Tina’s report: “It was a long and intensive job getting the ‘good ship Max’ out of dry dock and ready to sail into and new term!”
This summer we tackled all kinds of work. After the term-end events (our Industry Event & Graduation in May) those studios that were crammed with furniture to make spaces for graduate exhibits, had to be unloaded and the classrooms put in order again, and those studios stripped of all visual aides to be used as exhibit spaces for had to be reassembled !
Studio drapery was carted off to the laundry. MTM’s Handyman, Chris Babarik, was called in to repair easels and horses, down size drawing boards and do other general repairs. It was time to clean the walls, dispose of a half ton of used paper. Just as we worked to improve our curriculum over the summer, we used the weeks after workshops ended to make improvements
I enjoy finding solutions, so having a team of student assistants really helped with everything from putting up an extra shelf here and there, to installing extra pencil sharpeners, to making more room for students to have lunch, to reorganizing one of the computer labs. It was wonderful to work with a crew of students were happy not only to get summer work, but also really enjoying improving the spaces they’ll be studying.
As we approach our 3rd anniversary at this location this December, I felt as though we finally are really moved in.
- There was that 12 hour Saturday when Jay Naidu helped me secure all the electrics in the animation studio so there’s no more mess with extension cords on the light tables. Yay!
- Jay also assisted Chris Babarik on weekends and found time to repaint a washroom. Jay is excited to begin year 2 of the Concept Art program. He also recently assisted Carla Drmay at our booth at the 2017 Toronto FanEXPO.
- Zander Aubrey, newly arrived from Georgia, USA and joining us as an Animation advanced standing student (year 2), also lent a hand painting. He even brought his own toolbox to help with some of the handyman work.
- Elizabeth (Lizzy) Carey, eager to begin her second year in Illustration for Sequential Arts, our comics and graphic novels program, put in the most hours! Always cheerful and ready to lend a hand. Lizzy also worked hard on giving the second floor lobby sofa a deep upholstery clean, a big job! Two coats of Scotch Guard followed. We hope the sofa stays clean for awhile.
- We progressed from cleaning the interior of the anatomy cupboards to cleaning the plaster casts and giving them a face lift (LOL!) with some spray paint. They’d had suffered all year, getting progressively grayer with Conte fingerprints.
- Not to forget returning 2nd year Animation student, Juan Fernandez, who was so busy hauling tables that he somehow evaded my camera. He assisted with all kinds of heavy lifting, plaster cast cleaning and showed up unexpectedly one Saturday when I was excavating an office all alone. I was especially happy to have his assistance that day!
The biggest bonus was that Lizzy and new roommate, year one student Christina Stellmacher, got the horse skeleton urethaned. This is our newest articulated animal skeleton. It was ‘raw’ last year. When Kris Manser-Hart, Concept Art Program graduate, finished the painstaking task of its 3 year assembly, we were delighted to get to finally use it as part of the Animal Drawing course even though it lacked a protective varnish, which it now has.
After Christina and Lizzy completed the horse skeleton, Christina also gave some unarticulated human bones a protective varnish and then spray painted some new oil waste disposal bins.
On Thursday evening of our Orientation Week, I was still there tinkering like an elf on Christmas Eve, and decided to work from home the next, and final, day. After a trip to purchase their art supplies, Lizzy and Rebekah returned to Max the Mutt to do the final small jobs.
Down to the wire, yipes!
Now we’re all ready for the exciting new term to begin!
So many thanks to you all! We couldn’t have done all this important work without you!
You helped us get ready to welcome all the new and returning students, and we all owe you our sincere thanks!
Gratefully,
Tina
