The hardy Canucklebrain

I've been working much smaller recently - 12" x 12".

"What You Don't See"

"Adam and Eve Leaving the Garden of Eden"

Short post I guess but I do have one important statement to make.

it's fricken cold here.

But being a hardy Canucklebrain, I am going to Niagara Falls today to see the ice!!!

My country is winter.

Oh wait, did somebody already say that?  

Stay warm folks and keep yer snow shovels handy cause it ain't over yet.

Love the One You're With

Now that I've passed a birthday that puts me closer to 70 than 60 I'm starting to look back over my life.  

If there has been one lesson that I'd say I've been put here to learn it is how to look in the mirror and be comfortable/companionable with the person looking back.

The Universe Unfolding ... is a picture with a pattern, the route I thought my life would take.  My life is connected to the outside world of family, friends, lovers etc. and everything flows as it should.

'First Steps' shows the first break in the pattern.  There's a blip in the middle on the right but I managed to pull myself together and the flow of life resumes at the bottom right.

"You Gotta Leave With the One You Came With" shows a complete break with the flow of "normal" life.  But I still am looking for outside validation of my 'self', i.e., the end and the beginning are still easy to find.

But this is a current self-portrait.

I've turned inwards for validation.  The ends of the ropes that represent my journey are no longer searching for love in all the wrong places.  They've found each other.

There's no Alpha or Omega.
There's just me.

And I'm okay.

The Universe Unfolding ...

I've been hooked on the abstract lately.

This one, called "The Universe Unfolding ..." is totally gorgeous.  It begs to hang in a neutral coloured room where it can be the only object of admiration. 

This one, called Snowstorm", uses more conventional colours and the movement is smoother.  But it is so rich and sensual I think it belongs in a bedroom.

But only if your universe is unfolding as romantically as it should!

:)

Portrait of Meghan

It amazes me how so many young women fill up the space they've been allotted.

They fill it up physically, psychically, emotionally, spiritually.

They know they have the right to be here, to be seen and to be heard.

And that, my friends, is a wonderful thing.

The Wise Not So Nice Little Girl

I was invited to a birthday party a few years ago.  

I happened upon this small scrap of defiant humanity that day.

She didn't know me and consequently didn't feel compelled to put on her 'nice little girl' persona. The party wasn't for her so she didn't have to worry that I would get mad take her present and go home.

She studied me calmly, unsmiling when I took her photo.  She wasn't afraid - or friendly either for that matter.   

It was unnerving to be so judged by a three year old.


And just between us ... I'd like to ditch my 'nice little girl' persona too.

Wish I'd asked her what I should do because by now she must be six or seven and totally nice.

On The Other Hand

In the middle of November I slipped on the ice and broke my thumb.

My right thumb, hand and wrist were in a cast for an eternity. And having my dominant hand suddenly unusable created all kinds of problems

in my day to day 'First World' life, (i.e., driving, opening tin cans, cooking, doing up various parts 
of my clothing), but the worst part was that my

drawing hand was kaput.

In desperation I began to use my left hand.  The only picture that I did with my left hand that was worth saving was the last picture I posted. 

The thing is that I love that picture and when I compared it to my other work I see it is simple and yet so bare naked truthful.  

Done in the Medieval style it is called, "Willpower" 

and is all about using only my mind to control things

that are potentially out of my control.

The cast came off earlier this week and I am really feeling quite scattered.

My right hand seems like a friend I haven't seen for awhile - it is a bit uncomfortable finding things to talk about.

(And I am a little pissed at it anyway for letting me down.)

My left hand, on the other hand, was difficult to be with but interesting and I don't know that I want to drop it just because my right hand is back.

I decided to do draw something (right hand) to try to ground myself

 but I still feel unsettled and it shows.  :( 

A stranger in my own mind.

PS On the positive side, while encased I did discover the Quebec author Louise Penny and her wonderful Inspector Armand Gomeche murder mysteries.

BWA HA HA!

This is a picture of me rejoining my blogging buddies who want to know where the Hell I've been and WTF I think I am anyway.

No it isn't.

