musée mia burrus

studio

Say it with colour

Are you spending too much time writing? Need a distraction? No, I thought not. Nonetheless, Colour Theory is teaching me that our shadow selves are not pitch dark, but are shades of nameless violet, wine and earth. There are, of course, those who are paid money by house paint manufacturers to give names to the […]

Say it with colour Read More »

Spring things

Let’s go with the optimism of calling a cold yet sunny day “spring”. I spent the morning spring cleaning my written works, making a spot for the many iterations of completed poems, consolidating piles of works in progress, gleaning rough notes for gems, starting some new pieces. Now to exercise the other side of my

Spring things Read More »

Ranch craft

As I’ve been writing about my father’s ranch, I also worked on a project for Tristan, whose grandparents’ had a ranch near Edmonton. This is a hide from one of the last of their herd that Tristan wanted put to some use. Working with leather appeals to the senses; it is has scent, it is

Ranch craft Read More »

Artist’s Date

Did you know that Leonard Cohen only got 77 in Grade 9 Literature? Did you want to know that? Did L. Cohen want us to know that? Vicky and I went on an Artist’s Date to the Art Gallery of Ontario, where we took in the Leonard Cohen exhibit. How do you mount an exhibit

Artist’s Date Read More »

Memoir writing

Is that what I’m doing? I’ve collected many stories from many people – about my father, about the ranch – and am puzzling about how to get at the truth when it’s different for everyone. It’s like having a pocket full of nickels. You put your hand in and they all feel the same, but

Memoir writing Read More »

slow art

….really slow! Two years ago I finished my altered-book-poem-setting on the Montreal Massacre after working on it off an on for eight months (almost a baby!) Two years ago was the 75th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and I started sketching ideas for an assemblage-poem-setting about Peace. Two years! It just seemed

slow art Read More »