Little Lady/Little Man: A powerful and vulnerable look at aging, legacy and remembrance

Jonathan Hobin's Little Lady/Little Man is showing at Ottawa's City Hall Art Gallery from March 16 to April 29, 2012.

 

Mike Cullen (Twitter) is a young public servant who is also a regular contributor to (Cult)ure Magazine as a music editorialist. His passions include music, coffee, writing, travel and comic books.

Local photographer and artist, Jonathan Hobin, opened a new exhibit at Ottawa City Hall last week called “Little Lady/Little Man.” The premise behind the exhibit is to reflect on the deaths of a husband and wife through photography, both vintage and modern, as well as deathbed portraiture and the use of a family heirloom of sorts; two lullabies recorded by Hobin’s own grandfather shortly before his death, entitled “Little Lady Make Believe” and “Little Man You’ve Had a Busy Day.”

This exhibit is a personal one for Hobin, as it’s his grandparents on display from their youth (as photographed by the famous Yousuf Karsh), and Hobin’s own photography; in this case UV ink on aluminum creating a striking, yet haunting image of the subjects.

As Hobin explains in the brochure accompanied with the exhibit,

“Over time, these songs served for me as a beautiful, albeit tragic, metaphor for the fleeting nature of physical power and youthful beauty, conventions that society closely relates to concepts of masculinity and femininity.”

Little Lady/Little Man is both a powerful and vulnerable look at aging, legacy and remembrance. The exhibit is only at City Hall until April 29th, 2012, so I highly encourage you to drop by City Hall Art Gallery (main level concourse) before then. Jonathan Hobin will also be providing an English-language talk on Sunday, April 2nd at 2 p.m. on the exhibit, which will likely provide insights into the influence and affect of this project, and how it came to be.

Cocktails, art & funky beats: Mike invites you to check out Spins and Needles

Photo credit: Digitart2001, via Flickr

Mike Cullen (Twitter) is a young public servant who is also a regular contributor to (Cult)ure Magazine as a music editorialist. His passions include music, coffee, writing, travel and comic books.

Finding something affordable to do on a Friday night in Ottawa that doesn’t include going out for dinner or going to a club can be difficult. Movie theatres are packed, and good luck finding a quiet place to enjoy a pint if the Senators happen to be playing that night. About a year ago though, I discovered the perfect Friday night out: cocktails, do-it-yourself art projects, and funky beats — otherwise known as Spins & Needles.

The latest Spins & Needles is happening March 16.

Spins & Needles, conceived and run by Melanie Yugo and DJ Jason Pelletier, is a monthly event run in Centretown (locations vary, but if you’re added to the Facebook group, event organizers give you plenty of notice about upcoming events!), where you have a cozy environment to have a drink or two, create and listen to some great music. The best part: the art project is decided for you and your measly $8 entrance fee pays for all the materials and instruction you’ll need for your creation! February’s Make a Monster event was fantastic, and James Street Pub was packed to the rafters in the downstairs bar. I got two friends absolutely hooked on the event. And things just got better…

This Friday, March 16, is the latest Spins & Needles, and the theme is Superheroes. For your super-cheap entrance fee you’ll be given the supplies and instructions on how to storyboard your very own comic book! If you’re anything like me, the comic book, music, beer combo is honestly like … heaven on earth. For those daunted by the idea of storyboarding, an alternate art project is available. So grab a couple friends, a $20 bill, and come on down to the James Street Pub (event starts at 9pm) for a night of art and fun!

Sounds like an amazing time … and right in the heart of the city! Thanks Mike! I’m sure we’ll see a few new faces there!

‘Drawn to Art’: A morning out at the National Gallery of Canada

La Piazza Navona by Jean-Baptiste Lallemand is one of 100 works at the National Gallery's 'Drawn to Art'

Mike Cullen (Twitter) is a young public servant who is also a regular contributor to (Cult)ure Magazine as a music editorialist. His passions include music, coffee, writing, travel and comic books.

Armed with a cup of coffee, I braved Ottawa’s unusually unseasonal October with my mother to check out the latest exhibition at the National Gallery of Canada, “Drawn to Art: French Artists and Art Lovers in 18th-Century Rome”. This international exhibition highlights the influence and artistry of French artists living in Rome during the 18th century.

St. Jerome by Jacques-Louis David

To be called to the Eternal City to study architecture, statuary and paintings was considered a great honour, and one that few artists managed to achieve during their lifetime. For them, the opportunity to sketch, paint and emulate the great masters before them, both Classical and during the Renaissance meant that they had managed a major achievement in their own artistry.

With over 100 works on display, there’s certainly a lot to take in at this exhibit, but it’s all worth it. Part history lesson, part art lesson, we see some fantastic works by the likes of Hubert Robert, Jean-Honore Fragonand and Jacques-Louis David. (It’s okay if you don’t recognize any of these names — I didn’t, and I thought I knew a lot more about the art world!)

