Kenneth Hemmerick's Blog

New Art and Music, and Other Work

2007-01-17T08:26:00.000-08:00

I have been interested in "mashing up" art and music. I have recently completed a new body of work called, After Bazille Series, where I took various works of Frédéric Bazille and mashed them together by means of digital collage. For example, in the above work, two of Bazille's works ( The Improvised Ambulance - the Painter Monet Wounded at Chailly-En-Biéré and The Pink Dress) were fused.

Browse the entire collection to learn about this amazing Impressionist artist who was killed in the Franco-Prussian war at the age of 29 years. View my Quicktime (QTVR) movie, based on his work, which I have called "Afternoon in the Studio."

Over the past year, I have been experimenting with composing music outside of my musical mash-up creations. The following four composition are samples of this work which explores the relationship between the space of silence and intervening sounds, or the space that sound creates and the intervening silences:

e-Piano Meditation
Oceanfront
Sound Between Spaces
Spaces Between Sounds

Synergetic Temperament System

When I was in my twenties, I experimented with tuning systems or temperament in music. I proposed that a tuning system could be devised based on the way that sound is propagated in the manner of a pulsating sphere. Drawing from R. Buckminster Fuller's Energetic-Synergetic Geometry, I came up with a sequence of tones that is based on the cubo-octahedron or vector equilibrium.

During the last year, I was able to generate a sequence of sine tones based on the principle that there are 12 omni-directional vectors radiating from a common nuclear point (silence) that extends through to the outer-edges of the various frequency-edged modulations (tones). This is all very experimental, and I will have to go through the tonal sequences to ensure complete accuracy. But, the following composition will give an example of what this music sounds like.

This work raises many questions, including is it possible to create non-"so-called" tonal music that is meaningful, and is it possible to use the "beats" in frequency modulation to create multi-tonal variations? Another question is, how does one notate this music? This will be one of my significant projects for the year. Read what Dr. Fuller said about this work, in a letter he sent to me about the Synergetic Temperament System.

Suicide Prevention Help

I have been busy with the development of the Suicide Prevention Help Global Web Directory. Over 2,000 resources have now been listed, with thousands of visitors using the site, and coming from all over the world. See the site's Blog to view updates and recent visitors. I am planning an official "launch" of the directory next week.

For that Tomorrow - A Remembrance Day Song

2006-11-10T07:24:00.000-08:00

Nigel J. C. Turnbull of, Scotland, has penned a lovely composition, "For That Tomorrow - A Remembrance Day Song."

Inspired by a pilgrimage for veterans, during October 2005, to World War ll cemeteries around Montecassino in Italy, this song is dedicated to his uncle, Private James Cram Turnbull, who was killed in action in 1942 at the age of 22 years.

Touched by the simple yet beautiful melody, I offered to write a choral arrangement. You can download the sheet music, in PDF format, by clicking here. To listen to a mp3 of this four-part work, please click here. Browse his website to read the lyrics of all five verses or to see images taken during this visit.

Friend, Jason Menard, of London, Ontario, sent me an email requesting that I take a moment to review and sign a petition to bestow a State Funeral upon the last surviving veteran of WWI. As it stands, there are only three men left in Canada. The goal is 50,000 signatures by Nov. 11.

You can find the petition, initiated by the Dominion Institute, by clicking here.

The Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre has just completed its 9th Annual Holocaust Education Series. Download the brochure. The Series presents eyewitness survivor testimonies, films, exhibits and lectures. These events are presented in English and in French and take place at a variety of venues such as universities, CEGEPs, churches, synagogues, cultural centres, libraries and bookstores throughout Montreal.

One event was the showing of the film Fateless, based on the 2002 Nobel prize-winning novel by Imre Kertesz. Fateless "chronicles the attempts of 14-year-old Gyuri Koves to reconcile the unimaginable horror of having been incarcerated in German concentration camps." Directed by Lajos Koltai, with music by Ennio Morricone and stunning cinematography by Gyula Pados, this compassionate film speaks to the "resilience of the human spirit." If you have a chance to see this movie, please do.

Progress has been made on the Suicide Prevention Help - Global Web Directory. To date, 1670 resources have been added to 117 categories. Visitors to the site have come from:

Afganistan, Algeria, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia (Hrvatska), Cyprus, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Italy, Ireland, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Kuwait, Latvia, Lithuania, Macao, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand (Aotearoa), Nigeria, Non-Profit Organizations, Norway, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Uraguay, Viet Nam, US Commercial and the US Military.

