Saltair

Summers at the beach at Saltair. 

Alberta and May gossiping in the shade.

The picnic, tucked in the basket can wait awhile.

Halycon days, watching  the grand children

sailing, padding, collecting shells.

Altered Cigar Box

The ephemera: Vintage photo of  Alberta and May. Antique original handwritten letter, original vintage postcard of sail boat, original vintage Map Projections from old Atlas, original vintage bill receipt and and a snippet of an original  vintage program to see Madame Butterfly.

The found objects: antique glass bottle, small sea urchin skeleton, fish vertebra, quartz crystal, bit of broken shell and and old cigar box.

Back of the Box : Map Projections

Details: Alberta and May, my two grandmothers, relaxing at the Beach at Saltair, Vancouver Island, Canada, in 1949 or 1950.

 

 

CABINET OF CURIOSITIES

Natural History, naturally became Sir Percival’s passionate pastime. He travelled hither and thither across the globe in search of the quintessential specimen to add to his quirky collection. Meticulously mounted for display in his study at the Manor House, they piqued the curiosity of all those privileged enough to enjoy a peek.

Sir Percival himself                               his cabinet of curiosities

Sir Percival prepares for an expedition.The curiosities

  specimens of  flora and fauna

The ephemera : original old pages from medical dictionary 1933, original chart of systeme nerveux des animaux from French school book 1868, original page from an electrical manual 1924, reproduction of a natural history book title page, original French letter 1800s, original notarized document 1879, reproduction of label for cabinet of curiosities, snippet of a map of India, reproduction of vintage photo of Victorian man.

The found objects: wooden piano striker key, antique optical lens, copper nail, vintage silk cord, old book cover, jaw bone of a young deer, seed pods from tropical trees in Costa Rica, dried fungus, poppy seed cage, robin’s egg, peacock feathers, horse tooth, vial with deep blue delphinium seeds, manuscript dipped in encaustic wax and a small vintage box lid, wooden box with hinged lid.

Size 8 inches by 10.5  inches wooden box when closed, 18 inches by 10.5 inches  when open.

Born to be Wild

Heading down the highway

Looking for adventure

or whatever comes her way.

Tilly was a woman to be reckoned with.

( Beatrice Shilling british aeronautical engineer and motorcycle racer)

Inside left of cigar box Tilly, her map and her tools.

The box open.

Top view.details

The box closed

The ephemera: originals: registered mail sticker, torn bit of letter sent via clipper, ration stickers from World War II, vintage French envelope addressed to a Parisian doctor, antique manuscript from the 1800s and  reproductions of vintage map of the south of France, reproduction of a vintage photo of Beatrice Shilling aka Tilly.

The found objects: old cigar box, vintage anagram letters, old gages, antique pocket watch, old switch, vintage key, vintage castor wheel, vintage zinc letter 3, old door knob.

Mme D’amour: Maison Meublée

Maison Meublée à louer…Paris apartment, fully furnished for rent.

What does Mme D’Amour keep in her aparto? Is it full of art deco?

SOLD

Why a swan of course, enchained by a golden choker, accompanied by some coral from the South Seas and a healing crystal. 

Twin tarnished crowns complete the decor. Maison meublée by Madame D’Amour.

Vines and Time to top it all off.   Always “À la une ”  is Madame d’ Amour.

The ephemera: old French notarized document (original), British station clock (reproduction), old Swan game board (reproduction) , old French advert (reproduction), botanical illustrations (reproduction).

Found objects: coral, quartz crystal, wooden drawer pull, vintage drawer pull, vine ribbon, brass crowns, old cigar box.

Thank you to Graphic`s Fairy for the French topography  and Bibliodyssey for the Swan game board image http://bibliodyssey.blogspot.ca/

Calcul: assemblage

Calcul mal fait!

Ils croyaient avoir tout prévu:

le château d’eau , la corde , la somnifère, la clé.

Hélas, ils ont raté leur coup et les voila en dedans…

5 ans au prison de Caen.

 

Altered cigar box

 

Inside the box

 

front of the box when closed

                                                         detail top of the box

The ephemera : vintage mug shot, handwritten document from 1828 (original), old image of water tower, étiquette prisons de Caen, page from school calculations notebook 1879 (original) .

The found objects: old cigar box, vintage Canadian uniform button, old wooden checkers piece, small bottle of china paint, old electrical tag, vintage key, old wooden letterpress number.

Sisters : assemblage

Sisters, Sisters

There were never such devoted sisters.

Never had to have a chaperone “NO SIR!”

“I’m there to keep my eye on her”

-Irving Berlin

 

The ephemera: vintage photo of the dolly sisters, French antique dictionary pages, vintage handwritten letter, fragment from a vintage French school book, old colour swatch image, vintage tobacco  labels.

The found objects: old optical lenses, watch face, peacock feather, metal crow’s foot, tiny watch part vial with pearl beads, typewriter keys and game pieces to form the word sisters, vintage buttons, old heart charms, the lid of a vintage music box, old tobacco box.

 

London Gentlemen’s Club : assemblage

They went down to London to spend a few days at the Club.

The East India Club, number 16 Saint-James’s Square.

Away from the the toils and trials  of country life

Was  the motive one of pure pleasure: reading, gaming, brandy?

Or was there something more shifty, more sinister, afoot?

