Living Art, The Town of Gravenhurst

COMMUNITY IN ART - ART OF THE COMMUNITY - GRAVENHURST WAS LIVING ART THIS WEEKEND

I AM A COLLECTOR OF ART. ART THAT I ADMIRE. ART THAT INSPIRES ME TO WRITE. I PURCHASE ART FOR TWO DISTINCT REASONS. FOR RE-SALE, AND BECAUSE IT INSPIRES ME.

I WAS A COLLECTOR BEFORE I WAS AN ANTIQUE DEALER. I WAS A WRITER BEFORE I WAS AN ANTIQUE DEALER OR COLLECTOR. AS A WRITER, I'M OBSESSIVE ABOUT MY SOURCES OF INSPIRATION. WHILE I DO GET A GREAT PLEASURE LOOKING OUT ONTO THE BOG, FROM MY OFFICE WINDOW HERE AT BIRCH HOLLOW, MY ART COLLECTION KEEPS ME COMFORTABLY INSPIRED WHEN I NEED IT MOST. I HAVE FOUR PAINTINGS WITHIN ARM'S REACH. COULD IT BE THAT I'M AN ART OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE. THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT MY WIFE DIAGNOSED OF ME, SIX MONTHS AFTER WE WERE MARRIED……..AND HER ONCE SPARSELY DECORATED ABODE BECAME AN ANTIQUE WAREHOUSE. I HATE MYSELF THREE AND A HALF DAYS A WEEK. THE REST OF THE WEEK I LET THESE ART PANELS INSPIRE ME. YOU COULDN'T GET THE SMILE OFF MY FACE WITH A BELT SANDER. I'VE GOT A PAINTING FOR EVERY ONE OF MY THOUSAND AND ONE MOODS.

WHEN SUZANNE WRITES MY BIOGRAPHY, WHICH IS ALREADY HALF DONE, SHE WILL NOTE OF 2012 AS "MY HUSBAND'S MOST PROLIFIC WRITING PERIOD YET." TRUTHFULLY, SHE'S ONLY GUESSING, BECAUSE I SPEND SO MUCH TIME HOLED-UP IN MY OFFICE. I COULD BE CARRYING-ON AN AFFAIR WITH A COMPUTER MATE. RELAX. I ONLY KNOW HOW TO USE THE KEYBOARD, NOT THE ACTUAL COMPUTER. REALLY! SUZANNE DOES NOT READ MY COPY, UNLESS I NEED HER OPINION ABOUT SOME DETAIL INCLUDED. IT'S OUR HISTORY. SO TRUTHFULLY, IF YOU GET THROUGH THIS PARAGRAPH, YOU HAVE NOW READ MORE OF MY WORK, THAN MY WIFE HAS THIS PAST MONTH.

AS I HAVE BEEN WORKING FEVERISHLY, THESE PAST MONTHS, SOMETIMES WRITING SEVERAL BLOGS EACH DAY, IT HAS BEEN IN PREPARATION FOR THE BIOGRAPHY I'M WORKING ON, FOR THE FAMILY OF FORMER MUSKOKA ARTIST, RICHARD KARON. IT'S LIKE GETTING READY TO RUN THE BOSTON MARATHON, OR TRY-OUT FOR THE BLUE JAYS. LIKE AN ARTIST WHO MAY SKETCH A DOZEN PANELS, JUST TO GET ONE THAT'S GOOD ENOUGH FOR A LARGER ART PAINTING. I HAVE TO WRITE AND WRITE, IN ORDER TO WORK OUT MY CREATIVE ISSUES, AND OBSTACLES, IN ORDER TO FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH THE KARON BIOGRAPHY. I'M NOT THERE YET. CLOSE, BUT STILL FEELING I NEED TO SEE MORE OF HIS WORK BEFORE SETTING HIS LIFE TO PRINT. I HAVE TO IMMERSE IN THE DETAILS OF MR. KARON'S PAST, AND THAT WILL TAKE ME TO WORLD WAR II POLAND, AND THIS IS NOT A GENTLE OR PASSIVE STORY. WHILE IT MAY BE THE WRITER'S PREROGATIVE TO OPINE, THAT RICHARD KARON WAS A LUCKY MAN TO SURVIVE THE GERMAN INVASION, I MUST ALSO RECKON THAT WHAT HE SAW, AND EXPERIENCED DURING THE OCCUPATION, INFLUENCED HIS VIEW OF LIFE, AND HIS EXPECTATIONS OF ART, AS EXPRESSIONS OF FREEDOM.

