Goodbye 2009

One last quickie post for 2009 to say thank you for your support. This past year has been a great one for connection, inspiration, creation and learning thanks to you.

I just got back from my mothers (photos are of her place) and the most outstanding visit I've ever had at The Beaverbrook Art Gallery. This year marked their 50th year, so they went all out. If you're local, you have until January 4 to go see.

The Impressionist Master Works for a starter. Yipee!! Oh, oh. I foresee this not being such a short post anymore. I always hated Impressionists until I had the chance to see them in person. Those paintings have souls, I'm sure. I could feel them breathing. Monet's piece was so tender I couldn't help but feeling affection for him and concluding that he was a wonderful person. Pissaro somehow managed to make his colors change depending on the distance from the piece, and Gauguin's energy through color and brushstrokes made me want to do a celebratory jig. Color isn't the focus among the local artists, so seeing what the Impressionists did with oils in person was a pleasant jolt. It's something that can't be reproduced as I'm sure many of you have experienced.

Celebrating 40 Years New Brunswick Art Bank Anniversary Exhibition The N.B. Art Bank has an acquisitions program that recognizes artistic excellence, a loan program and an exhibition program. If your area doesn't have one yet, perhaps it would be interested in starting one since there are many benefits. Victoria Henry, the director of the Canada Council Art Bank, say that "Australia and South Africa both developed their art banks with art loan and art rental programs based on the Canadian model, and more recently Ireland, Taiwan, Singapore, Shanghai, and Korea have requested information and advice as well." This exhibit was like visiting friends, since almost half of the works were from the Moncton area. In my opinion, this is the most dynamic artist community in the province.

Creating a Legacy is an exhibit of top Contemporary Canadian artists and it was all donated by collectors or the invited artists. It was spectacular. We got a special guide of this and the Impressionist exhibit by Jerry from the Beaverbrook and he gave us a rich educational experience. Our heads were spinning with all the great tidbits of information he had to give and the great art.

If you do visit the Beaverbrook and happen to spy a guide with a distinctive burgundy jacket, and Jerry on his name tag, do say hello. He's a fountain of information and one of the Beaverbrook's greatest treasures.

And what about you? Do you like the Impressionists? How did you feel the first time you saw them in person?

Thanks again for a wonderful year and see you in 2010!