But I am back.  Being 'Francie McGlynn Art' on facebook isn't being part of the community of artists sharing ideas and talking about art the way I thought it might be.  It is a way for people to showcase what they are doing and that is actually quite fascinating, it is good to see what is out there.

But I missed my blog and blog buddies.

So I'm back.


BWA HA HA!!!

Fare Thee Well, Summer

This picture, 'Spider Says Good-bye to Summer' is about endings.

Unlike Spider I'm not saying good-bye but I am saying that I probably won't be as active on my blog as I have been.

The reason is that I have started a new page on face book called 'Francie McGlynn Art'.  It is allowing me to post my pictures and follow other artists from around the world.  Unfortunately I'm simply running our of time.

I'll check in with everyone when I can and I'm not closing down a North End Journal because I've learned these things wax and wane and by next summer I may be back here posting five times a day.

:)

I'm off to Ottawa this week-end for a National Remembrance Day that may be very, very different from anything we've seen before.

Freedom, especially for women, has never seemed so precious.

Till next time,

Francie

The Good Man

I was about a block from the funeral home when this picture was taken.  Cpl Cirillo's cortege has just appeared.

Two Canadian soldiers were murdered last week, 

Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent and Cpl Nathan 

Cirillo.  Both are a terrible loss but Cpl Cirillo's death 

has affected us at a very deep level.  That's because

at the time of his death he embodied the archetypal 

'good man' actively protecting everything we hold 

sacred whereas Warrant Officer Vincent was simply

going about his daily life when he was killed. 

The archetypal 'good man' or 'good father' or 'hero' 

has not been a large part of our western society for 

a while.  Many of our 'heroes' are rich, greedy and 

tend to debase and abuse women and children.

Cpl Cirillo has become a symbol that resonates in 

all of us. The protector/defender role model children 

need, particularly boy children learning what it 

means to be a good man.

I'll watch Cpl Cirillo's funeral and cry but I'll also 

know that he was a hero and in a way he could 

never have expected he was there when we needed 

him.

Thank-you, Cpl Cirillo

He was shot in the neck and bleeding heavily, a

young First Nations soldier named Flock out of 

Stony Creek.  He had hit Juno Beach on

D Day+1 with his fellow Argyll & Sutherland 

Highlanders of Canada. Somehow  his buddies got

 him to the ambulance.  They took off but in the

chaos the ambulance got lost and he bled out.

I know about him because my Dad, his friend

and fellow Argyll was with him when he died. 

The Argylls went on to be part of the liberation of

Holland and helped bring about the fall of Nazi

Germany. 

Many more died.

In their memory Cpl Cirillo of 

the Argyll& Sutherland Highlanders 

of Canada was standing guard at the National 

War Memorial yesterday by the tomb of the 

unknown soldier.

We won't forget.

He Dances

Sometimes Death rides a horse.

Sometimes he simply drifts down a waterway like Twelve Mile Creek.


He's kind of a goofy looking fella but he always brings a gift.


He brought bubonic plague and famine to Europe.

He brought cholera to the Irish canallers on the Twelve.

He brought small pox to the indigenous people of North America.


And now he's dancing through north Africa.

Happy Thanksgiving, Pilgrim

Americans are a patriotic bunch and as the first 

Thanksgiving happened on what is now part of the 

USA and is often depicted as occurring under a flag 

pole that flies the stars and stripes we often assume 

the Pilgrims were Americans.

Not true.

There was no USA when the Pilgrims landed.

 

No 49th parallel.

Even the Toronto Maple Leafs didn't exist in

those far off days.

It was British North America and therefore we have 

as much right to those sanctimonious, self-righteous 

bigots of old as they do. 

So you can rest easy on the Pilgrim front, Canada 

and have a great Thanksgiving!

:)

Along the Twelve

Just as the mighty Niagara River flows into Lake Ontario so do a number of creeks that are found along the south-western shores of the lake.  The early settlers named them according to the number of miles they were from the river.

The community that eventually grew into present day St. Catharines, Ontario was on Twelve Mile Creek and was sometimes simply referred to as "The Twelve".

