Tag Archives: Design

AGO 1st Thursdays

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Last Thursday evening I attended 1st Thursdays at the AGO – a very happening ‘art-y’ party!

On the first Thursday of every month the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) closes its doors and lets the party begin.

1st Thursdays at AGODesigned to engage and entertain the 19+ crowd (alcohol is served!) 1st Thursdays are interactive art nights that feature performances, art-making activities (free nude life drawing and yarn bombing to name a few) artist and curator tours, talks and live events allowing people to see, make, do and hear as much art as they can.  The evenings theme, City Scrawl: Urban Intersections, was to bring Toronto’s diverse cityscape inside the AGO for one night.

Of course there were DJ’s spinning tunes throughout the gallery getting the sold-out crowd  in the groove.

Spinning tunes at the AGO

 

No party is complete without food and drinks so pop-up bars located in various areas provided signature cocktails and food. The Galleria Italia before and after!

Galleria Italia   Galleria Italia 1st Thursdays

At the Wheatpasting Workshop the evening’s theme ‘Urban Intersections’ challenged the idea of city and space through the practice of street postering creating collaborative murals that are appreciated as street art.

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AGO - Wheatpasting Workshop  AGO Wheatpasting Workshop

It was a fabulous night, lots of fun and a whole new way to see the AGO.  Check out the website http://www.ago.net/1stThursdays and consider booking a 1st Thursday event.

All images via Modmissy

 

 

 

Colour – Out of this World!

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When booking an airplane ticket do you request the window seat? For the view?

Well Commander Chris Hadfield, Canadian Astronaut, currently living in space aboard the ISS (International Space Station) as Flight Engineer on Expedition 34 has the best window seat ever!

And he has been sharing the view. International Space StationAt 370 – 460 kilometers (230–286 miles) above the Earth’s surface the photos that Commander Hadfield has been sharing via Twitter are nothing short of ‘stellar’!

The ISS orbits Earth 16 times per day, so the 6 Astronauts living aboard see 16 sunrises and 16 sunsets each day! How cool is that!?

I have been following the adventures of Commander Hadfield and I’m in total awe of seeing Earth from the ISS, the beauty of this planet and the wonderful colours of Earth.

Take a look.

This is the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco.   Who would have thought that the ‘City by the Bay’ would be coloured in lavender and teal? Golden Gate Bridge

The Outback, Australia looks like a colourful abstract painting of burnt Sienna and deep blues. The Outback, Australia

This photo taken at night of New York City matches the colours of ‘a night out on the town’ outfitted in mystic gold and blacktop. New York City - ISS

The Richat Structure, a prominent circular feature in the Sahara desert of Mauritania is a beautiful swirling composition of amber and delphinium blue. Richat Structure, Mauritania

Thanks for sharing Commander Hadfield.

All images via Commander Chris Hadfield

 

Condo – The First Impression

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“I have bought a Condo.”

I remember hearing those words for the first time and thinking ‘Wow’.

A condominium was the trendy and cool place to live.  I believed that anyone who lived in a condo had to be a real ‘jet-setter’ and lived a very sophisticated urban life.

My brother’s friend, a young hip professional guy, had just bought a condo and was throwing a party to which I was invited.  I was thrilled to be on the invitee list and to see inside my very first condo!

In my mind I envisioned the condo as a large space with high ceilings, big windows and 2 levels.  Definitely 2 levels.  The kitchen would be state-of-the-art and the furniture would be modern.  And the bathroom…..!!??  After all it was the early 1980’s and everything was excessive.

The night of the party I donned my best – big shoulder pads, big hair.

Modmissy 1980s

After introductions I began my own personal tour of this condo.  The windows – not so big but there was a sliding glass door to a (small) balcony, the kitchen was a galley-style kitchen and the ceilings were only 9 ft. high.  And try as I might I could not find the spiral staircase leading to the 2nd floor!  After a while I realized that it wasn’t the fact that there were so many people in attendance but that the condo was not large.

Then reality sunk in – the ‘condo’ was an apartment with ownership.

Sometimes reality bites!

Image via Modmissy

Mies Times Three

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While scanning through some files today I came across a few photos that made me realize I need to do some travelling – some more sightseeing.

