GREAT SUBWAY & STREETCAR MUSEUMS.....

Hey everyone!
This post is for my train nerds.......I KNOW you are out there!
I wanna recall 2 trips to TWO different museums......in the order I saw them.....
FIRST.....
The New York Transit Museum 
YOU MUST GO HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I loved it, it was informative, and honestly, we spent like 3 hours looking at stuff!
A very enjoyable museum!
(Great for kids too -- he says speaking as a childless adult! :-)
I dont't wanna ruin it for you......so here are a small selection of photos I took......

Yup....it is in an old Subway stop!
HOW AWESOME IS THAT?

There are lots of great artifacts to look at!
This one would look great in my house.....but didn't fit in my suitcase!

CAN YOU GO WRONG WITH MODELS??
CAN YOU???????

There was a whole wing devoted to HOW THE H**L DID THEY DO THAT.....
(burrowing under the city and laying tracks!)
It was a lot of information - but I LOVED it!

Look at how fun this is!

This super gay ticket agent/hand model was there!

THE BEST PART - GOING DOWN TO THE ACTUAL TRACK LEVEL!!
O
M
G!!!

On the platform (lower) level, two fully powered operational subway tracks contain many historic examples of New York City Subway and Elevated railway equipment as a permanent display. Preserved subway cars, most of which can still be run, date as far back as the predecessor companies that came before the New York City Transit Authority! (That means at least one is 100 years old!!!)

Look - leather straps!
STUNNING!

I took 100's of photos......of the art deco styled -1960's styled cars.....
I WANT TO SHOW YOU......but I won't!
YOU GOTTA GO!

COME ON!!!!!!

Many of the old subway cars have fans!!!!
Imagine how this would go wrong with today's subway travellers?
(because people are stupid.... ;-)

Beep beep! HEY! Toot toot!

Even the many examples of the turnstiles was VERY NEAT!

From a design point - there is a TONNE of stuff that is eye candy!
Here is how to get there:

http://web.mta.info/mta/museum/
Oh.....they also have a FANTASTIC gift shop......where I bought these:

ADORBS!

GO THERE!!!!
If you can't make it to Brooklyn this year, maybe you can make it to The Halton County Radial Railway Museum - Yes......it is a mouthful......but it is also pretty cool!

The Halton County Radial Railway and the OERHA was formed in 1954 by a group of men who wanted to save Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) streetcar 1326 from being sent to the scrap yard. After the donation of this streetcar, the dream grew. Land that used to be a part of the Toronto Suburban Railway in Nassagaweya Township was acquired, and subsequently, a number of other street and radial cars were eventually rescued. The museum's grand opening to the public took place in 1972.

Since the beginning, the vision of the HCRR was to inform, educate and inspire the public about the electric railway history of Ontario and Canada. Today, the museum displays and operates a variety of historic streetcars, radial cars and work cars, and maintains a collection of photographs, memorabilia and archival materials. The oldest rail car in the collection dates from the late 1800s.

We took a trip there a month ago. 

It was FUN! 

Truthfully, it did NOT have the breadth of stuff that the MTA Transit Museum had.....

But, it is also NOT run by the city or the TTC.....so they survive on grants and admissions to grow!

YOU SHOULD DONATE TO THEM!

What they DID have was an opportunity to ride in style in an old streetcar!!!!

You sure can't do THAT in Brooklyn! ;-)

I took photos.....I will share some.....not all......I took a LOT (again)....

FIRST.....CHECK OUT MY INSTAGRAM FOR SOME GOOD SHOTS....

(I am not gonna show you those here! So there ;-)

Cool old train station!

The train barn was FULL!!!!!

Remember this guy??
(I LOVE IT!)

A few photos....

NIIIICE!

Some really nice touches!!

Riding the rails!!!!!!

These two nerds are on this: 

...yup.....a beautifully restored 1921 Peter Witt streetcar!!

A NICE DAY TRIP!!!!
There were also lots of buses and such too!!!
You need to make a trip out of the city:

HERE ARE THE DIRECTIONS:

So there you go guys!

Two "train themed" trips for you and your nerdy loved ones!

I hope you enjoyed hearing about my little trip - and I hope you consider seeing these museums!!

Later gaters!

THE GOLDEN HORSESHOE: A NEW PAINTING!

