Under different circumstances, yesterday’s stroll through Centretown might not have been as interesting or enlightening. Had the sun shone brightly, and the streets been more crowded, I might have felt compelled to walk faster, to go further, and to see more.
As it was, with the morning rain falling steadily, and with another much younger girl about town along, the pace was less hurried and the conversation somehow more revealing. We visited the homes of only four artists on this year’s CATwalk, and had the distinct pleasure of learning about their work directly from them.
Remi Theriault is a photographer who has been sustaining a living from his artistic and commercial work since his recent graduation from school. I was really taken with Remi’s portraits, which were successful at conveying the character and personality of his subjects, without being predictable in their composition. His amazing talent and expertise is equally balanced by his obvious passion and genuinely friendly disposition. Remi was very welcoming and hospitable, particularly toward my much younger girl, who was most appreciative of his funny videos and potato piggy banks. Check out Remi’s blog here, and follow along with his creative (ad)ventures.
We missed Remi’s roommate Mike Ross, but I can totally understand how these two photo guys might get along so well. While I am hardly an expert connoisseur of photography, I was impressed by his strong, structural images as well as his series of personal Polaroids taken on a Cuban vacation. These blurry, turquoise toned Polaroids had an evocative, dreamlike quality that made me want to jump right into them and spend a long time on the other side. Mike’s work definitely worked for me.
Anna Kempffer-Hossack is a mosaic artist who reuses recycled and broken ceramics to make intricate and colourful pieces to hang and to use. She works in her basement studio, which she described as tiny, messy and utterly convenient for leaving her work behind. Apologetic about the fact she wouldn’t take us down the ships ladder to see it, Anna was clearly delighted that she had created the studio in her house and the space in her life to pursue her art.
Just down the street, Ellen Sloan’s beautiful home provided a perfect backdrop for her organically appealing sea coloured pottery. Her hand formed bowls dip glazed in watery blues and greens were of a perfect weight for holding, and were almost difficult for me to put down. When Ellen suggested that a row of three on a long dining table would make a stunning centrepiece, her genius was confirmed. A recently retired interior designer from the Department of Foreign Affairs, Ellen was excited to be expressing herself through pottery. While shopping in foreign capitals and decorating Canada’s embassies abroad had certainly been fun, Ellen was really pumped to finally be executing her own aesthetic.
Several hundred visitors participated in last year’s CATwalk, and by all accounts yesterday, this year’s event was shaping up well. Even early on, the artists were jazzed by the turnout and looking forward to next year already.
Without a doubt, the same is true for me and my little girl about town. We will definitely need to finish our tour.
Photos by Kite.
