Canadian Industrial Heritage Centre

Brantford, ON - The Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant and the City of Brantford are pleased to announce that Elora-Fergus based artist Jane Bowen, has been selecte...d to complete the City Hall Public Art Project. The artwork will be located on the indoor entranceway of Brantford’s new City Hall (60 Dalhousie St.,Brantford, ON), scheduled to open in 2021. Jane Bowen has exhibited throughout Ontario since her first solo exhibition in Elora, ON in 1989. In addition to exploring the unique characteristics the encaustic medium offers, she has also focused more recently on abstracts in oil and cold wax; assemblage continues to be a consistent area of her focus. Her evolving artwork draws on her surroundings and daily life, evoking thoughtful contemplation. The piece selected, Guardians and Guides, honours Brantford’s rich industrial heritage with the use of several pieces of colourful wood foundry moulds and related artifacts from Brantford's industrial heritage. It builds on that heritage by generating pride and resilience, and forges ahead conveying a vision of vibrancy. Reflecting eras of socio-economic shifts in Brantford’s diverse history, it encourages optimism and hope as a catalyst for further evolution. "It is a great honour to have my concept 'Guardians & Guides' selected as the latest edition to Brantford's public art collection. I'm thrilled to have this opportunity to contribute to Brantford's cultural heritage," says artist Jane Bowen. The project’s origin was inspired by local Brantford historian Rob Adlam, who houses many pieces of colourful wood foundry moulds and related artifacts from Brantford's industrial heritage on behalf of the Canadian Industrial Heritage Centre. The Canadian Industrial Heritage Centre will donate these historical pieces to become part of this public art piece in Brantford’s new City Hall. Adlam will also donate a small number of relevant pieces from his personal collection for inclusion in the piece. The piece will represent a significant part of our history particularly, the industry that provided the basis and funds for many local organizations Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant included. The local connection to Glenhyrst and the Samuel W. Stedman Foundation (who is a funding partner) of course cannot be ignored. Samuel W. Stedman was married to Jesse Cockshutt, grand-daughter of Ignatious Cockshutt of Cockshutt Plow Company fame and nephew by marriage to Edmund Cockshutt, owner and donor of the Glenhyrst property to the City of Brantford. The long standing relationship with the Stedman and Cockshutt family allows us to further expand our footprint in the community and continue the desire of Glenhyrst’s donor, Edmund Cockshutt, to keep arts and culture alive in Brantford. Bowen’s work was unanimously selected by a jury consisting of 5 voting community members and 5 advisors. Nine artists submitted their work for consideration and the jury narrowed their decision down to three submissions on May 19, 2020. The artists were given an opportunity to provide more detail about their designs and resubmit, and the jury made its final decision on June 30, 2020. We are thrilled with the selection of Jane’s work, and look forward to welcoming a new piece of public art downtown that speaks about our heritage says Ana Olson, Gallery Director at Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant. Creation of the artwork begins shortly with installation slated for April 2021. This project is kindly supported by the Samuel W. Stedman Foundation and the City of Brantford's Public Art Reserve.

Below is a survey from the city of Brantford about the future of the 2 former rail bridges over the grand river which are now pedestrian crossings. It takes 2 m...inutes to complete but could help save those bridges, as it appears one possible plan is to tear them down and replace with a single pedestrian bridge. https://www.brantford.ca//your-government/three-grand-rive#

Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, in partnership with the City of Brantford, is seeking Artists and Artist-Led Teams to submit proposals to create a permanent pie...ce of public art for the new City Hall (58-70 Dalhousie Street, Brantford). This piece will represent a significant part of Brantford’s history; artists are asked to prepare proposals that incorporate colourful wood foundry moulds and industrial heritage related artifacts, donated by the Canadian Industrial Heritage Centre and local historian, Rob Adlam. These moulds were used to form foundry sand to create various parts where molten iron is poured into the impressions. They were created by skilled tradespeople and the design and detail of their craft was the foundation of the successful manufacturing enterprises that propelled early industrial Brantford to international prominence. The successful work will incorporate the following themes: Brantford’s strong industrial heritage, and Brantford’s evolution into a diverse and vibrant city. The final award for the piece is $45,000 (including HST, if applicable). Submissions are due on Thursday, April 30 at 5:00pm (EST). For more information about this Call for Artists, please visit the Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant website.

Started work on the Murray Mills archive two weeks ago. I came across these gems in some of the thousands of pictures to sort and file. This would make clearing... out the driveway a comfortable job! I'm told by a former employee that they used this unit to clear the yard at the Brantford plant back in the day. Also, someone's view of the future of harvesting. See more