If this is your first visit

Here are two other pieces that I am going bat shit crazy trying to conquer for the show "Silver" which will be at the Cameron House for the month of November, the Opening Reception is Sunday, November 9th from 4-7:30 ish pm. The first is titled, "Prometheus - for my Mother" and the second is titled, "This is Not Quite Right Is It?". If you have any comments or advice on the work, they would be appreciated.

As a materials note I do not use Lubriderm in my paintings, I got a new tattoo, so smarten up you circus animals. It's of a Hula Girl, it is very boss, relax Mom.

If this is your first visit and you are looking for, "Ladies of the Flowers" click on the "Fables" label at the side bar, same with "Small Towns", "Canadian Girl" etc.

If you are looking for children's letters, look for a picture of Children's letters on this site and click the link provided. No I'm not being lazy, this will just give you a chance to see some of my other work. The link is at the "Mirvish Pedestrian Sundays" Post.

Welcome to the Shoppe you can email me , A. Shay Hahn here,

madcraftshoppe@live.com

Scattered news of all Kinds

SCATTERED NEWS OF ALL KINDS

Here is my new tea towel, you may think it odd to post it, but I think it's incredible as a piece of art. You have to be able to see it everywhere. If you're feeling out of practice go lie down outside and pick some shapes out of the clouds, before the ground gets too cold, if this fails spit juice on a piece of paper and let it dry.

• Here's a lovely sign posted in a shop not to far from the El Mocambo, GO TORONTO! YEAH! THIS IS MY TOWN!
  
• Last Thursday (Sept.11) we did our bit for charity and donated," Canadian Girl with Blue Jay" to the Royal Bank of Canada's raffle for Juvenille Diabetes Research. In less charitable news "Canadian Girl with Grey Bird" was donated to the Magpie bar on Dundas because I like drinking there, if you like old punk rock Miles, Graham and Lee have the music for you.
• If you need a "Canadian Girl" of any kind, contact me here. Christmas is coming folks.
• I love words, my new favourite word was published in the venerable Toronto Sun, that word is "coinsiderable" which I define as, "A very large amount of change".
• FACEBOOK is worth approx. SIXTEEN BILLION DOLLARS. Yowza.
• 
  If Terrorists truly wanted to strike a blow at Canada, they would introduce Listereosis into the cream supply at Tim Horton's , I can no longer stomach that awful processed cream, but that being said I will live to fight the Terrorists ala Chuck Norris in the classic "Invasion USA", if you get home drunk tonight it will probably be showing on Spike TV. If it was communists who were responsible, I'd say watch "Red Dawn." ( "WOLVERINES!!!! " It was their proud battle cry)

FAVOURITE RECENT QUOTE A FRIEND OF MINE SHOULD READ

"The only thing worse than bad health, is a bad name" from Love in the Time of Cholera

FAVOURITE RECENT MESSAGE LEFT ON MY PHONE

"Hey Picasso, it's DeNiro, are we meeting up tonight or what?" from Tony Nappo

FAVOURITE PASSAGE IN A BOOK

The Grapes of Wrath Chapter 14, page 150, a breathtaking piece of writing, just read that page.

FAVOURITE THING OVERHEARD SAID OUT LOUD TO NO ONE AT ALL

"Susan Sarandon"

I was there, I know the guy, he wasn't talking to anyone, maybe just a fan, who knows. In fact he may not have even been aware he said it out loud. I've been puzzling over this for days.

FAVOURITE WAY TO PAY ATTENTION

"To hear what other people are thinking" I can't recall where I picked this up, but it is very helpful.

I have no idea, if any of that was worth posting, but I haven't been here for a week or so and wanted to let you Shoppers know that more work is coming soon.

All the best,

A.S.Hahn

madcraftshoppe@live.com

It doesn't always come easy you know

First off sorry about those two images being sideways, I thought they weren't, anyways. This is a look at Process for the series,"Silver". This piece is titled "Hermes" or "Woman with Bottles". I scrapped it after these four attempts and need to hire a model to do this properly. So for those who think I just vomit this stuff up without a problem, you can now rest easy knowing it is a struggle. I love the concept, I just have to walk back to square one and start over again, hopefully when that happens I will have a solid pose and photo references to work with, as I believe this is a great image.

Churchill said, "Blessed are the painters, for they will never be lonely." I add, "and they sure get pissed at their work sometimes." That being said, I do enjoy the struggle, the dialogue between me and the image, it's a high.

A.S.Hahn

Mural news

As most of you may know, (or check the "murals" tab in the column to your left),about twelve years ago I was commissioned to create a mural for Theatre Passe Muraille's bar area, this was probably my second or third contracted mural. This one project started a relationship with the Theatre that continues to this day, under Layne Coleman's stewardship and Jonathan Rooke's steady friendship, I became the resident scenic artist,painting almost all of their shows for the next five or six years, and every wall in the building except the ceiling. I was playwright in Residence for a year, that play went on to become the show "St.Christopher" which was produced on the mainstage in association with DVxT theatre and another show of mine, "Lemon Water" was produced by Greg Thomas and his partner Liz Dalgleish at Summerworks on the mainstage.

Almost all of my time was spent there, in the Theatre or the Shop, it was a studio, a refuge, a club house, an office {a place to crash and sometimes a place for...} and so much more, so many of my closest friendships began at Theatre Passe Muraille. Artistic Director Layne Coleman left the position and a new Artistic Director, Andy McKim was hired. Andy is a great man, he accepted me into the Tarragon Playwrights Unit with only three "little" produced shows ( Two Rhubarbs, one Summerworks under my belt), he has nurtured playwrighting talent all over this city and deserves his own theatre.

Last week I was asked to do some signage for the Theatre, (which of course because of my loyalty to the building I did for free, so don't ask how much I charged) that night at the bar upstairs was Greg Thomas's Bachelor party, he and Liz are getting married, it was great to stand up at the bar (which I also painted) with so many friends that I'd met through TPM, looking at the back wall I did understand fully that it is a different place now, the mural has been painted over, I'm not mad at all, not in the least, it was high time for it to go, part of me does wish that I'd been told that it has been covered and another part wishes that they's ask me to do the job. It's a great, great place, you should go there and see a show.

Here are some additions to the mural at the Done Right Inn, people there love the Spy Vs. Spy and I didn't want to cover it completley so I decided to continue the Mad Magazine theme by adding characters by the great Don Martin. I feel there are enough, I couldn't have done any more that day as I was thick in the head with a cold and had to get home to freebase some neo citran.

madcraftshoppe@live.com

cheers Shoppers,

A.S.Hahn