Thanks so much to everyone who helped to make our 23rd Avenue day a great success! Honestly, I'm still recovering from all the hard work and fun that went into our day. I'm looking forward to writing about it, though, so watch this space. For now, please take a look at our newly-posted photo gallery. I hope to add a few more pictures here, too, at some point soon. See you on the avenue!
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I am so excited about this new painting on a 23rd Avenue front door. The design was the resident's choice. Living on 23rd Avenue has reminded me sometimes of living in residence at university: all the residents in their own rooms (or houses), but still pretty proximal, right across the hall (or street) from each other. Back in my residence hall, people put up pictures or messages on their front doors, which provided a hint as to who dwelt within. I remember what I put on my own door: a sonnet (!) written in Tolkien's Elvish, partly just because it looked cool, but also with the intent of conveying the message that there was an enigmatic, unfathomable person behind the door. Somebody mysterious and impossible to read. Well, that was before "The Lord of the Rings" became so mainstream... Elvish is probably a language option in junior high these days. Not so mysterious anymore. Anyway, the idea of putting a mask on a front door reminded me of that. I like it. Of course, the whole time I was painting this, all I could think of was Bob Dylan's "Man in the Long Black Coat": "He looked in... to her eyes When she stopped... him to ask If he wanted...to dance He had a face...like a mask." With all this artwalk stuff, I still haven't got that new album! Only a couple of days before the artwalk, and a few new artists have just signed up to take part! This is a bit of a whirlwind but so exciting. Take a look at our list of artists and artisans to find out a bit about photographer Rob Caleffi and Three Left Feet Movement Creations. A few more 23rd Avenue neighbours... who just happen to be creative artists too! And believe it or not, there are a couple more as well. Even I didn't know that there were so many artists on this short street, when this all began! Doesn't this make you wonder about what kind of cool stuff is going on behind the closed doors on your own street?
Check out this wonderful write-up of our upcoming event that was published today in Calgary is Awesome's "Calgary Arts Round Up" for the week of Sept. 17th- 23rd! Come out for the 23rd Avenue Artwalk It’s known as the Artists’ Avenue, 23rd Ave SE in Ramsay is only two blocks long but the 51 houses are homes to artists and craftspeople. On September 22, from 11am to 5pm, the community is opening its doors for the 23rd Avenue Artwalk and Street Celebration where the street will be transformed into an outdoor arts and crafts gallery. The printmakers, knitters, visual artists, bakers, glassblowers, filmmakers, dancers and musicians will host it all along their porches and front lawns. Many are decorated with original pieces of work, including custom painted front doors like the Piscasso-like one by Matthew Page-Hanify. Plus, the area is known for some of the most beautiful gardens in the city. They even got a grant from Calgary 2012 to make this happen but had so much volunteer and community support that they’re going to be awarding it down the line to a project that will benefit the street and the community at large. The walk will coincide with the Eastside studio crawl and the community hopes to incise participants to travel the extra block further to 23rd Avenue. -Amy Jo Espetveidt, Quadrophonic Image This interview is from a while back (August 13th) but I thought I'd put it up here as the event draws closer... At last, I've finally put together the event poster for our artwalk - a map of the street. I think there will probably be a few additions in the next two weeks, but this will do for now, to give everyone a general idea of who'll be there. And, it was fun to draw... This pop-up event is coming up soon: Saturday, September 22nd! The list of participants is growing so fast that I haven't even had a chance to finalize the street map. For now, here are some images of the work that you'll be able to see at the event. I'm getting kind of excited about this! For more information please take a look at the event website. Here's something else I should hasten to mention. Earlier this year I was fortunate enough to be involved in starting up a very cool project called "find it: Pop-Ups in Inglewood & Ramsay." This series of unexpected arts- & culture-based events has already gotten off to a rip-roaring start. And the next one is coming up soon, and it's right on my street! In fact, why I am working on this blog, when I should be getting that stuff organized? For more info about find it, take a look here (www.finditcalgary.ca). |
sam hesterI am a graphic recorder based in Calgary. I like local stories. I write comics when I have free time. And I leave eraser shavings everywhere I go. Looking for a
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Some nice things people said about my work:
“If Breitkreuz and Foong [founders of the Calgary Comics & Entertainment Expo] represent the Type-A side of Calgary's self-publishing community, Hester may be the community's right brain.” – Tom Babin, FFWD Magazine
“…A strong graphic style similar to other autobiographically-inclined Canadian cartoonists like Chester Brown and Julie Doucet.” – Gilbert Bouchard, Edmonton Journal
The 23rd Story: an indie comics creator's tales of life in Calgary