Visit the site's blog to learn about recent updates.

Suicide Prevention Help Global Web Directory

2006-07-14T10:29:00.000-07:00

I have created the Suicide Prevention Help Global Web Directory in order to provide quality resources that will be valuable to researchers, practitioners, lay people and students.

To date, there are 256 links and 98 categories. Users can find news and updates, relating to the directory, in the site's Web log.

Categories include Conferences and Events, Crisis Centers, Education, Government Initiatives, Groups at Risk, Guides and Directories, Helping Someone, News, Organizations, Personal Testimonies, Research, Statistics, Support Groups, Survivor Support, Teens and Young Adults, Training Programs and Treatment Programs.

Individuals and organizations are welcome to suggest links.

Browse the directory or visit my revamped Suicide Prevention Help Web site or read The Friendship Letter.

Shabbat Shalom!

In With the New

2006-06-14T14:31:00.000-07:00

I decided that it was time to re-fresh the look of my website. It was not that I was unhappy with the old "look." I just wanted something that was a bit cleaner in appearance.

While rummaging around the files on my server, I found a composition I had written called, "Four Word Sounds" for S.A.T.B, Piano, Strings and Percussion. This composition plays with meaningless words that I made up, including "Kanatee," "Alazaynah," "Kabalana," and "Moyakol-lokayom." I transcribed the music using Finale software. This is a MIDI program so the voices are a bit cheesy, but you will have a sense of what the music sounds like.

If you can read music, the score can be found here.

Bollywood Brokeback Fun

2006-06-10T07:40:00.000-07:00

Recently, I discovered Bombay TV where users can add subtitles to Bollywood movie clips.

When I lived in Vancouver, I would enjoy watching Bollywood films, with their often corny and lavish productions, on TV, Sunday mornings.

Click here to view my take on the recent hit film "Brokeback Mountain." Have fun making your own clips.

On a more serious note, I was asked to participate in an art auction in support of the Yaldei Development Centre. This amazing organization, which started in Israel, works with children from two to eight years of age who have developmental challenges. I took a tour of the centre and was very impressed with the comprehensive range of therapies they offer, including art, music, computer, play, speech and more. I was particularly delighted to learn about how they include high school, CEGEP and university students in their intern and volunteer programs.

I have donated the following two works from my 770 Series:

Other News:

Christine Morin (Omoshiroi omoshiroi) has blogged my Montreal Visual Mashup Series.

She writes "... cet artiste montréalais travaille la déconstruction numérique de l'image. Cette série de Mash Up s'intéresse à différents lieux publics de Montréal, réinterprétant à sa manière l'ambiance et l'imaginaire que nous renvoient ces bâtiments et autres lieux plublics."

A Pasadena, California, a commercial and entertainment company (Strom Magallon Entertainment) is interested in my video, "Je suis bleu: like a cloud in the sky" and will be featuring the work on their new website.

That's it for now!

Long Time No Blog

2006-05-02T10:16:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged for quite a while. It is not that I have been inactive, I have simply had other concerns that needed to be dealt with, and blogging was not high on my priority list.

Having said this, here is a sampling of what I have been up to since my last blog:

I had the pleasure of meeting Daniel Enright, a Montreal artist, who created the Starving Arts Gallery. He is providing opportunities for emerging and established artists to have their works displayed in offices, homes and other venues. Works can be leased or purchased by companies and individuals. Take a peek at his website to see the artists whom he has enlisted.

After being active in ArtsNDG for over a year, I stepped down as vice-president in order to give other members a chance to lead. However, I am serving as an advisor and webmaster, maintaining the website I created for this organization that promotes art and art practices in the community. Browse the group's archives to view FLASH Bulletins, detailing the organization's activities.

Creatively, I have been selected as a finalist in the International Itinerant Exhibition M.I.A.D. Venado Tuerto in Santa Fe, Argentina. I also exhibited at the Pyongtaek Lake Arts Center, South Korea. My work will be soon seen in Queen's University creative arts journal, Lighthouse, and I have been approached by an Atlanta, Georgia, art magazine that will be including several images of my work. Details to follow. A new San Francisco cable TV station, Channel 79, will be airing my video, Je suis bleu: like a cloud in the sky.

