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TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2013

Hazlets hidden artist sees the unusual in the ordinary and makes great food
BY KIT SIMPSON While Dog River had a gas station and coffee shop linked with a door between, Hazlet has a library and coffee shop. The library recently won Library of the Year for the Chinook region, and the coffee shop, Java Thyme Cafe & Foods, should win Pastry of the Year for their blueberry turnovers. The cafes proprietor, Irene Elder, honed her culinary skills during her homeless years. I tell people I was homeless. I was with a catering company in Alberta and went to camps all over the province. It wasnt much point in trying to own or rent a home when I was only in one place for a few weeks to a couple of months, so I often stayed with other people or in a hotel. But as delicious as they are, its not Irenes pastries were here to talk about. Its her art. Elder has been pursuing art ever since she was a young woman in high school. I was asked by my high school, Runnymede Collegiate, to enlarge one of my designs. It hung in the cafeteria for many years. Did she ever think of trying to get it back? I once asked if I could have it and they told me I would have to buy it. From there she studied design at Seneca College back in the day it wasnt done on a computer. Although

ARTS & CULTURE

she specializes in photography now, she has experimented with many different media. I love to sculpt and paint with acrylics and water colours, she says. I also designed for my mothers catering company, from the head table to the evening buffet, using meats and cheese to make different designs and arrangements. different angle informs virtually every aspect of her life. I think that I have used my art in different ways all my life in food, in my home or business, with arranging the furniture and objects, when I arrange the furniture I step back and see how the picture looks just as if it was a painting. When she speaks about rearranging the furniture often, shes not kidding.

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While meat and cheese may not strike most people as a typical art medium, its not surprising in this case since Elder tends to look beyond common items to the designs and images underlying them. Common objects get over looked most days, she points out. Even when a person drives the same route everyday, they might think it's the same, but it really is different if you really look. The colours change, the clouds are formed differently, the trees have different shading and so on. This tendency to look at things from a

My husband used to say that he was glad we had a water bed, because at least he always knew it would stay in one spot where he could find it. Although shes thought of having a show at some point, whether it be painting, sculpting or photo collages, for the time being she mostly does her art for herself. I try to put a bit of my style in everything I do. I started to do photo collages about 30 years ago, whenever I had time. This involved cutting up the original pictures and creating a picture with all the pictures kind of a telling story of

the persons life. One thing thats helped is the computer. Its much faster to design these days, she says, recalling the effort it took back in her days at Seneca. I started doing them on the computer which saved a lot pictures. Some of her photos are straightforward, others have been played with in one way or another, and others still have been blended with other photos. It all depends upon what Elder is after. With collages I try to make a picture with the photos and tell a bit of a story, she says. With the rest I try to see the simplicity. One photo shows the Southwest Terminal reflected in a sideview mirror. Another shows a wintery landscape seen through a snow-covered lens. Yet another is simply of a dog sleeping on a couch, the light and shadows combining with a picture on the wall to create an interesting journey of angles and comfort. When asked what she looks for in a shot, she replies, Something different in how the arrangement looks. Not acclaimed, not discovered, but certainly a woman with skill in the visual arts. Irene Elder is yet another surprising find in Hazlet. And her pastries can be considered an art in themselves. Elder has a website called Myrka Thoughts which highlights some of her work. http://myrkathoughts. blogspot.ca/

First Eastend meeting to brainstorm SW Quest 2013

BY BARBARA MACKELLAR

The Eastend Historical Museum has agreed to be the sponsor of the SW Quest Art and History tours with the intent of organizing a local festival to be held in conjunction with Dino Days in July 2013. A meeting was held at noon at Jacks Cafe on January 9. Started eight years ago by Nancy-Jean Taylor, artist and owner of Robsart Art Works (RAW), one of many venues in SW Quest, the famous self-guided driving tour along the Yellow Loop offers a comprehensive and intriguing list of art studios and galleries and historical sites and centres to choose from. The festival component is part of Eastend's annual Dino Days celebrations. "Nancy-Jean did a phenomenal job of raising funds for SW Quest and putting it on the map," said Alice Hanlin, Eastend artist, museum secretary and owner of Hidden Treasures Gallery & Studio. Hanlin explained at the meeting that Taylor is no longer able to coordinate the tour and festival and is looking for a replacement. "The museum has offered to steer the history side," she said, "but does not have the resources to coordinate the festival, summer-long tours, or brochures." Several artists, writers, historians and other interested volunteers attended to help brainstorm plans and ideas. The seemingly daunting task of coordinating a summer-long tour starting with a shoe-string seed fund did not dampen the spirits of those present. When the meeting convened, SW Quest 2013 was off to a good start with an artist coordinator, a website and brochure designer, help with advertising and promotions, and financial support from the venue proprietors willing to pay the cost of being listed in the brochure. The purpose of the meeting was to determine the extent of additional interest and support for continuing to promote venue tours throughout the SW Region as in the past, and to determine the willingness from the community for involvement to organize and participate in this venture, Hanlin told the Advance. "Next meeting we hope to have more involvement from food, lodging and other service providers." For more information, please contact Alice Hanlin at 295-3775.

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