Making vintage cards (with antique stories)
My artwork, whatever the medium, is inspired by memories, history, and family (and often my sense of humour). I see connections and follow threads, pulling on some when it strikes me. The art is what happens when I begin to tie those threads together. With “Edith Died Laughing” and the vintage cards, I was inspired and took some liberties, believing with all my heart that they’d be Edith approved. This card from the series features a photo from one of Edith’s albums – a road trip gone awry in 1918. (Technically that makes all this antique, not vintage, but I digress).
Edith’s sister, my Great Aunt Jessie McLachlin, was well known for her abilities, and her attitude. She left a legacy of images and stories; whether travelling the world, out in the bush with a gun, or driving her own car. She drove an ambulance overseas in WW1 so was fairly confident driving under any circumstances. I grew up hearing stories about her (I was only 2 when she died) and by the time I was 12, I’d decided to name a child after her (and I did). This newspaper clipping containing one of those stories is from a Centennial supplement to the Arnprior Guide, July 1967.
…Jessie was an expert motorist before the war. An Interesting article appeared about her in a magazine:
“Miss Jessie McLachlin of Ottawa, was an expert motorist before the war inspired women to undertake this particular kind of work. One of her friends, a motorist of some pretensions, tells of taking a drive wih her along the roads surrounding her country home, “something went wrong,” said he, “but before I had time to think what it was, she had hopped out and was lying under the car, tinkering with it as deftly as I could have done.
I settled myself back on the seat and took out a cigarette, ‘You are the sort of girl to go motoring with, I told her, ‘When you get tired, sing out and I’ll have a try.” But she fixed the break without assistance from me, and much more quickly than I could have done, That was a jolly ride, all right”
That seems like a lot of thought going into one vintage-look card with a photo and a bad word, I know. (Actually, it’s been produced with two different bad words. Based on highly scientific and peer reviewed studies, I determined that these two words were the ones most frequently used by the sweary women in my frame shop). There is a reason for every element.
Everything we do, everything we are, begins with all that came before. Memories, history, and family, and some colourful language – all sewn up.
That newspaper clips are from and article in a supplement – Face of Arnprior – to a June 1967 issue of the Arnprior Guide. You can see/download a copy of the complete supplement here at the Arnprior & McNab/Braeside Archives).