In addition to my Montreal Visual Mashup series that I have been working on, (updated website to be soon completed), I have been creating layered digital collage pieces such as the untitled piece above.

I also completed a biographical sketch for Montreal's Negro Community Centre, on my foster mom, Dr. Daisy Elitha Peterson Sweeney, that was published in their recent newsletter. This material has been adapted for the publication, Who's Who in Black Canada.

During Suicide Prevention Week in Quebec - the first week of February - Debbie Parkes, of the Montreal Gazette, published an article, Moving beyond suicide, detailing my experience with suicide and suicide prevention. The article produced considerable interest, and I was surprised to hear from quite a number of acquaintances, and others, who shared with me how suicide has impacted their lives.

Last year, I was asked to sit on the Holocaust Education Series Committee of the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre. Each year in October/November, the Committee plans, coordinates and holds an annual four-week education series that includes films, lectures, presentations and survivor testimonies. This year's planned activities and events, in French and English, promise to be enlightening, challenging and heartfelt. The series will be held from October 16 - November 9, 2006 in churches, synagogues, lecture halls, film theatres and other venues throughout the city. Details to follow.

Over the last couple of years, I have been taking weekly courses through the Jewish Learning Institute. I recently completed an excellent course called The Kabalah of Time. I learned just how essential time is, in its granular, rhythmic and cyclic forms, an organizing principle in one's existence. This week I am starting a new eight-week course, From Sinai to Cyberspace: How Ancient Wisdom Guides a Modern World.

There are various other projects that are in progress that I will report on in upcoming blogs in the near future.

Camera as Paintbrush

2005-12-30T10:54:00.000-08:00

At the end of the summer, I wrote a blog entitled, Playing with Light. At the time, I took images of moving cars. I mentioned that I would return to this work where I used the camera as if it were a paintbrush.

My partner, Harry, put up some Christmas lights, and I took the opportunity to work with this colourful material.

Browse my Camera as Paintbrush Series website where you can find 12 of over 40 images from this body of work.

Other Lights

There are a number of people who have brought light into my life during the past year, and I am delighted to share with you their Web presence. Anne Charlotte Riley is a creative SEO (Search Engine Optimization) specialist, editor, and writer. Browse her site to see the success she is having in refining and improving a wide range of websites. She works with the brilliant Web designer Kathryn Presner of Zoonini Web Services.

I have known Fred Herscovitch for over 30 years. Fred is a talented artist and writer who resides in Toronto, and when he comes to Montreal for a visit, we usually have an interesting get-together to discuss our work and to catch up. His wife Mara is also an accomplished artist. I recently had the chance to view some of her exquisite paintings on leather. I hope to see her work online one day.

Dr. Evelin Gerda Lindner is an amazing woman who heads Human Diginity and Humiliation Studies, anchored at Columbia University. She has just been named recipient of the 2006 SBAP Award for Applied Psychology for her unique research and independent project management skills, as well as for her international presence as a well-known, committed, and multidisciplinary advocate for humanity in a global society. Her work on the effects of humiliation on individuals and communities has made a significant contribution to the study of peace.

Dr. C. M. Yogi is the principal of Hindu Vidya Peeth-Nepal, founder of the Shanti Sewa Ashram, and patron of Youth Society for Peace. He offers youth programs that nurture humane respect for all life, human and non-human. I am impressed with the quality of consciousness that he instills.

I met Zsolt Szigetvari and John Connolly this year. They are founders of a new human-edited Web directory called Zenome. Not only can editors and referrers develop a knowledge base in the directory, they can also transfer their commissions or Zenome Points to a charity. It is this synergetic business application that appeals to me and demonstrates their insight into doing good in the world.

When I mentioned my Guide in Humane Awareness to Dr. Paul P.T. Wong of the International Network on Personal Meaning, he kindly and immediately offered to publish the eBook. Browse the INPM site to find research and resources related to advancing health, spirituality, peace and human fulfillment through research, education and applied psychology with a focus on the universal human quest for meaning and purpose.

I wish my readers a prosperous, healthy and happy new year. Shabbat Shalom!

Winter Solstice - Chanukah

2005-12-20T13:28:00.000-08:00

As we reach this time of year, I begin to feel delight in the fact that the days are starting to get longer. I wrote a small composition called, December Ballad that expresses the simple joy I experience. Have a listen!

