Granville Island

Yesterday was my day to deliver pots. Even though it was raining really hard I drove to the airport first. Normally I park near a Skytrain station and use transit to get to YVR but this time I needed my car to get on to Granville Island as well. I’m glad to have the airport supplied again – they’ve waited too long! These heavy suitcases were lying unclaimed in US Departures..

On Granville Island I was so pleased to meet up with Margaret Hsu in the Gallery of BC Ceramics. We met in 1991 in a 2nd year Ceramics class (my first of three years there) at ECCAD. Margaret went on to specialize in making ceramic coke bottles entwined with Chinese dragons – East meets West. She was born in Taiwan, attended High School and Art School in Vancouver and now lives in Carmel, Indiana. Luckily for me she was holidaying in Vancouver with her daughter, staying with her sister. We ate lunch in Railspur Alley. Sadly for us Margaret is working on her other passion, web design, rather than ceramics for now. 

I gave the enthusiastic staff at the Gallery of BC Ceramics some of the new salt jugbirds and some salt and some terra sig. mugs.

On my way over to the market I stopped in at the Charles H. Scott gallery in ECUAD and enjoyed the current show ‘Miscreants and Reprobates’  Myfanwy MacLeod and William Hogarth. Myfanwy’s large drawings and what must be a computer-generated sculpture of one of Hogarth’s shady characters are set amongst big etchings of Hogarth’s well-known images – not Rake’s Progress, but ‘Prentice’s Progress. The message is to be a hard-working, loyal apprentice and you’ll become Lord Mayor of London, if not you’ll wind up dead. A similar fate awaits a woman of questionable virtue. It’s always fun to see these historic etchings.

Further along Johnson Street I found the ‘Revision 2011’ show of sculptures made from recycled materials set up around Creekhouse. Bill Thompson (who has more than once won the decorated garbage can contest on Granville Island) mentioned the show on facebook. I’m so pleased I found it – I really enjoy outrageous sculptures made from unlikely objects, especially Bill’s work. It must be my desire to recycle as much as I can. Here are some pieces that I could photograph. Some were behind wire mesh for safety. I believe the show will be there for some weeks so do take a look.

I didn’t make a note of all the artists. If I am sent the names I will add them to this later.

Finally I took some new jugbirds into Circle Craft. The whole shop and gallery have been changed around and it all looks very elegant, ready for all the tourists there this summer. In the new gallery area I enjoyed seeing ‘Material Bloom’ which features the work of woodworker Peter Pierobon and jeweller Barbara Cohen.

Gillian McMillan

Gillian writes blogs about ceramics in and around Vancouver and sometimes talks about other Art, her garden, travels and family.

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