I worked in Advertising for seven years.  I was then an art teacher and Department Head for 30 years.  I wrote a Course of Study for the Art Department emphasizing learning through dealing with practical problems and studio projects.

In my painting, I strive to include the basics of Design and Composition in my paintings.  I find that many paintings I see are in perfect clarity from foreground to background.  It is impossible for a painting to be in total clarity from foreground to background.  Consequently, I try to include atmosphere in my paintings;  creating curiosity.

I include all the seasons in my landscapes, combined with a bit of abstraction to avoid the triteness of a pretty picture.  I also prefer to leave a painting unfinished.  I then go back after looking at it for several days and then finish it.  This helps to analyze my work and make changes to practice what I preach.

I am a graduate of the Ontario College of Art and the University of Toronto, Fine Arts and a prominent exhibitor in several art associations.

Niki with two of her award winning Gingerbread houses

All my life I had a close appreciation for art and creative work of any kind.  I strive to develop new forms and always something different.  It gives me a pleasure and I truly enjoy it. When something intrigues me, I do a research and keep trying it until I succeed. Creating something new and different gives me a lot of satisfaction.

My studio is filled with new techniques and various artifacts. I work and create ceramics, encaustic paintings, jewelery, painted ornate Easter eggs and drilled eggs.  At Easter and at Christmas time my Czech honey gingerbread is very popular and very versatile. I also create porcelain dolls and paint glass. I have developed my own organic facial cosmetic creams and soaps.  Occasionally I do embroidery.

I find my inspiration in magazines, books and in nature. I sincerely hope that my love for art and handiwork shows in my work and hope to inspire me even further.  The work is for my family and friends to enjoy and for anyone who finds pleasure in creative art and handiwork.

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Click here for an article on Bohemian Gingerbread
Click here for a slideshow of Niki’s carved eggs

In my previous working life I was a Sales Mgr in the Air Express industry for 25 years so when I retired in 2007 I decided to focus at least part of my time on pursuing my new passion for Soapstone carving

When I was working full time I took various art courses in wood carving but once I saw the beautiful soapstone work at the Inuit Gallery in Toronto I decided that would be my new direction!

Peter martin with an Inukshuk Carving

It did not take long for me to get hooked and to think seriously about selling some of my work. They say that the ultimate compliment you can extend an artist is to purchase their work and that continues to be my motivation to create new and different work in this medium

This will be my 4th season at the Station Gallery in Fenelon Falls and I continue to enjoy both the stimulating environment of the Gallery and the interaction with my fellow artists and the visitors to the Gallery

The work that I create is based on my love of nature and this guides my choice of subjects. I don’t try to duplicate the type of work that Inuit carvers are famous for but instead I try to make my customers think of the beauty that is all around us in our natural environment

My work has been sold at various galleries and art shows in Durham Region and the City of Kawartha Lakes and I have developed a “ Stone Carving for Beginners” program for children and adults that has been delivered twice this past winter and will continue to be offered into the future.

You can contact me by e mail stoneartbypeter@gmail.com

Suzanne with a casserole dish

Thirty years ago, looking for something to do in the evenings, I tried my first pottery course. I loved it. At the end of that first beginner’s level course, and encouraged by some pots that came out of the kiln actually looking like pots, I decided to do an intermediate course. This time, my enthusiasm lasted only as long as it took me to realize that the instructor was really serious when he wanted me to make four pots the same shape and size! Well, that sure took the fun out of it! Needless to say, I didn’t last long in the class.

Twenty years later, a summer class in Haliburton made me realize that I still loved pottery and, more importantly, that I was finally ready to take on the discipline needed to produce good pots. Not to say that the skill just magically materialized, no- there were a lot pots that never made it off the wheel, let alone into the kiln! – but, over the years, and with much practice, I have managed to hone my skills to the point where I can take a concept and I sit down at the wheel and lo and behold, it works out-usually! (ask any potter, and they will tell you that that, after learning to centre the clay, getting to that point in your skill level is next best to miraculous!)

So many people think that pottery can only be done on a wheel, giving you round shapes and more round shapes. Yet, working with clay is so much more than that and the wheel is only one small part of the equation. I can take a lowly lump of clay and have it come out looking totally different every time if I want – frilly, square, round, oval, – the ultimate shape is only limited by my imagination. (and, of course, after all that practice, I really can do sets of four or eight or twelve identical pieces!). However, even with the knowledge that I can produce a well made pot, there are still many, many things that can go wrong between making the pot and putting it on the shelf to sell.

A teacher once said that pottery is one of the most difficult arts to master, and she was right. You are working with a medium that you can only guess as to how it will turn out. Clay has memory and will twist in the oddest ways if it doesn’t like what you are doing to it. Glazes go on red or brown – but come out blue or green or black, depending on their components and on the type of clay used; fire your work too high or too low and the glaze takes on another colour than what you imagined – and may end up ruining your pot. Unlike painting, you don’t often have the luxury of reworking the glazed pot to make it something else – once the form is set and the colour established, your ability to change it is very limited. Often, you don’t have any real idea of what your work is going to look like until you take it out of that last firing in the kiln. At that point, you may have invested several hours in making, trimming, decorating, bisque glazing, glazing and glaze firing.

Suzanne in front of some of her lovely ceramics

Yet it is that very challenge of the unknown that makes pottery so rewarding – when a stunning piece comes out of the kiln, it can be like winning the lottery! If it comes out looking like junk, well there is always the next time….

Suzanne Woods has been making pots seriously for the past ten years and sells her work through her home studio and galleries in the region.

I have been making jewellery for about 8 years but during that time I’ve made very few brooches as the idea of spearing one’s clothing with a pin and or attaching a pin finding has not appealed to me.