I created the artwork Dreidel Magic in celebration of Chanukah, which is a special occasion when a candle is lit for each night of the eight-day holiday, commemorating Jewish struggle for religious freedom and the miracle of one having the freedom to bring light into the world.

Oily foods are eaten, songs are sung, and children twirl their dreidels.

In this work, I scanned four dreidels on a flatbed scanner and then used PhotoShop to filter the images.

To play the dreidel game, each player starts off with 10 tokens. Players put two tokens in the middle. The first player spins the dreidel. When the dreidel stops spinning, the player follows the instructions associated with the letter facing up:

Gimel - Take all the tokens
Hay - Take half the tokens
Nun - Do nothing
Shin - Put two tokens in the middle

See Scanned Chanukah Series to view individual images!

May light be abundant in your life!

World AIDS Day - Africana Cry

2005-12-01T12:49:00.000-08:00

Today, December 1st, is World AIDS Day. It is a day when people throughout the world focus on bringing an end to this scourge upon the earth.

Today, CBC News reported that the country believed to have the highest rate of HIV infection, (about 38.8% of its adult population) had cancelled all AIDS Day events. A royal decree was issued, saying that the events would interfere with a month-long traditional ceremony. What a shame that not a single day could be given towards increasing HIV awareness, AIDS prevention, and safe sex, when day after day after day, thousands are dying.

This country is Swaziland. According the to the CIA World Factbook, Swaziland's population is 1,173,900.

This means that 455,473 people are infected with the disease. That is 455,473 individual souls. This also means that hundreds of thousands of children are facing the prospect of becoming child parents, forced to look after younger siblings when their parents succumb to AIDS. It's a crying shame.

Many years ago I was mistakenly diagnosed with having HIV. It was a terrible, lonely time of my life. I read everything I could about the disease. The more I read, the more symptoms I seemed to acquire. Finally, after many tests and months, the results came back negative. (Which is good.)

This experience has made me more aware of what people feel like upon hearing that they have been exposed to the HIV virus. I drew upon the experience when I created a work called AIDS Antiphony: Call and Response. This work was featured in the eZine Spoonfed : Amerika.

The Call is composed of images of myself which are reflective of the sense of isolation I witnessed, and suggests the notion that life is indeed temporal and yet, utterly ephemeral.

The Response, in this work, is evident in the titles of these collage works: "Tears of AIDS in Africa", "When Babies Die of AIDS", "Waiting For Results", "Death Leaves Me Cold," and "Homophobia is a Killer Disease."

The CBC also reported that:

"The United Nations says more than half of the 40 million people with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, live in Africa.

The spread doesn't appear to be slowing down, either, with 3.2 million of the 5 million new HIV infections recorded in 2005 showing up in Africa."

It is a human disgrace that there is not enough political, corporate and humane will to wholeheartedly and fiercely face AIDS and HIV in the so-called Third World, although some people, such as Stephen Lewis, are helping to bring the Western world's attention to the problem of AIDS in Africa. His book, "Race Against Time" is a must-read.

I wrote the composition Africana Cry as an outpouring. It is a plaintive cry because what is happening in Africa is a crying shame.

November Nuances

2005-11-13T04:31:00.000-08:00

Last year, I created 100 Scanned Quotations. In this work, I found words written by great thinkers, artists and writers about the significance of flowers in their lives. I wrote this material in conjunction with my Scanner Art Series, where I took freshly-picked flowers from my garden and scanned them using a flatbed scanner.

When November comes, the last vesitages of flowers remain and evening begins its sleepy darkness as early as 4 PM.

Being a Spring/Summer person, there is always a bit of sadness in my heart at this time of year. But I use this energy to create a seasonal work.

About a year ago, I created a QTVR movie called Last Cosmos. This virtual reality film celebrates the majesty of the glorious Cosmos flower at the end of its day.

This year, however, I have written a short composition called November Nuances for piano, vibraphone, percussion and synthesizer. In a sense, this work is a song without melody in the same way that this time of year is about trees without leaves.

Feel free to listen to my new composition as you explore the quotations below which I have found that speak about the month of November.

