Suddenly, it was five o'clock. Gord was scheduled to give a tour at 5 & 5:30 for the VIP guests. I stepped in the tent with boxes of cards in my arms for the docents. Our guests crowded around the exhibit.
Gord was introduced; everyone broke into applause.Jaz and I picked up his catalogues and rushed (new snow underfoot) to the Rotunda to put up a sign I had created at Kinko's for the prints, but no easel. I left Jaz to solve the problem and back to the tent. Had our VIPs, Eric & Vizma arrived? Back at the Rotunda, guests were arriving at the reception there. Jordan (calm, cool, collected) and Jaz (calm, cool collected) provided balance for my frenetic 'hampsterness'.
Soon the break dancers.Finally, Eric & Vizma and most of our crew arrived, everyone cleaned up, my friend Lisa and our docent, Susie. Gord got there just in time for the speeches and too soon everyone went outside to see the acrobats.
Reception over, Jaz and I returned the box of catalogues to the room; here's what we saw. Then everyone got lost! Gord didn't have his phone on him, and he'd mentioned his brother Gary was 'over there'. We'd discussed going to The Rivoli, so I left a note in my room (quaint, archaic mode of communication now that we're cell-phone spoiled). Al and Sally gave me a ride to The Rivoli and I kept in touch with Jaz & Tim (via Gord's cell phone). On their heels arrived Pascale, Mariel, Erik's brother Leif, (whom I swore I'd met before). Here we are, very happy to be together on this heady night.

All of a sudden, the focus is on gloves. On fingers and toes tingling, and ears taking the biting wind. Yesterday I bought four pairs of gloves for Gord, and on my way to return three of them, saw a beggar on the street with none. I gave him a pair. Brrrrrr!

This morning, up waaaay too early. Here's Marielle, on her way to Niagara on the Lake before 7 AM. Gord couldn't keep his eyes open.

Then, CBC interview. Then, Breakfast TV. Grant forgot to tell the security guards (who have become very protective of Gord) about the interview, and they wouldn't let him in -- this at 6 AM and with an All Access badge and a media truck with logo emblazoned on it! But who could have thought of that, anyway? It's not even in the realm of a 'to do' checklist. A badge is a badge, a media truck is a media truck.
And you know, Grant gets his interview. Yesterday was only slightly better in terms of being awake in the cold. Here is Gord's City TV interview, and then a chat with French CBC, just when he was about to go home for the night. Those lids are half-mast. Here they are, Grant and Gord, this morning in the hospitality tent, giddy from lack of sleep.
That's Treena Cesario and Jordan Patterson from Special Events, hosting our media party, tonight. Jordan is super fun, he's always putting you on with a smile. He works in Mike Brisbin's office, and he's cool under pressure, so soon, he's bound to be legendary, as well.


JC ended up stepping up to the plate to drive to Niagara on the Lake. This, last night after supper. Our suggested solution to go down on Friday morning and get back by noon seemed do-able and the two of them packed up the extra pieces for Niagara on the Lake. Here's one of them in place, photo by Paddy Parr.
Tonight, we open!

We're on the front page of 24 Hours, in the hands of every commuter.
Tomorrow morning, 7:20 Breakfast TV, across Canada. 8:30 Heather Hiscocks on CBC.

Today, Page 3 in The Globe & Mail.
Yesterday noon, CTV.

Erik Olson's silhouette on page one of GTA in The Toronto Star with an article, "Art puts freeze on Arctic thaw."
Here's Grant Ramsay; he and Catherine Fawcett and I have been working together to bring out all this media, but they get the lion's share of the credit. He's on the right, grimacing because it's so damn cold - he has to wait around until the interview is over.
Last night we were live on Global TV at 6 o'clock, and we (3 docents & Al Burns) watched while WinterCity lit itself up in the night sky.

And here's the latest on the painting in NOTL.Paddy Parr snapped some photos this morning as we tried to determine the state of the paintings there.
We're super busy here preparing for opening, but want to add some new pieces to the exhibit at The Shaw. No one wants to go. We've been trying to figure out when? how? to get one tech person under 25 (Tim & JC are our only two techies, but JC does not want to go) and one artist type (Marielle, Erik, Jaz?). But only someone older than 25 can drive the van - and all willing are mere 'youth'!

Tonight is a Media Opening on the rink painting, and I've got to have everything produced and staffed and up to speed for opening (Tent, Rotunda & Merch Tent) as we must go to NOTL on Saturday after our CBC interview at 9 AM. Here's Eliya, on camera detail.
He's agreed to go, but he doesn't want to travel at night. We'll see.

The simplest thing, snow. Paddy Parr sent me these photos from the Shaw installation.



The press run began around noon in Toronto:
CTV noon news flew a helicopter over the square to have a look at the rink painting in progress from above, and eveyone wanted to see the breaking going on at center ice.

CBC TV waited patiently for their turn to watch and film and the daily commuter paper, 24 Hours shot stills. The Toronto Star reporter returned for more interview; Global TV arrived at 4.


And all hell broke loose in the tent as a new set of workers began to hang the drapes and set up the coffee gallery space adjacent. Suddenly our crew was displaced, and Gord started throwing out the artwork. I had to leave at that point.