 

the ephemera: page from a french school copy book 1889, faded green soft book cover on sides of box, weathered paper, vintage bottle label.

the found objects : stickmen from previous post, red clay poker chip, old black game dice, wooden checker pieces, spectacles, and small bottle of ochre china paint powder.

the library at the east india club  (just for fun)

PAR-DEVANT: assemblage

Par-devant

Face au mur

Comparaison

Ordonné

Maîtresse

SOLD 🙂

 

 

BROKEN BUT BEAUTIFUL

What is broken can be fixed.

Live, make mistakes.

Be afflicted but not crushed.

 Be perplexed but not driven to despair.

Restoration is possible.

                                      It is when we are broken that we seek wholeness.

The ephemera: old architectural plans, vintage photos of flying french nuns, french manuscript from 1868, antique french hand written letter from the 1800s.

Found objects: frozen charlottes, old metal slide frames, a broken bit of old pottery, a vintage clay poker chip, an old door knob, a tiny blue bottle, top of a broken antique ink bottle, old print block ampersand , vintage house number and a vintage cast iron decorative detail.

 

THIS MAN REFUSED TO OPEN HIS EYES: assemblage

This man refused to open his eyes
to the possibility of a different kind of life.
He remains imprisoned
by the same old patterns
that got him here in the first place.
Trapped by his unwillingness
to make a change.

Assemblage box: How to

Step one Find a suitable box: old wooden whiskey crate

Step two:
Cover the box inside and out with old papers…in this case city plans from an old atlas and an old french document from 1868

Step three:
Gather found objects and ephemera that suit the theme or idea

Step four:
Make shelves to fit chosen objects

Step five:
Affix shelves and main image (mug shot from the 1920s)

Step six:
Affix found objects
beach combed door handle, padlock, key, metal arrow tag, safe dial, glass eye ball, fishing hook, mouse trap, wooden castor

MOUVEMENT: étude du squelette

The three of them moved as one, with grace and strength, always together and yet always restricted by the watchful and critical eye of propriety.

SOLD (at Bound to Be Different)

Main Box:The grace, strength and beauty of the three of them united in movement and affection.

Lid:The strict eye of Victorian society, censoring and judging them for their alternative life style.

The ephemera: Vintage dancer/acrobat photo; vintage pharmacie label, vintage postage stickers, page from French school workbook from 1886.
Found objects: lid from an ink bottle, electrical tag, old fuse, clock part, vintage key tag from the Empress Hotel, dolls leg, old folded ruler, vintage metal slide cover, vintage house number and an old cigar box.

SOS NUMBER 259

SOS! Let me out of here! Who, who locked me up?

SOLD

 

The ephemera: a vintage owl natural history illustration ( reproduction), Old hand written French receipt from 1901 ( original ), a vintage padlock and key, 3 vintage metal typeset letters, a small bottle of china paint powder (golden brown ), a vintage post box number  and some rusty wire mesh.

Size : 8 inches by 8 inces

For locals I sourced the key and the letter press SOS letters here:

https://www.facebook.com/EverythingOldCanada?fref=ts It is a very cool shop in Saanich near the ferries.

 

THE BORROWER: shadow box

The borrower swoops in to make off with your most prized possessions…the love letter from Berthe; your best horse’s tooth; your tiniest poison bottles; your magic crystal; your old tv tubes. He gleefully watches over them with a lock and key and waits, for your back to turn, so he can return to scamper off with more treasures for his hoard.

GIFTED to Robert

Big shadow box (13″ X 13″). (SOLD)

DETAILS: poison bottles, crystal, lock and key, t.v. tubes, watch front, a gauge, watch parts, old horse tooth, antique clock gears, an old tap, a label from a bottle of  Chateau Neuf du Pape, a 1908 French love letter from Berthe,  the ace of spades, an old slide ruler, an old French receipt from a Parisian chemist lab and a French document from 1794.

I must admit that this piece is somewhat autobiographical….

NEWS FLASH: This piece was chosen as one of three out of more than 100 entries in the CVAC Spring Art Show by judges to have a jury talk and won one of the BEST IN SHOW awards. Apparently it will go off with the others on a tour of other galleries in the area before returning home to roost.

Junk drawers: shadow boxes

In the junk drawer: a watch face, a vial, the letter W, a dice, a key, a tiny sea urchin, gears, a gasket, a type writer key and a lost girl. (SOLD)

In the junk drawer: , a chess piece, a dice, some watch parts, a circus ticket, a stamp with hitler on it, a key, a transitor, a bus ticket, some typewriter parts, an old love letter, a SOS from the Titanic and the borrowers of course. (SOLD)

 

In the junk drawer: a watch face and parts, a broken pottery bit from france, a food token from world war II, the number 7, a thimble, an egg, a key, a crown, a shiny trinket and the magpie that colllected them all. (SOLD)

Stone angels : collage

Seen and Highgate cemeteries inspired these pieces.

SOLD

Inspired by a trip to Kensal Green Cemetery. A trio of stone angels, still and beautiful, adorned by lichen and moss. vintage sheet music, old plans, copper bird

 

Old text, a receipt for le champs elysees and copper wings.

 

 

OlOld French receipt, purple crown, copper wings, moss green patina

Spare parts…just in case

 

Spare parts, just in case.