White Wedding Wednesday! Noah and Kelly...making their own luck.

Noah and Kelly believe in making their own luck, following their hearts path and adventure. 

I would love to meet these two in person, and really enjoyed talking with them online over the past few weeks, as they so generously opened up a small window into their world.  Kelly volunteers at the Duke Lemur centre, where I picture long days filled with snuggling and taking care of ill lemurs, works at Duke University, and Noah is a talented musician who sang to her on their wedding day.....amazing!

When Kelly spied Noah careening downhill on a skateboard at the corner of Albany and Sunset in North Carolina, she took a chance.

She'd seen Noah at a grocery store a week before and felt a connection....she convinced her friend to stop the car, and, well, I'll let them finish their amazing story.

Thanks Noah and Kelly!!

 

1.  Where did you both meet?
He said: 

We met on the corner where I almost crashed into her car, on a day when the weather was perfect and I was escaping bad decisions for a minute to enjoy something that I used to do all the time but can't really do anymore. I was riding my skateboard back to my temporary home and almost ran into her on the corner of my street at the time Albany street, here in Durham.

 

She said:

On the corner of Albany and Sunset in Durham. When my friend Katie and I drove by Noah on his skateboard, I immediately recognised him as the handsome stranger I didn't have the nerve to talk to at the grocery store a few weeks earlier.

I exclaimed, "Stop! Put the car in reverse!" Katie responded wordlessly, as if we had choreographed the moment. Unfortunately, Noah was careening downhill at this point, and we nearly collided.


2.  At what point in the relationship did you know that you wanted to get married to each other?

He said:

When she told me with a journal and gentle demeanour that I could do things in my own time. That may be the first time in my life someone close to me said anything like that, and actually showed it in any sincere and or measurable way, and it was a gesture of friendship, not some wanton thing, it wasn't filled with ulterior motives and I started doing that thing where you try not to picture yourself with someone but you do it anyways.

She said:

 

I knew I loved Noah right away. We immediately became good buddies but were casually dating other people. When my dad came to town for my 32nd birthday, the three of us went to dinner. Noah dressed up like Jake Ryan from 16 Candles. My dad told me later that on the way home, I had muttered half-asleep "I'm going to ask Noah to marry me someday." 

 

 3.  How did you imagine your wedding day to be as a child or teenager?

He said:

 

I didn't imagine getting married as a child. I was staunchly against it. I came from an astoundingly broken home, surrounded by similar home lives in my working class neighbourhood in Lowell MA.

 

Everyone was a divorced catholic and I was enlightened to that hypocrisy at a very early age which left me feeling mirthless about the act of being married. I never knew I'd meet Kelly though, just glad it finally happened.

She said:

 

As a kid, I had a recurrent argument with a playmate about which of us would marry Tom Cruise. We used to watch Top Gun a lot. Other than that, I don't think I thought very much about it.

 

4.  What is the trait that you admire most about the other person?

He said:

 

Resilience comes to mind immediately, but the trait that she has shown for me is that, she is sworn to be my protector, she is fiercely loyal and though we argue plenty, and have our own conflicts, for external conflicts, even if we are having a hard time, she vaults into action to defend and protect me, my character and our relationship,

 

I have never known that state of being taken care of before, there has always been some concession or negotiation, but not with Kelly, she was all in from the very beginning.

She said:

 

His drive to be a better person (by his standards), despite the fact that most of us think he's pretty darn good

 

 5.  What is the quirkiest trait that you've grown to love about the other person?

He said:

 

Ha ha, her ever weirdening relationship with our dogs. Kelly hadn't had her own dog since she was young, and has grown to make my old boy Ben and our dog together Molly, truly her own, and in a way that is often completely bizarre to me, like when she'll sing a song 20 bars long that is made up on the spot of only words like "She's a Molly she's a Molly Molly Molly she's a Molly Molly dog, she's the best Molly dog.

