Remembrance Day

Glimpsed in Victoria, BC

Little boys still like to pose with pretend guns

 and play at war.

Glimpsed in Halifax Nova NS

Glimpsed in Vancouver BC

Lest we forget

Winnie the Poohed

Saw this statue of Winston Churchill in Halifax last autumn.  It was the pigeon perched on his head that particularly delighted me...

though Winnie himself looked less than amused.

***

The following just arrived by pigeon post from Hilary at The Smitten Image:

Avenging Angel or Art Aficionado?

There is a sculpture of an angel in Montreal on Sherbrooke Street that I am in love with.

I've previously posted pictures of him but this one gives a different view.  He stands upon a very high pedestal so I climbed some nearby stairs in front of a church to get a different angle on the angel.  With a bit of cropping, I think I made it look as if he's strolling into town, or possibly limping in...perhaps in the guise of an Avenging Angel (he looks a little trigger-happy to me!)...or maybe just on his way to see the latest exhibit at the Musée des Beaux Arts across the street.

***UPDATE: Finally discovered the name of the artist and sculpture:  The Eye, by David Altmejd

go here for more information.

Someone to Watch Over You

I'm going away for awhile.  To Quebec.  With Pierre.  To hang with the Daughter.  To visit the in-laws.  And, hopefully, to give my eyes time to rest and recover from their ongoing troubles.  My intention is to step away from the computer, which I think has been aggravating my vision.
So, no more blogging for a time.

Here's a statue that I fell in love with last time I was in Montreal. 

 I think he's just the guy to leave in charge here while I'm away.

"See" you in a few weeks.

Embodiment

In the previous post, disembodied heads were featured, so this time, just to balance things out...

I thought I'd feature some statues running around like chickens with their heads cut off.

These are much bigger than your average barnyard fowl, though.  See that red arrow I so artfully drew on the image?  There's a human lady under it.  That's to give you an idea of the size of these sculptures.  The lady comes up to about crotch height of the statue.

(I can say "crotch" on my blog, right?)

Where they're situated,there's a good view of the downtown Vancouver horizon, if the statues had heads, let alone eyes with which to see it.   Nevertheless, they must have sensed something--some longing for a change of venue, of purpose in life-- because there was suddenly a movement, a surge, almost a galumphing of legs 

as the statues moved en masse. 

(It seems that one of them might have wet himself with excitement or fear, 

judging from the little puddle on an otherwise dry plaza.)

 I would say they were heading off in a new direction, save for the fact that, well, obviously,

 they had no heads to heed. 

I wonder if perhaps the heads just rusted right off.  If they went off their heads at some point.

It seemed the feet weren't faring too well either.  

But as I was contemplating their fate and thinking of recommending a good podiatrist,  

everything went very bright and all the statues disappeared in a blinding flash, 

save for one,

and I began to fear what might befall the rest of the city...

(Note:  Walking Figures by

Magdalena Abakanowicz (Warsaw, Poland) were part of the Vancouver Bienale in 2009/10.  For further information, visit this website)

Statue Story Holiday

Seen last autumn on holiday in Montreal...

Man contemplating his window of opportunity.

Man having romantic thoughts.

Man thinking of a cow.

Man who failed to climb the ladder of success.

Man having hang-ups about being placed under a gag order.
.

Two men having the same out of body experience.

Lest We Forget

Today in Canada is Remembrance Day, honouring those who died in wars, as well as those who fought in wars and came home forever changed.   

"So on the day when you fly that flag

for the ones who never made it back

say an extra prayer for those

who'll always be

wounded."

(from the song "Wounded" by Lennie Gallant)

To hear and see the rest of the lyrics to this moving song, please click on the poppy.

Vancouver's Gastown

I promised you a little tour of  Gastown once we were off the seabus and out the doors of Waterfront Station.  Gastown is where Vancouver originally started and was famed for its tavern named Gassy Jack's. Apparently his nickname was earned from his penchant for spinning tall tales, rather than for any digestive troubles he might have had.
One of the first things you'll notice upon exiting is this statue of the Angel of Victory.

The statue was designed by Coeur de Lion McCarthy (how's that for a great name?!) in remembrance of the 1100 Canadian Pacific Railway workers who died in WWI, with a plaque added in the 1940s to commemorate those who died in WWII.

(I created a different version of this photo which you can see here, should you be so interested.)

Another iconic monument in Gastown is the steam clock on the corner.  I almost got a picture of it but I was trying to avoid being hassled by a rather aggressive beggar and missed the mark, catching the ornate lampost in front of it instead.  But you can see the little gathering of tourists that are always clustered there, having their pictures taken while waiting for the clock to blow off some steam and make its tooting noises. 

That tower in the background that resembles a spindle whorl is the Sears Tower, which used to house the department store of the same name, but which is now the downtown "campus" of Simon Fraser University (my old alma mater).

Here's a different view of it, caught in a curbside puddle.  When I was resizing it for the blog, I noticed a rather ghostly image of a person peering up at me from the puddle.  Do you see it?  I guess it was a cloud formation but it looks rather spooky.  And do you see the Canadian flag?

Gastown is, essentially, a tourist area.  It was a pretty rough part of town for quite some time, and though it has been largely gentrified, it is an interesting mix of shiny new, authentic funk, and decidely down and out.

Deluxe Junk consignment clothing shop has been around for a number of years.

As has this eclectic shop with its odd mixture of antiques, faux antiques, and generally odd stuff. 

I was so pleased with myself for capturing this woman's image in the mirror as she walked past.

Next time I'll take you inside the shop for a little look around. 

Let's meet back at the steam clock, okay?

Speaking of Emily

Well who should I run into on my travels today but Emily Carr with a few of her friends.



I was out visiting the galleries along Vancouver's Granville Street, and it looks as though Emily was out doing some sketching.

Emily doesn't go anywhere without her pet monkey.

Oddly enough, an exact replica of this statue is to be found on Montreal's Sherbrooke Street, in another gallery area. I'm always surprised and delighted when I run into it there as well. (Forgetfulness does have some advantages!)

The sculpture is by Canadian artist, Joe Fafard, who hails from the Prairies. I wonder if there's another Emily sculpture in Winnipeg.

Deep Cove Stone Heads

One of the things I enjoy doing on my visits "home" is to go to Deep Cove, about a half hour's walk away at a good pace. Today I walked there with my sister and our mother, so it was a much more leisurely stroll.

One of the rewards of the walk is the beautiful view of the marina, mountains and cove. (do click for a better view)

A water taxi collects people at this wharf to take them to their homes further up Indian Arm -- about as far as the elbow, I guess. (click to enlarge)

Other rewards are some amazing chocolate glazed donuts and good strong coffee which we greedily and happily consumed while sitting on a park bench, gazing at these stone heads in front of the Deep Cove Cultural Centre. The art gallery was closed today, which means I'll have an excellent reason to return...as if I needed one!