art

Saturday May 18, 2024

The recent announcement that Loblaw Companies Ltd. and other major retailers are ready to sign on to Canada's grocery code of conduct is being presented as a significant step toward fairer practices within the grocery supply chain. However, this development is unlikely to bring about the substantial changes needed to address the deeper issues affecting the industry and consumers.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday May 18, 2024

*Watch the animated version here!

The Grocery Code of Conduct is a Well-Intentioned But Ultimately Ineffective Measure

August 2, 2023

Voluntary codes of conduct, by their nature, often lack the necessary enforcement mechanisms to drive meaningful change. Similar initiatives in other sectors, such as the Air Passenger Bill of Rights, have shown that without mandatory compliance and stringent enforcement, these measures tend to fall short of their promises. The grocery code, which aims to regulate retailer-supplier relations, risks becoming another well-intentioned but ineffective gesture if not properly enforced.

A critical misconception is that this code will help lower grocery prices. The code focuses on improving fairness and transparency between suppliers and retailers, addressing issues like dispute resolution and contractual clarity. While these are important objectives, they do not directly influence consumer prices. High food prices are primarily driven by broader economic factors such as inflation, currency devaluation, and global supply chain disruptions. Expecting the grocery code to mitigate these complex issues is unrealistic and misguides public expectations.

News: Loblaw agrees to sign grocery code of conduct — but only if competitors do

March 8, 2023

High food prices in Canada reflect larger systemic problems, including inflation, government spending, and global economic pressures, which have led to increased costs across various sectors. The grocery code addresses only a small part of these broader issues and is unlikely to significantly impact consumer purchasing power. The direct beneficiaries of the code are industry players who will see improved business operations and potentially reduced inefficiencies, rather than consumers experiencing lower prices.

For meaningful change, a comprehensive approach is needed to tackle the root causes of high prices. This includes addressing inflation, enhancing supply chain resilience, and implementing regulatory measures with real enforcement power. A mandatory code with clear penalties for non-compliance would serve as a stronger deterrent against unfair practices. Additionally, broader economic policies that enhance productivity and stabilize the currency would have a more profound impact on consumer prices.

While the grocery code of conduct is a step toward improving industry practices, it is not sufficient to address the underlying economic challenges driving high prices. To truly protect consumers and achieve lower prices, more robust and comprehensive solutions are required. (AI)

Friday November 17, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday November 17, 2017

Da Vinci painting sells for $450 million, shattering auction records

After 19 minutes of dueling, with four bidders on the telephone and one in the room, Leonardo da Vinci’s “Salvator Mundi” sold Wednesday night for $450.3 million U.S., or $575 million Canadian, with fees, shattering the high for any work of art sold at auction. It far surpassed Picasso’s “Women of Algiers,” which fetched $179.4 million (U.S.) at Christie’s in May 2015.

August 25, 2012

The buyer was not immediately disclosed.

There were gasps throughout the sale, as the bids climbed by 10s up to $225 million, then by 5s up to $260 million, then by 2s. As the bidding slowed, and a buyer pondered the next multimillion-dollar increment, Jussi Pylkkanen, the auctioneer, said, “It’s a historic moment: We’ll wait.”

There were two big jumps toward the end to shake off the competition by Alex Rotter, Christie’s chairman of postwar and contemporary art for the Americas, who represented a buyer on the phone.

The price is all the more remarkable at a time when the old masters market is contracting, because of limited supply and collectors’ penchant for contemporary art.

And to critics, the astronomical sale attests to something else — the degree to which salesmanship has come to drive and dominate the conversation about art and its value. Some art experts pointed to the painting’s damaged condition and its questionable authenticity. (Source: Toronto Star) 

 

SaveSave

Saturday July 8, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday July 8, 2017

Tom Thomson on the 100th anniversary of his death

On a rocky, windswept point jutting into Canoe Lake, up a little trail in a sunny clearing, a modest cairn stands next to a gaudy totem pole. One hundred years ago, a troop of artists and admirers, led by the Group of Seven’s J.E.H. Macdonald, paddled to this very point to erect the memorial to their dead friend, the “artist, woodsman and guide,” Tom Thomson.