 

Our relationship with the pups is a very affirming one and it is great to have her to nurture and enjoy them, but it also brings out wonderful and just primal and childlike affection from her which I love to see, since were both sort of serious folks with a lot going on all the time.

She said:

 

The many different ways he snickers, laughs, snorts, etc. He's not self-conscious at all about them, and it's very contagious. We have a lot of funny moments.


 6.  What do you like to do on weekends, as a couple?

He said:

 

On weekends anything goes. We might sleep all day and be disappointed that we missed it. We might just do work and schoolwork and things around the house. But every so often the weekend holds a great spur of the moment surprise where we have a lot of fun and get to know each other better. Often involving a trip or hanging out with good friends by a fire or at a show or something. I like the weekends with her because we get to explore the concept of "home" a little more carefully with her.

 She said:

 

Take the dogs to the forest, work on house projects, have people over to sit around the fire.

 

 

  

7.  What was your most memorable date or trip together:

He said:

 

I had the best trip of my life to the beach with Kelly. It was sublime, and it basically only lasted a day. Also, driving back exhausted from our wedding the morning after in a 55 Chevy coupe with the windows open, our eyes bleary and cans clanking with her dad doing terrifying things in traffic to take photos with our dogs in the back of his SUV terrified, was a pretty memorable mini trip.

She said:

 

We drove to Wilmington to go to the beach one weekend shortly after we started dating. It kept looking like rain when we got there, but the sun won out. I mostly remember laughing a lot and feeling amazed

 

8.  What was the most memorable/surprising thing about your wedding day?

He said:

 

The most surprising thing about our wedding day to me is that she basically wrote the same vows as me, and we had never even talked about them with each other. The second most surprising thing, was how near perfect and effortless it all was. (Barring having to move the PA myself at 1AM.

She said:

 

When we exchanged vows. Noah had been working on his for a while, but was keeping the content a secret. I had written mine that afternoon, surrounded by my closest friends. I read mine first, from a piece of paper. Noah recited his from memory. When he repeated--verbatim-- the same idea I had written, "to be curious and gentle," I started laughing. I thought with all the nerves he had forgotten his vows and was riffing off mine. As it turns out, it was just one more thing to add to our list of strange yet comforting coincidences.


9.  What does your new jewellery mean to you?

He said:

 

The wedding ring I have now is something new. It marks a very literal new stage in my life, someone has actually for once, pledged forever to me, with tears and smiles and sweat and lost sleep and joyous laughter and dancing and a floodgate of personal sharing. No one has ever done anything like that, for me, promised me. It has always been vagueries and deals and compromises.

 

 The funny thing is I have had a ring on that finger for a long time, since before even my engagement ring that Kelly gave me and this is the first time I find myself thoughtfully twirling it around or tapping it, and it reminding me of something good and secure. It's the first time I have ring that makes me feel connected instead of separated as a symbol. It's sort of a little part of me and I am often concerned, just a bit when I take it off.

She said:

 

We wanted something simple, understated, and beautiful. The insides of our rings say "fifi" (his) and "francois" (mine)-- and I can't understand how Anneke engraved these nicknames by HAND with such tiny perfection, especially since my ring is only 2mm wide. Noah told me early in our friendship that I reminded him of a Tex Avery cartoon he'd loved as a child, called "The Flea Circus." It stars two fleas, Fifi the Ballerina and Francois the Clown. They fall in love after an amusing courtship. Even though Noah is hardly as funny-looking as Francois, he is as sweet, goofy, and humble as the little flea clown.

 

These characteristics are all things I love about Noah. So, for me, I guess our rings signify a synthesis between two perspectives of love: that it is delicate yet tenacious. And achieving that balance requires both sensitivity and a sense of humour

 

 

.

 

10.  What is your biggest fantasy/dream/hope as a couple?

He said:

 

My biggest fantasy is kind of here already, I mean, we want to fix up the house a bit, go on trips, have more money, get better jobs and all that, but my life-long fantasy was to have a secure home with a loving friend and a place where I feel welcome and unafraid, and I have that with Kelly. I feel like were there, and things keep getting better.