I AM CURRENTLY IMBEDDING MYSELF IN THE ARTIST'S BIOGRAPHY. I HAVE HAD MANY OF HIS ART PANELS OVER THE YEARS, AND I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO MEET WITH HIM, ONCE, AT HIS LAKE OF BAYS ART STUDIO, NEAR THE VILLAGE OF BAYSVILLE. I HAD A CHANCE THEN TO ENJOY THE FINISHED LANDSCAPES, HUNG IN THE GALLERY HE CRAFTED AMIDST THE MUSKOKA PINERY. I AM NERVOUS OF THE PROJECT, WHILE AT THE SAME TIME EAGER TO COMMENCE THE SERIOUS WORK, OF PUTTING ALL THE RESEARCH INTO AN INSIGHTFUL, RESPONSIBLY PROPORTIONED TEXT. IT SHOULD APPEAR ON THIS BLOG-SITE BEFORE THE END OF MARCH, AND WILL BE ENTIRELY INTER-ACTIVE, AND COMMENTS AND NEW INFORMATION ABOUT MR. KARON IS WELCOME.

I WENT THROUGH THE SAME RIGORS OF SELF-DOUBT, WORKING ON A BIOGRAPHY OF BRACEBRIDGE AND MILFORD BAY ARTIST ROBERT EVERETT, AND VICTORIAN ERA ARTIST, ADA FLORENCE KINTON, OF HUNTSVILLE. THE INTENSIVE RESEARCH, I UNDERTOOK, ON THE MYSTERY OF CANADIAN ARTIST, TOM THOMSON, REGARDING HIS ALLEGED DROWNING, IN JULY 1917, WHILE TRAVERSING ALGONQUIN'S CANOE LAKE, STUCK WITH ME THROUGH SIX OR MORE RE-WRITES, OVER A DOZEN YEARS, AND NUMEROUS PUBLICATIONS. YOU CAN ACCESS THE THOMSON STORIES VIA MY MUSKOKA AND ALGONQUIN GHOSTS SITE. YOU CAN READ ADA KINTON'S BIOGRAPHY BY GOING BACK ON THIS BLOG-SITE, TO RE-POSTED ARTICLES THAT APPEARED OVER THE COURSE OF 2011 IN "CURIOUS: THE TOURIST GUIDE."

FOR SEVERAL HOURS BEFORE I WRITE ONE OF THESE BLOGS, ESPECIALLY ANYTHING WITH A "LANDSCAPE" OR "URBAN VIEW" THEME, I WILL FIND SOME PIECE OF ART THAT WILL GIVE ME A LITTLE MOOD ENHANCEMENT. I MAY NOT ACTUALLY REFER TO IT, OR SHOW A GRAPHIC OF THE SUBJECT PAINTING I'VE USED, (WITH THE BLOG), BUT NONE THE LESS, IT WILL HAVE INFLUENCED THAT DAY'S WORK. FROM MY EARLIEST FORAYS IN INK, AS A FLEDGLING WRITER, I HAD ART PANELS AROUND MY DESK, HUNG EVERYWHERE THERE WAS A BIT OF OPEN WALL SPACE. I HAD GROWN UP WITH TWO WONDERFUL LITTLE PAINTINGS, MY MOTHER ACQUIRED…..ONE OF AN AUTUMN FOREST AND POND, BY ARTIST WILLIAM KRANLEY, WHO SHE USED TO WORK FOR IN TORONTO, AND AN OCEAN SCENE PAINTED BY T. LOOKSOONER. BOTH THESE PAINTINGS ARE HEIRLOOM ITEMS (ONE FOR EACH SON) THAT I WOULD NEVER THINK OF SELLING. THEY'RE NOT OF SIGNIFICANT VALUE BUT THEY HAVE ALWAYS REMINDED ME OF MY PARENTS AND THEIR FRUGALITY, WHEN IT CAME TO WALL DECORATION. I HAVE NO WALL SPACE LEFT IN OUR ENTIRE HOUSE. I GREW UP WITH THESE TWO MODEST PAINTINGS. NOW I'M GROWING OLD, LIVING PLEASANTLY WITHIN A GALLERY. SUZANNE SPENDS HOURS DUSTING THE FRAMES…..AND MUMBLING TO HERSELF THAT SHE SHOULD HAVE MARRIED A GOLF PRO, OR AT THE VERY LEAST, A MINIMALIST. IT'S NOT EASY BEING MARRIED TO A COLLECTOR AND A WRITER…..AND NOT HAVING A THERAPIST ON SPEED-DIAL.