NOVEMBER

When shrieked
The bleak November winds, and smote the woods,
And the brown fields were herbless, and the shades
That met above the merry rivulet
Were spoiled, I sought, I loved them still; they seemed
Like old companions in adversity.
- William Cullen Bryant, A Winter Piece (l. 22)

On my cornice linger the ripe black grapes ungathered;
Children fill the groves with the echoes of their glee,
Gathering tawny chestnuts, and shouting when beside them
Drops the heavy fruit of the tall black-walnut tree.
- William Cullen Bryant, The Third of November

The dusky waters shudder as they shine,
The russet leaves obstruct the straggling way
Of oozy brooks, which no deep banks define,
And the gaunt woods, in ragged scant array,
Wrap their old limbs with sombre ivy twine.
- Hartley Coleridge, November

Dry leaves upon the wall,
Which flap like rustling wings and seek escape,
A single frosted cluster on the grape
Still hangs--and that is all.
- Susan Coolidge (pseudonym of Sarah Chauncey Woolsey), November

Fie upon thee, November! thou dost ape
The airs of thy young sisters, . . . thou hast stolen
The witching smile of May to grace thy lip,
And April's rare capricious loveliness
Thou'rt trying to put on!
- Julia Caroline Ripley Dorr, November

My sorrow when she's here with me,
Thinks these dark days of autumn rain
Are beautiful as days can be;
She loves the bare, the withered tree;
She walks the sodden pasture lane.
- Robert Lee Frost, My November Guest

No park--no ring--no afternoon gentility--
No company--no nobility--
No warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease.
No comfortable feel in any member--
No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,
No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds, November!
- Thomas Hood, November

The dead leaves their rich mosaics
Of olive and gold and brown
Had laid on the rain-wet pavements,
Through all the embowered town.
- Samuel Longfellow, November

Now Neptune's sullen month appears,
The angry night cloud swells with tears,
And savage storms infuriate driven,
Fly howling in the face of heaven!
Now, now, my friends, the gathering gloom
With roseate rays of wine illume:
And while our wreaths of parsley spread
Their fadeless foliage round our head,
We'll hymn th' almighty power of wine,
And shed libations on his shrine!
- Thomas Moore, Odes of Anacreon (ode LXVIII)

The wild November come at last
Beneath a veil of rain;
The night winds blows its folds aside,
Her face is full of pain.
The latest of her race, she takes
The Autumn's vacant throne:
She has but one short moon to live,
And she must live alone.
- Richard Henry Stoddard, November

Wrapped in his sad-colored cloak, the Day, like a Puritan, standeth
Stern in the joyless fields, rebuking the lingering color,--
Dying hectic of leaves and the chilly blue of the asters,--
Hearing, perchance, the croak of a crow on the desolate tree-top.
- Bayard Taylor, Home Pastorals--November (I)

Suicide Prevention Help - 337,000 Visits

2005-10-23T07:08:00.000-07:00

In 1998, just about this time of year, I created a suicide prevention help site, offering those who are despairing and contemplating suicide an opportunity to see their thoughts and feelings more realistically.

As of this week, over 337,000 visits have been made to the site, and I have answered thousands of letters from people, from all over the world, who have written asking for additional support or just to say thank you for making this material available on the Internet.

I know that the site's HTML is pretty basic, but the Web page is meant to be an open letter of friendship.

Sadly, often when people are depressed, they cannot see beyond their own sadness and view the world and future with a pessimistic eye. The site provides a sense that one can move beyond depressing thoughts and feelings, and begin to feel better about oneself.

Take a look at "Some Helpful Suggestions if You are Caught in the Storm of Suicidal Thoughts and Feelings."

the friendship letter includes a link for readers to find suicide hotlines that can be called if someone needs to talk confidentially with a crisis volunteer or specialist. In addition, the site's text can be downloaded as an eBook in .exe format.

Same on the Inside

2005-10-16T10:39:00.000-07:00

The other day a good friend of mine, Jason Menard, who is a talented London, Ontario, columnist, blogger and editor, shared with me his commentary, "Not So Black and White."

His writing recounts how he, while watching an episode of Lost, assumed that a black woman's lost husband was of colour. In fact, the woman's husband was Caucasian.

His commentary examines his own assumptions that because this woman was black, her husband had to be black as well.

It is an interesting read because he honestly challenges his own belief system as a liberal-minded "White Male" who did not even consider the possibility of the show's couple being of a mixed-race union. He describes how he notices mixed-race couples but not same-race couples and tries to reconcile his personal belief that "we’re all the same on the inside" and his behavior.

