United States
Happy Groundhog Day! Good luck, Wiarton Willie & Punxsutawney Phil! We all have those paintings where we wonder what was I thinking? However, this groundhog has supplied me with a lot of fun in blogs and in the studio. And when it was in the studio, there were visitors who adored it, especially if they were from the Wiarton, Ontario area. A bit of home.
Stephenville, Newfoundland was home to a United States Air Force Base in World War II. This was an enormous base, and the last stop before Europe. Although many of the hangers are now gone, there are still many buildings from this period remaining. Barracks and other buildings that housed soldiers are now transformed into lovely apartments and private homes. Creative uses have been found for some of the hangers that exist, but some, like in the photo above, are vacant and in limbo, awaiting the next entrepreneurial endeavor. I imagine there are a few people in town who would like to see these vacant shells torn down. I hope they remain up. I would love to see a creative use for these beautiful giants with the dramatic auras.
I spent some time photographing the outside of some of these Stephenville WWII buildings. They compliment the photos I have been privileged to take of the interior of the Small Arms Inspection Building in Mississauga, Ontario. During the second world war, over 40,000 women came from across Canada to work in the Lee Enfield Rifle plant there. The Lake View Legacy Project is committed to revitalizing this building as a creative centre with artist studios, theatres, exhibition space, brown field studies & more. Although it, too, sat in limbo, creativity , co-operation & collaboration has resulted in a promising & positive future for this WWII space in Mississauga.