Jackie Rae Wloski -- Members' Day Lecture

The traditional Members' Day talk is, unsurprisingly, given by one of our artist members, and this year Jackie Rae Wloski spoke to us about her work and the ideas and processes behind her finished pieces. Jackie works in a wide range of mediums, improvising, experimenting, and using whatever techniques make the piece work. Many subjects are revisited, creating a theme and variations over the years. She showed us a great number of slides, covering highlights from a career that has included not just personal art work, but also design assignments with Import Bazaar and Pratt and Whitney. Here are a few pictures from the talk.

Jackie Rae Wloski

One of Jackie's "red prints"

Ink left on the printing roller and passed over Jackie's

palms gave rise to this series of prints

A printing plate, cut up and ready to serve in new role

Vermeer had his camera obscura. Here is Jackie with her

projector, one of the tools of her trade

Paintings from Jackie's series of Decarie Blvd.

Leaf print, variations

Louise de Tonnancour signing people up for the

Cultural Outing to the Montreal Opera

New members' luncheon at the McCord Museum

Last Tuesday was the new members' luncheon in the atrium of the McCord Museum, our annual getting to know you get-together. Each new member had a chance to tell us a bit about her/himself and I have to say you couldn't ask for a more interesting, active and talented group of people. Here are some photos...I confess that with so many new names, few of them are yet attached to faces but I look forward to getting to know you all during the year and don't hesitate to jog my memory!

Shirley Cohen, the Hospitality Chairman, welcoming the new members

Our new members (first table)

More new members

Lily Azerad-Goldman who organizes the music programs

Show at the Mile End Gallery

Annette Wolfstein-Joseph and Sandy Baylin, two of our artist members, have a terrific show up at the Mile End Gallery. Since this is right in my neighborhood I stopped by on Tuesday night and thoroughly enjoyed the works presented by the three artists who share a passion for the outdoors. The third artist, Richard Redwood, is an accomplished watercolorist (and perhaps soon to be member of WASM...). Sandy works in acrylics on canvas, and Annette is a printmaker.

The Mile End Gallery is located at 5345 Park Avenue, just south of St. Viateur street.

Richard Redwood, Sandy Baylin and Annette Wolfstein-Joseph

Prints by Annette Wolfstein-Joseph

Sandy Baylin's Overlooking the Lake

Richard Redwood's Peggy's Cove

Claire Holden Rothman's literary talk

Claire Holden Rothman, Montreal author of The Heart Specialist, gave last Tuesday's lecture, leading us through the different stages of her research for this riveting historic novel, based loosely upon the life of Dr. Maude Abbot, one of the first women to practice medicine in Canada. Lots of Montreal history, even more feminist history as we heard about Rothman's discoveries during her research at McGill. But the lecture also gave us a glimpse into the process of transforming facts, research, the details of everyday Victorian life into fiction. Here Ms. Rothman was generous, showing us numerous "before" and "after" views into her work. Members who have already read her novel were delighted, those who have yet to open its pages were defintely inspired to walk down the street to the nearest bookstore!

Claire Holden Rothman and Dr.Hans Möller who

organised the lecture

Dr. Möller introducing the speaker


President Leslie Cohen thanking Ms Rothman for her interesting talk
Hidden behind the camera is WASM archivist Shirley Cohen at work
...and the photograph that will go into the archive

Claire Holden Rothman speaking to members after the lecture

Exhibit: Loto-Quebec Collection -- 30 ans

Last week I visited the exhibit up in Loto-Quebec's exhibition space (perhaps some of you noticed the article last weekend in the Gazette). The exhibit celebrates 30 years of collecting by Loto-Quebec,one of the largest corporate art collections in the province, and is divided into sections, each panel curated by an invited luminary from the Quebec cultural scene. This is a large show, full of wonderful works by many of the Quebec artists you are familiar with.
Loto-Quebec's gallery is located just two blocks east of the McCord Museum, where we have our lectures, but most unfortunately it is not open on Tuesdays, so you would have to make a special trip down to visit the exhibition. Good news is that it is open on both Saturday and Sunday. Here is info for location and times (and, of course, some photos from the show):

Loto-Quebec
Espace Création
500, rue Sherbrooke West

Wednesday 11am - 8pm
Thurs. Friday 11am - 6 pm
Sat. Sunday 12 - 5 pm

Metro McGill
Entrée libre

Kent Nagano's selection from the collection

A porcelain jar by Mahmoud Baghaeian

Sculpture by Akiko Sasaki

Visit to McGill's Schulich School of Music

Louise de Tonnancour sent in these photos from the cultural outing last Thursday to the Schulich School of Music. Thanks also to Louise for providing information for all the photos.

The new building on Sherbrooke StreetA beautiful granite sculpture adorns the entrance

to the new building
Margareth Folkimer and Thomas Pryce welcoming us in Pollack Hall

Architectural detail inside the Schulich School of Music

At the door of Tanna Schulich Concert Hall

Inside the hall

Thomas and Margareth explaining the amazing recording

studio--a box within a box

(I like this caption that Louise provided)

"Who is this gentleman ? No, not the one on the floor.

We know it's Mac Pendleton one of our members looking on.

But who can the bust of the famous musician be? Nobody could tell us."

When we entered the Schulich School we saw the golden violin displayed.

Music students at work in the very bright library.

"Oh! to be young again and enjoy the student life...

this is what many of us thought."

A moment in the library to enjoy the view.

Visiting a practice room.

Prof. Don McLean, dean of the school, with WASM members Carole Thom and Adaire Schlatter.

Bicycles everywhere!