A NEW SHOAT OF PAINT...

by Erkuden Sakana, Company Secretary:

The progression of one of this week's inductees, initiated at a previous meeting completed today

One can never be too certain what path a drawing will follow as it's passed around the room to be elaborated upon by the rest of the Company. Sometimes, a clear theme or narrative arises. Sometimes early on, sometimes part way through or not until the end. Influences can seep in from any number or sources and be subtle or overt, deliberate or incidental. Therein lies much of the fun in these Sunday collaborations.

"Punch Fight!" the finished product by the Misanthrope Specialty Co.

The nature of most of this week's drawings suddenly veered off in the same direction halfway through the evening, after one of the misanthropes mentioned their ancestral pig farm during the course of idle banter.

That her Nagy had raised pigs in Hungary wasn't news the Company; the exciting bit of information which had eluded the rest of the members in all these years of working together came in an offhand remark about the quality of their wool. It turns out these were no ordinary swine. They were Mangalica -- a breed of pig which like, like sheep, are covered in wool.

(The woolly pigs in action)

Few of the misanthropes had ever heard of such a wondrous animal and the revelation immediately coloured the rest of the evening's illustrations. Indeed, of the twenty-three illustrations completed tonight, no fewer than eighteen involved woolly pigs, fur-bearing trout and other novelty animals.

"Fig.17-b: A Bat Fucking a Pig" by the men and women of the Misanthrope Specialty Co.

It's a wonder this juicy nugget of trivia information hadn't come up before; particularly during the pig-obsessed period following the swine flu epidemic of 2009.

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(City of Craft flyer design by Trip Print Press)

In other news, City of Craft returns to the Theatre Centre for another week-end extravaganza of all things hand-made; just in time for Christmas. The two-day event boasts a bustling market, art installations, workshops and demos for the crafty types, and now an interactive midway, purveying all manner of services and entertainment for one and all.

Meeting the shopping hordes at City of Craft 2009 (photo by Sweetie Pie Press)

This is, in the Company's collective opinion, Toronto's best holiday crafts and arts show, and the Misanthrope Specialty Co. is very pleased to announce it is once again getting in on the action. Doubly so this year: The Company will hocking it's array of cards, prints, and original illustration in the market while Reverend Aitor brings his Unflattering Portrait project to the midway fanfare.

City of Craft runs December 18 and 19 at the Theatre Centre. Stay tuned to this weblog for more details as they arise.

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THIS WEEK'S PRODUCTIVITY REPORT
Number of projects initiated: 29
Number completed: 23
Number inducted: 5
Carried over to next week: 2

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