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Silent Sunday – November 16, 2014
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Monthly Archives: November 2014
Sunday Trees – 157
Cee’s Black and White Challenge: Lines and Angles
….when I saw Cee’s Black and White Challenge this week I knew exactly where I was going to get some great line and angle shots
Today, my husband, my daughter A and her partner J and I took J’s nephew to the ROM in downtown Toronto. The new addition is not to everyone’s liking but it certainly has some great lines and angles.
Our Monster Gallery
…..the grade 2/3 class finally got to make their ‘monsters’
I introduced this lesson before Hallowe’en but we hadn’t finished a couple of other projects and the Remembrance Day assembly was coming up and we needed to make our poppies so our ‘monsters’ were put on hold.
Our inspiration came from Mies van Hout’s book Friends. She’s a wonderful artist from the Netherlands who likes to use oil pastels on black paper.
Before we started I demonstrated how to draw a random shape and from that come up with a monster. I explained to the class that if they have a monster in mind they are more likely to experience disappointment if it doesn’t turn out the way they envisioned it. Most of the class trusted my instructions and created very interesting and ‘fun’ monsters.
Table Top Drawing and Painting
….some of the art that I’ve created in the last week
I’m taking an on-line class again with Carla Sonheim and Diane Culhane. This one is called Table Top Drawing and Painting and the focus is on contour drawing and using line to create depth. The materials we’re using include micron pens, pencil, vellum paper, watercolour paper, Prismacolour pencils, acrylic paint and wood and canvas.
So far I’ve completed lessons 1, 2 and 3 and have prepped for lessons 4, 5 and 6. Here are some of the completed pieces that I’ve done. The first two are contour drawings of still life.
In the second assignment we had to use black paper and create another contour drawing but use Prismacolour pencils and a variety of hatching lines to create depth and texture. This was a lot of fun.
In the last picture I used vellum paper and drew a contour still life using pen and a variety of lines (continuous, broken, dashes, dots, etc.). Then I filled in the negative space using Prismacolour pencils. This was also a great exercise.
The next three assignments use acrylic paint, glazes, moulding clay, paper, canvas and wood panels. Hopefully I can complete them this weekend.
Cheers!
A Word a Week Challenge: Companion
….thanks to Sue Llewellyn for dipping into her dictionary for the word companion
Children’s Poppies on Remembrance Day
….we’ve been busy at school making all sorts of poppies to decorate the gym for our Remembrance Day assembly
Share Your World – Week 45
….week 45?…. are there really only 7 weeks left in the year?
What is your favorite color?
Easy, peasy! Red
In what do you find the simplest of joys?
I find great joy in a good book, quiet time at the cottage, conversations with my husband, getting lost in creating new art and hugs from my students.
Would you prefer a reading nook or an art, craft, photography studio?
If I can’t have both I’d have to choose an art studio. I need a place where I can put out my supplies and leave them out and not worry about putting things away because company is coming or family is staying overnight and need to sleep where I currently do my art.
What is at least one of your favorite quotes?
I don’t know who said it first but I believe in “live in the moment”.
Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?
I am grateful for time with family. The memorial for my aunt and my daughter’s birthday brought together the family for two days. Some family members I see regularly but others only occasionally and it was nice having everyone together even if it was only for a couple of days.
This week I’m looking forward to our annual Remembrance Day service at school. Everyone has worked very hard to make the day special and if it’s anything like other years it will be a very touching and memorable day.
I’m also looking forward to spending some time with friends and going to another concert put on by the Women’s Musical Club of Toronto. On Saturday or Sunday I’m also entertaining a young man (J’s 7 year old nephew) by taking him to the ROM. It’s always fun taking children to the museum.
For more Share Your World posts check out Cee’s photography.
Life’s Too Short
…..fill in the blank “life’s too short to____________”
Today’s Daily Post on WordPress is very timely. Last Sunday my 88 year aunt passed away. Now some of you may say she lived a good long life and you would be correct. My realization was that I shouldn’t have waited so long to get to know her better.
We tend to put things off until tomorrow but sometimes tomorrow is too late. Case in point: One year ago a group of friends from high school had finally reconnected after 30 years. We all wondered about one friend who wasn’t at our reunion so we investigated and found her. A letter was sent and then a few weeks later we were informed that she had just died. She was 60. At the funeral we learned that she had received the letter and was looking forward to our next get together. It was a few days later that she learned she only had a couple of weeks to live.
This past summer another friend at the age of 61 also passed away. Her 7 year battle with cancer finally took her life. It was her serious health condition that brought all of us together in the first place and I feel blessed for having been able to get together when we did. When my friend L called me in June to tell me that our friend was no longer seeing people and preferred to receive mail I decided to write her a card. Unfortunately I put it off (only for a couple of weeks) and she died before I made that final communication.
I am grateful for the time I spent with my aunt when she was in the hospital and the nursing home. For the last four months I saw her at least two to three times a week. My only regret is that we didn’t spend more time together when she was healthier but as my husband said it wasn’t for a lack of trying. Communication is a two way street. My aunt was always happy to see us but we were always the ones to initiate the visits.
In conclusion I leave you with these important words…..life’s too short to waste, don’t put off till tomorrow what you can do today.
A Farewell Celebration Followed by a Birthday Celebration
….this weekend we fondly remembered my aunt and celebrated my oldest daughter’s 35th birthday
I don’t have a very large extended family. My mother only had one sister and my father had a sister who also passed away this year and he has a brother who still lives in Germany. In total I have five cousins. Three live in Germany, one in Florida and one in Hamilton.
I have two sisters and in total we have 7 children. My youngest sister lives in Calgary with her husband and two children and my middle sister lives in Chatham with her new husband. Her two children live, here, in Toronto. Of my three children, two still live in Toronto and my son now resides in London, England.
This weekend brought some of us together to celebrate the life of my aunt, my mother’s older sister. My own mother passed over 20 years ago at the young age of 61.
My aunt H had two children, late in life and when her husband died in his early fifties she moved to Canada to be closer to her sister and give her children a fresh start.
On Saturday my cousin arranged for a simple memorial gathering at the funeral home. She put together three boards of photos and brought along 5 or 6 photo albums of her mother’s life. While going through her mother’s possessions she found this amazing photograph. We think she was about 19 or 20 when this photo was taken.
Later that evening 15 family members went to a very nice restaurant for dinner together where we could spend more time together and reminisce.
Today we had all my children together (including our son) to celebrate A’s birthday. I can’t believe that I have a 35 year old daughter. Our good friends B and W also came over to help us celebrate. My husband and daughter, G, made fantastic pizza rolls called stromboli. Unfortunately I didn’t get a picture of it but there is one at the link that I posted.
Later we had coffee and wonderful cake that J brought. The round things on top that look like rocks were called cake truffles (very sweet).
Six weeks before Christmas. There’s been so much food in the last few days that my husband and I feel like juice fasting. Instead we’ve decided to really focus on healthy eating and moving more. I’m actually looking forward to no sweets and carbs and eating more fruits and vegetables and simply grilled meats. Pass the water, please!
Mama Cormier 