Mixed Media - Article in the Banff Crag & Canyon

A Fine Catch

By Jenny Shea & Tiffany Teske

Mixed Media

12 x 9"

$125

I would like to thank Camara Miller for the awesome article that follows...

Mixed Media

By Camara Miller

As local artist Tiffany Teske walks around her newly opened collaborative show at the Banff Public Library, she contemplates aloud about the possibility of wax and photo transfers on metals — techniques she has never tried before.

Jenny Shea & Tiffany Teske: a Mixed Media Collaboration opened at the library on Friday and once the pieces were on the wall, Teske and copper-artist Jenny Shea were already inspired to work together again.
“(Jenny and I) are really just scratching the surface,” Teske said.

The two met a couple of years ago and immediately decided to collaborate.

“I’m drawn to metal,” Teske said, describing the inspiration that comes from working with another artist in unfamiliar territory, and in this case, developing a curiosity about working with metal.

Although the show has many solo pieces, the collaborative works had each artist making the background for a few compositions, then swapping to add onto the backdrop. Teske, specializing in photography, would then switch canvases with Shea who was creating a copper-work foundation. The pieces might have made another trip back to the original artist before each was complete.

For Shea, the process was a new experience.

“It was fun because I would see a story in one of Tiffany’s photographs and try to finish the story in my own way,” Shea said.

Teske emphasized that it really came down to trust. Both admit it wasn’t ideal to work in separate workspaces, but was the best way to work since both have young families.

While no initial themes were discussed, the show exhibits nature with a modern take on the classic subject. However, another theme that stands out is one of community. The library is an accessible venue and Shea commented that the opening last Friday led to some fantastic conversations about the works.

“Everyone will see something different in the pieces,” Shea said

The feeling must come naturally when you think about how the images were made. While the workspace arrangements may not have felt ideal, it developed some interesting art under the circumstances. One would begin the story, the other would interpret the beginnings and it would be passed back and forth. Instead of one uniform intention behind the show, it was a collage compiled by moods if the artist or stories from their own life.

Check out the exhibit at the Banff Public Library until Feb. 29.

Three Artists on a Day Trip - High River & Nanton, Alberta - Part One

Last Sunday, my wonderful hubby stayed home with our kiddos while I went on a highly anticipated day trip with my dear friend, Dea Fischer, and her amazing daughter, Millie Rose. None of us are morning people, so it is nice that nothing was open at our final destination until noon. We rolled out of Canmore in Dea's jeep, our first stop: High River...

When you get three artists into a car, with nothing to do but look at the scenery and chat, of course we talk about art. Actually, I think we talk about art everywhere... anyway, it was a real treat to get to talk with Dea about our separate and joint ventures. We both always have something on the go, and it is nice to hear about what the other is up to. We just completed joint and single submissions to the 2012 CREATE in California and are working on a book proposal...

After about 2 hours, maybe it was less, we arrived in the beautiful little town of High River. The gorgeous little houses struck me right away. I live in a completely over priced condo/town house in Banff. I get house envy when I go to small towns like this because I know I could have a huge house with a huge yard and garden if I lived anywhere other than Banff. But, of course, not many people have the privilege I do, being able to actually live in a National Park, so I accept and love our little abode in the heart of the Canadian Rockies. But, the artist in me dreams of a more picturesque home, instead of a cookie cutter one... oh well.

Our mission in High River was to visit our friend, artist and owner of Art and Soul Gallery, Annie Froese. I met her while giving artist demonstrations at Canmore's ArtsPeak Arts Festival earlier this year. She and her friend, Larissa Mclean, were sharing a studio in the same area I was, as part of The Edge Gallery's, leg of the art tour. They are both colourful, beautiful women, who make colourful, beautiful art. We traded work and contact info and promised to see each other again. I bumped into Larissa at the Canmore Mountain Market a couple of weeks ago, by surprise. I am glad I did because she was not able to be there to meet us. Annie, invited us to come to her gallery for a little show and tell of our work.

As we were looking for Art & Soul, Dea noticed some beautiful geraniums along the sidewalk, and exclaimed, "That must be it!". She was right. Both Annie & Larissa are synonymous with flowers, in my mind. We parked the car and headed to the back of the gallery where Annie's garden and her studio is. Both are so lovely!!

We spent a couple of hours enjoying the gardens, exploring the gallery, drooling over Annie's studio space, eating lemon meringue pie, photographing one another, show and telling our latest work, and making plans for future visits. Dea & I would love to teach classes at Annie's one weekend, and to play with Annie in art making as well.

Here are some photos of the fun we had... you will notice a couple of photos of ladybugs. They were everywhere and an element of the trip that I will always remember...

Part Two will continue our fun with photos and tales from Nanton...

It's That Time AGAIN... Time for Thing-A-Day!!!

