black Jug
For this exercise we decided to interpret the George Braque painting 'La Table de Toilette', using collage, working from a black and white reproduction and each choosing our own pallet. We did not look at the original colour painting til we were finished.
A Meeting Place
Today we all met back at the gallery again, Sae, deborah and Floyd, after a few days apart.
The gallery is a rare and special place, a place where creativity is allowed to live.
This was our second drawing based on 'The Ice House' by Lawren Harris 1923.
The house seems to represent a unique and solitary place, surrounded by the elements.
A mystery which invites one to enter.
We hope the gallery does the same.
...continuing LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS
Becoming Like Children
Today Sae n I spent the whole day with our very favorite 3 year old friend.
This is what we looked like when she left to go home.
Body So Full Head So Empty
collage ensemble by Vivian Felsen
Year Ending and Beginning
We seem to organize our lives into years.
Time lines, running parallel until they don't
a sudden turn in direction sometimes takes us
where we can't imagine going
and every new year we commit to being better
a noble resolution we hope to live up to
falling down,
standing up again
some semblance of structure that we can measure ourselves against,
a path to follow.