GOOD WEDNESDAY TO YOU!
So, I posted an image of this painting on Facebook a week or so ago....and got a LOT of feedback.....
The funny thing is, the painting wasn't finished!!! So let's hope you guys love it MORE now.....
Okay so, this is from my "Sign of the Times" series, that seems to be doing quite well.
This time I focussed on "The Golden Horseshoe" Ontario......

As you can see, it is generally Niagara - Toronto.

So I wanted to create a piece all about the sights and landmarks you find in that area!

I chose the following landmarks.....

1. Toronto: the CN Tower and a TTC Streetcar.

2. Mississauga: the Marilyn Monroe Towers

3. Burlington: Lift Bridge

4. The GO train

5. Oakville: the downtown Oakville Clock

6. Hamilton: Dundern Castle

7. Grapes (or fruit)

8. The QEW outside St. Catharines

9. The many beaches of Lake ontario from Kew to Fifty Point, from Lakeside and Jones Beach to 

    Grimsby and Bronte Beach!!!

10. "ER" lampposts on Bronte Creek Bridge, 16 Mile Creek Bridge and more along QEW 

     to St. Catharines

11. Niagara Falls: Horseshoe Falls

12. Maid of the Mist

I also decided to do this painting on PAPER....which was a first for me.......and I am excited about how it worked out!!

Okay enough chit chat.....here is the progression of the piece:

Get paper ready - draw out composition and start in with first colour....

Adding more of colour #1 - a teal like blue

Adding in some dark and light Greens

Adding in the dark blue colour, and the 2 greys...

 THEN I FORGOT TO TAKE PHOTOS....
You missed me adding in a beige and an orangey red.....

Drybrushing in some white to break up the areas a bit

Finally adding little washes ad a sepia coat....

I GIVE YOU THE FINAL PIECE:

"The Golden Horseshoe", 36" x 24", Acrylic on Paper

I am happy with the final look!

YES! Prints are already at the printer!

Wanna pre-order one? JUST EMAIL ME!

I will have these beauties available this weekend at S.P.O.T. - The Summer Pop-up Of Toronto!

Don't know what that show is???

CHECK OUT ALL THE INFORMATION HERE!!!

See you Thurs-Sunday at Scadding Court Community Centre - at Bathurst and Dundas!!!!

WW193: STAR WARS BUDDAHS, INSIDE OUT, and daylight savings....

Guess what...I am away on vacation......but I still wanna share 5 things I love this week!
Welcome to Wonderful Wednesday!

1.) Okay nerds...check out this....you need one of these guys for your garden.....or your desk.......or wherever! Thanks to artist Chris Milnes. (Check out his Easy page here) you can enjoy your favourite 2"-6" Star Wars characters; Yoda, Chewbacca, Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine, Boba Fett, etc....Each one is  depicted as a big fat Buddha, seated cross-legged with big round bellies:

ADORBS!!

 

Go get one on his store!!!

Here is that link again!

(via If it's hip it's here!)

2.) Of all the things that I really need in The Spacing Store, (and there is SOOOOOOO much there that is spectacular) I really NEED this butter dish:

NEEED!!! THANKS A LOT SPACING STORE!

Go out and see them....for all your big city needs!
401 Richmond St., Toronto

3.) Inside Out. THIS Pixar movie looks great.......

(Or use this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HFv47QHWJU )

4.) NOM NOM NOM. Try this recipe......or better yet...make it....and then invite ME for dinner:

 Yes...it got it off Pinterest........

But go to http://simply-delicious-food.com/2013/07/16/baked-gnocchi-with-bacon-tomato-and-mozzarella/ to get the recipe!!!
NOM NOM NOM!

5.) FINALLY.......I think my body has probably adjusted to Daylight Savings time.......Thanks to Last week tonight with John Oliver for this stunning exposé:

(go here is this video doesn't show)

...MORE TTC STREETCAR MERCH!!!!

Hey guys!
Here we have them....NEW PRINTS!!!
I am about to update my website, and update my Easy account.......but I wanted you to get a preview of these beauties:

To read about the original painting "King of the Road" please read THIS POST!!!
Just like all my other paintings, the original is ONE OF A KIND.
These prints are crazy affordable BECAUSE these are prints (or giclèes - if you are fancy person)
But they are a limited edition....so they will eventually be GONE! ;-)

A Giclèe is a sophisticated inkjet method of printing on acid free watercolor paper. 

They are produced for me by a professional Giclèe Printer on an Epson printer with K3 pigment inks.