In the meantime, more docents arrived for their orientation. Sandra called from The Shaw: Mike (our maintenance guy in NOTL) was somehow? out of town and his girlfriend who was filling had been out of reach for hours! Worse, the power had gone off in the plates, the sun was outside and the paintings had begun to melt. Debi Pratt showed up with her tv crew from Korean television, pulled back the tarps and meditated on the true meaning of temporary artwork.



Later, back in Toronto, it began to snow and we found ourselves in the center of the rink sweeping the newly made painting.Look at your Globe & Mail tomorrow. We hear the Toronto Sun is also doing a feature.

They're out there on the empty ice. I can see Gord and JC hunching over under the white lights. All the skaters have gone home. It's 11:30 PM. The rink painting goes in tonight. Flurries, big flakes outside my window.



Today, things turned up notch. When I got back from Niagara on the Lake, a reporter and a photographer from The Toronto Star surrounded a sea of orange and yellow shards, snapping photos at the frenetic activity in the tent.

The entire crew was engaged: Pascale climbing her ladder, Al on photo detail, Eliya chopping up ice outside the tent; JC ordering his henchmen around - Erik on the skill saw, Jaz, Tim, Marielle, even Andrea carrying ice. When I came in with our five docents, the guys had to show off. That's Tim and Jaz.



And here they are left to right: Amy, Jenny, Julie, Kera and Erin. They are art students and graduates and will be showing and telling the public all about the exhibit come Friday. Tim, Jaz and Erik are hoping they'll be back to help out on Thursday. "It's like these guys have never seen a girl!" Marielle laughed.


Eliya introduced Gord to the Mayor yesterday, who loved the exhibit! and today, we got our WinterCity badges. All the tents are up on the outskirts of the square; the stages are being built. Gord had an interview which lasted an hour and a half with a reporter from the Globe and Mail. CTV News Toronto will be on the rink live tomorrow for the noon news. At 4 PM, Global TV. Photo Op - Thursday at 6-7pm. City TV, CBC (French), Sun TV are confirmed. Plus still photographers.

This is all a bit much for 'the artist'. Now he's in the tub, his face scarlet. He stumbled in the room, exhausted. The crew told him to go home. "One of the best things about this", he said, "is how these kids are taking care of me. There's a real sense of loyalty, like family." I can see that the zamboni has dug up the first patch for the ice shards.

Tonight, Tim and I, driving to get copies at the UPS store said, "What are we going to do when we get back to our ordinary lives?"



Sunday morning we met Eric and Vizma for omelettes at The Prince of Wales. A cold, white morning, perfect for an Inniskillin mini tour. As the weather seemed to be finally co-operating, we watched a front loader lift crushed icewine grapes in its gaping mouth. It was finally cold enough for Inniskillin to pick their harvest.



As partner in the sales of the artwork, Eric was here in Niagara on the Lake to see our operation and I felt keenly the areas where we weren't yet up to speed, the most glaring of which is the disconnect between the each exhibit and information about the availability and access of the prints for sale. I wilted under my own failure to have gotten these things in time even as we toured through the smooth operation at Inniskillin.



To cheer myself up I remember that Gord says this is the really just the beginning and we're learning those things which will make our project most successful. And not to underestimate the fact that we've been living out of a suitcase for the last month and a half, between two cities co-ordinating, managing, interfacing with paid staff in both locations, docents, volunteers, our core crew and others whom we've hired at home and on site . .bla bla bla . . . all this, while trying to keep crew morale up and my own demons in a box.

Negotiating is the hardest. I want what I want, but I'm stubborn and I don't as a natural tendency, back down. At the end of the day, I just want to be a generous, loving, competent, diplomatic person! How can I get that? with everything so complicated and intertwined and not enough sleep or exercise?



In an odd turn of events, the first and second prints in the Chiesa Cool edition of 35 were purchased within minutes of each other. Two women in the lobby went to get a coffee and when they came back, another couple had stepped up -- for the same print!!I felt guilty because on their coffee getting trip, they also fulfilled my request to bring back a latte. Here they are, happy with their purchase - and my latte!



Back in Toronto, Carole Boughannam and Monika Matel Souza walked through the exhibit in progress, dazzled by the colours. Globe & Mail called; Toronto Sun is going to do a picture story. Last week it was Maclean's, calling him "Rothko on steroids". Today, a photographer spent a long time at the 'dark, lit exhibit' clicking away. People are joyous, thoughtful, moved when they see the work. That's what it's about! Tomorrow Tim and I head back up to Toronto. Today, he helped me fix the blog crew descriptions!

Opening night!









6 degrees of separation, Gord is 'introduced' to a next door neighbor from his childhood -- who is also an acquaintance of the Sprotts. Hayley's great grandparents show up to congratulate her grandpa.

A VIP dinner hosted by 'the artist' with major help/coordination/finesse from Inniskillin.

This was a thank you to Eric Sprott, for his early, pre-Olympic and ongoing support as well as a celebration of the project, and we had fun while we were at it.



Friday afternoon, biting cold, snow and wind chill factor maxed out, and everyone trying to get their job done.



By the time darkness fell, it was all Pascale could do to keep her union paid workers on the site to finish up the lighting.

Saturday, Opening Day, the sun came out. Setting up indoors at The Shaw, Pascale observed that "the paintings are melting". I drove back the the Gallery House; Gord had turned his phone off! Knocking on the bathroom door, where he was submerged in a hot tub, "You've got to come out, the ice is melting." The crew, in various states of relaxation, get dressed like firemen grabbing their gear before going down a pole.




In the end, it was stunning. There's more.