News & Events :: Fenelon Station Gallery

Enhancing the Color of Wood – Morris Young

on May 22, 2019

If you have been following my work you would have noted that most of my work has been done using the natural color of wood. I mostly finish my turnings using a blend of Tung oil and shellac. When blended together at the proper proportion and applied with friction the finish is much like a French polish.

Over the years I have used color to enhance my work. More notably when I turn flowers I have added dyes to replicate straw flowers

This year several of my turned pieces have been colored using a water based aniline dye. It comes in a power form and when mixed with water the colors are brilliant. I use primary colors and mix them to obtain the desired color that I am looking for. The aniline dye mixes much like water color however when dried I must use a binder to adhere the dye to my turnings. Without the binder or sealer the color would transfer to your hand when handled. Once the piece has been dyed it would then be finished using the blend of Tung oil and Shellac.

Although my preference is turning natural edge pieces using finishes to enhance the wood grain, adding color does have an appeal for those who are looking for something a little different.

Click on any image to enlarge.

Morris will be working in the gallery next on the 24th to the 26th of May.

In categories wood turning with no comments

Creating a Pond Panel – Mary Firth

By Station Gallery

on May 15, 2019

with no comments

Many of my panels have no background glass. This unusual technique allows me freer design; it is much more work but results in something quite unique. Overlapping glass gives a greater range of colour; it also is necessary to hold the piece together. I make use of copper wire as well for the same reason.

So to begin a new panel, I choose a border colour, cut the needed pieces, and lay them out on my work board where I have secured wood strips to keep the border square and in place.

Next step is to cut out ovals of varying sizes and colours and lay them in the open space, roughly where they will be in the finished piece. Some pieces will overlap each other and the border. All these pieces need to be ground to smooth the rough edges,then taped. Those pieces that overlap the border have to be embedded in the border; so it race the shape of the oval, then cut that shape from the border. The border pieces must be ground smooth and taped, and a solder bead applied to the straight edges. At this point I tack solder all the border pieces. The ovals (already taped) each need a solder bead. They are then cleaned and black patina applied. Each piece is thoroughly cleaned again and laid out on the board in the approximate place in the panel, overlapping some and soldering those pieces which are partially in the border. All the loose ovals have to be discretely soldered together and I have to be really careful not to let the flux get between the pieces of glass. ( it can look pretty grungy – the voice of experience!)

Copper wire ‘reeds’ and glass globs which are already taped, soldered, darkened and cleaned, are added to give strength to the panel. A zinc came is soldered around the piece and small loops applied for hanging. I then flip the panel over and solder all the joins from the back and finish neatly the seams of the border. All the fresh soldering must be cleaned and darkened, being really careful again not to let any flux or patina get between the pieces of glass.

Almost finished! I wash the panel, dry it (and use thin pieces of really absorbent cardboard to remove any water between the ovals). The zinc border is then painted with black Tremclad latex. The dragonfly which was made separately and has gone through the same processes as the ovals is carefully soldered in place and the solder spots cleaned and darkened. The piece is finished except for a bit of polishing.
This technique is far more work and very time consuming, but I love the final result. And so do many others – I have sold many ‘ponds’ over the years. And every one is unique as I create as I work.

Mary is working in the gallery on our opening day, May 18th! Pop in and say hello.

In categories Artists, stained glass with no comments

Linda Harris

By Station Gallery

on August 27, 2018

with no comments

Linda’s passion for pottery began 18 years ago when her son gave her a gift of pottery lessons. Since then, she has retired to Bobcaygeon, built her own studio and her work is displayed in numerous Galleries.

While wintering in Texas, she began to teach pottery and is now teaching classes in Ontario.

Being a self-taught potter, she has attended many conferences and workshops and still takes classes to better her skills. Linda works on the wheel as well as hand building, focusing on form over function.

Linda will be in the gallery next on the 29th, 30th and 31st.

In categories Artists, ceramics with no comments

Janet Tysiak – Reduce, Reuse and Recycle

By Station Gallery

on August 15, 2018

with no comments

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle…the best way to procrastinate!