EACH PAINTING OR ENGRAVING, SCULPTURE OR PIECE OF CANADIAN FOLK ART, HAS SOMETHING TO OFFER US, OVER THE FOUR SEASONS. MOST IMPORTANT FOR ME, IS THAT PAINTINGS ARE MY SOURCE OF INSPIRATION ON A DAY TO DAY BASIS, AND THERE ISN'T A WEEK THAT GOES BY THAT I DON'T ACQUIRE AT LEAST ONE OTHER PLEASANT OR PROVOCATIVE ETCHING, ENGRAVING, PRINT, ORIGINAL WATERCOLOR OR OIL PAINTING. I'M PRETTY BUDGET CONSCIOUS, SO EVERY ONE OF THEM IS DEEMED, FIRST AND FOREMOST, TO BE A GOOD INVESTMENT FOR THE PRICE PAID, AND A PIECE THAT WILL GENERATE A MOOD FOR ME TO, WELL, "WRITE SOMETHING." LIKE THIS FOR EXAMPLE.

WHEN I WAS A KID, GROWING UP IN BRACEBRIDGE, MY BARBER, BILL ANDERSON, WAS AN ARTIST, WHO PAINTED HIS WELL KNOWN MUSKOKA LANDSCAPES, IN BETWEEN CUTTING HAIR. I'M NOT KIDDING. HE'D TUCK ME INTO THE BARBER'S CHAIR, COMB AND CUT, WHILE HAVING A CUP OF TEA, AND STARING AT THE ART PANEL ON A NEARBY EASLE. HE WOULD STOP CUTTING MY HAIR, GET MORE TEA, AND PICK UP HIS PAINT BRUSH, TO ADD SOMETHING HE FELT THE LANDSCAPE WAS LACKING. IT WAS A FABULOUS EXPERIENCE. I ASKED TO GO TO THE BARBERSHOP. OLD BILL WOULD EVEN ASK MY OPINION, IF I THOUGHT A COLOR WAS TOO BRIGHT, OR A TREE NOT QUITE WHAT IT SHOULD LOOK LIKE. I DON'T THINK HE REALLY CARED WHAT I SAID, BUT I WAS DELIGHTED HE ASKED.