The Sheperd Paris by Jean-Baptiste Frederic Desmarais

Many of the pieces in this exhibit are in North America for the first time, making this a very important exhibit for those who can’t get around internationally to see what’s out there (though by looking at the placards with the paintings, most of the collection has remained in France). Definitely worth the cost of admission, if only to be exposed to artists you might not otherwise have known about.

An amazing European art history lesson right here in the capital! Drawn to Art opened Friday and runs until January 2, 2012 — so there’s lots of time to check it out!

25 years of Ottawa’s most colourful festival: Mike gives us a glimpse of Capital Pride

Mike Cullen (Twitter) is a young public servant who is also a regular contributor to (Cult)ure Magazine as a music editorialist. His passions include music, coffee, writing, travel and comic books. 

I’m not one to take part in Capital Pride festivities — I think the last time I was there was in 2008 — but with the prospect of it being the biggest and most bad-ass event ever this year, I decided to take up the challenge.

It was definitely one of the largest parades in recent memory and while the chilly weather in Ottawa may have kept some people from attending, the spirit was still alive as some fifty “floats” snaked through downtown Ottawa toward Festival Plaza at City Hall.

Instead of giving a worded account, I’ll simply leave you with 10 of my favorite photos taken during the parade; if a picture tells a thousand words, you’re about to get your money’s worth with this!

 Thanks for sharing, Mike! Twenty-five years marks a long and proud tradition. Check out more photos here.

Up, up and away! Mike Cullen gives Local Tourist an aerial view of Ottawa

Mike Cullen (Twitter) is a young public servant who is also a regular contributor to (Cult)ure Magazine as a music editorialist. His passions include music, coffee, writing, travel and comic books. 

I combined a recent birthday gift for my father with another activity that goes towards my indulgent spring/summer 2011: we went flying, giving us a whole new perspective of the city, not only as residents of Ottawa, but in my case as a local tourist. On a very clear, sunny Saturday afternoon, my father, my friend Melissa and I went down behind the Aviation Museum to the Rockcliffe Flying Club for the trip of a lifetime!

The four-seater Cessna 172 that Mike, his father, Melissa and Megan flew in

For a very reasonable fee, you can charter a sightseeing flight with the club, for anywhere between half an hour to an hour. With a few restrictions you can even plot your own course, with the opportunity to fly over your house (if you live in Ottawa), or over particular landmarks you wish to see from a whole new angle. I left it up to our fantastic pilot, Megan, to chart our half hour trip in a little four-seater Cessna 172.

Parliament Hill, as seen from the sky

Our trip took us up towards Constance Bay and looped back, following the Ottawa River. The views of the Gatineau Hills were incredible, and we saw all of the major landmarks, from the Chelsea Electric Dam to the Museum of Civilization and even Parliament Hill. Serious credit must go out to Megan, not only as a pilot, but as a tour guide as well. She only moved to Ottawa a month ago, and yet she referred to landmarks and points of interest as though she had been living in Ottawa all her life.

And because pictures have that clichéd ability to tell a thousand words, I’ll let the photos from our trip give you a slice of what you can expect from one of these flights!

What a unique gift idea, Mike!  How about you Ottawa – what’s the most unconventional way you’ve seen the city’s sights?  Would you be brave enough to go up in a four-seater aircraft?

Caravaggio and His Followers in Rome (in Ottawa!)

The National Gallery of Canada

Mike Cullen is a young public servant who is also a regular contributor to (Cult)ure Magazine as a music editorialist. His passions include music, coffee, writing, travel and comic books.

Following up on a fantastic exhibit on Raphael last year, the National Gallery of Canada  is now showcasing a new exhibit entitled “Caravaggio and His Followers in Rome”, which recently opened with much fanfare.

The exhibit takes a fascinating look at the work of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, and how his stylistic interpretation of the real world and the profane dramatically changed how renaissance art was not only produced, but also viewed.

The National Gallery says this exhibit is “five years in the making” and that it encompasses not only the career of Caravaggio, but some thirty-one of his followers/imitators. I have no critical eye when it comes to art, but this exhibit was beyond fantastic. Curators and staff at the gallery have done a fantastic job of not only laying out the art in the space provided, but also an excellent analysis on his impact on the art world.

There was a mix of reality and fantastical in his work, such as his piece “The Musicians” where one can see the inclusion of Cupid in the upper left-hand corner of the painting.

The Musicians, Caravaggio

Caravaggio was also the master of subtlety. In “The Gypsy Fortune Teller”, one can observe a young man having his palm read, but if you look closely, the man is so transfixed by the woman, that he doesn’t even notice that she has begun to slip the ring off his finger.