She said:

 

Being grounded in the present is very important to both of us. In particular, I appreciate one particular way Noah is a great partner and friend: when my excitement carries me far up into the clouds or I am stressed out and multi-tasking, he reminds of how effective it is to do one thing--and be in one moment-- at a time. I see a parallel between our belief in "making our own luck" (which is why we irreverently chose Friday the 13th for our wedding date) and our belief that hopes and wishes are displacements.

 

Rather than looking forward to something we don't have, we try to be grateful for the things that we do have. Together, I think we want to be better at accepting and appreciating the groundlessness of life; and to help one another be more graceful in that flux. Pema Chodron sums up my interpretation of your question in a way I like:

"Abandoning hope is an affirmation...If we totally experience hopelessness, giving up all hope of alternatives to the present moment, we can have a joyful relationship with our lives, an honest, direct relationship that no longer ignores the reality of impermanence and death."

All wedding photos by Dustin and Whitney Deal:
https://www.facebook.com/dustindealphotography
http://ohdarlingphotography.com/

Candid shots courtesy of Noah and Kelly.
about.me/kelly.goyette

 

Dear October, Sorry I missed you.

MMK - Museum für Moderne Kunst (Museum of Modern Art) in Frankfurt a.M. / Germany



You know that feeling when the days keep rolling into one thundering, intense landscape where you can't see the horizon and you just keep moving forward?  That was October.

And, I'm almost dismissing it, as it comes to an end, as a mess of work, deadlines, production work and chaos, but I won't because even though the intensity sucks, it will make the small breaks all that sweeter.

So, its been a bit quiet around here, as I've been a bit overwhelmed with it all.

I'm currently working on several projects, conceptualising a project for the 2014, "Not Forkchops" exhibition which launches in January, designing for a ring exhibition in Vancouver, preparing work for a pop up shop at the Ontario Crafts Council gallery on Queen Street, and preparing work for the City of Craft show in mid December.

Did I forget anything?  Likely.  I'm finding that I am in need of some time to develop some conceptual projects and really would love the time to tinker and experiment with some ideas I've been mulling over.  I really can't see that happening until February, after design week.


Till then, I'll keep on....
 

Countdown to Nuit Blanche

When Nuit Blanche launched in 2006, it had an intimate, art community vibe.  Flasks were loaded up, and groups of artists stumbled around, checking out the installations, exhibitions and happenings.  Although an estimated 425,000 attended the all night party, It was a calm, exciting event.

The next year, Nuit Blanche exploded.....it had doubled in attendance, over 800,00 people took to the streets and It was disorganised bedlam.  It clearly was unprecedented and unanticipated  that the all night arts event would explode in this way.  The sidewalks were loaded, people were spilling out onto the street in traffic, getting around Queen street was impossible as everyone moved in a jerky shuffle. 

Year two, despite it's chaos was my favourite.  It was the year that "Night Swim" happened, the all night pool party, that had many djs vying for a chance to spin.  The dressing rooms were a mess of naked bodies, muddied floors and beer.  A young guy dressed in a tweed hat and overcoat pretended to dance up to the edge of the pool then threw himself in, inflatable pink flamingos squeaked against wet bodies, beach balls were tossed around. 
It was magic.  And I really can't see this happening ever again.  The next year, the optics changed...it was very organised, and continues to evolve annually.

While downtown picking up some jewellery supplies, I shot some images of the installation, "Garden Tower in Toronto", by Japanese artist Tadashi Kawamata.  It was interesting to see the piece installed next to a massive church, and the juxtaposition between the church spires and the massive chair column was impressive.  The chairs are fixed to a metal frame structure, and it has an opening, that passes all the way through the bottom, much like a tunnel.  It is being protected by security and fencing at the moment, so you can't walk inside until the big night!

http://www.scotiabanknuitblanche.ca/

 

Keep your head down, and Focus on Fall.

