Research and Stories
This is a place where I can share some of my research pertaining to early settlement and family histories intertwined with the story of Lanark County, Ontario, Canada. I’ve been researching and writing for many years and want to make some of my work more widely available.
This blog was originally designed to share my artwork and creative activities during the years when I was exhibiting widely. My art has now taken second place to refining and publishing some of my research, but I have left the art posts available for perusal.
Whatever your interest might be, enjoy, and provide feedback if you can.
Diane
Posted by Diane Miller Duncan on July 27, 2016 in Exhibitions & Shows, Featured Flag, Fibre Art & Quilts, Mixed Media, This And that! | 0 comments
I am the third generation to appear in this series and what do I say about this piece and myself? For me the series has been about family traditions and memories and the richness to be gained by passing these on to subsequent generations. In previous posts I have talked about Grandmothers and the legacy they left me, my parents and how they influenced my view of the world. This fifth piece is about the synthesis that occurs when that ingrained influence of the past is combined with the world of today. Creating Me: Diane Duncan 2016 In...
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Posted by Diane Miller Duncan on July 27, 2016 in Community & Family History, Featured Flag, Fibre Art & Quilts, Mixed Media | 0 comments
Although Dad didn’t participate in needle crafts, he inspired my work in many other ways. I chose to include him in ‘The Tie That Binds’ because we shared an interest in genealogy that led to my desire to record family history in a variety of ways. In this piece, I even included one of his favorite ties! Early Life JRE Miller (Ernie) was born at Glen Tay during WW1, attend Glen Tay Public School (SS#3 Bathurst, also my alma mater) and completed Grade 10 at Perth Collegiate Institute. During his time in high school he was...
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Posted by Diane Miller Duncan on July 26, 2016 in Community & Family History, Featured Flag, Fibre Art & Quilts, Mixed Media | 0 comments
Evelyn Mather was an only daughter and grew up on a farm near Balderson ON with her three brothers. She didn’t talk a lot about her childhood but based on information from Uncle Gord, her early childhood may have been greatly affected by her Mother’s farm accident. She seems to have had a love of needlework all her life and was probably inspired by her Mother’s work. Mom was a star pupil in SS#9 Bathurst and went on to do well in her studies at Perth Collegiate Institute. She completed her senior matriculation and went on to...
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Posted by Diane Miller Duncan on July 26, 2016 in Community & Family History, Exhibitions & Shows, Featured Flag, Fibre Art & Quilts, Mixed Media | 0 comments
Grandma Bella was a little more of an unknown to me when I undertook this series for the TREX exhibition. Although Grandma and Grandpa Mather were frequent visitors, especially for Sunday evening supper, they did not play as large a roll in my life as Granny Alice. As youngsters, we stayed with these grandparents for short periods during the summers and it was during these stays that I was able to take a few swimming lessons at the Perth swimming pool and actually take proficiency tests that allowed me to collect swimming badges! But,...
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Posted by Diane Miller Duncan on July 25, 2016 in Community & Family History, Featured Flag, Fibre Art & Quilts, Mixed Media | 0 comments
Each piece I prepared for The Tie That Binds has a series of stories embedded within it. Granny Alice is the first fabric collage/assemblage created for this series and I found myself taking a major trip down memory lane as I worked on it. First of all, Granny Alice and I were very close. I was the eldest of four children and we shared a house with our paternal grandparents for most of my childhood. By the time I was wandering around, she was ‘retired’, completing her housework in the morning and stitching many afternoons. Many...
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Posted by Diane Miller Duncan on July 25, 2016 in Exhibitions & Shows, Featured Flag, Fibre Art & Quilts | 1 comment
I’m looking forward to the opening of a new Alberta travelling exhibition(TREX), The Tie That Binds. This year north central Alberta will be treated to the work of f0ur Alberta fibre artists….. and I was invited to be one of the four! I share this exhibition with Judy Weiss, Edmonton, Margie Davidson, Edmonton, and Matt Gould, Red Deer. Opportunity! I was first approached in early 2015 and I almost couldn’t believe it when it happened! After some correspondence back and forth and a lot of planning and winnowing of ideas, I...
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