The Gypsy Fortune Teller, Caravaggio

Caravaggio’s followers were also well displayed, and two of my favourite pieces in the exhibit included “The Lute Player” by Rombouts, and “Fortune Teller With Soldier” by Valentin de Boulogne.

The Lute Player, Rombouts

The “Fortune Teller With Soldier” depicts a man who is trying to pick-pocket a fortune teller while he in turn is pick-pocketed by a young child; the kind of slice of life depiction that Caravaggio himself was constantly trying to illustrate during his short career.

Fortune Teller With Soldier, Boulogne

This fantastic special exhibition is at the National Gallery until September 11, 2011 and I highly encourage anyone to go see it. You do not have to be an art snob to truly appreciate the beauty of this work; in fact, it’s humour and life make it easily accessible to anyone wishing to see some great works of art.

Thanks for the great post Mike! Interested in checking out the Caravaggio exhibit? Click here for more details.

Mike, Melissa and Ruvini visit an Ottawa institution: The Great Glebe Garage Sale

Local musicians filled the streets (and porches) of this year's Great Glebe Garage Sale

Mike Cullen is a young public servant who is also a regular contributor to (Cult)ure Magazine as a music editorialist. His passions include music, coffee, writing, travel and comic books.

The Great Glebe Garage Sale has become an institution in the last two decades. During this special day, the Glebe comes alive as junk is turned into treasure, bargain hunters prowl the streets, and everyone comes out with the expectation that they will walk away with something. Garage sales aren’t usually my thing, but making the Great Glebe Garage Sale into a spectator’s sport turns out to be quite a bit of fun.

With bags strapped to ourselves, myself and two friends, Melissa and Ruvini walked over to the Glebe yesterday morning. We had a later start than most people, and by 9 a.m. the city streets in the Glebe were already packed.

Local Tourist Mel, at the Great Glebe Garage Sale

We weren’t looking for anything in particular, but I did joke that I was in search of a six piece dining room set with diamond chandelier for under fifty bucks (for a bachelor apartment that is already filled, no less). With spirits high, and a coffee in hand for this intrepid writer, we started out. There was a lot going on, and it seems that the community was determined to make this the best garage sale yet.

There were local bands jamming on porches, plenty of community organizations taking part, and of course there were the Glebites looking to sell their wares.

Mel walked away with a Jade plant from one organization, and I got a fantastic bamboo plant from her as a recent housewarming. I was able to find some comic book inspired toys to keep my borderline ADD mind occupied when I write.

Comic book toys for Mike, obviously

However, where I struck out on garage sale finds, I made up for in the boutiques along Bank Street. Nearly all of the stores were posting mega sales, and a trip into clothing store Slaysh came my big purchase of the day: WESC Jeans for seventy percent off! I practically walked out of the store with them for a song! Despite the fact that a good chunk of Bank Street in the Glebe is fenced off for pending road construction, the foot traffic in the stores was heavy with lots of like-minded people looking for that special deal.

Sadly, Ruvini came home empty handed, but not one to let something like this get her down, she showed off some sweet hooping skills.

Ruvini trying her hand (and hips) at hula-hooping

All in all, the Great Glebe Garage Sale was still a resounding success, and I’m already looking forward to 2012!

Thanks for the great post Mike!

Mike Cullen on one of his favourite days of the year: Free Comic Book Day

Free Comic Book Day occurs the first Saturday of every May

Mike Cullen is a young public servant who is also a regular contributor to (Cult)ure Magazine as a music editorialist. His passions include music, coffee, writing, travel and comic books.

Free Comic Book Day is like Chrismukkah for comic book geeks everywhere.

Originally a North American event, it has grown to other countries around the world in the last few years. The first Saturday of every May, Free Comic Book Day usually coincides with the release of a major comic book movie (originally Spider-Man back in 2002, this year’s event coincides with the theatrical release of Thor).

On this day comic book retailers everywhere offer up pre-determined promo comics from the major publishers, for free. This year’s offerings included a Green Lantern book from DC Comics (with the film coming out next month and all), and a Captain America/Thor book out from Marvel Entertainment (again, with both characters hitting the big screen this summer). Some publishers release kid-friendly books, but all publishers do it not only as a thank-you to existing fanbases, but also as a way to attract new readers.

Silver Snail, at the corner of Bank and James, Ottawa

I tried to get into the Comic Book Shoppe at Bank and Lisgar on Free Comic Book Day because I know that store goes all out for the event; staff dresses up in costumes, and fans are encouraged to come out in their best as well (aside from Halloween or costume parties, when else are you going to see someone dressed up as Spider-Man, Darth Vader or even Wonder Woman?).

This intrepid Clark Kent woke up a bit late though, and by the time I arrived at the Comic Book Shoppe, there was a huge line-up outside the store, and I had a tight schedule for the day. I opted to walk down to Silver Snail at the corner of Bank and James instead. They were decidedly quieter, with no major events planned, so at least I was able to get my swag.