With each project, I pull upwards of 50 pieces of glass looking for the right combination of colours and textures needed to design the perfect glass panel. Editing the choices can sometimes be time consuming as each choice affects the mood and flow of the final design. I’ve been making glass projects for over 25 years, amassing a nice collection of glass. Some pieces are so precious that I pull them from the shelf, enjoy their beautiful details and put them back again. I’ve decided that I should REDUCE my glass stock…including the old, hand-rolled pieces I’ve been hanging onto.

In this blue panel, one piece of grey glass still had a sticker reading, “Made in Western Germany” on it! This is a mouth-blown glass that has a slight waviness and tiny air bubbles within…a stunning piece.

So, after I finished the panel, it’s time to clean off my workbench by placing the remaining glass back in the racks. Instead, I decide to REUSE the glass already scattered on my table and design and build a smaller blue panel with a totally different look.

Even after finishing the smaller panel, I still have small pieces of glass to put away…but I don’t! I choose to make little blue birds with the pieces. I even RECYCLE the off-cuts. All the small bits of leftovers end up in the hands of another artist who uses them in mosaic art pieces.

By now, you’ve probably realized that I would rather be making stained glass pieces, not cleaning up the work bench. Reduce, reuse, recycle…the best way to procrastinate!

Janet will be in the gallery again on the 18th and 19th of August.

In categories Artists, stained glass with no comments

Paint Party & Pinot

By Station Gallery

on August 1, 2018

with no comments

Maud Skoog, Janet Tysiak and Morris Young attended fundraiser for the Coboconk Chamber of Commerce and New Horizons Seniors group last night. It was a Paint Party & Pinot event in which 65 would-be painters were lead by local artist Adrienne Chalaturnyk.

The Fenelon Station Gallery was there in support of the arts.

In categories Artists, Events, Fenelon Station with no comments

Darlene Mann – Surrounding herself with nature

By Station Gallery

on July 24, 2018

with no comments

We are so fortunate to have nature all around us. I am always looking for wildlife, but usually I only spot signs of their presence. Thus I have taken to painting these incredible beings and surrounding myself with their images.

Making clay sculptures has provided more dimension. After shaping and forming a bird or whatever subject, I carve in details, a process that can take days. The piece is carefully baked in an oven (much trickier than it sounds), then the process of bringing it to life begins. I always paint the eyes first, and it’s hard not to get a little excited as this little piece of clay morphs into a cute chipmunk or colourful bird. Before I even start, I research my subject for details of size, habitat and colouring.

A wire and clay tree can really change up a landscape painting to make a completely unique piece. Sometimes I will use beads to embellish a tree. Each and every sculpture is one of a kind: no molds are used and no two birds are the same. Nor are the mountings, as the driftwood is found locally while out enjoying nature at its best.

I am a self-taught artist, except for grade school art classes, and have been drawing and making “things” ever since childhood, so very long ago…

Darlene will be in the gallery again on the 26th of July.

In categories Artists with no comments

Anne-Marie Van Brunt’s Latest Creations

By Station Gallery

on July 20, 2018

with no comments

In 2017 I found myself expressing my artistic side in several directions, which makes perfect sense to anyone who knows me well.

My extroverted personality shows itself best when I experiment with a new expansion of my glass talents. I have to learn something new and translate it in some way to glass or I am bored.

Once I master a new direction off I go to find something new to excite me and to stimulate my creative juices!

Last year my Kawartha Trees where a hit and I kept trying different shapes and odd angles in the finished pieces. I don’t like things to be too perfect or symmetrical. My husband
commented on an especially “crooked” shape and thought it was a little weird. This happened to be the one that I loved the most out of all of the trees that I had just created. The next day at one of my shows it was the first one I sold! The purchaser said that it was the non-‐straight sides that appealed to her the most and immediately caught her eye!

