Online Show & Zoom

When Port Moody Arts Centre was forced to close, due to the ever-increasing danger of the spread of Covid 19, artwork in the three recently-opened shows remained in an empty building. Determined that this disappointing turn of events wouldn’t be a disaster for the artists, PoMoArts executive director Fatima Amarshi, Gallery Manager Janice Cotter and Media Relations Coordinator Caitlin Hill have devised an initial plan to publicize the shows. When each of us went to the gallery to collect our work, in pre-arranged individual half-hour time slots, Janice did a little iphone interview.

Then the plan was to post said interviews on various social media platforms, one a day for ten days, starting on April 1st., with a request that viewers pose questions of each of us. After 4pm Caitlin would collate the questions and at 6.45pm we would answer some of them, via Zoom app.

For my sins, Janice had me be the first interviewee, on Wednesday of this week. This link should allow you to watch my description of salty pots.

https://cdn.cp.adobe.io/content/2/video/d944083b-1bd6-4db5-b88b-4863b0888fc7/embed?api_key=MarvelCP1

In the evening I took my laptop downstairs and when Caitlin contacted me I did my best to answer the questions and then took the viewers on a little tour of my studio. This link should allow you to watch the second little video.. it isn’t long.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2822627077832904

Fellow TriCity Potter and Port Moody resident Clive Tucker was the next artist to be interviewed, and we were shown all around his studio in the evening. He has lots of fascinating pots, animal sculptures and other oddities to inspire him or remind him of his adventures in clay. His interviews and those of other potters and the two painters whose shows were also closed can be watched by going to PoMoArts.ca. I am told that this initiative is only the beginning of the Centre’s ideas to promote the shows, their teachers and the future there.

I’m happy to report that I have had an enthusiastic Albertan potter contact me in the hopes of purchasing one of my show jugbirds, so thank you PoMoArts for starting what may turn out to be super publicity for all three prematurely closed shows.

On a personal note, I finally feel human again after a nasty bout of flu for much of March, and Alan and I cannot complain about having a study, a studio, lots of space and a garden to weather this social isolation. I’m making an effort not to consider the future, but just to make the most of each day. We sure miss our social gatherings, whether it’s Al meeting up with fellow archaeologists, me attending pottery events, us welcoming Raiders here or most of all, seeing our family. Thank goodness for the phone, email and actually social media. The highlight of our week was a drive to Pitt Meadows on Thursday to deposit modest birthday gifts for son and grandson in their driveway, in exchange for TP and tea! The gifts won’t be touched for a day or two. The boys also asked that their various clay creations from a visit at the end of February be delivered for painting, so I left them and some underglazes and a small bag of clay. That’ll be a good incentive for me to finish my jugbirds for joint bisque and glaze firings soon.

We added to our brief family visit by driving north in Pitt Meadows, taking a walk alongside Alouette River in sunshine, and then driving as far north as far as roads go, to where Pitt River emerges from Pitt Lake. The sun disappeared behind big clouds and the mountains beyond took on a foreboding presence.

I may not post blogs very often for a while, seeing the intention is to record clay events in my life and there aren’t any on the horizon. It’s been just about ten years since I started blogging, when I joined other artists-in-residence at Medalta in June, 2010. ‘Who knows what tomorrow may bring?’

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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