June 6, 2021

Lessons learned from six year olds

‘Lessons Learned from Six-year Olds’ is a series of 12 black and white prints based on true stories or incidents involving six-year olds. Each print has a story to tell about a six year old and an important message for all of us.

This is a limited edition of 35 prints for each of the 12 images. 50% from the sale of each print is donated to a not for profit organization Atlantic Wellness Community Centre. This organization serves the needs of children and youth from ages 6-18.

Why is supporting mental health important to me?

Why did I create this series?

I had a 37 year long teaching career before becoming a professional artist. As a teacher there were times when I knew that a student needed help desperately, but the resources were not there to get timely help. Think how awful I would have felt when i would learn of the sad news of someone I taught committing suicide or being in some other serious trouble.

You would recall that 20 children and six adults lost their lives in the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy

My granddaughter was only six at that time - the same age as the 20 children who were shot dead. This incident shook me to the core. I was deeply affected by this event. I figured that the killer Adam Lanza must have had some serious mental health related issues which were never addressed in a timely manner.

Sadly, I couldn't help him, but by contributing 50% from the sale of these prints I can help other children and youth.

Each artwork is based on a real life story. The stories are in the form of prose or poetry. As you read the stories and poems in this series entitled, ‘Lessons Learned from Six-year Olds’ it will be apparent that many a times the children are reminding us to do the very things that we have taught them.

The stories and artworks will remind you of your own childhood or revive memories of a six-year old that you know. The wisdom that comes from the mouths and acts of six-year olds is amazing!

Helping others is a part of our Canadian identity. Would it not be soul satisfying to know that It is my hope that your purchase could give a life line to a child or a youth?

In the process of helping someone, you will be getting a unique, hand-printed work of art.

These artworks based on the words and actions of six-year olds invite you to experience the exuberance of life emitted by six-year olds, touch the purity of their spirit and immerse in the beauty of life seen from their eyes. Surround yourself by these young innocent children and you will see that in their simple and truthful ways, they have some profound truths to impart to adults.

Each black and white print is hand-printed and is an original work of art. Each is a limited edition of 35 prints. The titles are listed below in alphabetical order. To learn the story behind these prints, click on the title of the print.

List of prints

  1. A Deal is a Deal
  2. Baboo
  3. Being Six is….
  4. Deconstruct, Visualize, Actualize
  5. Focus
  6. Gratitude
  7. Laugh and Play
  8. Life is a Treat
  9. Past is Past: Future is Now

10. Shaela Hug

11. Wasted time: Lost Opportunity

12. Who Turned the Lights Out?

January 3, 2024

Highlights of 2023

2023 was a year filled with creativity, art exhibitions, donations, and much more. The public art installation 'Sackville: A Visual Snapshot' was unveiled in February and a virtual tour can be done now from this website. Personal growth meant taking online courses and attending workshops.

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April 18, 2023

Sackville Blog 5

How do I depict a group of settlers that lived here in the 17th and 18th century? Representing the Acadians proved to be quite challenging. I couldn’t find images that would tell the story of Acadians and depict their existence in the Tantramar area. There are some paintings by some artists, but not actual photographs.

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