So regardless if you’re a Geek or a Geek-in-Training mark Saturday May 5^th, 2012 on your calendar, because as you know, Free Comic Book Day comes only but once a year!

Thanks Mike!

Mike’s “Self-Indulgent Spring/Summer 2011″ makes a stop at the Chateau Laurier

The Fairmont Chateau Laurier

Mike Cullen is a young public servant who is also a regular contributor to (Cult)ure Magazine as a music editorialist. His passions include music, coffee, writing, travel and comic books.

I’ve got what I’ve dubbed the Self-Indulgent Spring/Summer 2011 on the go: I’m making the next few months about me.

As a result, I’m doing some big things (like a trip to Australia in August), and some smaller things, such as spending a night at an historic landmark… the Fairmont Chateau Laurier.

The Chateau Laurier has always been on my list of hotels that I’d like to stay at. Being the practical hotel lover that I am though, I could never really justify the expense of staying even in a standard room at the Chateau.

The lobby of the Fairmont Chateau Laurier (via Anavrin on Flickr)

That was, before Self-Indulgent Spring/Summer 2011.

So I booked a night recently, and off I went with a bottle of good Bordeaux and take-out Thai in hand (the dichotomy of the room and the beverage/food selection was done on purpose).

For anyone that has ever stepped foot into the lobby of the Chateau Laurier knows that the word grandeur doesn’t quite describe it, but it’ll do in a pinch. Strangely though, despite the ornate look of the lobby, the rooms aren’t really that over-the-top; which is a good thing.

Quick snapshot of Mike's room at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier

I wasn’t expecting to be treated like royalty on this visit, and the fact that the rooms are a little more understated certainly made it feel more like a place you wanted to stay, and not a room where you’d be afraid to touch anything.

The only real downside was the size of the room. It was probably a little smaller than the standard sized rooms at the Lord Elgin, but was laid-out a lot better, including a fantastic wing-back chair that I contemplated trying to walk out with. The bed was incredibly comfortable, and aside from own bed, was probably one of the most comfortable I have ever slept in.

Mike has a healthy obsession for hotel bathrooms. He's not the only one.

By now everyone knows of my obsession for hotel bathrooms after my review of Hotel Indigo a few months ago. The Chateau Laurier’s was quite honestly one of my favorites. Bright, clean and very spacious, it actually kind of makes me want to have a bathroom just like it when I finally buy a place of my own one day.

Overall, my stay at the Chateau Laurier exceeded my every expectation. While I wouldn’t suggest going here on a whim, or every time you’re looking for a getaway in Ottawa, I definitely do believe now more than ever after staying a night, that everyone should give themselves the opportunity to stay at this historic landmark.

Self-indulge; you’ll be happy that you did.

Thanks Mike! We can’t wait to hear what you treat yourself with next!

Rediscovering Ottawa: At last, Mike Cullen becomes an urbanite

Photo credit: Christiane Michaud (via Flickr)

Mike Cullen is a young public servant who is also a regular contributor to (Cult)ure Magazine as a music editorialist. His passions include music, coffee, writing, travel and comic books.

I recently moved downtown for the first time in my life.

That’s right, I left behind the life of a suburban young professional for the glitz, glamour and excitement of downtown Ottawa. Okay, so it is not really glitzy, I am hardly glamourous, and the word ‘excitement’ is rarely used to describe Ottawa. That said, this has turned out to be one of the best decisions of my adult life (second only to my decision to make a two week holiday to London, England three years ago for the dual purposes of buying clothes and finally seeing Kylie Minogue in concert).

In the short time that I have lived in Centretown, I have come to realize just how much of a walking city Ottawa can be. I am now twenty minutes from work, about ten minutes from the grocery store, and I have about half a dozen friends all within a two kilometer radius of my new apartment. I am accessible to more restaurants than I could possibly ever visit, plus a bunch of great cafes, bars and clubs. I am a also only short walk away from the Museum of Nature.

Then there are the walks just around the neighbourhood: homes nestled between apartment buildings and office buildings, and for a more scenic, natural look, the Rideau Canal is only a hop, skip and a jump away.

I have quickly adjusted to the urban noise, probably more in part because my last two partners both lived downtown, but also because after you learn to block out the more obnoxious noises of downtown (horns, screaming drunken people), the hum of the downtown core actually ends up being rather soothing, and you find yourself listening to it when you want, and ignoring it when you do not need it.

I have come to realize that for a city I have resisted to love for nearly fifteen years, this city actually has a lot of charm. The real kicker; you do not have to go far, or search deep to find that charm.

Ottawa, I think our relationship may be improving, and I may just end up falling in love with you after all.

Welcome downtown Mike!