It is terribly stunning outside of the studio windows.....all of the trees, the blinding light.  It's difficult to concentrate when it is so beautiful outside.  I hope it is an amazing Fall, wherever you are, and that you are taking some time to be outside and just enjoy it, while it's here.

Here is what last week looked like in the studio, working on a massive heap of castings, in preparation for the holidays, gallery and wholesale orders. 

The other shots are from a much needed escape to check out Marcel Dzamas short film, "Une danse des bouffons", a dadaist love story.  The installation shot of the couple is exhibited to compliment the film in the gallery space. 

The exhibition celebrates the work of David Cronenberg, and Dzama was commissioned to create a short film to contribute, in collaboration with the Toronto Internaional Film Festival.  If you are a Dzama or Cronenberg fan, a visit to the Museum of Canadian Contemporary Art is worth the trip.  It was great to see Dzamas drawings come to life in film, set to a soundtrack scored by Arcade Fire.

After tripping out with Dzama and going down that rabbit hole, I needed something light and contrary.  Staring at Pugs and eating french macaroons ususally does the trick. Nadege patisserie on Queen street, beside the park has amazing temptations and their space is stunning.

 

 

Marcel Dzama, Une Danse Des Bouffons (or A Jester's Dance), 2013, video still.

 http://www.nadege-patisserie.com/

Margot Tenenbaum, Fendi and the Referendum.

I recently stumbled upon a carefully crafted, illuminating article by writer and cartoonist, Tim Kreider.  Brutally beautiful and sad, Tim writes about what he calls "The Referendum", his anxieties about ageing, life choices and the "naked 3AM terror of regret".

Quite a lot of what passes itself off as a dialogue about our society consists of people trying to justify their own choices as the only right or natural ones by denouncing others’ as selfish or pathological or wrong. So it’s easy to overlook that hidden beneath all this smug certainty is a poignant insecurity, and the naked 3 A.M. terror of regret.

Fall always makes me feel nostalgic, and reflective.  Maybe it's all that extra time spent indoors, less time on sunny patios on the weekends, and more time in the studio.  And all the new relationships, new students and personalities I encounter.

One of my new students told me that she was taking my class to bring some balance to her life, something just for her, an escape.  Which got me thinking about what I was doing there (aside from the obvious income it generates), and being grateful for the opportunity to meet so many people that I would likely never had over the years if not for this small part of my life.

I've taught students who were in the middle of a divorce, suffering the loss of a parent, struggling to decide if they should leave their job, wading through the application process of applying for Canadian citizenship, recently retired and wondering what next, people becoming new parents and generally just exploring and wondering. 

You learn these things about strangers, whether you want to or not, we share our stories when we share a space together....it's a curious mix of unrelated personalities, a tremendous social experiment, when strangers from every possible background imaginable get together to learn something new together.  And everyone has an unusual path, which I am always curious to hear about....it's the contradictions and the wonky bits that make me happy.  It's the Margot Tenenbaum in the thrift store dress and the Fendi mink fur.

Full article here:

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/17/the-referendum/?_r=0

Summer won't let go....

Summer?  She's a tough, one room schoolhouse, edge of a dusty town sort of lady....and she's not letting go.

It's hard to reconcile the fact that fall is right around the corner, when the temperature is set to break 34 degrees today.  My classes begin again this week, I'm having trouble envisioning any kind of textured tights or wool jackets at this point.  More likely summer dresses in class if the weather carries on this way all week. 

This week also marks a decade of teaching at George Brown, the college in Toronto where I work.  Ten years.  I'm not really sure how all of those years slipped by, or where the hundreds of students I've met over that time are now. 

I love hearing stories from people that I've worked with pursing jewellery professionally, going onto full time studies, or launching their own lines.  To celebrate ten years, I'd like to share a photographic tutorial on wax carving basics below, and am having a back to school sale in my shop over the weekend, starting Thursday, and ending on Sunday night. 

