Ookpik love!

Ookpik.  In 1964 Canada attended and participated in a trade show in Philadelphia.  They needed a symbol that represented Canada.  For some reason, the beaver was considered lame....they wanted something new, something "unique", something that smacked you in the face politely and screamed CANADA. 

I'm pretty amazed by these little guys and have a small collection of them.  This one is not a typical sealskin version, but he is lovely and strange and incredibly soft.

Here's a video that was produced by the government of the time, which is interesting in terms of production quality, extra awkward in an amazing way, but also interesting in terms of how the government wanted to portray our collective identity.  Best quote from the video...

"If I may offer a comment, I think a much more attractive symbol than the beaver....see the beaver makes Canadians look very industrious, but what Ookpik makes us look is like is, oh, people who have an interest in amusing things".

Oh yes, amusing things.  That's why I'm in love.  Enjoy!  xoxoxo.  Anneke

http://www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/lifestyle/pastimes/handmade-in-canada-the-art-of-craft/eyes-on-ookpik.html

Going Steady...with Toronto Design Offsite.

http://todesignoffsite.com/going-steady-with-anneke-van-bommel/

Awww shucks.  Thanks for the article Jeremy!  Lots of designers featured here!

Forsythia Garland necklace. 2012.

Spring is Summer in Toronto...

Thank goodness Pedestrian Sundays are rolling out in Kensington....nothing like a wild salmon dance party to lift the spirits...pfffft!  Amazing!  Also working on heaps of my silhouette axe brooches in May and June....here they are just after they have been hand cut at my bench, and before any of the sanding and filing that follows!

http://torontoist.com/2012/04/kensington-market-finalizes-2012s-pedestrian-sunday-schedule/

Landscape installation...

This installation by artist Alastair Heseltine incorporates much of the natural world and relies on it as a source of inspiration and as the actual material used in the production of his work.  He studied with Basketmakers in England in the 1970's and continues to make work that exploits a minimal impact on the environment and is a part of the environment it inhabits.  I think this installation is just as beautiful in the winter!

http://www.alastairheseltine.com/