Community Roots February 2019

This collaborative community artwork was created to celebrate the life and art of Pickering-born Canadian artist Tom Thomson (1877-1917). Started in Canada’s sesquicentennial year of 2017, this work commemorates the 140th anniversary of the artist’s birth.

Thomson, born in Claremont, is an iconic and influential Canadian artist, an inspiration for the Group of Seven. With family visits to the terrains of Pickering and immersing himself in nature, Tom formed a love for art, nature, music, and storytelling, creating a distinct approach to the painting of Canada’s landscapes.

The artwork celebrates the artist’s early roots and the community he came from. The work consists of a collection of boxes or parcels that represent the land, families, traditions, and memories which help form life-long passions. The final piece sits on a field of red. Red represents the colour of Canadian pride and celebrates the style of Tom Thomson whose paintings were often built upon a red base.

During implementation, Pickering residents contributed personal objects that were a reflection of family. A record of each object is available online in Pickering’s public art inventory.

pickering.ca/culture

Name Age My object is…. My object is about….

Ava 7 A picture frame This is about my and my family

Angelica 8 A coffee cup I come from Italy and in Italy a lot of people love coffee in Italy!

Gianluigi 6 A plate This plate is used for a coffee cup from Italy.

Soraya 8 A flower Canada has lots of beautiful flowers.

Lukas 8 Bamboo Bamboo because I love pandas and I saw pandas.

Payton 8 A log When I went to Mexico.

Ryan 8 Stained glass Animal and nature

Samantha 12 A picture frame My family

Manu 9 A cat A pet being my family and that cats say meow

Natalie 7 Birdie/Shuttlecock Badminton is one of my favorite sports

Michelle 7 A baby toy It reminds me about babies

Amelia 7 Wallet & watch My love for shopping

Davianna 6 A snowplow The snowplow reminds me of the snow. We get wet and I love making snowmen.

Jada 6 Bumblebee This object reminds me of being outside and I love playing outside with my sister

Sophia 5 A bird feeder It represents my family, and so everyone can see it.

Kennedy 7 A hockey stick Because I play hockey

Breanna 7 A necklace My Grandma’s jewelry

Milos 6 A mask I chose this mask because it reminds me of my favorite superhero Batman

Liane 10 A sewing thread role I love to make stuff and with sewing I can be creative, have fun and make my own style!

Serena 10 Hearts Friendship

Isabelle 6 A rubber pig I chose this item because I like pigs and I think they are cute

Wyatt 6 A bird feeder I bought it because it represents Canada with the Canada tattoo

Mikayla 6 A dragonfly ring I saw lots of dragonflies while I was camping

Serena 7 A shell My family and how we love the beach

Veronika 6 Camera I like pictures

Serena 5 A watch I chose it because I like it and it is my favorite colour

Jacob 10 A calculator Math

Sierra 10 A picture frame I can put my picture in it

Jake 6 An Indigenous Badge My family

Lilly 11 A pretty bench This bench represents my family cause we like to go to the Pickering waterfront and sit on the bench and watch the water

Zoe 5 A tin shaped like a heart Because you like hearts and it represents my family

Kya 10 A butterfly Nature and stuff that fly

Alyssa 12 A tiger made out of a frame and some circles

A tiger because they are my favorite animal and is like a puzzle to put together and I love puzzles

Alea 11 Puzzles pieces All my brothers and sister

Simone 10 A butterfly I chose this item because where I grew up there were a lot of butterflies

Saphiyah 9 A jumping rope Jumping because I like to jump rope

Magdalena 12 A pig The fact I like pigs and I guess there are a lot of pigs in Africa

Leah 8 A tiny teapot My object is special because it is cool

Arianna 9 Glued up rocks How I like to collect rocks

Moss 8 A frame Because I love my family

Hailey 10 A picture frame with a picture I chose it because it reminds me of my home because there is pictures everywhere

Hannah 6 The letter BB is for my family name. I love it for my family with a palm tree because we love the beach because we love to be outside and a sparkle sticker for every member of my family

Alyssa 8 A rock My rock is like akrabe

Adam 7 Wood pieces & a picture frame

I picked these objects because I thought it would look cool together

Linda 55 Crochet DoileyMemory of my Grandmother who was French Canadian. She knitted and crocheted for her family all the time. We still cherish these items

Debbie 58 #58 Household creativity

Joyce 80 Tonka Truck

My 2 boys played with Tonka Trucks like this all the time. They loved the machine (the scooper) especially playing in my flower beds! Their names are Dan and Bruce. Occasionally they let their sister Betsy play with them.

Norma Over 70 Iron

I remember when I was a child about 10 years old living in Jamaica. I used this iron heated on a wood stove. Then I cleaned with a cloth and then I pressed the clothes on a home-made iron boards made of cedar board wrapped in sheet cloth.