That's right everyone! I am signing up for my THIRD year of Thing-A-Day, a month-long creative extravaganza that takes place every February. I was first alerted to TAD by my friend, Robyn, of Inspiration Junkie. I have been thanking her ever since! I have met many other creative people through TAD, and it helps me to focus on being creative and documenting it daily for a whole month. It may sound like a huge undertaking, but you are really just supposed to spend about 20 minutes a day doing something creative for TAD. So, you can work on a piece of art for that time, then document it, then do it again the next day, on and on, until it is done. Or you can create something for your dinner and document that. There are not really any rules or anyone who can hold you to creating each day, other than yourself. Don't be shy, don't be scared (I have two small children and I am not afraid...) just jump right in! And let me know how it goes... See you around the Posterous site where I can read about all of your creations and adventures!

Environmental Art I created for the 2010 Thing-A-Day

If you would like to see what I did each day in previous years, just go into my blog archive for February 2009 and 2010...

February 17th - FINALLY Finished My Bird Nests

I started making these a LONG time ago. They started as a papier mache bowl project with my three year old. Then we painted them. Then I made the felt eggs. Then I put it all together. All in all about 6 months. Yippee! One set of UFOs (Unfinished Objects) checked off the list... Aren't they pretty? I will share a tutorial on this someday...

BOLD (Birth on Labor Day) Event in Atlanta

I was approached by Anna Laura of the Etsy shop Liberation, about submitting the above Polaroid transfer to an art event in Atlanta. When I found out it was a BOLD (Birth on Labor Day) event, I said yes right away. BOLD is an organization that was founded by Karen Brody, a playwright, who allowed her critically acclaimed play, BIRTH, to be performed for four days over American Labor Day across the world for free. She did this because she wanted to raise awareness about maternity care and to allow organizations that wanted to make maternity care more mother-friendly to raise money. In the end, $10,000 was raised at over 40 performances. This caused Brody to create BOLD so that there could be more events where women could talk about the kinds of births that wanted or have had and to raise even more awareness.


BOLD events happen in one of two ways. There are performances of the play Birth, which can be anything from a full on play to a simple reading where the actors are sitting at a table reading directly from a script (in this case they are often not professional actors). I love the idea of the latter, and know exactly whom I would ask to read should I ever have the time and energy to stage a reading. Birth was written by Brody after she interviewed over one hundred women in America who gave birth between 2000 and 2004. The play tells the true stories of how eight educated, low risk women gave birth.


The other way to raise money and awareness through a Bold event is called a Red Tent Event. This brings women in a community together in a red tent to tell their birth stories. These stories are recorded via film, the written word, or visually. The stories go into the BOLD Library of Birth Truths.


I sent ten of my Polaroid transfers to Anna Laura, to be showcased at the BOLD Atlanta event. I also donated a piece to the silent auction. I was pleased to see about 25 artists are taking part in this event. For more info on the art show you can click here. All proceeds of the silent auction go to benefit Georgia Friends of Midwives.


I have not seen or read Birth but I plan to. I have a passion for birth related topics, especially those that explore the options available and educate low risk women about alternatives to a medicalized birth. I had my first child under the care of a midwife in Quebec. I had a natural birth in a birthing centre and it was a wonderful experience for myself, my husband, and my child.


My second daughter was born at home in Banff, Alberta. It was an AMAZING experience. Although we had planned a home birth and I was under the care of a midwife, my husband caught our daughter in our bathtub, as our three year old looked on, because my entire labor was less than one hour and our midwife was not able to get there in time. Everything was calm and just as we had wanted and our midwives arrived ten minutes later to care for us. While I know I am among only 1% of Alberta women who have given birth at home I do feel that everyone has a right to know their options and to decide what works for them. I am not against medical birth, it was just not what was right for me and my family.

To see this full image, which includes nudity, click here.

If you are in Altanta any time during September 18th - 19th and would like to attend the BOLD event there is a schedule located here. Best wishes for a massive turn out and for many funds to be raised.


All images by Tiffany Teske

The Sculpture of Bruno Torfs

My friend, Maureen, sent me a slide show today. It shows the truly impressive art of Bruno Torfs, a painter and sculpture, who created the more than 300 works of art in Bruno's Art and Sculpture Garden. Sadly, it is located North East of Melbourne, Australia, and during the recent fires it was destroyed. I can't figure out how to get the slide show onto Blogger, so I have included a few images of Bruno's beautiful work here. You can go to The Garden's official website to find out more about this amazing man, as well as how to help them rebuild this wonderful place.


Andre and I spend 8 weeks in Australia in 2002, many of those weeks near Melbourne. I wish that someone would have told me about this truly unique sculpture garden. I often visit and photograph botanical gardens, sculpture gardens, and arboretums when I travel. This would surely have been one of the highlights of our trip... so sad...