CHANTALE RENEE

How did I get here? 

Well... it all started with a needle-felting kit from Amazon.com

Remember those cats from my 2016 animation challenge? They were real fun to make... so when the holidays rolled around and I had a bunch of left over wool, I decided to make some silly ornaments for a few friends of mine. 

Don't ask me how a vaginas came to mind... but they did and they were a hoot.

I dropped one off at my fri...

Halloween's the best time of year. 

For Friday the 13th, like every year, I just had to carve a pumpkin.

I searched for inspiration and fell upon Martha Stewart's Raven. Very cool idea.

I liked the cage, so I searched "cage pumpkin", which quickly turned into "Nicolas Cage Pumpkin." You should try it.

I ended up seeing a series of small gourds stuck in 'prison cells' and well, that was it.

I traced some spooky windows wit...

About a week ago, myself and 16 other artists signed up for a 3-day Molding & Casting workshop, offered by Festival Stop Motion Montréal.

The workshop was held at Sial in Laval, QC, where they ever-so generously supplied us with the space and materials we needed in order to experiment. If you're a stop-motion nerd like me, it was a serious candy store.

I jumped on this opportunity to improve my puppet m...

Breathe in... Spring is here. I guess it's been here for a week already?

Time for rain and sunshine to wash up that polluted wintertide, for it sure was a tough one.

The darkness, the bitter cold and my want for hibernation really took over this year.

I am thankful for my amazing partner, supportive friends and this wonderful project which kept me entertained during what seemed to be a dark time. Does it get easier?...

Is everyone feeling like they're dying too?

What a year it was! Full of dramatic entrances and exits, shocking tales and testing times. It's important to reflect on the year we've had though. It may have been a really bad one- but there have been worse ones, and the best ones? They're up next.

I love this comic by Drew Dernavich. He's a featured cartoonist in The New Yorker's December issue of Best Cartoons of 2016, which has n...

I love nature and solitude

In November, we seem to need quiet time. This year our little getaway was no exception.

Total tranquility in the middle of not much going on.

It's hard to disconnect from the frenzy of the big city.  And let go of your phone.

Everywhere I go, I grab a little piece of nature to take home with me. Don't know why... I have a thing for dried flowers... there is beauty in the death of a living thing....

October is a difficult month for me. It is one of my favourite months, but one that brings joy and sadness all at once... all the feels. It's funny how a time of year can make you feel, the same way, every year. 

This year, October also brought a lot of work and distractions my way, which I am thankful for. 

But of course, that meant very little time for this animation. 

October to me is colour, the Rocky...

September was a major moon month.

As the fall crept in over some intense full moons, it really felt like there was a shift in the universe. 

Toronto also got to experience the sensory voyage that was In/Future down at Ontario Place.

Amazing exhibits showcased works exploring time and space.

It couldn't have come at a better moment.

The inspiration for this month was vibrant.

Everything fell hand-in-hand for September's pla...

Oh, August. You HOT, HOT sun of a month.

Now don't get me wrong... The height of summer is pretty great- but if you're a gardener like me, and  it doesn't rain for days, you start to worry.

And then when it finally does, there's a giant sigh of relief.

For August's animation, I knew I wanted to animated things from a different angle. 

I looked into ordering a rostrum tripod online, but after doing a bit of...

I've probably mentioned this before, but I think hands are fascinating.

For some odd reason, they really inspire me, often. 

For July, I knew I wanted to build a shadow box. Of course the word shadow led to puppets!

Shadow puppets!! They just bring me back to being a kid. With flashlights, in tents or forts, it felt really cool when someone showed you how to make that 'shadow bunny'.

I began to trace a bunch of different...