Chicago Federal Building Mies van der Rohe

Kluczynski Federal Building

 

New York City Seagram Building Mies van der Rohe

Seagram Building

 

Toronto-Dominion Tower Mies van der Rohe

Toronto-Dominion Tower

Having the opportunity to play tourist in Chicago, New York City and Toronto, I got to experience 3 very different cities, but all with 1 architecturally similar skyscraper in their skyline.

The Kluczynski Federal Building (45-story) in downtown Chicago, the Seagram Building (38 story) in Midtown Manhattan and the Toronto-Dominiom Tower (56-story) in downtown Toronto were all designed by Mies van der Rohe.  All 3 of these buildings are of the International style in which the buildings’s structural elements are made visible on the exterior.

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (March 27, 1886 – August 19, 1969) was a German born American who left his mark on the world in a very visionary, forward thinking, contemporary way.  And long before social media or technology!  Mies van der Rohe was an architect who was widely regarded as one of the pioneering masters of modern architecture.

These iconic skyscrapers that Mies van der Rohe dubbed “skin and bones” architecture still stand today as a testament to the adage “less is more”.

All images via Modmissy

 

Happy New Year!

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I want to say farewell to 2012 – it was a good year.

I remember as a child on the 1st day back to school following New Years the teacher would write in big numbers on the chalkboard the new year.  And I would think “Wow.  The future.”  The future held so many unknowns, so many mysteries.  But that was when I was 7, 8, 9, 10…. and at that age my learning curve was steep and my ‘unknown’ curve was even steeper.

As one gets older life is broken down into increments of time.  4 year university degree, 20 year mortgage, 2 year bank loan, net 60 days, 40 hour work week, 8 hour shift, 3 weeks holiday, 2 ½ hour movie, 4 hour drive, 6 week delivery date, etc.  Life is intervals of time mapped out in doable increments.

The future is not quite as much a mystery but life undoubtedly is.

So let’s welcome in the New Year and start 2013 as a new beginning with lots of wonderful opportunities that lay ahead in our future.

Health and happiness for the New Year.

Cheers!

Happy New Year.

O Christmas Tree

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I have decided that there are as many different themes to the Christmas tree as there are ornaments .

Throughout this holiday season as I go around visiting friends and family I love to see the many variations of the ‘tannenbaum’.   Whether it is a pine, fir or balsam; artificial or faux; or even a corrugated cardboard tree all say Merry Christmas in their own personal way.

Here are just a few of the trees I would like to share.

The first tree is mine.  This year we decided to go back to ‘basics’ with a tree we cut from deep within the forest near out cottage.  It is a beautiful tree with a ‘gentle’ look to it but subsequently not strong enough to hold the weight of most of my ornaments.  So we made paper ornaments and I bought mini-mini lights.  And I thought a tree like this just had to have a Hudson Bay blanket for a tree skirt.

Modmissy Christmas Tree 2012

This is my friend’s tree.  As space was a restriction this narrow faux tree covered in snow and decorated with many glass ornaments that reflect the glow of warm blue lights this tree is perfect.  I love it!

Karen's tree

This tree is in a friend’s home where Hanukkah and Christmas are both acknowledged.  Tree ornaments of Santa Claus hang next to Dreidels and Star of David.  But the coolest thing is that when my friend had me put on a pair of special 3-D glasses all the mini-lights on the tree appeared as Star of David.  Truly a Chrismukkah tree!

This photo was taken through the lens of the 3-D glasses.

z Hannukah-Christmas Tree

Of course leave it to IKEA to come up with their interpretation of a ‘flat-packed’ Christmas tree.  The JULMYS Christmas tree is made from cardboard that can be decorated with the accompanying stickers or your own ornaments.  No fallen needles to clean up and easily stored away until next year.   How simple is that!?

Ikea Julmys Christmas tree

O Christmas Tree! O Christmas Tree!
Much pleasure thou can’st give me;
How often has the Christmas tree
Afforded me the greatest glee!
O Christmas Tree! O Christmas Tree!
Much pleasure thou can’st give me.

So….what does your Christmas tree look like?

 

My Mother

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My Mother.

