33 on 33 at Blizzmax

We've been driving around
From one end of this town to the other and back
But no one's ever seen us
Driving our Econoline van
And no one's ever heard of our band
–TMBG, "The Mesopotamians"

Stand by for action.

The opening of my 33 on 33 show at Blizzmax this past weekend was fantastic and lots of fun, with tons of my friends and regular Blizzmax patrons coming out to see the fruits of my madness: 13,200 square inches of Prince Edward County scenes –some recognizable, some obscure, but all genuinely interesting to me– are now finally on display in sequential order, along with a handy map to provide orientation and context. Each painting is available for purchase for $333.

Blizzmax is located at 3071 County Rd. 13, in South Bay (call ahead for hours: 613.476.7748). The show runs until 21 July.

Bearded...but not tired.

Since the completion of this project at the Glenora Ferry last Wednesday, people have been asking me if I've recovered from my marathon. Unlike my 100-ink-paintings-in-100-consecutive-hours-without-sleeping project last December, I didn't really consider this a marathon since I was painting continually for 33 days but not continuously. I got up early each day around 5am and usually arrived at my destination by 7 or 7:30 at which point I would paint, taking only the briefest of breaks, until the picture was done a few (ranging from 2-6) hours later. Then I went home –which is really the part that made this a non-marathon. I suppose if I were camping at each site and gradually making my way across the County without ever coming home, I would consider that a marathon. This was more like a casual stroll along a tightrope.

Fun.

Nothing gives me so much joy like the act of painting does, and one of the things I love to do with the things I love is to share them, and having such a great turnout for the reception on Saturday kept me smiling all night.

State of the art.

Thirty-three days came and went, in turns slow and quick, frustrating and rewarding, educational and weird, social and solitary, but always worthwhile: I stepped out of my studio and, thereby, out of my comfort zone; I learned something new each day whether it was about painting, about County history, or about myself. And now it's all becoming a blur as I prepare for my next painting adventure in the fall...

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