Peace of Mind Creations
and friends

As a kid Leo Brooks pulled the pots and pans out of the cupboard to bang on them and never outgrew the habit. His percussion skills have been developing for more than half his life. Born and raised in Calgary, Leo earned a Bachelor of Music (with distinction) at University of Lethbridge. He performed as a percussionist in numerous ensembles including the Calgary Youth Orchestra and the National Youth Band.

After moving east in 1997, Leo became passionate about hand drumming. He enriched self-study with periodic studies with Michael Marcus of New York and djembe master Famoudou Konaté. A highlight of his hand drumming education was a 10 week study tour through Guinea, Mali and Nigeria in 2006.

Leo makes his home with his wife, son and daughter's in Gatineau, Quebec, where he teaches, builds and repairs hand drums. “There is nothing that fascinates me more than the examination of percussion traditions from around the world. Percussion is a vast world unto itself — my goal in life is to touch a little bit of everything within it”.

Metallurgical engineer and former scientist Colin Hamer is one of Canada's few pewtersmiths, a craftsperson who can form and shape a sheet of pewter by hand, using hammers and other tools. 

Shaping pewter discs against forms on a lathe is call spinning. Spun parts are joined together by fusion-welding to make more complex shapes such as teapots, jugs, candle holders, and oil lamps. Some parts, like handles, stems and hinges are cast which involves melting pewter and pouring it into silicone or vulcanized rubber molds.

Pewter is an alloy, principally composed of tin, with the balance being antimony and copper, typically 92% tin, 7% antimony and 1% copper. Modern pewter contains no lead.

Colin's designs range from classical, traditional pieces, as well as more modern – and at times far out – designs which may incorporate etching, welding, exotic woods and stained glass. Colin lives in Ottawa.

Bill Neddow is a woodturner making practical and artistic bowls as well as sculpture. He has developed a reputation as a “pure form” woodturner which means he strives for to find the most elegant and clean shapes when turning a piece of wood. A good shape is important whether the bowl or platter is meant for the family salad or is a piece of art meant for display. He uses color, carving, gold leaf and other embellishments on the more artistic bowls, but these are meant to enhance the beauty of the wood and never overpower it.

He has been turning for 14 years and finds great joy in discovering and preserving the treasures Mother Nature has buried in the wood, like burls and swirling, flowing grain patterns. Most of his wood has been reclaimed (but was not free). Sometimes he buys magnificent pieces of exotic wood – but most of the wood he uses is from local sources.

His work has reached an international audience, with pieces going as far away as Europe, Hawaii, Hong Kong and New Zealand. He was one of 14 turners in the 14,000 member American Association of Woodturners to be asked to make pieces for a special exhibit at their 2010 symposium. The pieces then toured galleries in the United States for a year.

Virginia Widen and Edward Strawiak are Stick Man Creations. "We are based in the wonderful city of Montreal, and have been creating together as Stick Man for almost twenty years. We started out selling our whimsical jewellery on a downtown street corner. Things went well, people liked our designs, and now our work is available in boutiques across Canada, and beyond. 

"We are mostly self-taught when it comes to silversmithing, although we both have backgrounds in fine arts. We work mostly with sterling silver, with an occasional accent of copper or bronze. Inspiration comes from the naive drawings of childhood, as well as our strong love of animals and nature, and an appreciation for clean simple lines. Our playful designs appeal to the young and young at heart and are guaranteed to bring a smile to all who see them." 

Wendo Van Essen: "I’ve been a fibre artist for 10 years but when the opportunity arises, I’m also in the animation business. This has been my ‘day’ job for almost 30 years. Recently, I worked on the Disney feature The Princess and the Frog. It was wonderful to work on a traditional hand drawn film once more. 

"Then I went to New Zealand for a felting conference. I have come back to my fibre with a fresh outlook, marrying the inspiration of meeting new fibre artists and using my skills at the drawing table to create new works in fibre. I’m drawn to creating a more 3 dimensional aspect and have begun to add a more sculptural element to my fibre art. I started using wire in my sculptures and now I create both wire and fibre art. The possibilities are exciting and endless with these versatile mediums! I’m constantly pushing my boundaries while exploring new avenues of expression."

Using the ancient technique of lampworking, Lezlie Winemaker breathes life into miniature worlds of dream glass frozen in time forever. With a gas/oxygen fueled torch , coloured glass rods are melted then layered, sculpted and blown transforming liquefied glass into extraordinary one of a kind glass beads, marbles, perfume bottles, mixed media jewelry and sculpture, each telling a unique magical story. 

It is wearable art for dress and home.

In 1970, at the age of twenty, Montreal born and Kingston raised Brian Mantrop started travelling the planet. Six years later his cosmic egg hatched and he started creating photographic art for sale. Twenty-seven years later the journey of creativity continues.

Brian says "This year my photographic work is organic in nature. I develop a fungus growth on the emulsion side of the slide. In 3-4 months the fungus destroys the colours in the original slide to create a spontaneous combustion of chaos. Enjoy!"

Photographer and graphic designer Kevin Steele has been Adrianna's cousin all of his life. A weary world traveller at age six, he grew up in Saskatchewan and Ontario, and at 18 settled in Toronto to go to art school. 

Since the turn of the century he has lived in a fortress on the edge of Parkdale, Ontario. He emerges for occasional photographic forays along Queen West, necessary shopping, and frequent short trips out of town.

Kevin likes to take pictures of cats. "There's always more to learn taking pictures of cats. You never know when something good might happen."

For several years Linda Marie Grenier has been performing regularly in the Lanark County and Ottawa area. Linda Marie is a powerful singer who has become an accomplished songwriter with three CDs to prove it. Her songs range from light-hearted road music (“Driving” and “50 Bucks”) all the way to the torchy, evocative “Moonlight” and “Let It Go”. 

Linda Marie performed at our grand opening and her CDs are available in the shop.

More information on Linda Marie and her various band combinations is at www.lindagrenier.com