Mary 78 Cobbler’s shoe form Memories of my father resoling our shoes, adding heel and toetaps to make our shoes last longer (1950’s) in Toronto.

Indra Mincing Mill I had one years ago

Patsy 64 Coral Geography. These are fossils. We were taught when I went to school in Jamaica. It takes years to grow back.

Maddi Telephone, address Phone just crashed. Lost everything.

Chris 71 Shaving Brush My Father using this in England - until 2000 from age 16 - 136 - 2000

Cynthia 72 Tread I like to sew

Kay 72 Measuring spoons My Mother’s teaching me to bake Brownie Fly-ups.

Nadia 55+ Seashells of lifeSeashells collected on every beach I have visited over my life time. Every time I see one, I am transported in memory to that particular part of the world where I spent time.

Anaa Rolling Pin Watching my mother baking most days for the family (pies, scones, pastries, wedding cakes and 3 tier cakes)

Mahnoor 17

Traditional hat and purse from Sindh, a Province in Pakistan mini prayer from Muslim faith.

The country of Pakistan and the Muslim faith

Mahnoor 17 A traditional jewelry piece Each one represents one of my siblings, biggest to smallest

Woodhouse Family

Shells/Antique yard stick/frame Our annual trip to the seashore

Miles 12 A double-lipped blacksmith’s spoon Pioneer Village. The earliest field trip memory I have

Sandy 38 A seashell

How the seashell resembles like something Hindu use while prayer. A seashell in our culture means wealth and prosperity. If you place any seashell in your house or room, it brings you luck. Also, when you put this object towards your car, you can hear some noise. It is beautiful and graceful sound that is very soothing. Also, it represents a God; Lakshmi

Alicia 39 A pipeMy Dad used to smoke a pipe. Secretly when he was not watching I would sneak into the cabinet where he kept it and smell it

Maureen 65 Wooden wool spindle The spindle represents the gathering of ladies spinning wool; a collective to spin/knit/weave clothing for WWII

Lynnam 35 A tea cup and horsesTea parties…..always spilling the tea! I love horses. The horses symbolize my little family and celebrating this year with a new baby

Nathan 14 3D printed City of Pickering Library logo

A few years ago, cutting edge technology. I was the first person to design and have my own design printed on the maker-bot printer

Record of personal objects contained in the artwork (as described by the participants).

Name Age My object is…. My object is about….

Ava 7 A picture frame This is about my and my family

Angelica 8 A coffee cup I come from Italy and in Italy a lot of people love coffee in Italy!

Gianluigi 6 A plate This plate is used for a coffee cup from Italy.

Soraya 8 A flower Canada has lots of beautiful flowers.

Lukas 8 Bamboo Bamboo because I love pandas and I saw pandas.

Payton 8 A log When I went to Mexico.

Ryan 8 Stained glass Animal and nature

Samantha 12 A picture frame My family

Manu 9 A cat A pet being my family and that cats say meow

Natalie 7 Birdie/Shuttlecock Badminton is one of my favorite sports

Michelle 7 A baby toy It reminds me about babies

Amelia 7 Wallet & watch My love for shopping

Davianna 6 A snowplow The snowplow reminds me of the snow. We get wet and I love making snowmen.

Jada 6 Bumblebee This object reminds me of being outside and I love playing outside with my sister

Sophia 5 A bird feeder It represents my family, and so everyone can see it.

Kennedy 7 A hockey stick Because I play hockey

Breanna 7 A necklace My Grandma’s jewelry

Milos 6 A mask I chose this mask because it reminds me of my favorite superhero Batman

Liane 10 A sewing thread role I love to make stuff and with sewing I can be creative, have fun and make my own style!

Serena 10 Hearts Friendship

Isabelle 6 A rubber pig I chose this item because I like pigs and I think they are cute

Wyatt 6 A bird feeder I bought it because it represents Canada with the Canada tattoo

Mikayla 6 A dragonfly ring I saw lots of dragonflies while I was camping

Serena 7 A shell My family and how we love the beach

Veronika 6 Camera I like pictures

Serena 5 A watch I chose it because I like it and it is my favorite colour

Jacob 10 A calculator Math

Sierra 10 A picture frame I can put my picture in it

Jake 6 An Indigenous Badge My family

Lilly 11 A pretty bench This bench represents my family cause we like to go to the Pickering waterfront and sit on the bench and watch the water

Zoe 5 A tin shaped like a heart Because you like hearts and it represents my family

Kya 10 A butterfly Nature and stuff that fly

Alyssa 12 A tiger made out of a frame and some circles

A tiger because they are my favorite animal and is like a puzzle to put together and I love puzzles

Alea 11 Puzzles pieces All my brothers and sister

Simone 10 A butterfly I chose this item because where I grew up there were a lot of butterflies

