Once again, this story begins with my Mom. She had come across a job in the newspaper
advertising for "a contemporary Mary Poppins". This intrigued my Mom and she phoned and set
up an interview. Well, Mom was hired on
the spot! It was the perfect job for her, as she was basically hired to be "Grandma" to three beautiful
little girls. Would you believe that the
woman who hired my Mom was actually an European artist? Yup, you read that right! Her name is Janicke and when she found out
that I was a beginner painter she immediately took me under her wing and she
had a huge impact on the way I see art!
Until this point my art studies had mainly been on Canadian
art, primarily landscapes, such as the Group of Seven and Emily Carr. Janicke introduced me to a whole new world of
art and I realized at that point that I had only barely touched the surface! It was my first introduction to the work of
Matisse and the Bloomsbury Group. I had
no idea how naive I was about art until I started reading about the Bloomsbury
Group. They lead very liberal, promiscuous lives, yet their art was
fascinating. This group of painters,
writers and intellectuals (probably the most famous of the group would be
Virginia Woolf) lived and worked from a beautiful farm house near London
called Charleston. Here they
painted everything inside the house...every piece of furniture, dishes, walls, you name
it...had been painted! Reading their
life stories was an eye opening experience! Janicke had loaned me a fantastic book called "Bloomsbury - It's Artists, Authors and Designers " which is now out of print. I was
able to finally get a copy of my own on Ebay many years later but I had to stay up half the night bidding on this book which in the end cost me over
$200. It was so worth it! They have inspired me more times than you can imagine! If you do not
know about the Bloomsbury Group, please do yourself a favour and look them
up.
Janicke also led me into abstract
art and modern art. My first teacher
Karen Hersey did not believe in abstract art and felt it did not belong in the
art history books so this was all new to me and I loved it! Janicke's painting had a much freer style,
her education was more along the lines of letting inspiration flow and letting
go of the rules. This was a huge turning
point for me.
Janicke taught me a great deal about the art world and
making it as an artist. She had a studio space in a trendy neighbourhood in downtown Calgary. It was an old red brick building that had
been a warehouse by the train tracks.
The building was filled with artist's studios and you could feel the creativity
everywhere. She explained to me how
important it was to have your studio outside of your house. Not only is it more professional and you will
be taken more seriously but it is a more creative environment with no
distractions while you work. I wound up
renting a studio space in the same building.
What she said was exactly true!
Somehow once I arrived at the studio I was suddenly "at work".
My home life was left behind. There were no distractions, no
dishes to be done, phones to answer, etc.
All that I needed to do was paint.
When I wasn't painting I was reading my art books. It truly was a creative space and I wound up
producing a painting called "Grandfather Time". This was my first large canvas and it was a
pivotal piece in my career, as I felt it was truly inspired. Janicke thought it looked like Van Gogh! How about that? I did as Janicke had suggested and let go of the
rules and just let the paint flow. This
was the first time that I truly went into "the zone". It was such fun! This was a wonderful opportunity and I value
the experience but in the end I discovered that a studio at home works best for me! I often get my best ideas in the middle of
the night and need to have access to my art books and my paintings when I first
get up in the morning. I like to spend time in my studio at the end of the day
in the dark contemplating my half finished painting...etc, etc, etc. This is just my way!
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| 'Grandfather Time', oil on canvas, 48"X24" |
Mom and I moved from Calgary
to Kimberley in 1997. In June 1998, Janicke helped me organize my first solo art exhibition at her studio in Calgary.
She completely emptied her studio
of all her things so that I could use the entire space. It was incredibly successful and I could not have imagined I would nearly sell out on opening night. Janicke truly knew what she was doing! I had personally invited a lot of people I had not seen in years. I was blown away by the love and support I received that night. Even one of my high school teachers came from Lethbridge!
Janicke had also invited many of her friends and they supported me as
well (with a nudge from Janicke who suggested they bring their cheque books)! A couple walked into my studio this summer here in Kimberley who had purchased a painting that night. They still have their painting hanging on their wall! What a surprise.
 |
Janicke, Mom and I at my first art exhibition
at her studio in Calgary, Ab. June 12, 1998. |
Ironically, Janicke was in my life helping me with my
professional career at a time when my personal life was at it's deepest
low. She was a light in the dark and
helped me and my Mom get through some very difficult days. She gave me a pin that said
"Due to recent cutbacks, the light at the end of the tunnel has been
temporarily disconnected." Her
sense of humour was a god-send! Her artistic talent and her professionalism was
a great blessing to me, but more important was her friendship. I will always be grateful for that!
As sometimes happens I lost touch with Janicke for several
years. She had moved and so had I. Then years later we re-connected and I
received an email from her stating "We are building a villa in Tuscany
and you must come." I was
flabbergasted. I pulled out my old
journals and in May 1996 I had written "I've been reading a book on
Michelangelo and it has really been inspiring me. As I look at these brilliant pieces of work I
know that someday I will go to Italy
and see them in person." I found out 14 years later that dreams do
come true, sometimes you just have to be patient! Mom and I went to Italy
in 2010 and it truly was a life changing trip, thanks once again to Janicke! Michelangelo
completely lived up to my expectations! Stories about Italy
will just have to wait for a future blog post...
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| Our first night in Tuscany with Janicke & "momma" April 30, 2010. |
