Blog

Some artists are open to commission work. It can supplement their income in addition to their regular art practice. Usually they are approached to create art work that has a set of criteria attached, based on a client's needs and sensibilities.  As you can...

I think I first met Peggy Walt in the 1990's when she was the Director of Cultural Affairs for the Nova Scotia Arts Council. She also worked for the Atlantic Symphony Orchestra and the Atlantic Publishers' Marketing Assoc., eventually forming her own company, Cultural...

When Louise Cloutier retired from teaching at the local high school in Pugwash, she channelled her creative energy by establishing a centre for art workshops in the village. ArtQuarters was a welcome injection of art education for all ages for four years. Promotion on...

Even seasoned artists like Cathy Dalton can feel unsure, question themselves, lack confidence about their art work. I know. It's hard to believe when you see this prolific painter's output on Face Book (https://www.facebook.com/cathydalton123) and Instagram...

When Richard Dittami was a young man, writing was more of a survival mechanism. Living most of his life in Massachusetts and working in the construction trade, Richard considered himself a 'blue-collar poet'. He spoke of the minutiae of life, responding to injustice,...

After an absence from art making, being immersed in many other life obligations, filmmaker/photographer Catherine Bussiere admits she was wilting, maybe without even realizing it.  Being the creative person that she is, she knows how to channel the artistic urge...

While developing her work for the small group show, Start with a Line, in 2022, Pugwash artist Archan Knotz realized she had always denied that she had strong emotions. She had learned at a young age to bury her feelings to fit in. The message in her family was that...

The writing life means not always staying in the same lane. Jill MacLean has moved from romance novels, exquisite poetry and writing successful, award-winning contemporary novels for middle-grade and YA readers. And now, for that last few years she has challenged...

I asked my friend and fellow Pugwash Artist Collective member, Jenn Houghtaling, how she has managed to find time for art while juggling the many obligations and committee work involved with being a municipal councillor for the last three years, as well as a leader in...

I love using people as subject matter. Not so much as 'portraits', not so much to replicate them on a canvas, but just because I am inspired by the gesture or their way of looking at you or something about them. Attitude? Essence? And sometimes, the resulting art work...