Affectionately known as ‘Nornie’ to her close friends and family.

My Mother was an identical twin and as close as 2 peas in a pod but my Mother was also one-of-a-kind.

Image

 

It was from my Mom that I got my sense of design and love of décor.  My Mom had a passion for decorating and keeping a beautiful home.

In my parents very first home my Mom painted the living room’s 5th wall (ceiling) red to coordinate with her new crimson red curved sofa.  Ground-breaking.

When my Mom was expecting their first child my parents moved to the suburbs – a larger home for their 4 children (born within the next 5 years) and more space for my Mom to decorate.

When we were very young my Mom enrolled in night school to take an interior decorating course.  I remember my Mom’s design boards with little swatches of fabric, carpet and paint.  She loved attending this course even if it meant leaving my Father at home with 4 small children – and even if it resulted in my Father doing a quick trip to the hospital emergency unit with my brother who needed stitches after falling on the fireplace hearth!

My Family

My Mom made her design choices slowly and meticulously.  Whether it was the fabric choice for the new sofa or drapery, the shape of the custom built kitchen table, the pattern of the wallpaper for the new feature wall or the paint colour of the garage door, my Mom made her decisions carefully.  Mom decorated on a budget but her home indicated otherwise.

My Mom was aware of trends and the latest in décor but chose the classics.  I grew up with mahogany, wools, silks, cotton damask, Louis XlV and gilded furniture.  Mom took me shopping to fine furniture stores like Eaton’ s Gallery of Fine Furniture, we visited art galleries and she taught me how to identify different fabrics.

I fondly remember my Father every few years saying to my Mom, “Well Nornie, it’s time for a new car, what colour shall I order?”  My Mom liked to coordinate the car with the colour of our home’s exterior!

Unfortunately my Mother never met any of her 11 grandchildren or got to retire with my Father.  And she never got the pleasure of helping her children decorate their homes.

Twenty-seven years ago today my Mother lost her battle with Cancer.

I miss you Mom.

 

 

My Christmas Door Wreath

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The wreath:  A circle of flowers, boughs, or leaves worn on the head, placed on a memorial, or hung as a decoration.

The door wreath whether you celebrate Christmas or not, is a wonderful way to greet guests at this time of year. (especially if your door is ugly and needs replacing like mine – but that’s another blog!)

My childhood family’s first Christmas door wreath was a faux cedar one that my Mother was quite proud of.  Mom had paid a good penny for this wreath and subsequently that wreath adorned our door for many years.  It was very pretty at the onset but should have been laid to rest sooner than it was.  Note to self: cost cannot always be amortized!

As a kid I remember making my first Christmas wreath from IBM Punch Cards.

IBM Punch Card.

For those of you who may not know what an IBM Punch Card is (ie. too young) they are probably the earliest icon of the Technology Age.  Before computers of today these ~3” x 7” cards were coded or ‘punched’ with data and then fed into a computer to input information.  Seems primitive but we wouldn’t be where we are today if it were not for these cumbersome cards.

An IBM Punch Card Wreath

IBM Punch Card Wreath

When I moved into my first apartment I had a pine cone wreath that I purchased from a co-worker who was making and selling them.  But when the pine cones started falling off beyond repair this wreath became fire tinder.

Pine Cone Wreath

Over the years I have always purchased a natural pine or cedar bough wreath.  Beautiful.

But this year I decided to change it up.  Since my Christmas tree is not ‘strong’ enough to hold decorations I made a door wreath-ornament-holder.

So I started with this…

DIY door wreath

And DIY-ed this….

Door Wreath

 

Jeff Goodman Studio – Open House and Sale

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I would like to share an invitation with you if you happen to be in the Toronto area this Friday and Saturday, December 7th and 8th.

The Jeff Goodman Studio www.jeffgoodmanstudio.com has its annual Open House and Sale where you can enjoy live demonstrations of spectacular glass blowing in their newly expanded 4,000 sq. ft. studio.  Meet the creative team and witness their stunning work of blown and cast glass.

I love this year’s invitation with the ‘juicy’ colours of blown glass vessels.

So drop by if you can, it promises to be a colourful event!

See you there.

Jeff Goodman Studio