a relapsed blogger tries to make up for lost time.

I note that it is 10 days since i last wrote on here and for the life of me cannot think of where the time has been used or what i have achieved.

I do know a few things ; i attended a 2 day workshop on Icelandic embroidery; i have completed about 4-5 new drawings that use materials not fully employed by me before; i have joined up with a group with whom I do outdoor sketching ; i have been doing figure drawing every week with a fabulous support group; I have walked on new ground and seen sand carving ; I have walked a bunch but not enough and i have really enjoyed finding the pleasures of reading after a long absence of several years.; I have booked my final days away from here for 2 nights next week . It has also been a tough time assimilating with life's challenges .

So i hope i will post photos of some mentioned ,because even though I temporarily occupy this tiny edge of British Columbia , everything i will mention more fully , took place with 2 miles of my window on the world .

The first adventure was with friend Wendy who drove me to end of the road from to which the one bus drives every 2 hours . At this terminal are two destinations , one being a low security prison. The other is a college with a scholarship program for high schoolers from around the globe who demonstrate great potential as citizens of the world. A brief conversation with one student as we both waited for the rare bus to arrive, told me he was from Palestine . What does one say to bright 17 year boy from Gaza!!! I was stopped in my tracks with the weight of instantly feeling something of his world.

However, Wendy took us to see firsthand, the newly carved low -relief images in the cliff walls. on a local beach. Recent storms had pushed fallen trees down the cliff and exposed smooth layers of soft, sanded rock. The carved images were all rather interesting, even if seemed as if a teacher had coached students. The images themselves indicated that the scribes relied of secondary sources but nonetheless they worth seeing. I hope there will be photos on this blog to show you my favourite. The local newspaper (hard copy) did a feature on the carvings but the editor suggested to readers that the fact the rock face had eroded, degrading the cliff face , suggested some forethought for the land owners above the cliff who needed consideration. The newspaper editor suggested that art groups could be formed, to use less fragile surfaces rather than jepodizing the rock face. I noted that this gentle voice to coax public conscience tried to play a hand rather than feeling defeated.

The most engaging and interesting recent project for me was the Icelandic Embroidery workshop right here in Metchosin . This was an excellent piece of public enrichment on the part of the people of Iceland in that the workshops were open to everyone , very well and professionally presented and all aspects were covered , including free and authentic materials. Metchosin was one place of several planned on a world tour, bringing attention to Iceland and its rich culture.. Right here on this corner of the world i got this world experience .

The workshop included an exhibition of a sample length of tapestry; this remarkable piece of embroidery is a short portion that is traveling the world and its exponents bring this project to our attention. Some years ago a small group of Icelandic women decided that Icelandic Sagas needed to be shared more widely . They took inspiration from the Bayeux Tapesty , that told the tale of the Vikings conquering England in 1066 , and used this as a template . Over the course of about 8 years anyone who chose to participate, sewed the story of Njalu Refill using the same embroidery stitch, and Icelandic plant- dyed wool to tell all 159 chapters of the tale.The tapestry is 90 metres long , illustrated by artist Kristin Ragna Gunnarsdottir.

During the workshop I learned about the complex and rigourous technique of this embroidery . Below are some images of the completed tapestry - needles to say , my meagre attempt do say that I tried but.........

small sections of the completed 90 metre work