You can see Twelve Mile Creek in the centre of the picture.  Parts of it were incorporated into the first three Welland Canals.  Lake Ontario is in the upper right. Along the bottom are the colours of the abundant harvest that comes from our rich farmland.  The urban areas along The Twelve are represented by the houses at the top.

The 406 Highway that runs through the peninsula and joins up with the Queen Elizabeth Highway - Niagara's link with Hamilton, Toronto, Montreal and  New York runs parallel to the waterway in the picture.

This is where I live. It's home.  

The Song of Creation

Artist's Statement

I'm interested in symbols.  Not mainstream cultural symbols but personal images as they come to me in dreams or intuition when I'm sitting at my drawing table. 

I am influenced by North American Aboriginal art, Medieval art, the Symbolist movement, Celtic design, Jungian psychology (or my understanding of it) and many other art movements and artists.

My work often revolves around spiritual issues. I'm trying to find God but not in the traditional sense of being saved from my sins. I try to capture the resurgence of the Divine Feminine as She appears to me. 

I use oil pastels.  They look like crayons but consist of pigment mixed with a non-drying oil and a wax binder.  They are clunky, can be very messy and don't allow for too much detail.  

Before I use the oil pastels I prime water colour paper with India ink and a clear polymer glaze.  I start each picture with a single line or 'thread'.  Eventually an image comes to mind and I build the picture from there, section by section.  I cover the finished work with another glaze.

My art is a joy to me.  It is the first time in my life I've been free to investigate the inner landscape of my own mind.  I believe my mind is joined to all of humanity in what Carl Jung called "the collective unconscious" and so even though my symbols may seem obscure and personal they often resonate with other people. 

Francie

I Smell Winter

This picture is called, "The Scarf".

You can see mittens at the top and cardinals on the right but mostly it is about the scarf.

eek

I smell winter coming.

Back Off, June Cleaver!

Just finished this one which I have named 'Feeding Frenzy" for no particular reason.  As a matter of fact the picture was done just for the joy of watching it grow.  No hidden meaning, (or obvious meaning), that I can see.

But I have a problem today.

Tomorrow I'm having my ancient floor replaced.  And right now I'm sitting here trying to resist the urge to wash the old linoleum.  

Why do I feel my floor has to be clean?  It is going to be torn up tomorrow and thrown in the dumpster by a crew of workers I'll never see again.

These guys don't qualify as 'company' to anyone but my inner June Cleaver.


But she's stronger than I am.

Getting the bucket.

:(
  

Letting Go

Here I am.  

All four of me.

A part of me has weathered the storm, 
some parts however, are still trapped in the 
drama of it all.

But my nest is moving into calmer waters

and I'm grateful.

How can I Open My Eye When There is a Fish In It?

A few years ago I had a dream that a large fish came out of the centre of my forehead.  

I spent a lot of time massaging the area the next day and my "third eye" is still a sensitive area.  I often find myself rubbing it.

I'm not sure if the design part of this picture is finished.  It probably is - it is just that I hate to leave bare naked parts without anything in them and it is costing me to just let this one be.  

Anyway I'll glaze it tomorrow and sell it for $10,000.00

Oh wait - that's in a parallel universe -

I mean I'll glaze it tomorrow, put it away and start a new one.

Heh heh.

The Bird of Prey

My new picture started with a pair of bird feet.  

I had been looking at one of Mark Elderkin's astonishing photos of a bird of prey last week, blackriverlakeblog.blogspot.com and was mesmerized by the creature's power.

I suppose this is a picture of the bird of prey in me.

Or you.

:)

Usurp the King!

Labour Day Parade in my working class hometown 

At first it seemed like divine justice.

An American corporation is moving its headquarters to Canada to escape paying high taxes at home.

I mean how many times have American parent companies shut our plants first in hard times?

But to tell you the truth the more I think about it the more the whole thing gives me a sick feeling.

This company is likely run by guys who earn more money in a day than their minimum wage employees earn in a month.

But they are deserting their homeland and refusing to carry their share of their country's tax burden.

Shame!

Do we want scuzzy corporations like this in Canada?

Take a stand on Labour Day, spread the word -

Boycott Burger King.