‘Tis the Season for Giving … local Art

Yes, this is shameless promotion time.

I have some things I’d like to share with you, that I hope you buy from me, to give as gifts to people in the next while.

First off, I have some lovely hand-bound poetry books that would like to have new homes.

Text by award-winning Vancouver poet Catherine Owen; 7 hand-pulled block print illustrations by me. I carved the blocks, printed the images on rice paper, the text on straw paper, and bound the books. Limited edition of 50.

The poems are based on the seven basic building forms that birds use to build nests, and deal with love and the work of living and caring for one another in ways that are insightful, and always threaded through with a keen understanding of human relationships.

$50 each, shipping via Canada Post extra (if needed).

I also have a new series of photo-based work I’ve just put up at Credo on 104th Street in Edmonton AB. These are a selection urban/street based images I’ve been collecting for the last several years: quirky little moments from various cities in Canada.

Manipulated digital images printed on mylar and archival fine art photo paper, framed and ready to hang. These are non-editioned images, so if you want something in a different size, get in touch, and we can talk.

Prices range from $45 – $90, shipping via Canada Post extra (if needed).

But there is a point to me telling you about these things, beyond the possible sale …

Buying from the maker of the goods you choose gives both buyer and seller so much more than just the positive conclusion to a mutually agreeable monetary transaction.

You have the option to get to know the person who made the thing you like a little better – find out the story behind the item you like.

The thing you choose will be unique in some way; it’s not going to be one of several million items produced in a factory. It comes from a different kind of economy, and a different understanding of ‘value.’

You know that the money you spend is going to support the effort of someone trying to make a living from making. From self-employment in creative work. Local workers making local products.

Props to the many Maker’s Markets and Farmer’s Markets her and elsewhere that serve as venues for makers of all types … all those places where people gather to show and sell what they make – and make the cities they make in a little bit more awesome all the time.

(ok – my mini rant is over … and I hope you consider purchasing gifts for people  throughout the year from local artists and artisans. It matters!)