He lived humbly but passionately with the wild. It made him brother to all untamed things of nature. It drew him apart and revealed itself wonderfully to him. It sent him out from the woods only to show these revelations through his art. And it took him to itself at last. — Excerpt from the inscription on the Tom Thomson Memorial Cairn on Canoe Lake

It was here in Algonquin Provincial Park where Thomson found himself as an artist, setting out with his cedarstrip canoe and paint kit to collect inspiration for masterpieces such as “The Jack Pine <https://www.aci-iac.ca/tom-thomson/key-works/the-jack-pine>” on protracted backcountry sketching trips he began taking in 1912.

And it was here, at Hayhurst Point, where Thomson most loved to pitch his canvas tent, with the wind keeping off the bugs and the cool, murky water shimmering below; then, at night, the lights of the now-abandoned town of Mowat sparkling across the lake; a beer and warm bed and body only a short paddle away.

And it was here, too, on Canoe Lake where Thomson’s bloated corpse was found on July 17, 1917. He had set out on a solo fishing trip eight days prior on July 8 — 100 years ago today. He was only 39. (Continued: Toronto Star) 

 

Saturday, August 16, 2014

Saturday, August 16, 2014Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday, August 16, 2014

His job: Tagging the taggers

Terick Mastroianni is halfway through the Grand Graffiti Tour of Hamilton.

He’s a seriously snap-happy “tourist,” committed to photographing as much illegal artwork on city-owned property as possible.

No ward is too rural. No alley too dark. No hastily scrawled “tag” too small.

“You don’t realize how much graffiti is actually out there until you start looking,” said the city summer student, who admitted he was skeptical about the gig before his “graffiti-mobile” sedan got rolling in early July. “Now I think it’s lucky that I enjoy driving so much.”

By September, the 20-year-old will have documented graffiti in every ward in the city, logging pictures, sites and descriptions on a master cleanup list for public works crews.

Mastroianni is just one new weapon the city is busting out this summer from a growing anti-aerosol arsenal: It’s also fighting back with bylaw blitzes, police crackdowns, tree-planting — and even more paint, in the form of “positive” graffiti and murals.

The flurry of activity was spurred by a $30,000 “graffiti audit” last year that staff have used to create a new strategy to battle the freelance painting problem, said clean and green program co-ordinator Phil Homerski.

That audit by B.C.-based MGM Management identified 50 of the most “intense” graffiti problem areas in the old city — the majority in wards 2 and 3, particularly in neighbourhoods around the Pan Am precinct.

It also showed 10 prolific taggers are responsible for close to 30 per cent of all identifiable tags.

Despite the audit, it’s hard to quantify how bad graffiti really is in Hamilton.

Hamilton police say reported graffiti incidents have dropped between 2009 and 2013. Between January and May this year, they’ve responded to 46 graffiti reports compared to 70 during the same time period last year. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

mackaycartoons-graffitYo! A special shout out to my hommeys (hommies?) at Graffiticreator.net and their wicked graffiti generator which made the awesome graffiti in today’s cartoon a possibility.

 

Thursday July 31, 2014

Thursday July 31, 2014Illustration by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Story by Bill Dunphy, Thursday July 31, 2014

Hamilton airport strikes a sour note with city musicians

An appeal for musicians to play free concerts at the John C. Munro International Airport terminal during “customer appreciation days” next month has left some city musicians feeling underappreciated.

Michael Keire, a Hamilton musician and owner of Threshold Recording Studio, received the invitation last week.

“I wanted to reach out because we are looking for some local talent to perform at an upcoming Passenger Appreciation event,” the emailed invitation read. “I was wondering if you might be willing to pass it along to any clients or colleagues you think could be interested in participating …” it continued.

It was only when Keire read the attachment, titled “Performance Opportunity,” that he realized the airport was looking for musicians to perform for free, on the grounds that they would benefit from “the exposure.”

Artists seeking to grab one of 15 slots spread over five days are required to bring their own equipment and instruments and play sets ranging from 45 to 90 minutes long.

“Monetary compensation will not be provided for performers,” the invitation read.

His immediate reaction was swift and angry — he contacted the airport and received a simple apology, saying they only sought to showcase Hamilton’s homegrown talent.

Keire posted the exchange on social media and the reaction there was also swift and angry.

One musician pointed out that “This is CANADA!!! We can die from exposure here.”

Another noted that the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas features a Music in the Air program with five stages showcasing the city of Austin’s considerable talent — and all performers are paid.

In an interview, Keire said the airport marketers were seeking to cash in on the city’s growing musical reputation.

“They’re kind of playing on the back of the branding the city has been working on — only they don’t want to pay for it.”

Keire dismisses the “talent showcase” benefit as “ridiculous. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)