Gibraltar: Living Laboratory

Using Toronto Island as a living laboratory, students work in collaboration to produce site-specific artworks or design solutions. This interdisciplinary initiative embraces collaborative and community building methodologies within studio production.

Nick, our resident pie maker baked these beautiful pies as part of his FOOD project. The rhubarb came from his garden. 

Excerpt from Jay Crews’ lightning video. Shot from the studio in the portable on Sunday May 29th, Gibraltar Point.

For Lightning Safety Tips See: http://www.lightningsafety.com/nlsi_pls/lst.html

Michael Davey, sculptor, islander and professor from York University gave us a personal tour of his home and studio. Highlights included the story of Angus, Michael’s dog—a Carin terrier famous for his ball finding obsession. Michael and Angus have collaborated on several projects. Angus finds and retrieves the balls, then Michael assembles them into whimsical sculptures that underscore man’s relationship to leisure, sport and the unending detritus of shoreline plastic. 

Jenny Bull—an encyclopedia of information relating to flora, fauna and the island’s history took us on a lovely walk in the morning, Thursday May 26th. Her focus situated the island’s landscape in relation to its dynamic nature over space and time. As the fog cleared, the group returned for lunch, heads full with new vocabulary: Sea Rocket, Silver Weed, Cottonwood Poplar, Trembling Aspen, Lost Rivers, Switchgrass, Turkey Foot Grass (also known as Big Bluestern), Indian Grass, Wild Grapes, Everlasting Peas, White Pines, Horsetails, Sandbar Willow, Feather Moss, Fluff Fires, Tamarack Larch, Cracked Willow, Norway Maple, Dog Strangling Vine, Garlic Mustard and Hack Berry. Jenny co-authored the best seller “The ROM Field Guide to Wildflowers of Ontario”.   

Jenny Bull—an encyclopedia of information relating to flora, fauna and the island’s history took us on a lovely walk in the morning, Thursday May 26th. Her focus situated the island’s landscape in relation to its dynamic nature over space and time. As the fog cleared, the group returned for lunch, heads full with new vocabulary: Sea Rocket, Silver Weed, Cottonwood Poplar, Trembling Aspen, Lost Rivers, Switchgrass, Turkey Foot Grass (also known as Big Bluestern), Indian Grass, Wild Grapes, Everlasting Peas, White Pines, Horsetails, Sandbar Willow, Feather Moss, Fluff Fires, Tamarack Larch, Cracked Willow, Norway Maple, Dog Strangling Vine, Garlic Mustard and Hack Berry. Jenny co-authored the best seller “The ROM Field Guide to Wildflowers of Ontario”.   

Warren Hoselton— Certified Arborist and Supervisor of Toronto Island’s Parks, Forestry and Recreation took us on a guided bicycle tour. Here we are gathered around his favourite tree, the Eastern Cottonwood. Other tree sightings include: the European Popcorn Tree, the Tulip Tree, Black Walnut, the Tree of Heaven, the Kentucky Coffee Tree, Horse Chestnuts, the Tabletop Scotch Elm (a descendent from a singular mutant branch procured by the Earl of Camperdown’s head forester in Scotland, 1835), a stand of Secoya Trees, Linden Trees and a suite of Japanese Cherry Trees donated by the Japanese Consulate through the Sakura Project, as a symbol of friendship. The recently planted Cherry Trees will be inaugurated on June 11th as part of the annual Toronto Tree Festival. Photo collage by Lisa Binnie.

Warren Hoselton— Certified Arborist and Supervisor of Toronto Island’s Parks, Forestry and Recreation took us on a guided bicycle tour. Here we are gathered around his favourite tree, the Eastern Cottonwood. Other tree sightings include: the European Popcorn Tree, the Tulip Tree, Black Walnut, the Tree of Heaven, the Kentucky Coffee Tree, Horse Chestnuts, the Tabletop Scotch Elm (a descendent from a singular mutant branch procured by the Earl of Camperdown’s head forester in Scotland, 1835), a stand of Secoya Trees, Linden Trees and a suite of Japanese Cherry Trees donated by the Japanese Consulate through the Sakura Project, as a symbol of friendship. The recently planted Cherry Trees will be inaugurated on June 11th as part of the annual Toronto Tree Festival. Photo collage by Lisa Binnie.

Maxyne’s Suitcase Project

Non- Retinal Sketch   Bark Binder

 

Collect a series of like objects. Devise a system of organization.

woven horsetail structure

the process

soak the horsetails in water for an hour or 2

cut plastic bags into 1” strips. Not them together. Make a ball

stitch together with soft cotton yarn. Carefully.

Paint on a re-cycled substrate surface 

Paint the surface in  colours that reflect  plant life  that surround you.

Guache on Charcoal

detail

The Classic- Draw from Nature

Sticks and Stones  paper, thread and ink.

ferns and stones  paper, thread and ink

 

Make a present for a friend out of found objects. 

A safe place -bark stones and bird nest 

Sound Map

Collect and edit a short sound walk. 

11 minute sound walk inscribed on a fungus.

The most sorid of all Havens- document something that is often ignored.

Random human patterns

cigarette burns and chair leg markings in the common room.

Collect an item found in abundance. Scatter or drop the object onto a surface. Record your results.

thrown pebble linocut on rice paper

tumblrbot asked: WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE INANIMATE OBJECT?

candy, lighters, black objects, gloves, robots

All Aboard…