Being personally of "mixed-race," (which to me is an oxymoron, because we are all of the human race), his statement "we're all the same on the inside" reminded me of a series I created a few years ago which I called unBenetton. In this body of work, I re-worked a number of Benetton ads, with permission, adding to my visual lexicon.

Jay asks, "how do we balance the need to educate those who continue to hold on tightly to the reins of ignorance and steer them to enlightenment, with the damaging effects that shining a spotlight on these issues can have for those of us who don’t consider colour and race an issue?"

The recent riot in Toledo, Ohio, demonstrates the need for educational material that goes beyond the tried and failed. Perhaps a little visual humour can go a long way in provoking, encouraging and stimulating conversation and self-reflection on this important social and very human issue.

Le touche coloré / The Colour Connection

2005-10-11T06:48:00.000-07:00

I will be showing at a group art show, held by ArtsNDG, from October 13 - 30, 2005. Coordinates: 5839 Sherbrooke Ouest, Montréal, Québec, H4A 1X4, Tel: 514.486.arts (2787).

Graphic designer and artist Arlene Havrot-Landry has been creating the gallery's invite posters. I am constantly surprised by the range of her creativity. Take a peek at samples of her Exhibition Announcements listed on the Archives page of ArtsNDG's Web site.

I am showing a piece called "David Revisited." This 25.5" x 44" digital photographic collage work consists of 12 composite images. Essentially, I took this image and enlarged it so that it has become quite pixelated, and the effect is quite intriguing.

This work is from my xxxART series that was featured on Les pages persos de Matin Magicien. He describes his site as "dédié à la représentation masculine et/ou homosexuelle dans l'art, hier et aujourd'hui."

I completed this series, after finishing another series called "the body internet," where I deconstructed and then reconstructed Gay pornographic images found on the Internet. The purpose of "the body internet" was to show how information found on the Web can be used for creative purposes.

In xxxART, I play with the contrasting notions of pornography and classical art, raising questions of how the nude body can be read or interpreted.

Other artists in this group show include Barbara Asgary, Jacques Bossé, Mieke Cullen, Jane Desjardins and Francine V. Jones.

ArtsNDG is open for this show: Thursday/Friday from Noon to 8 PM and Saturday/Sunday from Noon to 5 PM.

Days of Awe

2005-10-09T14:14:00.000-07:00

I have been in the midst of the High Holidays, celebrating the creation of the World, and also marking a time of reflection -- leading up to Yom Kippur, The Day of Atonement.

These are the Days of Awe that lead me to contemplate how the past year has been, and my dreams, hopes and prayers for the upcoming year.

The word "awesome" is used today to describe a pizza or a very good movie. But for me, awesome depicts an experience that fills one with a little fear, perhaps, and amazement.

I wrote a short compositional sketch that expresses where my heart and mind are at this time of year. Please click here to listen to this music.

Happy Holidays! May this new year be good and sweet for you.

Dr. Daisy Peterson Sweeney

2005-09-26T11:12:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday, (September 18, 2005) I had the pleasure of attending a concert held in honour of my foster mom, Daisy Peterson Sweeney, at Église Saint-Charles in the South-West section of the City of Montréal.

This was the final of four concerts in homage to this remarkable woman, a classical pianist extraordinaire, and piano teacher who taught internationally-known musicians such as her brother Oscar Peterson, and Oliver Jones.

Mrs. Sweeney also taught hundreds of children from the St. Henri area of Montréal, in the 60's and 70's, where she charged only 25 cents per lesson. She instilled in these young people a deep appreciation for music, learning and piano playing --many of whom still enjoy the benefits of her teaching.

Mom, in addition to her own children, fostered and adopted other children, bringing them into her home and treating them as her own --a testament to her generosity of spirit.

A proud woman, she never-the-less worked as a domestic as she earned an associate degree in music from McGill University, not an easy accomplishment for a woman of colour in the 1940's. But she overcame the racism and prejudice she experienced with her focused determination and a personal desire for excellence.

When I went into the church, I was overwelmed by the over 2,000 people in attendance. As my 85 year old Mom was ushered (in a wheelchair) into the church and everyone started applauding enthusiastically, I felt my eyes moisten with pride for this simply amazing individual who is often over-shadowed by her famous brother.

Congrats Mom!