THE PHARMACIST DOWN THE ROAD, WAS BOB EVERETT, A WELL KNOWN MUSKOKA PAINTER, WHO AT ONE TIME IN HIS YOUNG CAREER, PAINTED ON THE WOOD LIDS OF CIGAR BOXES, THAT WERE SHIPPED AS INVENTORY TO THE SHOP. BOB SCAVENGED THE LIDS THAT WERE PERFECT FOR HIS SMALL LANDSCAPES. BOB, ON OCCASION, USED TO PAINT WITH GEORGE THOMSON, BROTHER OF TOM THOMSON, ON PAINTING JAGS AROUND THE MUSKOKA LAKES. THEIR WORK, WHEN VIEWED SIDE BY SIDE, IS STRIKINGLY SIMILAR. ONE OF MY SCHOOL CHUMS WAS A GAS JOCKEY AT HIS DAD'S UPTOWN ESSO STATION, IN BRACEBRIDGE, WHO PAINTED LANDSCAPES IN BETWEEN PUMPING FUEL. ROSS SMITH IS A TALENTED ARTIST, AND TED SMITH'S GARAGE WAS A GOOD PLACE TO GET GAS…..AND TALK, AND WATCH ROSS PAINT HIS PANELS BY THE SALES DESK. WHEN ROSS AND I FINISHED OUR THIRD YEAR AT YORK UNIVERSITY, IN TORONTO, HE OFFERED ME A HUGE QUANTITY OF HIS SKETCHES, AND A FEW OIL PAINTINGS, THAT HAD BEEN STACKED IN HIS ROOM. I TOOK THEM ALL. MY GIRLFRIEND, AT THE TIME, COULDN'T BELIEVE THAT I WANTED TO STUFF THE ENTIRE COLLECTION IN HER CAR, FOR THAT RETURN TRIP BACK TO BRACEBRIDGE. WHILE THERE WERE WATERCOLORS THAT COULD BE ROLLED TOGETHER, HE GAVE ME CANVAS ON STRETCHERS, THAT DIDN'T FIT COMFORTABLY IN GAIL'S VOLKSWAGON BEETLE. WE DID GET THEM TO OUR MANITOBA STREET HOUSE, AND FOR THE YEARS I LIVED THERE, THE PAINTINGS HE GAVE ME WERE AT MY SIDE CONSTANTLY. I WAS NOT AN ARTIST THEN, AND CERTAINLY NOT NOW. SO I HAVE SURROUNDED MYSELF WITH THE ART WORK OF OTHERS.

IN YESTERDAY'S BLOG, REGARDING THE OPENING CEREMONIES OF THE 2012 GRAVENHURST WINTER CARNIVAL, I REFERENCED THE WORK OF WELL KNOWN LOCAL ARTIST, DALE DURNAN. THERE IS A RE-PRINT OF ONE OF HER NOSTALGIC, NAIVE ART PANELS, PUBLISHED ON PAGE 143, OF THE BOOK, "THE MANY STAGES OF OUR LIVES - A MUSKOKA TRADITION - THE GRAVENHURST OPERA HOUSE," PUBLISHED IN 2001. THE ART WORK DEPICTS A WHIMSICAL, ROMANTIC, SENTIMENTAL OVERVIEW OF THE OPERA HOUSE (SEE ACCOMPANYING GRAPHIC), WHICH WAS USED AS THE COVER ART, FOR THE HISTORIC LANDMARK'S CENTENNIAL-SEASON PROGRAM. THE CAPTION UNDER THE GRAPHIC READS, "THE OP'S (OPERA HOUSE) ANNUAL AND ARTFUL BROCHURE, PROMOTING ITS UPCOMING STRAW HAT FESTIVAL, HAS BECOME A FAMILIAR HARBINGER OF SPRING IN MUSKOKA, SIMILAR TO THAT OF A FIRST ROBIN SIGHTING. THIS YEAR'S BROCHURE COVER WILL FEATURE THE HOMESPUN ART WORK OF GRAVENHURST'S OWN, DALE DURNAN. OF INTEREST ON THE OCCASION OF THE OP'S CENTENNIAL IS THE FACT DALE'S HUSBAND, GORD, IS THE GREAT-GRANDSON OF OPERA HOUSE VISIONARY, CHARLES MICKLE."