For the last couple of years I’ve been considering the many possibilities and uses of magnets. Last year I test marketed a pin attached to my hat with my name written in silver, secured to a steel paperclip that attached to a magnet on the inside of my hat. The magnet held secure through many Zumba classes and spurred me to try Merry Christmas greeting on screen doors and window screens, for all my friends last Christmas. I now have a huge roll of stainless steel perfect for name tags This year I have created broaches and screen greetings using a couple of different magnets. Enjoy, and check out more at the Station Gallery in Fenelon Falls.

Karen's Magnet Greetings

Bill Dopson - see apology in text

I will start off with an apology for the picture of myself, but I had to work with the subject matter that I was given. I do have a better picture, but it was taken about 45 years ago, and if I used it that may constitute a fraudulent action so I will use a more up to date one.

I force myself to get out of bed each and every day, before the crack of NOON. I then stay up most of the night, into the wee hours of the morning. This is when I do most of my artwork.

I do many different subjects, and just do things that I like the look of. I have been doing vintage vehicles recently, mainly because I like them much better than the newer vehicles that all look alike. I also do custom commission pieces for clients, mostly animals and vehicles.

Red Vette

I use many different species of wood from around the world, and have included a picture of a few of the kinds of wood that I use. I also use many more species of wood, too long to show or list.

Some of the wood species

The different woods are used mostly for colour and texture. There are some colours that are not available in natural wood, and in these cases I use a white wood, such as Aspen or Basswood, and dye it with fabric dye. I also use a silver acrylic paint for the chrome parts of vehicles.

Whether I am using a pattern that I drew myself, or one that I purchased, the process is the same.  I glue the paper pattern to a piece of 1/8” thick Baltic Birch plywood, (Russian Plywood) I then cut the pattern with a very fine scroll saw blade so that there is very little wood removed, and it does not have large spaces between the pieces. This is then mounted on a piece of ¼” thick plywood and can be used over and over again. The markings on the pattern are to show grain direction, thickness, colour etc. If I drew the pattern myself, I seldom put these markings on, as I do not require them. If someone other than myself were to use the pattern, they may require the markings on the pattern.

To make a piece of art, I first select the wood that I will use. I then remove pieces of the pattern, one piece at a time, and trace it onto the chosen piece of wood. This is then cut out with the scroll saw and sometimes needs a bit of sanding and shaping to make it fit into where the piece of plywood pattern came out. I need to do this sanding and fitting much less frequently as my experience gets to be greater and greater.

A small piece of the bumper, glued to a piece of 1/4” plywood to lift it up,1/4”. I will now have the plywood trimmed with the Scroll Saw.

Once all of the pieces are cut, some of them need to be raised up, and some need to be lowered to get the 3-D look that I want. Lowering is achieved by cutting the desired amount off the top. To raise a piece, I glue it to a piece of wood of the proper thickness, and then trim it with the scroll saw. I have included a picture of a piece of the bumper of the corvette, it is glued to a piece of ¼” wood to raise it up.

I have included a picture of the pattern with 7 pieces of wood, cut and placed into the wooden pattern. When I have cut 73 more pieces, all 80 pieces of this Corvette will be cut, and I can then move on to the next step, which is to shape each piece. This is mostly done with an oscillating drum sander, however I do use many other tools, such as knives, saws chisels etc. If I am doing an animal, I often use a rotating wire brush to etch the wood, to get a hair or fur effect.

A few pieces have been cut, and fit into the pattern, in place of the plywood pattern pieces. The white wood is Basswood.

All that is left is to glue it all together, and glue it to a piece of Baltic Birch Plywood backing. I make the backing larger than the piece, and trim it after all the glue has cured. I now print information on the back, and apply several coats of clear, water based urethane on both sides. I have included two pictures of the finished vehicle, one is red and made mostly of Bloodwood, the other is yellow and is mostly Pau Amarillo (yellow heart) I hope that this article has been informative, and of interest to some people.

Bill Dopson A.K A. Woodworker Willie

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PostScript

Last week I shipped a piece to a client that found me through my web site. She had not seen any of my work, except for pictures on the web site. I received this “E” mail from her after she received the piece in the mail. This shows that the work needs to be seen in person to be fully appreciated, so please drop in to the Fenelon Falls Station Gallery and check it out.

Hi Bill,

The feathers are BEAUTIFUL! My mother breeds Budgies and Lineolated Parakeets. She has a “bird room” in our home, so I got her the feathers to help decorate the room. I know she’ll be thrilled.

They are much more detailed than your website photo was able to show, PERFECT.

Thanks again,

Elaine

ME doing the other thing I love - travelling!

As a kid, I had NO artistic talent whatsoever. God gave it all to my little brother. Even my mother didn’t put my stick-figure paintings on the fridge (actually an icebox in those days).

As an adult, my neighbour asked me to join her in a class teaching clay. Little did I know I was hooked for life. Looking back, it was a lot of hard work – practicing as much as possible with clay – no artistic talent was needed but a lot of patience.

Working on the wheel or making slab plates just releases your mind, you relax, you forget about the latest news on the TV, paying bills, making dinner. A life-long love of clay has brought about many rewards for me. One of them is sharing my pots with you. Next time you enjoy a coffee in a handmade mug made by your local potter, think about how much he/she enjoyed making this lovely piece for you. Share your enjoyment by buying a mug for a special friend.

Oh, and my brother? He became an Engineer and never pursued his talents. My Mother, on the other hand, collected as much of my work as I was willing to spare – even my rejects. I guess that was her form of encouragement after I failed ART in school

Lillian Forester

ME doing what I love - firing one of my kilns!