When I am not painting

When I am not painting, one of my volunteer activities is at  the Aphasia Institute in Toronto. ‘Aphasia’ is an acquired disorder caused by damage to the brain from either a stroke, brain tumour or brain injury. This condition affects more than 100,000 Canadians today. Aphasia can deprive the affected person of the ability to speak, read, write or understand the speech of others. Language skills are affected, not competence, but all too often those with aphasia are discounted as incompetent because people lack the necessary skills to help them be understood.

The Aphasia Institute is a community-based centre of excellence that helps people express themselves to the world around them. It also assists people with aphasia and their families to find new ways to re-join life’s conversation and thereby reduce isolation. There are a variety of ongoing programs - all designed to encourage community involvement and social exchange. 

As an artist, I am very inspired by the group of members that participate in the art program. Most have never painted before, some have had to learn to use their non-dominant hand as a result of stroke, and all have aphasia in varying degrees. Alex, one of our members,in spite of language difficulty and some physical deficit,  has found a new way of expression in photography and now painting. 

Making art is such a wonderful way to communicate when the right words may fail you!  I admire the energy and fearlessness of Alex  as he finds new pathways to enjoy life. As you can see from the paintings, his talent is also to be admired.

Thank you to Alex for sharing his work with all of us. For more information about the Aphasia Institute go to www.aphasia.ca

Visit  My Website

Picking on Picasso

I just finished preparing a presentation on "Art Appreciation" for the Aphasia Institute. I am a volunteer there as a conversation facilitator and this is one of my favorite  activities each week. Part of the presentation involves a few paintings of Picasso. 

 There are many portraits of the photographer Dora Maar, none of them very flattering as you can see.

 

The really interesting discovery for me, however, was the actual photograph that Dora took of herself. See below the Dora Maar self- portrait.

What a guy!!!

I`m sorry - it`s time for a Picasso joke:

Artist Pablo Picasso surprised a burglar at work in his new chateau. The intruder got away, but Picasso told the police he could do a rough sketch of what he looked like. On the basis of his drawing, the police arrested a mother superior, the minister of finance, a washing machine, and the Eiffel tower

 The Aphasia Institute has a fundraiser coming up called  ``Walk Talk and Roll``. For more information, to learn about aphasia  or to donate for very worthwhile programming for those affected by aphasia and their families, please go to http://www.aphasia.ca

Go to My website

Art Reflections: Boston

On a recent trip to Boston, I encountered some wonderful architecture. The city itself is really a work of art and a wonderful place to visit.  I recently posted about "Inspiration" related to the paintings of the members of the Aphasia Institute. In Boston I was inspired again by two very different art-related sites.

Artists for Humanity originated in Boston and is making inroads in other areas. Here is their mission:

To bridge economic, racial and social divisions by providing under-served youth with the keys to self-sufficiency through paid employments in the arts.

" Since 1991, Artists For Humanity has empowered and employed Boston teens in an intensive program of arts, creativity and enterprise. AFH partners youth with professional artists/designers to design, create and sell art products. With fully equipped, staffed studios in Painting/Murals, Sculpture/Industrial Design, Screen-Printing, Graphic Design, Motion Graphics, Photography, Web Design and Video, youth and mentors collaborate on creative projects, many specifically commissioned by clients. In the process, young artists develop entrepreneurial skills, and introduce audiences to their voice, vision and virtuosity. Artists For Humanity apprentices have produced fine art and creative products for Boston's largest firms and organizations."

 I visited their brand new shop in the Faneuil Hall and purchased a great tote for carrying art materials.

What a joyful group they are!

How industrious!

And talented!

Visit their website at http://www.afhboston.org/
Visit their blog at http://www.afhboston.blogspot.com


On a more serious note - I also visited and was very affected by the beauty of the Holocaust Memorial.

 "The design utilizes uniquely powerful symbols of the Holocaust. The Memorial features six luminous glass towers, each 54 feet high. The towers are lit internally to gleam at night. They are set on a black granite path, each one over a dark chamber which carries the name of one of the principal Nazi death camps. Smoke rises from charred embers at the bottom of these chambers. Six million numbers are etched in glass in an orderly pattern, suggesting the infamous tattooed numbers and ghostly ledgers of the Nazi bureaucracy. Evocative and rich in metaphor, the six towers recall the six main death camps, the six million Jews who died, or a menorah of memorial candles."  

The pictures I took there don't really do it justice.

Two very different and unique experiences in Boston and two very close together on the "Freedom Trail" near Faneuil Hall.

 Go to my website

More on Inspiration

 In previous blogs I have talked about the issue of ‘artist’s block’ and possible sources of inspiration, but sometimes inspiration comes not from visiting an art gallery but from an unexpected place.

I am a volunteer at the Aphasia Institute in Toronto. ‘Aphasia’ is an acquired disorder caused by damage to the brain from either a stroke, brain tumour or brain injury. This condition affects more than 100,000 Canadians today. Aphasia can deprive the affected person of the ability to speak, read, write or understand the speech of others. Language skills are affected, not competence, but all too often those with aphasia are discounted as incompetent because people lack the necessary skills to help them be understood.

The Aphasia Institute is a community-based centre of excellence that helps people express themselves to the world around them. It also assists people with aphasia and their families to find new ways to re-join life’s conversation and thereby reduce isolation.

There are a variety of ongoing programs - all designed to encourage community involvement and social exchange.  I am currently a volunteer facilitator for a conversation group. However, as an artist, I am very inspired by the group of members that participate in the art program. Most have never painted before, some have had to learn to use their non-dominant hand as a result of stroke, and all have aphasia in varying degrees.

Making art is such a wonderful way to communicate when the right words may escape you!  I admire the energy and fearlessness of these budding artists as they are finding new pathways to enjoy life. As you can see from the paintings, their talent is also to be admired. When I see these painters at work, I am ashamed to even think of ‘artist’s block’.

Thank you to the painters below for sharing their work with all of us. For more information about the Aphasia Institute go to www.aphasia.ca

Bill Scott

Tita Tubil

Lorraine Kelso

Bruce White

June Ann Ho-A-Kam

Se- Truong