At a bike shop one day I noticed a box of used parts and asked if I could sort through the box. I had to purchase a membership to their bike repair business so that I could salvage parts in the future, and I was happy to do so. The Bike Art that I combined with fused glass to create large wheels or bicycle riders for home décor, or to be used in your garden began that day. The only part I detest about this new medium is cleaning the grease off of the parts and chains!

Garden Art bike stakes and hangings became a major part of my shows last year and I was thrilled with the response from attendees.

In categories bile wheel art, mixed media, stained glass with no comments

Janet McDougall’s Memory Glazes

By Station Gallery

on July 10, 2018

with no comments

A few years back, I was asked if I would consider making flower Memory Vases. This family had recently lost both parents and the siblings all wanted something uplifting as a memory of their parents. The request was to make a flower vase for each sibling that had a glaze make from the ashes of their parents. I had never done this before but undertook the task and everyone was pleased with the results.

Glaze Chosen

A dear friend remembered these Memory Vases when her husband passed away. She asked if I could do the same for her; making vases for each member of her family. She felt that having a small vase with the glaze made from her husband’s ashes would be a wonderful way of having a gentle daily reminder of her husband, while to others who would see it on the shelf or table, it would be just a lovely flower vase.

My friend asked for small vases with lots of interesting texture. I set about making a wide variety of vases for her to choose from. I needed 20 so I made 26….this would allow me to have extras for initial glaze testing as well as providing the necessary “oops” factor so prevalent in pottery.

The project is nearing completion. The final glaze has been selected and I will be glazing the memory vases soon. I have been honored to do this for my friend and her late husband.

Janet will be in the gallery next on the 12th & 28th of July.

In categories Artists, ceramics with no comments

From Fleece to Floor – Janis Huisman

By Station Gallery

on July 4, 2018

with no comments

I have gained a new appreciation for those who take raw wool to cleaned fleece!

April 2017, Lanes End Farm, sitting around the kitchen table with sheep farmer Lynn….waiting for the shearer. At her farm she invites those interested in the shearing process to participate in the spring shearing. There were about twelve of us excitedly awaiting the arrival of the shearer. Even with the cold, rainy weather there was a typical warm welcome. The table was set for coffee and tea with lots of introductions and conversation. This year’s shearing of Lynn’s small flock would be my second experience with shearing.

In Prince Edward Island we had a forty acre farm with two sheep, whom I identified as George and Gracie on the Canada Farm Census. They had been sheared by a neighbour, Ralph, using non-electrical hand shears. I learned how to set the sheep on their bottoms so they could be safely sheared. Also, where to start and how close to the skin to cut so as not to injure the sheep.

But, today there was a professional shearer who sheared so quickly it took a team just to keep up with her. We were each given certain tasks to assist in the process. There were those who managed the pens moving each sheep to the shearing station, those who helped hold the sheep and others who gathered the sheared fleece. Then others who were “skirting”, bagging and labeling the fleece. As we skirted or pulled off the dirty lower parts of the fleece we were also looking for fleece that we might like to purchase. I put my name on several bags of black and white fleece for a new product I had in mind. I had researched a traditional Irish style raw wool rug and was keen to try weaving some for the market.

But first, home with my five bags of wool. Washing was the first step. Each fleece needed to be washed by hand in a large tub of very hot water and soap. Wash and repeat…three times or until the water was mainly clear; then rinse, rinse and rinse again. Did I mention this was April, 2017? That cold rainy April! And this washing and rinsing had to be done outdoors.

Then came the drying. The fleece was spread on two large screens. When there was sun it was outside and when the rain came back, the screens were moved indoors and placed over the bath tub. This process took eight hours per fleece plus drying. Then came the carding.

Having received a small carder for my birthday I was anxious to put it to use. The carder actually combs the fleece, locks and arranges the wool fibres evenly and parallel. My three year old grandson “helped” with this part, as he is curious about the mechanics of all my machines. Carding took the washed fleece and turned it into light, fluffy batts of wool ready to weave into the natural wool rugs. I was very pleased with the final product, and with the journey from fleece to floor!