Footnote: These concerts were part of the 18oth anniversary celebration of the Lachine Canal which featured women, from the area, who have made a significant contribution to the community and Montréal at large. The summer-long festival was organized by the Société de promotion du canal de Lachine.

Centre Lifeline Chabad Project Pride

2005-09-16T13:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Rabbi Ronnie Fine, of Chabad Queen Mary, asked me if I could help in creating a Chabad Project Pride Centre Lifeline newsletter. I was glad to help because this worthy organization genuinely helps people.

A few months ago, I had the pleasure of attending a fund-raising launch where I met clients and heard stories of what Centre Lifeline Chabad Project Pride means to them. For some, it is a place for recovery, healing, understanding and a good cup of coffee. For others, Centre Lifeline becomes a refuge as they realize that the addiction they suffered from distorted their senses and way of thinking. They rely on the Centre's able staff to help them solve legal, financial, administrative and other issues which were created under the influence of their addiction.

Centre Lifeline Chabad Project Pride offers a variety of outreach programs for prisoners, employers and the community-at-large. They also provide youth one-on-one counseling, groups sessions and activities. As their Web site states, "It's not enough to get young people out of a bad place, but they need to be led to a good one. In tandem with counseling and therapy, Lifeline provides clients with healthy lifestyle activities."

Last month alone, the Centre gave out 280 individually-wrapped sandwiches to clients and served 1600 cups of coffee. Six clients were represent in court and 65 clients came in to talk, unload...feel better. Eleven clients received Welfare assistance. Another 14 clients received financial aid to tie them over to the end of the month. The list goes on as they are helping, and have helped many, people to become whole again.

Shabbot Shalom

Inside a Web

2005-09-07T15:39:00.000-07:00

Last month a spider made a huge web underneath a Catalpa tree in the backyard. I recently had a chance to look at some of the images I took, and began to experiment --taking sections of images and re-combining them into a new image. I created "Inside a Web" with its ghostlike human figures.

Today, I had a chance to begin reading this month's Harper's Magazine. I always read "Findings" first and then proceed to the "Harper's Index."

Perhaps it was my working with spider webs that forced my eye to the following listing in the Index:

"Amount the U.S. spent last year on mosquito nets to fight malaria in Africa: $4,000,000."

I thought, " isn't that great." Then, I read the following entry:

"Amount it paid a consultancy to conduct 'social marketing' of mosquito nets: $7,600,000."

There is not much more one can add to this information. The mathematics speaks definitively.

Discovering Montreal

2005-09-05T07:13:00.000-07:00

In the Chalet on top of Montreal's "The Mountain," there is a series of paintings depicting the discovery of the city.

I thought that these works could be used in mynuMontreal Visual Mashup series, a body of work that encourages the viewer to look at and see Montreal public landmarks, locations and public works of art with new eyes.

What I find interesting about these two images, "Explorers at the Chalet" and "Explorers and Skyline at the St. Lawrence River," is that not only do they visually mashup Montreal, but there is also a 350-year temporal mashup of the city.

The early discoverers and settlers could not foresee how "Mont Royal" would eventually evolve into the cultural and cosmopolitan centre Montreal has become.

I found an interesting resource that offers Montreal History Links, compiled by teacher Eric Squire. Browse to discover his "Virtual Tour of Old McGill."

I wonder what Montreal will be like 350 years into the future.

Playing With Light

2005-08-24T06:08:00.000-07:00

Recently, I have been interested in light and the way it dances. Take a peek at this unedited video I created of light from a prism, dancing off of a wall.

I like the anticipation of the spectrum coming and going. You will need QuickTime to view this small .avi movie.

I have also experimented with light from another source, moving cars. Below are a couple of examples of images I have taken in this "Moving Car Series," and hope to, someday, use this material in a composite larger work.

Just over a year ago, I met artist LED and Fiber Optic Electronic artist William Anhang. In one of his artworks, he uses 8,000 optic fibers!

Browse his site. There is much to view, and he has many videos of his works. This is an artist who really understands light and its uses.

I have been inspired to write this blog, sharing my fascination with light, as the days are becoming noticeably shorter --heralding the short, dark, November and December days that are just around the corner. But I always rejoice in the Winter Soltice, forecasting the gradual lightening of my spirit and the promise of warmer weather to come.