WHEN I STUDY THIS FOLKISH, HAPPY, LEACOCKIAN DEPICTION, OF HOME TOWN LIFE, AND TIMES, AND THE COURTYARD FETE, AGAINST THE FAMILIAR BACKDROP OF PLEASING OPERA HOUSE ARCHITECTURE, AND SIMPLE, COUNTRY-RED BRICK, I KNOW, WITHOUT A DOUBT, THAT IT IS THE HAUNTING PARALLEL OF HOW I'VE BEEN LOOKING, AND WRITING ABOUT THIS COMMUNITY FOR DECADES. IN FACT, IF THERE IS ANY ARTIST TODAY, WHO HAS TRULY CHARACTERIZED GRAVENHURST'S HISTORICAL AMBIENCE, AND STRIKING GOOD HUMOR, AT THE SAME TIME, ON THE SAME PANEL, I WOULD SAY IT IS THIS CHARMING MANIFESTATION OF IMAGINATION AND ADVENTURE. THE ART OF DALE DURNAN. I HAD BEEN LOOKING AT THE OPERA HOUSE BOOK, LAST EVENING, JUST BEFORE BUNDLING-UP AGAINST THE STORM, TO ATTEND THE OPENING CEREMONIES, OF THE GRAVENHURST WINTER CARNIVAL. IT'S TRUE, I SWEAR……I LANDED ON PAGE 143, OF THE OPERA HOUSE BOOK, SIPPING THE LAST TEA DROP IN THE CUP, AND ONCE AGAIN ENJOYED A GLIMPSE OF DALE'S MEMORABLE INTERPRETATION OF THE OPERA HOUSE AND FESTIVE GATHERING OF LOCAL CITIZENRY. AS STRANGE AS MY LIFE IS, ON MOST DAYS, ONE OF THE FIRST PEOPLE I MET AT THE EVENT, WAS DALE'S HUSBAND GORD, AND FROM THAT MOMENT, EVERYTHING THAT UNFOLDED WAS AS IF THE ARTIST WAS CREATING THE WHOLE THING, BRUSH STROKE BY BRUSH STROKE.

THE OPERA HOUSE SQUARE WAS BRIGHTLY ILLUMINATED, THE TREES LIMBS WERE WEIGHED DOWN BY THE AFTERNOON'S SNOW. WE ALL HAD TO RAISE COLLARS AND SCARVES, TO SHIELD OUR FACES FROM THE SHARP WIND, WHIPPING THE SNOW-CLUMPS DOWN OFF THE TREES, LIKE SPARKLING CRYSTAL CLOUDS, BEDAZZLING US, THROUGH THE INTENSE LIGHTS OF THE SQUARE. THERE WAS MUSIC, DANCING, MASCOTS, SCARVES BLOWING IN THE WIND, KIDS HURLING SNOWBALLS, HOCKEY PLAYERS WALKING BY WITH STICKS OVER THEIR SHOULDERS, PARENTS WITH WEE BAIRNS BUNDLED TIGHTLY, SAFELY AGAINST THEIR CHESTS, LITTLE RED FACES PEERING OUT, AND SO MUCH FOLKISH GOOD-NEIGHBORLINESS; A HALE AND HEARTY FELLOWSHIP, SOME OF US HAD FORGOTTEN EXISTED IN OUR TOWN. NO MATTER HOW I LOOKED AT THE SCENE UNFOLDING, THE MUSICIANS ON THE STAGE, THE DIGNITARIES AT THE MICROPHONE, A SNOW-COVERED DOG NAMED TWIGGY, AND SO MANY MITT-CLAD HANDS APPLAUDING, I SAW A DALE DURNAN PAINTING……AS IF IT HAD SLIPPED OFF AN ART PANEL HUNG ON AN EASLE, AND BY AN ACT OF PROVIDENCE, HAD SOMEHOW COME TO LIFE. IT WAS THE LIFE OF OUR TOWN, SHE CAPTURED IN THAT FORMER OPERA HOUSE PAINTING, I COULDN'T GET OUT OF MY MIND. THIS SCENE I HAD BEEN A PART OF, WAS OUR TOWN AS ART. FOR THOSE WONDERFUL MOMENTS, IT WAS ALL WHIMSICAL ADVENTURE, AS IF WE HAD ALL BEEN SHAKEN TO LIFE IN THE SNOW-GLOBE OF A WINTER CARNIVAL TRADITION. THERE WAS NO COMPLAINING, NO ERRANT SNIDE COMMENTS, NOTHING PARTICULARLY DISTRACTING. ADVERSARIES SHOOK HANDS, YOUNG LOVERS HELD EACH OTHER TIGHT AGAINST THE COLD, OLDTIMERS LIKE ME, CUDDLED OUR SIGNIFICANT OTHERS……THE NEGATIVITY OF AN ENTIRE YEAR, WAS SWALLOWED BY A CHEERFUL, SPIRITED COMMUNITY FETE, VOID OF ANYTHING SERIOUS; LIBERATED BY THE BRIGHTNESS OF POTENTIAL, ALL ON SUCH A MAGNIFICENT MUSKOKA NIGHT, AS THIS.

