Monica Gennaro

Introducing another of our new Tour members..........

Monica Gennaro. Monica is a goldsmith working in gold and silver. 

She shares with us this story of a few days ago. 

Today it was wire pulling and twisting day. I had to reduce the wire from 2.00 mm to 1.5 and 1.00 mm thickness. I do it with a draw plate and draw thongs. 

This morning I did not pay attention for a second, and by grabbing the end of wire to short, it rock and I fell back on the floor. 

Considering that it was thick wire, I had to pull with lots of strength, wire had broken and with full force smacked myself to the floor. It did hurt a lot.

A picture of the draw plate and the draw thong

Monica is Studio 5 on this years Tour. Also this location has the pottery of Marie Szente-Bodon. 

A must see on this years Tour!

Ann Rosa

Our new member Ann Rosa shares her work with us.  

During a recent trip to the Yukon, Ann had the feeling the unspoiled wilderness was home to magical mermaids. This is the beginning of a mermaid wall sculpture. When completed it will measure 40" x 20" which  is why Ann is working in stages. It may even be complete by the tour!

This Aboriginal Chief is an example of many of Ann's works; it was created and sculpted in stages and took the better part of a year to complete. Inspiration for her art comes from dreams, therefore she feels the need to literally build from the dream and make it into a tangible form.  

Ann's creation of wall sculptures derived from a desire to create sculpture that can be displayed easily. Ann also paint in acrylic, watercolour and encaustic; each mediums yields a very different result.  

Ann has recently opened a gallery, PondeRosa Art Gallery, in her home that is available for viewing by appointment. Website is www.ponderosagallery.com and to set-up an appointment please call 416-788-9332.

"I'm really excited to participate in this years Stouffville Studio Tour and am looking forward to meeting all the guests who come to see my art work and studio."

Ann is Studio 3 on this year's tour. 

Getting ready for the Tour

Marie Messina is very busy these days .

"I’m working hard getting my pots ready for a glaze firing.
As usual so much to do only 2 months to go!!!!"

Make sure to see the finished works of art at studio #17 on this years Tour.

Strawberries As Art - Lis Simpson

Since Stouffville's annual Strawberry Festival is in full swing this is the perfect time to share some of the ways that the delicious strawberry can inspire art!

Below, jewellery maker and Studio Tour artist Lis Simpson explains how she was able to create a replica strawberry from glass!

Last summer I made a glass strawberry in class.... 

Take a fresh strawberry and put it stem down into clay:

Coat it with a release resin and build a plastic cylinder around it to create a mold:

Add plaster; when plaster is set, remove the plastic cylinder and fire the mold, burning out the strawberry.  Fill the mold with glass frit, and fire again.  

When cooled, break the mold away from the glass strawberry.  Voila!

Thanks Lis! 

Robin Rees

Studio Tour artist Robin Rees shares some photos of her new work. We are very pleased that Robin is back on the Tour after her sabbatical. 

Here are some photos of a piece I have just finished for a client. The first photo is the finished piece in copper wire, it is then treated with liver of sulphur to change it to a very ugly black.  The piece is then selectively polished to highlight the warm colour of the copper.