Birthday Number and Animation: 11

 

Postcard from Edmonton: Public Art

 The weather was beautiful this weekend and once again, I wasn't going anywhere. I decided this would be a great time to visit some of Edmonton's public art. This was accomplished by bike and car (I travelled 100k essentially going to the edges of the city north and south). This is by no means a complete representation of the public art in Edmonton. 

1. The Magpies' Nests (Chai Duncan and Kevin Sehn) Rossdale Linear park

 

2. Trio (Bella Totino-Busby and Verne Busby) Stony Plain Rd and 152 St

3. Agent Crystalline (Marc Fornes and Theverymany) EPS Northwest Campus 127 St, north of the Anthony Henday.  I was there at 8:00 a.m. and the  scultpure with the light of the rising sun was particularly stunning.

4. A View From A Train (Chris Doyle) Kingsway LRT Station 

5. Spring is Sprung, The Grass is Riz (I Wonder Where the Birdie Is?) (Erin Pankratz and Karen Klassen) Dermott park, 90 st and 83 Ave . This makes me think of Gaudi in Barcelona.

6. Wheatfield With Crows (Konstantin Dimopoulos) The Meadows Rec Centre 2704 - 17 St NW

7. Running Track (Inges Idee) Terwillegar Rec Centre 

8. Resonant Progression (Royden Mills) Terwillegar park. These are spread out in the big open space north of the parking lot and play very well in their context. 

9. New Life....New Beginnings (Richard Toszak) Hawrelak park, close to the entry gate, but tucked in a circle of trees. 

10. The Dancer (Bella Totino-Busby and Verne Busby) Yorath House, Buena Vista Park. I would like to come back in winter when the background will be less busy and the sculpture will stand out more. The shadow helps tell the story. 

11. Grove of Light (Laura Haddad and Tom Drugan) In front of the zoo.

12. Talus Dome (Ball-Nogues Studio) Quesnell Bridge and Fox Drive. A personal favourite.

Looking inside:

Not bad for a day's work. 

A Year of Weather

 Last August I set out to record daily temperatures in 5 places in the world. I set up a chart with a colour for each 4-5 degree range. I used a weather app on my iPad; the temperatures are predictive, not actual. I did not account for rainfall or humidity. My aim was to mark time through temperature in a visible way, and to connect with friends in those far flung places by having a small insight into their daily experience. 

 Initially I thought -35 to + 35 should cover all possibilities. 

We had a particularly cold winter so I added -36 and colder. 

Then as spring and summer came in Calcutta, I realized that I needed another distinction for +35 to 39, followed a few weeks later by another category for +40. 

The numbers to the left of the colour blocks refer to pencil colour. 

Here are the charts in 4 month sections:

September 2020 - December 2020

January 2021 - April 2021

The red marker indicates our spring snow storm. 

May 2021 -  August 2021

The marker indicates a day when temperatures were in the same ranges in 3 places. This happened a handful of times through the year. There were a few more with same ranges in 2 places. 

This is the whole year:

This was never intended to be a scientific survey, so my conclusions will not necessarily stand up to scrutiny. I do, however, have a few impressions to share. 

1. I was surprised to have to add additional colours at both ends of the scale. Having now experienced +39 in the western North American heat dome, I do not feel that I am at all suited to being in Calcutta in July. 

2. The Canadian prairies, including 2 of my charted locations, presented the widest range of temperatures over the course of a year. A more typical range is 60 degrees (from -30 to +30) but this year it was 80 degrees (-40 to +40)

Dressed to go out in -35 or there abouts.

3. Curitiba, Brazil wins the award for variability especially in the swing seasons of spring and fall. 

4. Calcutta, India wins the award for stability. Do people there even talk about the weather?

5. Bern, Switzerland, while pretty mild through the winter, had a really cool and wet summer. It was forecast to reach 30 only 4 days, compared to 22 days in Edmonton. 

I have wrapped up this project, but I will continue to be interested in what is going on elsewhere and what the day feels like for my friends.  

Offerings

The grandchildren made many offerings to the færy. The best and shiniest are inside the door.

 

A New Development in the Neighbourhood

 

How I Did This

1. I found a box and made adjustments to make a roof. 

2. Then I made a vestibule from a flat piece of cardboard, incising the places where it needed to be folded. I taped everything together with packing tape.

3.  I took it outside to do some shaping to the back so that this little house will fit up against the tree. 

4. Then things got really fun. I could think of some materials that I would have liked to use to cover the house, but my operating rule is to use what I have on hand. This house was covered with camel hair. A little grand, for sure, but I only needed a small amount. A glue gun was involved. 

5. I had some sticks that I have used in outdoor arrangements in the winter. I broke them and  hot glued them to the roof areas. I may have burnt my fingers a few times. 

6. I hot glued some leaves on and stuck a few sticks here and there. 

7. I had made some tabs on the back of the house to give me something to attach the house to the tree. I covered the tabs with leaves. When installing, I could nail through the tab to the tree. It is reasonable secure and inconspicuous.

8. Once installed, I did a little landscaping. I think it is possible that a few more things might accrue over time.

Animation and Birthday Number: 63

 

(There are 21 threes)