I HAVE AGAIN INCLUDED AN IMAGE OF MY OTHER FAVORITE GRAVENHURST ARTIST, FRANK C. JOHNSTON, AND HIS 1987 WATERCOLOR ENTITLED "THE STATION," SHOWING THE NORTHLANDER STOPPED FOR PASSENGERS…..IN A VERY SNOWY ENVIRONS. I STILL GET A TEAR IN MY EYE, THINKING BACK TO THE WONDERFUL OUTINGS, THIS ART LOVING FAMILY HAD, AT SLOANS RESTAURANT, IN QUIET CONTEMPLATION, OF FRANK'S FAMOUS STEAMSHIP PAINTINGS, THAT HAD HUNG OVER THE DINING TABLES THERE, FOR YEARS…..AND THRILLED THOUSANDS OF CUSTOMERS. THE LOSS OF THOSE PAINTINGS? EPIC! THE QUESTION IS, CAN WE GET THEM BACK? WE CAN DREAM, CAN'T WE?

I ONLY HAVE A FEW FRANK JOHNSTON PRINTS, HUNG AT BIRCH HOLLOW, BUT I WOULD LIKE MORE. I HAVE MY EYE ON A DALE DURNAN "NUMBERED PRINT," THAT I'M DUTIFULLY WATCHING, FOR SALE, AT A LOCAL ANTIQUE SHOP, WHICH ONE DAY SOON, MIGHT ALSO ARRIVE HERE TO JOIN THE COLLECTION. I AM SO VERY APPRECIATIVE OF THE WORK BOTH ARTISTS HAVE DONE, TO HIGHLIGHT OUR MUSKOKA, AND GRAVENHURST HERITAGE. THE SEASONS. THE PEOPLE WHO CALL THIS PLACE HOME. I'D FEEL QUITE COMFORTABLE CASUALLY WALKING INTO DALE'S NOSTALGICALLY ELEGANT VISION OF THE OPERA HOUSE SQUARE, JUST AS I WOULD FEEL INVIGORATED AND EXCITED, WHILE TRUNDLING THROUGH THE SNOW, BURDENED WITH WINTER-WEAR, TRIPPING WITH ENTHUSIASM WITH MY TRAIN BUDDY, FRED SCHULZ, TO CATCH THAT MAGNIFICENT OLD NORTHLANDER, STOPPED AT THE STATION..….JUST AS FRANK JOHNSTON WANTED US TO DO. HE DID EVERYTHING FOR US, IN THAT PAINTING, EXCEPT BUY US OUR TICKETS. YOU NEVER KNOW WHERE FRED AND I MIGHT HAVE WOUND-UP, ON THAT FREEDOM-TRAIN……THE NORTHLANDER, WHIPPING GRACEFULLY THROUGH THE SNOWY WILDS OF ONTARIO, LIKE A BLUE BOBSLED ON SILVER RAILS. TWO FINE ARTISTS. DALE DURNAN. FRANK C. JOHNSTON. TWO ARTISTS WHO HAVE CAPTURED THE ESSENCE OF WHAT IT'S LIKE TO LIVE HERE……WHERE FOLKS ARE ONLY AS SERIOUS AS WE NEED TO BE, TO GET A JOB DONE, BUT NEVER TOO CONSERVATIVE TO MISS A LIBERAL ADVENTURE.

I AM AN ART COLLECTOR. A WRITER. A DREAMER. A RESIDENT OF A TOWN MADE UP OF CREATIVE THINKERS, ARTISANS, CRAFTERS, KNITTERS, POTTERS, WOOD CRAFTERS, WEAVERS, PAINTERS…..THOSE WHO SEW, QUILT, SCULPT AND WRITE. WHAT ABOUT THE GARDENERS WHO CULTIVATE SUCH PROSPEROUS AND BEAUTIFUL GARDENS? ARTISTS TOO, EACH OF THEM.

I'M HAPPY TO BE HOME. WHAT ABOUT YOU?