Alan Syliboy's Blog
August 2010 Updates
I am currently working on a Queen's visit page which will include a video clip of me presenting the Membertou painting to the Queen. It will also feature articles and other information. I am developing prints of the Queen's painting and we hope to have a launch date soon.
The Sylliboy prints are now available. Check the website under 'On Line Gallery' to view the prints and for further information.
I have a new video section on the website that includes the handmade animation, The Walking Moose. There are hand painted, individually numbered cells available for sale, contact me for more information.
Little Thunder in now available for purchase through the National Film Board's website, NFB.ca under the Vistas Series. Little Thunder has been selected for the Canadian Showcase screenings at the Ottawa 2010 International Animation Festival to be held October 20-24. The festival had more than 2092 entries from 72 countries. www.animationfestival.ca It is also being considered for the Children's Film Festival in Seattle, the Redcat International Film Festival and the prestigious Roy and Edna Disney CalArts Theater. I'll keep you posted on these festivals. Little Thunder is doing wondrous things and his journey has just started.
My band Lonecloud has some upcoming shows that I should mention; you can check us out on August 8, 2 pm at the Incredible Picnic in front of the Truro Library. August 9, 8 pm at the Ship's Company Theatre in Parrsboro. On August 20 at 6 pm we kick off the Blueberry Festival with a concert at the Marigold Centre, on the rooftop!
Our sax player Jeff Benetti posted a family video trip to Keji, it is set to the music of the Lonecloud song, 'Seeing Blindness' You should see this, it is great.
July 2010 Updates
I have made a promise to keep up my blog which I've failed miserably. There has been a lot going on since the Queen's visit and the Pow wow, which I enjoyed immensely. It was very nice meeting Queen Elizabeth; we are looking into having prints of the Queen's painting made available. That is in the works. I showed the Queen's painting at the Argyle Fine Arts Gallery along with other new works. I also did a talk about the painting which was well received with a good turn out.
My booth at the Pow wow was a success. A lot of people came by, many of whom I have not seen in years. They told me about the paintings they purchased years ago. It was great to catch up; I enjoy being reminded of where my paintings have gone and how they are appreciated.
We have new videos on our site and we have new prints, as well as familiar ones available for purchase.
Little Thunder is in Italy this week. I was told by our animator, Paton Francis, that this is a very serious festival and we are very fortunate to have Little Thunder make its way into this festival. There has been interest in Little Thunder becoming more than a two minute animation. I'll keep you posted on that as it develops.
Introducing Doctor Lone Cloud exhibit at the Ingrid Mueller Arts & Concepts in Fredericton went very well. The show was presented very well and was well attended. We sold six paintings on opening night. The show is over now but I am happy to be one of Ingrid's gallery artists.
There are a lot of pots on the back burner and these I will report on later.
Queen Elizabeth's Painting
I have new work showing at the Argyle Fine Art Gallery at 1869 Upper Water Street in Halifax. Join me at the gallery on Thursday, July 8 from 6-7:30 pm when I will speak about the painting I did for the Queen. Here is your opportunity to see the Queen's painting before it is officially handed over. For more information, contact the gallery at their e-mail, gallery@argylefa.com
Syliboy Series Prints Are Now Available
The Syliboy Print Series is now available exclusively through our website. The prints are size 10"x10" and are printed on 300 lb Hamemuhle Cotton Rag archival paper. The price for these limited prints is $90.00 CAD.
Queen Elizabeth's Visit
I will be presenting the Queen with a painting of Membertou. This is to commemorate the 400 year anniversary of his baptism. His was the first Mi'kmaq baptism in North America. I am in the middle of my research on this piece and the painting is progressing well. More updates to follow.
Solo Show
Introducing Doctor Lone Cloud
This is my first show at Ingrid Muellers Art + Concepts in Fredericton NB. It features 15 new paintings in the Lone Cloud series and other paintings. It runs from June 11-July 4, 2010.
NSCC Honourary Diploma
On June 14, 2010, I received an Honourary Diploma from the Nova Scotia Community College, Truro Campus, for Outstanding Work in Applied Arts and New Media.
Little Thunder
The Little Thunder animation is making a tour of the festivals. It was recently the recipient of the Best Animated Film at the 2010 First Peoples Festival in Montreal. "For its vivacity, humour and its light, impulsive brushstrokes sketching playful figures, and for the stone canoe carried off like a leaf in the eternal currents of the Mi'kmaq legend this film brings to life..." The next festival is the Gimli Festival in Manitoba and then it is off to Italy.
Going To The Olympics!
This walking moose is going to the Olympics tomorrow, and will be there for the last three days, and the hand-painted, limited-edition cells will be available! We'll be at the Artisans Village located at the Vancouver Community College, downtown campus, from February 26th until the 28th. The Coca Cola Art Bottle is on Ebay.ca, and you can now bid on it here. If you're at the Olympics, you can see Little Thunder on moniters around the area. Lone Cloud's upcoming four song EP, "Carry Me Home" will be released at the ECMA's on March 6th in Sydney, NS, and we'll be playing at the Crown and Moose Pub at tthe Delta Hotel at 2:00 pm, and then at the Membertou Trade and Convention Centre that night.
Watch "Little Thunder" online!
The Vistas are now available to watch online on the NFB website! Hopefully the Vistas package will be availble soon on dvd for people to buy. Coca Cola have also opened bidding on all of the Aboriginal Coke bottles, the proceeds of which will go to the Aboriginal Youth Legacy Fund. You can check it out here.
