Sunday in the Art Room -- My Gallery Wall

[A link party about art hosted by Nicole of

DVArtist, Art, Food and Everyday Things]

I have always loved the gallery wall

created in his home by blogging buddy

John Gray of Going Gently blog!

It's the perfect way to display some of the

wonderful art pieces he has collected over the years --

John inspired me to create my own little gallery wall

to the right of my computer desk in my den!

These are all small, mainly original art pieces of birds and animals

which I have collected or been given over the years.

Each petite artwork would be lost by itself on a wall,

but looks great when collectively displayed

as part of a themed gallery.

Starting from the top and going clockwise, these pieces are --

1. An early ceramic wall sculpture by Winnipeg artist Jordan Van Sewell illustrating how to let a sleeping dog lie, purchased in the early-to-mid 1990s.

2. "Beware of the Cat" ceramic plaque purchased in Assisi, Tuscany in 2008. It looks just like HRH!

3. A terra cotta wall sculpture of a "Curled Hare" bought in Glastonbury, England in 2009.

4. The "Catitude Coffee Co." metal sign was a gift from my sister a few years ago, again in homage to You Know Who.

5. A painting entitled "Love" by blogging buddy Magic Love Crow (Stacy), which she created and gave to me in 2021 for my blog post HRH's Pet Purride Pawrade! Stacy described her work as follows: "This crow is surrounding the world, which is under its beak. The crow has no gender, it represents all, spreading love and peace." 

6. A watercolour painting by an artist named Denise of a Sacred Hare near Bride's Mound under Glastonbury Tor, purchased in Glastonbury, England in 2009.

7. In the centre is a woodcut entitled "Shy Rabbit" by Canadian artist Gerard Brender à Brandis, purchased at the artist's studio in Stratford, Ontario in 2007. When I was a university student in the late 1970s in Winnipeg, I saw an earlier woodcut of a rabbit by him which I badly wanted, but was much too poor to afford. It brought me "full circle" to be able to buy this one 30 years later.

[Photo #1 by John Gray and used with his permission;

Photos #2 and #3 © Debra She Who Seeks, 2026]

Siegfried

And now, what you've all been waiting for (LOL) -- my report on this year's instalment of Edmonton Opera's gradual staging of Wagner's entire Ring Cycle! If you want to read about the previous instalments, click here.

The Plot:

This third opera in the Ring Cycle is all about "The Hero's Journey" of self-individuation and self-actualization. Accordingly, its young protagonist, Siegfried, starts out as an immature, know-nothing idiot. He doesn't know his parentage (the doomed Siegmund and Sieglinde, who died in the second opera) or his family connections (the mighty but treacherous god Wotan, who is his grandfather). Siegfried is a quintessential "dudebro" -- self-centred, arrogant, callous, brash and, consequently, fearless. But in his favour, he is also guileless and keen to understand the world better.

For that purpose, Siegfried reforges his father's broken sword and goes off to kill the dragon Fafner who hoards a vast treasure trove plus the Ring of Power (from the first opera). Having now tasted blood, Siegfried can suddenly understand the language of a helpful woodland bird who advises him what to do next. In symbolic terms, Siegfried matures and learns to listen to and understand his inner voice of guidance. He is growing up, but still knows no fear.

Siegfried then goes off to rescue the valkyrie Brünnhilde, asleep on a mountaintop behind a curtain of magical fire as Wotan's punishment for her disobedience in opera two. Still fearless, Siegfried proves himself a worthy hero and claims the valkyrie as his bride. The opera ends with the pair's ecstatic love duet. And it is Brünnhilde who finally teaches Siegfried the meaning of fear, namely, the fear of losing her love and his place in her life. The hero has now achieved full maturity. 

The Staging:

The minimalistic set was back, dominated by its usual huge round suspended screen for special effects videos and subtitles, with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra tucked in behind it.

The costumes were back to being modern again. The dragon Fafner's costume looked positively steampunk, as pictured in this next photo. And Wotan, in disguise as "The Wanderer," looked like he was stepping out for a business lunch or something.

The cleverest part of the staging was the use of children's toys and imagery in the first Act to represent Siegfried's immaturity -- a great big teddy bear, a light sabre sword (so Star Wars), a kazoo, and a yoyo. I also appreciate that Wotan's walking staff glowed with a neon accent and was forked -- like his lying tongue.

The Music and Singing:

Young Siegfried proved to be a good dramatic tenor. This pared-down opera does not demand the sheer physical and vocal endurance of the typical Wagnerian heldentenor usually cast in that role. I thought Brünnhilde and Fafner both shone in their respective roles.

The Gods in Valhalla Get a Reprieve From Their Downfall:

The Ring Cycle's fourth and concluding opera is Götterdämmerung (The Twilight of the Gods). But it will not be staged next year, alas. Its date is TBD -- "to be determined." Last year, Edmonton Opera took a major financial bath when a new Canadian opera it had commissioned, cast and staged had to be cancelled at the last second right before opening night for reasons beyond its control. Until grants and income rebound from that disaster, Wagner will have to wait. I hope The Twilight of the Gods does get staged sooner rather than later, though.

On the bright side, I have tickets to next year's The Magic Flute, a favourite opera of mine, so at least that's something to look forward to.

[All production photos by Nanc Price]

Tattoos With Meaning

This wonderful joint tattoo

celebrates love and connection -- 

As does this next tattoo belonging to blogging buddy

Captain Kirt of To Baldly Go.... blog

(thanks for letting me use your photo!)

He and his two daughters all got this same tattoo

as "matching ink" for Father's Day this year!

How special is that!

The Latin inscription means "Father & Daughters."

The following ones are simply funny and/or cute!

But these final tattoos are

just plain regrettable,

in my opinion --

Something Fishy About This Post

Hello, Blogging Buddies!

Well, my recent blogging break

has concluded, so here I am again!

I did lots of things on my break

which you will learn about in due course

via various posts to come over the summer.

I did take a road trip for part of that time --

can you guess where?

Yes, that's right -- my home province and old stomping grounds

where I used to live until moving to Edmonton 30 years ago!

The provincial sign is located at the Saskatchewan/Manitoba border.

It depicts the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg

which is one of the places I went to in the city.

And of course, the Bison is the symbol of Manitoba.

This sign comes from a Tim Horton's en route,

so that's why it says "Always Fresh" in the breezy sky.

They mean the donuts, not the bison!

I visited some old friends, went to some

new attractions built since I last lived in Winnipeg,

revisited some of my former neighbourhoods

and favourite spots, and had a very good time!

And boy, do I know when to get outta town --

the day I left there was a tornado a few hours later

in a small community near Winnipeg.

Luckily, no fatalities but here's a look

at the ominous clouds gathering --

[Photos #2 and #3 © Debra She Who Seeks;

photos #1 and #4 courtesy of the Internet]

Summer Break

[Art by Jan L. Waldron]

Well, everyone, summer's here and I've got

places to go, people to see, and stuff to do!

So this blog will be on hiatus

until mid-July or so.

Behave yourselves until then!

Oh, who am I kidding?

I know you people!

Have fun and see you later!

Monday Murals -- Tarot Cards

I'm taking part today in 

Monday Murals hosted by Sami.

Today is World Tarot Day

so I am featuring a mural

depicting three tarot cards.

The cards represent the unknown artist's interpretation of

the Temperance, World and Star cards of the Major Arcana.

This mural was painted on the side of a

pagan, goth and kink "Curio Shoppe"

located in a trendy area in Edmonton

known for shopping, bars and restaurants.

Both the store and the mural are now long gone, alas.

[Photo © Debra She Who Seeks, 2012]