Somewhat Surrealistic Sunday

I've been posting a lot of weird art lately, so as a visual antidote, I'd like to share with you some pleasing images by Serbian  Dusanka Petrovic - Душанка Петровић, born 1948. I couldn't find any other biographical information.   More images available at  Ricci-Art.

Enjoy your day. Peace and love,

Gina

Ruby Tuesday: Touches of Nova Scotia Part I

This week's Ruby Tuesday submission is a series of photos I took at a very unique little Nova Scotia museum: The Charles MacDonald Concrete Museum in Centreville, Nova Scotia. While vacationing in beautiful Nova Scotia, we became interested in aspects of its history and people. Charles MacDonald, a deceased folk hero in the area, left a legacy of creativity, adventure and good deeds. Drawn to it, I've tried to preserve our interest through photographs and conversations with people we met along the way.  One such person was Fred MacDonald, Charles' nephew, who with other volunteers has tried to keep the legend of Charlie MacDonald alive. 

In subsequent posts, you may notice the blue cottage, which my daughter Supergirl Two calls "the candy cottage". That is one of four remaining concrete cottage built by MacDonald during the great depression to keep the workers of his concrete business employed. The results are essentially Canadian heritage properties now.

 

A view of the back of the museum. The other three, obviously, are of relics in the interior, which is essentially one room - the parlor.

 Next week's Party II of Touches of Nova Scotia will feature ruby reds of the more nautical type.

 I hope you'll come back!

Have a fantastic week and see you then!

Ruby Tuesday

hosted by Mary at Work of the Poet

Yard Art on Thursday

Mary at Work of the Poet has a fun new meme that features photos of yard art of all types. Well, let me tell you, my visits to Nova Scotia have rendered the weirdest yard art I've ever seen. This series was taken on our 2008 trip. A polite name for it would be "outside of outsider art". Otherwise, it is just plain staaaaaraaaaaaaaaaange!

"All Thumbs"

 

One has to wonder how their clothing stays so new in the elements. Could it really be that they're dressed up on a regular basis? Is something seriously wrong with someone's mind or is this therapy for dealing with ghosts?

An old hippy's idea of a Love Doll?

A very deranged-looking moose; even for Nova Scotia.

The Merman was the only one who looked like he was chillin'.

Ariel Nova Scotia style!

We Dig Nova Scotia

click on all photos for best viewing

This year's trip netted us some cool new finds on the beautiful Fundy Shore. We had excellent weather, beyond the first day we spent in the Spencer's Island area, when it was somewhat overcast and on the cool side. We visited this location last year but this was our first time camping here.

click photos for best viewing

Spencer's Island, as seen from the campground. Once seasonally used but no longer inhabited.

Ron, the local gentleman pictured below (with dog Tinker) told us this crazy story about a local restaurateur who packed up his sheep flock and brought it to Spencer's Island for the summer, thinking how low-maintance they would be with plenty to eat and drink, only to discover when he went back for them, that they'd turned rouge and refused to cooperate when he tried to round them up. As legend has it, "he had to shoot 'em all so they wouldn't freeze over the winter". Hmmmm, you say? Well, Nova Scotia is a quirky place.

Spencer's Island Lighthouse
(dates back to 1904)

We hiked down a couple of very steep trails to two beautiful waterfalls to spend the hot afternoons. There are several more waiting to be discovered next year when we go back. See the post entitled Postcards from Nova Scotia for a waterfall picture.

And as if beautiful hot, sunny, relatively dry weather, good company and beautiful scenery weren't enough, we stumbled on the icing in the form of a blurr of brightly painted yellow concrete as we motored by The Charles McDonald Concrete House Museum and Sculpture Garden in the Annapolis Valley village of Centreville. We went to check it out, of course

and discovered the world of Nova Scotia folk artist Charles McDonald - a painter, builder, sculptor, sailor and socialist, who died in 1967. We were smitten with the quirkiness and character of the museum which was once Charles' and his wife Mabel's main home. We found out about several of the cottages that were also built by Charles McDonald in nearby Hall's Harbor and went to visit three of those as well.Charles McDonald's cottages are often called "faerie houses". This is was referred to as The Blue Cottage, by Mr. McDonald's grand-nephew who arranged a tour of the inside for us. It's the absolute most charming and original little house I've ever seen; both outside and in. The chimney is made from painted rocks, there is an outdoor toilet and shower and it's a stone's throw to the beach, which we went directly to after our tour of the cottages. And the fireplace works. And there is a tiny balcony off the bedroom with a view of the beach below.

So guess where we're staying during next summer's visit to Nova Scotia? Yes. We fanagled a two week stay. I hope the faeries can keep themselves amused until we arrive, because I don't know how I am ever going to wait. I am happier than Mona Lisa, who was intepreted by "science" as being "83% Happy". Wait. Or was it 86%? I dare say for the first time in my life, I feel charmed. And I think it does have to do with faery magic, though I'm not quite sure how. ;-)

You Know How That Mona Gets Around
Taken in Wolfsville, Nova Scotia

I'll be putting up a slideshow of our trip which will include more photos of the McDonald museum and cottages. 'Till then...

All the love,
Pagan Sphinx

Freaky Outsider Art

Outsider Art
Nova Scotia Style

I came upon this set of photos while searching for one to fit the theme "surprised" for a most fun and challenging photo meme called Thematic Photographic, on the blog Written Inc., most graciously hosted by Carmi. That's a long sentence I just inflicted on you. Sorry.

I'd mostly forgotten about these pictures. We saw this collection of life-sized sculptures scattered all over the front lawn and across the road in a lot, from a humble cottage on a highway bound for Halifax.

click photos to enlarge
(if you dare)

There were many more, at least twenty in all...

but we avoided photographing the ones closest to the house...

uncertain as to who could have come out to talk to us or chase us away.

We saw nary a soul, so we ran across the highway and were surprised by this gal whose expression suggests she is just as surprised to see us.

I wonder if it had anything to do with Merman, though he looks docile enough.

Thoughts, please! And captions, if you've a mind. :-)