archives
collecting data:
for the love of words and pictures and true stories
Along with lovelorn letters and milestone headshots, my family members' memorabilia comprise facts and artifacts excavated deep in the archival crevices of collecting data.
If a picture is worth a thousand words, so might a thousand photos reveal a true story. Like reading between the lines.
Scroll on down ...
COLLECTING DATA
my public resources include:
ancestry.ca
newspapers.com
wikipedia.org
thecanadianencyclopedia.ca
Social Media
Petit Palais Museum of Fine Arts, Paris FR
Women's Musical Club of Edmonton
Royal Conservatory of Music
Vancouver Public Library
City of Vancouver Archives
Vancouver Magic Circle
International Brotherhood of Magicians
West Vancouver Archives
Emily Carr University (Vancouver School of Art)
University of British Columbia (records)
UBC Libraries (microfiche databases)
High School Records (Van, West Van, & Van Nuys CA)
my personal findings include:
info collected from magazine articles and newspaper clippings, catalogues and inventories, pamphlets and programs, diplomas and transcripts, forms and documents;
facts and figures culled from minutes, newsletters, and obituaries; shipping logs, war records, and census data; phone directories, trolly routes, and city maps; report cards, year books, and school gazettes; and
insights gleaned from family letters and anecdotes, formal dance cards and informal interviews, safety deposit boxes and forgotten storage lockers.
And, discovered deep inside my parents' respective apartments, his buried found-object 'Assemblages' and her hidden fabric-craft 'Collections.' Complexity seeking clarity.
Plus, secrets and stories concealed inside a century-old photo album: long-kept secrets tucked inside the plastic sleeves, and never-told stories writ within the vintage snapshots.
Seen and unseen, known and unknown; all hold meaning. A view integral to both the memoir I'm writing and the backstories I'm recovering.
MEMORABILIA
"How fiercely they competed against each other and, at the finish line, how joyfully they were the closest of brothers." [Richard Horner, schoolmate]
Fractal art digitally created, collaged, and coloured; applied to kimono styles for digital dye-printing on silk satins and broadcloths. [Sheila Martineau Designs Ltd.]
booklets
I plan to create several biographic booklets over the years ahead. My first offering, The Boys, draws on facts, stories, and memories:
The Boys: Peter and Paul Martineau. Self-published, 2021. Recalling and showcasing the antics and accomplishments of my deceased twin brothers while they were growing up together (from 1948 to 1967). View flipbook.
Future topics include:
my parents' parallel childhoods
stage magic, sleight-of-hand, comedic pantomime
pen and ink calligraphy and illustration
classical piano studies, competitions, and performances
hidden collections and buried assemblages
life in the logging camps
life in the WWII Entertainment Corp
social fabric, textile design, and ancient alchemy
the story of a grand piano and a Parisian mural
galleries
While many images and stories will be captured in booklets, some collections will also be showcased in photo galleries:
hand-decorated envelopes with love letters from WWII
a selection of hand-lettered and illustrated pages from the three-volume Rice's Encyclopedia of Silk Magic, published in the USA by Silk King Studios
commercial art and special effects
hand-lettered and illustrated booklet covers
needlecraft works and quilting designs
fabric art and fashion design (example above)
my mother's, grandmother's, and great-grandmother's newspaper clippings—from gold-medal awards to solo piano recitals to winning jam recipes
sketches, drawings, and caricatures
Note: Until I create online galleries—a long-term project—below are a few art- and magic-based carousels to scroll through.