Edwardian Dreams of Horses

2005-08-07T12:10:00.000-07:00

In this work from my nuMontreal Visual Mashup Series, I have taken an image from the King Edward VII monument by Louis-Phillipe Hébert, found at Phillips Square, and mashed it up with an image of a sculpture located outside the TD Canada Trust building on Sherbrooke Street.

One of my delights in art-making is the experience of play and liberation that comes when creating work, requiring courage, inner strength and vision.

"The Canadian horse is a perfect symbol for Canada. It has those traits that we, as Canadians, value. I am talking about all Canadians. The Canadian horse is strong for its size. It is both persistent and resilient. It is an intelligent and well-tempered Horse. The Canadian horse has a long life. Like this country itself, Canadian horses are very peaceful. From the time of ancient Greece, the horse has been an emblem signifying strength and courage. The Canadian Horse is one of the world's strongest and most courageous breeds. For this reason, it is the perfect emblem for Canada."

"The above description is an excerpt from the official debates of the House of Commons when the Bill to make the Canadian horse an official symbol of Canada was being debated. The Bill was proclaimed into law on April 30, 2002."

Source: CanadaInfo - created by Craig I. W. Marlatt

The Heartbeat of Montreal

2005-08-01T07:01:00.000-07:00

In this work, from the nuMontreal Visual Mashup series I am working on, I have taken an image of Jim Dine's "Twin 6' Hearts," found outside of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, and reworked the image so that Dine's sculpture(s) now appears to be located at the campus of McGill University on Sherbrooke Street.

When we take a work of art and relocate it, we also change the context in which the work offers meaning. In "The Heartbeat of Montreal (After Jim Dine)," one is encouraged to reflect upon the location of a work of art in the sense that its locality and environs add unique dimensions to the discovery and interpretation of an art work.

There is a new Montreal-based Internet radio station called Techno.fm that describes itself as "The Heartbeat of Montreal." Established by Deric Davis, Alex Davis and Tim Wheaton, Techno.fm offers Live, Tunes, House and Trance channels, and on Monday nights, airs a live radio show. Created by Flashycrap.com Productions, the radio station also holds events and parties in Montreal. Take a listen and see why Montreal is such a pulsating city.

Building bec

2005-07-29T12:28:00.000-07:00

"Building bec" is a part of my nuMontreal Visual Mashup Series. In this body of work, I have been taking Montreal landmarks, locations and public works of art, and treating them with playful creativeness.

In this work, I have used Antony Gormley's Building VI, found on Avenue du Musée against a background of a McGill College Avenue building.

The Québec French word for kiss is "bec."

See: "Le mot de la semaine" offered by Rabaska Multimédia.

Shabbot Shalom

Rêves et manigances / Dreams and Schemes

2005-07-28T09:31:00.000-07:00

I have been active in ArtsNDG, a non-profit artist-run gallery dedicated to the promotion of art and art practices in the Montreal borough of NDG.

I created and maintain the organization's Web site. I just completed formatting our last show's review, written by member Maurice Amiel.

Please see: Rêves et manigances / Dreams and Schemes, featuring artworks by artists Arlene Havrot-Landry, Laura Roberts, Carol Brodkin-Sang, Pat Hineson, Jacques Bossé, Indra Singh, Barbara Asgary and Esther Kanfi.

Projected Reflection

2005-07-27T14:02:00.000-07:00

During the summer months, the sun hits my front door in such a way that the etched flower in the door's window pane is projected onto the kitchen wall.

Ephemeral and fleeting, the weightless image is at once a reminder that there is a window pane in my front door, and that the Earth does indeed rotate around the sun. I am also reminded that summer turns into autumn as time passes.

Time passes, and the image disappears, leaving no trace that it ever existed. However, a permament impression is left in my consciousness, which is now a part of your awareness -- through my transforming that weightlessness into an object having mass, a photograph.

Lilium Silkium

2005-07-25T13:59:00.000-07:00

Last week, I was coming home from a meeting and found a white flower on the sidewalk.

I picked up the flower, brought it home, and carefully placed it in the garden amongst the balsamine. I didn't say anything about the flower to my partner, Harry, and patiently waited for him to discover my find.

Finally, I heard him say,"Ken, what kind of new flower do you think this is which has appeared in the garden?" "Hmmm, I said, it looks like a lily, actually it looks like a very silky lily." Finally, I told him about my discovery.

He dubbed the flower "Lilium Silkium," and the flower is now resting between the leaves of a wild geranium.

I hope it survives the winter.