These images represent the basics of carving my bevelled, heavy mens band, which begins as a long tube of wax which I cut a section from and essentially carve the form that I want in metal.  The wax form is eventually cast into metal (gold or sterling) and then the clean up process begins (filing, emery work, polishing etc.).

Just enter "WINDMILLPUNCH" when you check out your cart in my Etsy shop, and you receive 10% off for this weekend only.  So if you've been eyeing a new pair of earrings or neckpiece for the fall, here's your chance!

 

White Wedding Wednesdays...Introducing Megan and Jason!

In the Spring I received a really thoughtful email from Megan....she is a sculputure major and York university grad who had attended a contemporary craft talk at OCAD some years ago where she was introduced to my work.  I was beyond flattered that she remember me so many years later, and chose my work to celebrate her special day.  I was honoured to be a small part in such a meaningful occassion, and created two white gold wedding bands with a millgrain edging and a smoky topaz stone flush set on the interiors of the bands.

I was pretty excited to get their interview questions back, and was very impressed to learn that they have been together since they were in grade 9!  Thanks Megan and Jason!

Where did you both meet?

He said: High school geography class
She said: Grade nine geography class.

At what point in the relationship did you know that you wanted to get married to each other?

He said: When did I “know?” Does one ever “know?” I still don’t “know” – even as a married man, but I think, I hope, I believe in our marriage with my mind, hands, heart, and soul. (Not “knowing” is, I think, what keeps us day by day working at our love.)


She said: I suppose I knew after a few years into our relationship, when I could get a good sense of his character and our love for each other, that I wanted to spend the rest of my life in partnership with him. I knew I wanted to get married a little over a year ago, when I proposed to him.

How did you imagine your wedding day to be as a child or teenager?

He said: A day of days – with love, joy, and rapturous tears (and, obviously with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as entertainment).

She said: An intimate gathering with family and friends.

What is the trait that you admire most about the other person?

He said: Her work ethic, passion, care for others… (wait did you mean “one”?)

She said: His compassion.

What is the quirkiest trait that you've grown to love about the other person?

He said: Her obsessive cleanliness.

She said: His obsessive tidiness.

What do you like to do on weekends, as a couple?

He said: Go to the movies, to the farmer’s market, the art gallery… and, above all, eat!

She said: Explore new areas of the city (Toronto) on foot, experiment with food recipes, and snuggle in bed.

What was your most memorable date or trip together:

He said: We travelled to the East Coast (all the way to the Rock: Newfoundland) in what was an awe-some road-trip full of beautiful sights, adventure, and memorable times with good friends.

She said: Our first weekend away together at a cottage in the Kawarthas, when we were teenagers.

What was the most memorable/surprising thing about your wedding day?

He said: My new wife’s composure and self-collectedness.

She said: I was surprised by how nervous he was – he is usually the composed one.

Also, our live band (The Elwins) was ridiculously good and we all had a blast dancing until 3am!

What does your new jewellery mean to you?

He said: It’s a symbol of our mutual love, care, and deepened responsibility for each other. We included a (philosopher’s?) stone inlaid in the inside of the ring to represent the rock, the foundation, that we’ve laid as a couple that shall serve to remind us of our affection and commitment.

She said: It is a symbol of the vows we made to each other not only on our wedding day but years ago as a young couple learning to love and grow in relationship.

It was important to us that the bands were handmade, a process that reflects the time-honoured craft tradition of jewellery making and working with people in the creation of art, and also the slow, steady, and beautiful journey of loving another individual.

What is your biggest fantasy/dream/hope as a couple?

He said: To raise a beautiful, intelligent, sharp, committed, passionate, discerning, sensitive, caring and spirited family: the work of our lives!

She said: To continue to support, challenge, and teach each other, strengthening our bond as a couple and hopefully, someday, as parents.

If you have a piece that you purchased from me to celebrate a union, marriage or anniversary I'd love to hear from you...contact me via facebook at:

https://www.facebook.com/Touchthedutch