Saphiyah 9 A jumping rope Jumping because I like to jump rope

Magdalena 12 A pig The fact I like pigs and I guess there are a lot of pigs in Africa

Leah 8 A tiny teapot My object is special because it is cool

Arianna 9 Glued up rocks How I like to collect rocks

Moss 8 A frame Because I love my family

Hailey 10 A picture frame with a picture I chose it because it reminds me of my home because there is pictures everywhere

Hannah 6 The letter BB is for my family name. I love it for my family with a palm tree because we love the beach because we love to be outside and a sparkle sticker for every member of my family

Alyssa 8 A rock My rock is like akrabe

Adam 7 Wood pieces & a picture frame

I picked these objects because I thought it would look cool together

Linda 55 Crochet DoileyMemory of my Grandmother who was French Canadian. She knitted and crocheted for her family all the time. We still cherish these items

Debbie 58 #58 Household creativity

Joyce 80 Tonka Truck

My 2 boys played with Tonka Trucks like this all the time. They loved the machine (the scooper) especially playing in my flower beds! Their names are Dan and Bruce. Occasionally they let their sister Betsy play with them.

Norma Over 70 Iron

I remember when I was a child about 10 years old living in Jamaica. I used this iron heated on a wood stove. Then I cleaned with a cloth and then I pressed the clothes on a home-made iron boards made of cedar board wrapped in sheet cloth.

Mary 78 Cobbler’s shoe form Memories of my father resoling our shoes, adding heel and toetaps to make our shoes last longer (1950’s) in Toronto.

Indra Mincing Mill I had one years ago

Patsy 64 Coral Geography. These are fossils. We were taught when I went to school in Jamaica. It takes years to grow back.

Maddi Telephone, address Phone just crashed. Lost everything.

Chris 71 Shaving Brush My Father using this in England - until 2000 from age 16 - 136 - 2000

Cynthia 72 Tread I like to sew

Kay 72 Measuring spoons My Mother’s teaching me to bake Brownie Fly-ups.

Nadia 55+ Seashells of lifeSeashells collected on every beach I have visited over my life time. Every time I see one, I am transported in memory to that particular part of the world where I spent time.

Anaa Rolling Pin Watching my mother baking most days for the family (pies, scones, pastries, wedding cakes and 3 tier cakes)

Mahnoor 17

Traditional hat and purse from Sindh, a Province in Pakistan mini prayer from Muslim faith.

The country of Pakistan and the Muslim faith

Mahnoor 17 A traditional jewelry piece Each one represents one of my siblings, biggest to smallest

Woodhouse Family

Shells/Antique yard stick/frame Our annual trip to the seashore

Miles 12 A double-lipped blacksmith’s spoon Pioneer Village. The earliest field trip memory I have

Sandy 38 A seashell

How the seashell resembles like something Hindu use while prayer. A seashell in our culture means wealth and prosperity. If you place any seashell in your house or room, it brings you luck. Also, when you put this object towards your car, you can hear some noise. It is beautiful and graceful sound that is very soothing. Also, it represents a God; Lakshmi

Alicia 39 A pipeMy Dad used to smoke a pipe. Secretly when he was not watching I would sneak into the cabinet where he kept it and smell it

Maureen 65 Wooden wool spindle The spindle represents the gathering of ladies spinning wool; a collective to spin/knit/weave clothing for WWII

Lynnam 35 A tea cup and horsesTea parties…..always spilling the tea! I love horses. The horses symbolize my little family and celebrating this year with a new baby

Nathan 14 3D printed City of Pickering Library logo

A few years ago, cutting edge technology. I was the first person to design and have my own design printed on the maker-bot printer

Name Age My object is…. My object is about….

Ava 7 A picture frame This is about my and my family

Angelica 8 A coffee cup I come from Italy and in Italy a lot of people love coffee in Italy!

Gianluigi 6 A plate This plate is used for a coffee cup from Italy.

Soraya 8 A flower Canada has lots of beautiful flowers.

Lukas 8 Bamboo Bamboo because I love pandas and I saw pandas.

Payton 8 A log When I went to Mexico.

Ryan 8 Stained glass Animal and nature

Samantha 12 A picture frame My family

Manu 9 A cat A pet being my family and that cats say meow

Natalie 7 Birdie/Shuttlecock Badminton is one of my favorite sports

Michelle 7 A baby toy It reminds me about babies

Amelia 7 Wallet & watch My love for shopping

Davianna 6 A snowplow The snowplow reminds me of the snow. We get wet and I love making snowmen.

Jada 6 Bumblebee This object reminds me of being outside and I love playing outside with my sister

Sophia 5 A bird feeder It represents my family, and so everyone can see it.

Kennedy 7 A hockey stick Because I play hockey

Breanna 7 A necklace My Grandma’s jewelry

Milos 6 A mask I chose this mask because it reminds me of my favorite superhero Batman

Liane 10 A sewing thread role I love to make stuff and with sewing I can be creative, have fun and make my own style!

