Happy Halloween!

I invite you to share your images of your jack-o-lanterns with me.  This isn't mine but one that a publisher posted on Facebook.  I haven't yet carved my pumpkin.  Have you?

Happy Halloween!

Tracking Hurricane Sandy with Accuweather

http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/feature?section=weather/maps&id=5777012

Fort McMurray's 1st Snowfall, late last week

Fort McMurray photos taken by my husband.

Our first real snowfall arrived last Thursday here in Edmonton:

Photo taken by my son.

To all on the east coast, I wish you safety during the landfall of Hurricane Sandy.  Take care!

Halloween Humour

Have you seen my igloo?

Laurence Decore Lookout

On our way home from the farmers' market, we stopped so I could take photos of this area near the North Saskatchewan River.  I am standing on the south side, looking north.   There are so many scenic areas in this city.  One just have to take the time and a camera to appreciate them.

Delicate, Do Not Touch

Delicate, do not touch! This wood carving was made from one piece of wood. It's value?  $4500.00!  Found at the Strathcona Farmers' Market.

Strathcona Farmers' Market

Today my husband and I attended the Farmers' Market in Old Strathcona.  We don't have the opportunity to do it often so it was a treat to get in out of the brisk biting wind of the day to see what we could see, and taste, and purchase.

There were several fruit and vegetable stands like the fruit stand photographed above and below.  Prices are more than the supermarket in a lot of cases.  You are buying local though, so there's a trade-off.  Most of the time the produce is grown without pesticides and no wax is applied to the fruit.

 Enormous pumpkins like this one that weighed in at 110 pounds were rare but there was an abundance of gourds, cabbages, and fresh produce around.

 I wish I'd caught the lady on camera to whom this booth belongs.  She was dressed in autumn garb just as colourful as the arrangements she made using pumpkins and small mums.  

The above photo is taken to remind me where I can find poppyseed loaf.  I love the stuff so my husband purchased four.  Two for ten dollars or six dollars for a single loaf.  That's cheaper than the last poppyseed loaf I bought at a farmers' market.  Take my word for it or don't and try it yourself, it is delicious!!

This booth above was full of beautiful wood carvings.  I didn't get a close-up to do the one item justice but if you look close you will see a sphere like object with leaves carved into it.  It is very delicate and the artist informed us it was carved from one piece of wood.  This painstaking labour affords the cost of $4500!  Too rich for me but it is a beautiful marvel!

I couldn't tell if she was photographing herself or someone else!  We left shortly before the costume parade wherein the proprietors who had dressed up would parade their costumes around the entire market.  Perhaps we should have stayed longer.

 This enormous buffalo hide (or was it bison?) was on sale for $2000  What would you do with one?

 A few buskers put in performances near the entrance/exit areas.  These guys drew a crowd!

 Two women sat here spinning wool.  Due to the crowds, I could catch only one of them.  

Spinning, not a lost art after all.

 A welcome to patrons of the market!

The market is held Saturdays at the  next door to the old Walterdale Theatre just north of Whyte Avenue in Edmonton.  The building is clearly marked Old Strathcona Farmers' Market.  If you are in the area be sure to check it out.  I noticed the majority of the shoppers brought their own bags. One could likely tell we weren't regulars, as we didn't even think to bring bags with us.

I have enjoyed a few slices now of the poppyseed bread while preparing this post.  Yum!  

Have a wonderful weekend all!

Just a side note:  The haunted house/ghost tours which run temporarily this time of year meet at the stature of the fireman rescuing a young girl just outside the Walterdale Theatre which was once a firehall.

Gardens in Art

Yesterday and the day before I posted some photos of the autumn splendour in central/northern Alberta as taken during a walk near the downtown core in Edmonton.  In pursuit of galleries partaking in the annual Gallery Walk, we discovered many glorious examples of the brilliance that dots the landscape this time of year.

Today, I thought I'd share some photos of some of the art gracing the walls of a few of the galleries we visited.  Some of the landscapes were breathtaking, some were muted and relaxing, and some mesmerizing.  Won't you come along for the tour?

 "The Atlantic Coastline" by Gail Seeman was actually spotted in a showing in St. Albert earlier in the afternoon Saturday.  I do love an ocean view!

Saeed Hojatti's work caught my eye the first time I saw it in a small booth at the Taste of Edmonton earlier this summer.  I love the vibrancy of it!  It just draws me in.  Critics may say it is too colourful, lacking a place for the eye to rest, but I love it just the same.  Perhaps not pieces conducive to a bedroom but in an entrance or hallway where they will be viewed in passing?  As Kim would say, if you love the piece you find a place for it, not the other way around.  

This last piece of Saeed's is titled Take My Breath Away for good reason!

In another gallery I was drawn to this painting by J Lucas of a lone wolf howling atop a hill with the aurora borealis dancing overhead!  Done in shades of green and black, this panoramic piece would be welcome anywhere.

Artist:  Colin Smith.  As we ascended the stairs to the second floor of the Peter Robinson Gallery, this piece, above, was hung just above the top landing, giving the illusion of having climbed a path to the mountains.  It couldn't have been better placed!  In this piece and the following three works of art, Colin Smith overlays two pieces, one inverted upon the other, creating this remarkable effect of a reflection within solid objects.  They are mesmerizing and I know my stepfather will enjoy the second one here with the inverted grain elevator!

I didn't catch the artist's name on this painting but wanted to share it just the same.  There's an element here that draws me in.  I'm not sure if it's the city life, the trees in autumn dress, or the people on the streets, or maybe all of the above.  At any rate, I hope you enjoy it too!

 My apologies for not having the artist's names for these pieces.  They are so beautiful, aren't they?

 The above three pieces created a feeling of calm for me.  Painted in serene shades of ocean green and muted tones of beige, they would be perfect for my master bedroom!

I do seem to be drawn to oranges and blues, as Kim pointed out to me yesterday.  Perhaps it's the season?  The skies seem to be so much more blue and the trees are arrayed in shades of orange, red and yellow.  Could that be the influence in what draws my attention in several of these landscapes?  I don't know, but it is entirely possible.  Don't you like to mimic indoors, what you find so exquisitely beautiful outdoors?  I do.