You can buy a 16" x 20" for  $75.00 

or 8" x 10" for only $35.00

If you wanna be the very first to own one of these - just email me....
These pieces will also be available at The Spacing Store, starting NEXT week!!

OKAY! Have a great weekend y'all!!!

TORONTO STREETCARS - "KING OF THE ROAD"!

Good Wednesday!
But NOT a "Wonderful Wednesday".
Sorry!
If you are a regular reader you will have noticed a lack of #WonderfulWednesday posts since I have been back. The truth is, it is super time consuming creating a post about 5 things that are interesting enough to me to promote and blog about (those posts take me about 4 hours to craft)!
I am still playing catch-up from being away for 3 months.
So you will have to wait for another 2 weeks for #WW to return! :-(
So to apologize......I give you this piece:

"King of the Road", 40" x 30", Acrylic on canvas

BLAM!
So this piece is just me playing with theme of repetition.
For you streetcar nerds.....you'll notice it is mostly the Canadian Light Rail Vehicle (CLRV) -- The one us non-streetcar-nerds probably know the best - and see the most often! There is also a Presidents' Conference Committee Car (the retro one) that is my fave! But there is also a Bombardier Transportation Flexity Outlook (the brand new vehicles rolling out over the next few years).
I had troubles deciding what quote to use. Eventually I decided on "KING OF THE ROAD".
Although, I was almost gonna use "HATERS GONNA HATE".....

So this piece will be exhibited for the very first time starting TOMORROW at The Artist Project:

READ MORE ABOUT The Artist Project....read more about that big show HERE!
Also this "King of the Road" will be available (in 2 weeks) as a giclèe.
It will be available as a 16" x 20" print and a 8" x 10" print.
It will also eventually be available as a postcard.
STAY TUNED FOR THAT ANNOUNCEMENT!

STREETCAR GICLEE, UPSIZED -- and a new painting too!

HAPPY MONDAY!
So, you know me. You know my mission with my fine art career has always been to create work that makes people happy - that says something about the world  - and that catalogues the imagery of the world we live in. I have been really fortunate that my work has been so well received, and that my fine art (after 10 years) is in a lot of great collections. It has increased in value - which makes some of the work a little cost prohibitive for everyone.
Now. Let's get to the other part of my career. Since this is my full time gig - and I can't rely on another income (like teaching or lawyering or whatever) to help me pay my bills, I decided to make a few 'products' that help supplement my original art income. Truthfully, I struggled with it for 8 years. But then I realized that EVERYONE should be able to have something of mine in their house…
(If they want it/cannot afford it!)
I started my giclèes as an answer to that.
So here is my advise, dear friends…...
STOP BUYING YOUR ART AT IKEA and HOMESENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Honestly, you will be happier if you have things around you that support local talents, and the feed your soul - not just the deep pockets of a greedy corporation!

Ok….so as my further commitment to produce affordable art, I am NOW doing a couple of LARGER giclèe prints, stretched on canvas!

First I did this robot:

"Outta this World"

This guy can be a 30" x 40"! (BIG) I then paint on top of it….and stretch it on a frame….

It is $500.00 (which is basically less than a 1/4 of the original retail price!)

But NOW  I want you to see the newest large scale giclèe……..

I made this giclee on canvas for a client, and I LOVE IT!

The "Evolution of the Streetcar" giclèe is 36" x 48" (WHICH IS ENORMOUS!!!!!)
and it is only $600! (which is less than 1/4 of the price of the original!)

WHY BUY IT?
1. It is HUGE - so it has real presence in a space!
2. It looks GREAT! I am a very 'particular' person - so it's gotta look good to have my signature!!
3. There is a VERY limited run - only 5-10 of these - depending on the response I get!
4. It is still original - let's face it, it is not like ANYTHING you will see at a major retailer! or at a
    friends house!
5. You are gonna love it!!!!! I PROMISE!

So, if you are interested in this big boy.
Just email me…. and I will order one for you.

But if you want art that there will ONLY be one of…..
I just finished this little 12" x 12" for the Ottawa Art Expo:

"My Way or the Highway", 12"x12", Acrylic on Canvas, $275.00

So….what do you think of that one??

I would also be happy to sell it to you TODAY!

;-)

I have more new work to show……so keep tuned in!

(and remember you can subscribe to this blog so that it comes to your inbox - in the column to the right at the top of the page!)

Ok….that's it!!!

Have a great week y'all!!