Serena 10 Hearts Friendship

Isabelle 6 A rubber pig I chose this item because I like pigs and I think they are cute

Wyatt 6 A bird feeder I bought it because it represents Canada with the Canada tattoo

Mikayla 6 A dragonfly ring I saw lots of dragonflies while I was camping

Serena 7 A shell My family and how we love the beach

Veronika 6 Camera I like pictures

Serena 5 A watch I chose it because I like it and it is my favorite colour

Jacob 10 A calculator Math

Sierra 10 A picture frame I can put my picture in it

Jake 6 An Indigenous Badge My family

Lilly 11 A pretty bench This bench represents my family cause we like to go to the Pickering waterfront and sit on the bench and watch the water

Zoe 5 A tin shaped like a heart Because you like hearts and it represents my family

Kya 10 A butterfly Nature and stuff that fly

Alyssa 12 A tiger made out of a frame and some circles

A tiger because they are my favorite animal and is like a puzzle to put together and I love puzzles

Alea 11 Puzzles pieces All my brothers and sister

Simone 10 A butterfly I chose this item because where I grew up there were a lot of butterflies

Saphiyah 9 A jumping rope Jumping because I like to jump rope

Magdalena 12 A pig The fact I like pigs and I guess there are a lot of pigs in Africa

Leah 8 A tiny teapot My object is special because it is cool

Arianna 9 Glued up rocks How I like to collect rocks

Moss 8 A frame Because I love my family

Hailey 10 A picture frame with a picture I chose it because it reminds me of my home because there is pictures everywhere

Hannah 6 The letter BB is for my family name. I love it for my family with a palm tree because we love the beach because we love to be outside and a sparkle sticker for every member of my family

Alyssa 8 A rock My rock is like akrabe

Adam 7 Wood pieces & a picture frame

I picked these objects because I thought it would look cool together

Linda 55 Crochet DoileyMemory of my Grandmother who was French Canadian. She knitted and crocheted for her family all the time. We still cherish these items

Debbie 58 #58 Household creativity

Joyce 80 Tonka Truck

My 2 boys played with Tonka Trucks like this all the time. They loved the machine (the scooper) especially playing in my flower beds! Their names are Dan and Bruce. Occasionally they let their sister Betsy play with them.

Norma Over 70 Iron

I remember when I was a child about 10 years old living in Jamaica. I used this iron heated on a wood stove. Then I cleaned with a cloth and then I pressed the clothes on a home-made iron boards made of cedar board wrapped in sheet cloth.

Mary 78 Cobbler’s shoe form Memories of my father resoling our shoes, adding heel and toetaps to make our shoes last longer (1950’s) in Toronto.

Indra Mincing Mill I had one years ago

Patsy 64 Coral Geography. These are fossils. We were taught when I went to school in Jamaica. It takes years to grow back.

Maddi Telephone, address Phone just crashed. Lost everything.

Chris 71 Shaving Brush My Father using this in England - until 2000 from age 16 - 136 - 2000

Cynthia 72 Tread I like to sew

Kay 72 Measuring spoons My Mother’s teaching me to bake Brownie Fly-ups.

Nadia 55+ Seashells of lifeSeashells collected on every beach I have visited over my life time. Every time I see one, I am transported in memory to that particular part of the world where I spent time.

Anaa Rolling Pin Watching my mother baking most days for the family (pies, scones, pastries, wedding cakes and 3 tier cakes)

Mahnoor 17

Traditional hat and purse from Sindh, a Province in Pakistan mini prayer from Muslim faith.

The country of Pakistan and the Muslim faith

Mahnoor 17 A traditional jewelry piece Each one represents one of my siblings, biggest to smallest

Woodhouse Family

Shells/Antique yard stick/frame Our annual trip to the seashore

Miles 12 A double-lipped blacksmith’s spoon Pioneer Village. The earliest field trip memory I have

Sandy 38 A seashell

How the seashell resembles like something Hindu use while prayer. A seashell in our culture means wealth and prosperity. If you place any seashell in your house or room, it brings you luck. Also, when you put this object towards your car, you can hear some noise. It is beautiful and graceful sound that is very soothing. Also, it represents a God; Lakshmi

Alicia 39 A pipeMy Dad used to smoke a pipe. Secretly when he was not watching I would sneak into the cabinet where he kept it and smell it

Maureen 65 Wooden wool spindle The spindle represents the gathering of ladies spinning wool; a collective to spin/knit/weave clothing for WWII

Lynnam 35 A tea cup and horsesTea parties…..always spilling the tea! I love horses. The horses symbolize my little family and celebrating this year with a new baby

Nathan 14 3D printed City of Pickering Library logo

A few years ago, cutting edge technology. I was the first person to design and have my own design printed on the maker-bot printer