An Urban Sketcher Hits the Street

With the Wolfe Island Gallery  closed indefinitely, the idea came to me to use the main Street in the Village of Marysville to exhibit large versions of the sketches I did last winter and spring of the islands and village.  The exhibit title is FARM VILLAGE LAKE as the 24 drawings describe the cultural landscape of Marysville, Wolfe and Simcoe Islands. I reflects my ongoing fascination with development patterns and how they are changing the Ontario Landscape.

The drawings went up in time for Canada Day, including a couple of title sheets which give the url for an explanatory web site.  I deliberately worked fast, standing, with a broad marker to keep the energy of the small original sketches.  I pleased that the scale and number of panels gives the exhibit the right amount of presence on the street.

So far the tyvek is holding up well and villagers assure me that its unlikely that any will be stolen, although I'm sure they'll be a little fatigued by Labour Day.

Portraitography on Wolfe Island

I heard about this interesting interactive art project by chance and really wanted to see it in action.  Besides that, it was a reason to ride the ferry from Kingston over to Marysville on Wolfe Island.

The project involves enlisting local people to interview others - the format is to have a conversation and make some transparent overlays profiling the person's photograph ...a a sort of portrait/biography in a nutshell.

The venue was the Wolfe Island Gallery, which was a good choice given both the space and the welcoming mix of old islanders and newer "creatives". When I showed up and started sketching, no one noticed as they were so engaged in their conversatations.

There are 3 other locations  planned which contrast highly urban and more traditional and remote communities.  There will a be a touring show of all of the locations and it will be a sociologist's dream to analyse the differences, but I'm guessing, the commonalities of those Canadians.