Sunday, July 15, 2018

Kingsbrae International Residency for the Arts

The KIRA Residency Building, designed by Canadian architect Edward Maxwell

It is difficult to know where to begin in describing the welcome I have received to the Kingsbrae International Residency for the Arts in St. Andrews, NB, along with four other very talented artists from around the globe. Nothing could have prepared me for the warmth of the people involved and the effort they have put into making our time here a true opportunity to pursue artistic creation and development.


My very first dedicated solo studio space and what a space to start with!

The residency is just one of the latest projects planned and implemented by the incredible philanthropist Mrs. Lucinda Flemer, whose family used the house as a summer home in her childhood.  You can learn more about Kingsbrae Gardens and Mrs. Flemer in this video, The Giving Garden. I highly recommend it for anyone who is feeling cynical about modern human nature.




The gardens are hugely inspirational, especially in the early morning, which is my favourite time to wander through them and snap photos of anything that is interesting. Right now, my imagination is captivated by the variety of textures you can find, even in the same plant.

Hens and Chickens in the gardens

My fellow artists in residence are the best of people and all hugely and uniquely talented.  Here are their websites, which are well worth a look.

Jacqui Symons
Anne Magratten
Che Min Hsiao
Jeremy Gilmer

Need I say more?
There is so much beauty here and also so much bonhomie and I have so very, very much I want to share with you and reflect in my work. But it will have to wait until I'm back home, because right now I am far too busy living it!



For now, let me just say that I feel so blessed to be here, experiencing this.

I hope that you too are experiencing a wonderful new opportunity this summer.

Happy July!

Kathy

Monday, July 2, 2018

Early Morning in St. Andrews, New Brunswick


Early this morning in St. Andrews, NB

I am so honoured and excited to be taking part in the Kingsbrae International Residency for the Arts in  St. Andrews, NB. For the month of July, I will be one of five artists living on the grounds of the incredible Kingsbrae Gardens and working out of a studio there, inspired by everything this breathtaking area has to offer.

Life is good.


Early morning yesterday in Maine

Yesterday, after a scenic mountain journey from Quebec through Maine, we arrived in Sr. Andrews to find the town hopping with Canada Day celebrations. These guys do it up right and the waterfront was packed with smiling faces decked out in red and white.

Last night we stayed at the Huntsman Marine Institute, which gave us a perfect view of the Canada Day fireworks display. As we waited for them to begin, we saw a family of deer cross the Algonquin golf course with young fawns playing tag, barely visible in the evening light.

Just before the moon disappeared this morning, St. Andrews, NB.

This morning, I was far too excited to sleep though the dawn chorus and snuck outside to witness my first maritime sunrise.

Tomorrow is the first day of the residency and I can't wait. More to come!

Kathy

PS - I have to thank all of the wonderful volunteers at the Blyth Festival Art Gallery one more time for making the opening night of Every Fibre of My Being such a success.




The people I spoke to were very kind and truly engaged in the arts. Carl and Kelly Stevenson provided excellent curation and emotional support for the opening. Thanks guys!

Making Waves at the Blyth Festival Art Gallery

And a special thanks to Rob and Cora Tetu for whipping up a delicious last minute dinner when we had to evacuate the planned restaurant due to a fire scare. Truly an adventurous evening and one I will never forget. Thanks to everyone involved!