Scarborough Bluffs

Last weekend, we went to the Scarborough Bluffs. Despite having grown up in Toronto, I've never been there. I confess, living in the city, we sometimes have a 'there be dragons' attitude about anything east of say, the end of Queen St, or Warden at the utmost, though like most Canadians, we think it's reasonable to get in the car and drive for many hours to visit some other city, or the woods.

Anyhow, it is quite extraordinary. RJH let me use his old camera.

Legendary White Squirrel of Trinity-Bellwoods

Despite the opinion of some people around here (i.e. this apartment) there's a colony of white squirrels in Toronto's Trinity-Bellwood Park! I know. I've seen them, This is a portrait of one of them, climbing head-down a maple tree, along with the words "Legendary White Squirrel of Trinity-Bellwoods", which I carved in reverse, in lino, and printed in dark, silver-bronze, with redish-pink eyes, on Japanese kozo (or mulberry paper). Each print is 8.5 inches (21.6 cm) wide and 14 inches (35.6 cm) tall. It's sort of become a running joke to question the reality of the white squirrels of Trinity-Bellwoods, but they are well documented. You can google it. They even have a street, White Squirrel Way, and a café named after them.

The lettering (fantastical "Legendary", outlined white "White Squirrel" with large bushy-tail like swirls, and the more formal and stylized "Trinity-Bellwoods") reflects the nature of the words.

There are two ways in which squirrels end up white instead of grey, black or brown. They may be albino squirrels, or they may have a rare white fur coloration known as leucism (due to a recessive gene). My local squirrels seem to have red eyes, so I think they are albino. I think it is their rareity which makes them so fascinating to people. These squirrels have fans, like other pockets of white squirrels in other places.

I'll let you, gentle reader, in on a secret. I've been thinking about the myths and legends of Canada, in a more general sense. You know, like Ogopogo and Cadborosaurus, and Sasquatch, the loup-garou of Trois-Rivières or the ghost of Mackenzie King's dog. Good suggestions for additions to this list will be rewarded.

Chipmunks

As ornaments:





As handheld stuffies:





They're taking over.

Dinosaurs

I've also been making dinosaurs.











Love that crazy-ass 80's style, neon, geometric fabric from the Sidney thrift store. It's too manic to use in large doses though.

Chipmunk

He really did make this gesture, covering his face with his tiny paws. I couldn't resist adding the thought caption. This is based on a photo RJH took of one of the chipmunk gang at my step-mother's cottage. She feeds them, of course, so chipmunk hijinks are a common sight. They even knew where to find the bird seed tin and how to open it themselves. Once RJH had to chase one out of the cottage with his hat.

I carved the chipmunk's portrait, and the letters, in reverse, and printed an edition of 10 linoleum block prints in bronze and black on Japanese kozo (or mulberry) paper. Each print is 7.25 by 12.5 inches (or 18.5 by 31.5 cm). The colour varies slightly from print to print.

TCET Feature

I'm currently the featured seller on the Trans-Canada Etsy Team blog. Check it out for the interview (& a special offer).

tiger tea time

This is a tea cozy I made. The image is of a multimedia artwork I made called 'Darjeeling' of a tiger enjoying a cuppa tea (painted in ink with collaged Japanese washi, in an ornate, vintage frame) which I had printed onto fabric (by Spoonflower). Then I combined new and vintage fabrics (cotton, wool, ribbon and quilting batting) and hand-block-printed fabric to make this one of a kind cozy.







For those who prefer coffee...