Mural Hanging
I hope everyone will come to see my mural at the Lord Beaverbrook that's hanging opposite the worlds biggest Dali painting. I'd like to thank the Lord Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Bernie Riordon and Terry Graff for an opportunity for First Nations people to come and see First Nations work at the highest calibre. To have a painting across from Dali, I couldn't even dream this. Dali was an influence in my early works. The only way I can express my feelings about this honour is to quote Dali; "There are some days when I think I'm going to die from an overdose of satisfaction".
Big Dog Interview
An interview I did for Big Dog and Cat Country radio in Truro will air on New Years Day during newscasts between 7am and 5pm. I'll be showing my work at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics from February 26th - 28th. We're preparing for the Olympics right now. I had an enjoyable holiday. It was a chance to recharge my batteries, and I'm looking forward to this new year. Lone Cloud is working on recording, and is hoping to have a cd out by the time the ECMA's roll around. Hope to see you there. You can join the East Coast Music association, and have a chance to vote for Lone Cloud for Aboriginal Recording of the Year. You can listen to Lone Cloud on Myspace, and free downloads are now available at Lonecloud.ca.
Lone Cloud's first ECMA Nomination
Lone Cloud have just been nominated for an ECMA for Aboriginal Recording of the year!!! You can download Lone Cloud's music for FREE here. O SIYAM, a book of Aboriginal Art inspired by the 2010 Olympics, including my own, is now available here. I'll be putting up some new work on the website soon. We've been selling pieces regularly, so new pieces will be forthcoming.
Alan Syliboy's "Little Thunder"
Watch out for "Little Thunder", an animation I did with Nance Ackerman and Paton Francis to be available to watch on the NFB Website in a week or so. I will be at the Artisan Village at the Olympics in February. I haven't got all the information yet, but we will update, and you can come visit me at the Olympics. My Coca Cola Bottle will be up for auction during the Olympics. You can find details about the auction here. Lonecloud are also on Myspace and Youtube.
Coke Bottle at the Grand Parade
There was a send off at the Grand Parade in Halifax with Sidney Crosby and Sarah Conrad carrying the torch, as well as a big party. I was there with Christy Groves talking to people about our Coke bottles, and I got to meet the president of Coke and other Coke personnel. The consensus was that they all liked my Coke bottle design. The bottle will eventually end up on Ebay, and anyone can bid on it with the proceeds going to the Vancouver 2010 Aboriginal Youth Legacy Fund. Lonecloud are recording now, and it is all going very well. Should have some new music available soon. I'll be attending the Screening of Nance Ackerman's "Four Feet Up" in support of her project.
Coca Cola Art Bottle
My Coke bottle has been officially released to the world. There was a press conference yesterday, so you may see it in the media. You can come see it in Halifax at the Grand Parade on Wednesday, November 18th after 4:00 pm and from there, it'll go to the Olympics where it will be on display and eventually auctioned with the proceeds going to Aboriginal youth programs. We'll be posting more photos of the process of painting the Coke bottle in the near future. The People of the Eastern Door are represented at the Olympics.
Little Thunder has left home!
The "Little Thunder is Leaving Home" show is all finished and put away. It was a huge success. I did several talks with students and overall, we had a lot of students come through. I was very happy with the look of the show, and I'd like to thank Peter and Charmaine for all their help organizing and hanging the show, and also the NSCC and the Truro Art Society who made this show possible. Little Thunder is making his way across the country, and will end up on the jumbotron at the Vancouver Olympics. It appears that "Little Thunder" is getting good reception everywhere he goes. I've finished working on the 6 foot bottle for Coca Cola which is waiting to be shipped off for the unveiling on November 16th. Lone Cloud is in recording mode working on new songs, and we hope to have them released early in the new year. This has been a very busy year, and I've enjoyed it very much.
.jpg "Little Thunder is Leaving Home")
Back From BC!
I just got back from my show in Vancouver. I took my daughter Erin with me, and we both had a great time. Eight hours of flying time is a long time out of your life, but it was a great landing. The show was at the Vancouver Convention Centre, and I got to see a lot of my old friends. I made some good trades with painter, George Littlechild, fashion designer Pamela Baker, and Corrine Hunt. I got two guitar pick pendants that will find their way into our band Lonecloud. I enjoyed peoples’ reactions to my art. This was the first art show I had in British Columbia, and I made great contacts in preparing for the Artisan Village in February. I am starting work on my Coke bottle project and sending some progress-update photos. I’m going to make a big effort to try to keep my blog updated, and enjoy my new site. Evan did a great job on it.
Welcome to our new site!
This has been a very eventful year. I will try to keep this blog current and up to date. It is difficult keeping on top of things at times. A lot of projects have been hatching, many at the same time, mainly with the 2010 Vancouver Olympics who I am doing four projects with. Ekpahak (Ekpahak-Where the Tide Ends) has been a very successful show. The Lord Beaverbrook is producing a catalogue for the show and we will let you know when that becomes available. Lone Cloud (Lone Cloud on Myspace) has finally released our first album. We’ve sent it off to aboriginal stations all over the country, and CBC have sent it out to their stations. Lone Cloud is also launching a new website very soon, where you’ll be able to download our music. I’d like to thank CBC for all the extra attention they gave us by remixing our cd which really helped the overall quality. Check out Lone Cloud’s new site for updates and information about the band.