Christmas is nearly upon us!

With Christmas creeping up on us like some sort of sneaky, excitable elf with pointy shoes, I feel like it's time to post my Christmas card that I printed this year. It is a small edition of etchings, with an image size of approximately 5.25" by 3.25".

I also, within the past week, went to see The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey not once, but twice. It is not a common occurrence for me to see a movie in theatres more than once (not least due to my restricted student budget) and I must say, my reviews are quite positive. While I realize you likely aren't reading this blog for my movie-critiquing opinions, I highly recommend seeing the film. It's a hefty beast, weighing in at about 3 and a quarter hours with previews, but it is about one and a half rabbit-sleigh-fulls worth of fun (you'll understand when you see it). It is significantly more cartoony than The Lord of the Rings was, and doesn't take itself overly seriously; there are plenty of light-hearted, humourous moments, befitting a fantastical adventure in search of lost treasure. The attention to detail is, on this second trip to Middle Earth, just as superb as it was in The Lord of the Rings. But I won't bore you any more with my opinions. Go see it yourself!

Have a happy holiday, and I'll likely see you again in the new year!

First semester is officially over; Christmas break is here. 

Given that I'm 'writing' my thesis, however, this is more of a studio break. It will be full of family, friends, breathing space, reading, and drawing, in preparation for the return of thesis in January. One potluck into the holidays, I can definitely say I'm looking forward to an enjoyable break. 

Happy holidays, everyone. New work to come, keep your eyes on my website at http://alexrmthompson.com/. Thanks!

Great Hall show is up!

It has been one crazy semester.

Here we are, early December already, and my thesis year at OCAD is just about halfway over. Last week, my printmaking class hung our show in the Great Hall at 100McCaul Street, and it was great to see such a variety of work. For the better part of the semester, everyone has been off in their own corners, and this was really the second time in 3 months that we've gathered and been able to see everything that people have been producing.

Now, I may be biased, but I think we've got a pretty good showing in the space. If you're reading this, and happen to be in the neighbourhood before December 8th, I recommend you check it out.

This, ladies and gentlemen, is what installation looks like.

Until next time!

Another excellent summer of camp is over. One manly tear rolls down my cheek. The campers who participated in my Stop Motion workshop made some pretty sweet films. This here is a link to the session two video! Also attached to this blog is a photo of one of the watercolour backgrounds I did for the short film, featuring a distant view of La Seine.

Today was the final tear-down day for camp. This is always accompanied by mixed feelings. Camp's conclusion also means that school- and thesis year- are looming in the not-so-distant future. The prospect is an intimidating one. I need to get my brain around the daunting idea and just get on with it.

Above you'll see a quick oil sketch of my friend Miles first, and second my contribution to the backdrop painting the staff did for camp this summer. She was pretty fun to paint, I must say.

It's been an interesting summer. I'm working at a summer theatre camp at present, which is more fun than I can possibly describe with any clarity, while also driving me a little off the deep end simultaneously. That being said, dramatic children running all over the place haven't been the only thing driving me nuts recently. I've been prepping work for an upcoming show at the Steamwhistle Gallery in downtown Toronto. The show is entitled "Down the Rabbit Hole" and will be running from August 1st until the 31st. Further details can be found at . I don't work in the same way I used to, I've food. This is all at once both good and bad. My practice has become, over them past year and a half, quite firmly rooted in materiality. This made something fantasy-esque a bit of a challenge for me. I recommend you come check out the show at the Steamwhistle, and then get back to me about everything. Cool. This little guy here is just a teaser. Come check out the show to see the whole series.

That's not all that has been on the go; my work has been on the walls of the Blue Dog Coffee Roasters in Brantford as well, which is also quite exciting! check it out if you can!

The Folloflic

The Folloflic lives! This is a wooden sculpture that comes on a frame. By popping the pieces out of the frame, the viewer can then construct their own unique version of the sculpture (it is supplied without any instructions, to encourage the 'viewer' to become the designer/sculptor). I have a few more that I've made, but if you're interested in acquiring one, drop me a line. It'll set you back a mere $15. Once it's been constructed, send me a photo! It would be cool to start a blog that collects all the permutations of the Folloflic!

This past week I finished a piece in the yellow stairwell at OCADU. Using stencils made from newsprint (that didn't have to last) and screen printing ink, I dabbed on several layers with a sponge brush. The image measures about 8 by 10 inches.

I've also got several other projects on the go, so pictures will be cropping up in the near future. Also just finished a tattoo design, so images of that will surface as well. Hope you're having a lovely Super Bowl Sunday. Alex out.

Art Show at the Gladstone Hotel

On Monday, a small group of artists set up Ethereal Existence at the Gladstone Hotel at 1214 Queen Street West. It went up reasonably quickly, and will be open until the 22nd of January. The gallery hours are from 12:00 until 5:00PM, in the second floor hall. I have 5 prints being shown, and my two most recently completed were spoken for at the opening. However, there are still 3 original prints of each available.

The first print is titled Unloading and measures 12 by 18 inches. Etching, aquatint, mezzotint and burnisher on BFK Rives. The second is Scaffolding/Dangerous Games, 12 by 18 inches, etching, aquatint, mezzotint and burnisher on BFK Rives. We had an excellent turnout at the opening reception on January 12, and thanks to everyone who could make it out. Thanks also goes out to Claire Scherzinger, who organized the show and got all the artists together. Great work. Alex out.