Spencer Magazine Volume 3, Number 1

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Credits

C EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Therasa A. McLennan MANAGING EDITOR

Rose Marie Bresolin

CREATIVE DIRECTOR PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR SENIOR EDITOR STYLE EDITOR JEWELLERY EDITOR DESIGN EDITOR ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR MUSIC EDITOR LIFESTYLE EDITOR SPIRITS EDITORS HEALTH & BEAUTY EDITOR TRAVEL EDITOR GRAPHIC DESIGN EDITORIAL

Dan Walsh Jonathan Levy Steve Pryce Roger Lamoureux Analucia Beltran Chris Daly Joanne McLennan Steve Falusi Darren Dobson Blair Phillips, Davin De Kergommeaux Paola Ortiz Harlen Troost Vesuvius Bay Productions editor@spencermag.com

PUBLISHER & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Joseph Edward Schur

ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER CONTROLLER COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR SPECIAL EVENTS DIRECTOR SPECIAL EVENTS PHOTOGRAPHER SUBSCRIPTION & CIRCULATION MANAGER

Dev Ramsumair Hasnain Chhatriwala, CPA Marcia Reid Richard Emannuel Foltys Maggie Habieda Andrew Torres

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS, CORRESPONDENTS, EDITORS and PHOTOGRAPHERS

Hannah Alper, Vian Andrews, Will Bartlett, Analucia Beltran, Joey Benoliel, Greg Benz, Rose Marie Bresolin, Justin Brito, Camden, Steep Daniels, Darren Dobson, James Dow, Logan Ford, Sharon Hansen, Hozefa Hararwala, Maria Hatzis, Aaron Ignacio, Davin De Kergommeaux, Brittany Krystantos, Todd Monk, Scott Norsworthy, Estelle Ohayon, Paola Ortiz, Heidi von Palleske, Blair Phillips, Vasili Prangikos, Steve Pryce, Marcia Reid, Fanny Rice, Jadyn Rylee, Joseph Edward Schur, Harlen Troost, Stephen Wallis

©2022 SPENCER MAGAZINE LIMITED | All Rights Reserved

Spencer Magazine is published four times a year in print + "Limited Edition" Hardcover Issues Also published regularly online. ISSN 2563-5395 (Print) ISSN 2563-5409 (Online)

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

SPENCER welcomes your comments. Please send your "Letters to the Editor" to: Spencer Magazine Limited, 60 Atlantic Avenue, Suite 200, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M6K 1X9 or email us at: editor@spencermag.com The Publisher cannot be held responsible for loss of, or damage to, unsolicited material.

All materials for editorial consideration must include a self-addressed envelope and return postage.

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Publisher’s LETTER

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Get Grounded!

welve thousand, seven hundred and forty two kilometers. That's the diameter of our little blue planet, third from the sun: Earth. The word 'Earth' derives from the Germanic 'erde', meaning 'ground.'

Yes, the ground beneath our feet. What we walk on, run on, ride on and drive on every day. We spend so much time looking up to the sky, at the stars... and yet we seem to pay little attention to what's underneath our feet.

I've been thinking about that a lot lately. Not just about the ground, but being grounded. Beyond the gravitational aspect, what does it exactly mean?

For me, it's about the gratitude I have, for every moment that I spend with family, friends and colleagues. Appreciating simple pleasures, like great food, wine, the occasional cigar, art, and of course music! Spending more time listening than talking. Smiling more. Complaining less.

In this issue, Spencer's editorial focus features individuals I look up to and respect, who most certainly are grounded. Incredible, accomplished people like Ravi Narine, Glenn and David Dixon, Peter Triantos, Ron White, Roger Gingerich, Steep Daniels, Brigitte Shim, Max Jamali, Joey Benoliel and so many others!

Back to my opening, the diameter of Earth... rather small, yes? As the custodians of our planet, we should really try to treat her better. We could even try to treat each other better. We should all be a bit more grounded.

Eleanour Roosevelt was a brilliant person who I believe represented the best of being grounded. I encourage you to read the transcript of her speech, delivered on September 28, 1948 in Paris, France: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Page 22 right here in Spencer.

So, what does being "grounded" mean to you? Here are a few traits to consider, according to the magazine INC: 1) Being unshakeable; 2) Being reliable; 3) Possessing an unwavering moral compass; 4) Being humble; 5) Having a healthy self-esteem; 6) Not worrying about things beyond your control; 7) Standing up for what's right; 8) Not conforming just to make people like you; 9) Encouraging others to succeed.

I especially like numero nine. That's the philosophy of Spencer. And I really hope that it's yours, too.

By the way, I'm jumping out of a plane this coming September, to support Steep Daniels and his initiative to raise funds for SickKids Hospital.

Spencer is a proud sponsor. For the details, see page 90: WILL DRAKE JUMP? We'll see... Chubbs, you jump too.

We are Spencer, we are the World, and we're grounded.

Joseph Edward Schur Publisher & CEO joseph.schur@spencermag.com 13 Spencer

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Spencer Contents Spencer's World

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SPENCER SPOTLIGHT

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ELEANOUR ROOSEVELT

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RAVI H. NARINE

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THE DIXON BROTHERS

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THE FGI 2021 VISIONARY AWARDS GALA

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PETER TRIANTOS - YORKVILLE GRAND OPENING

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THE VANGUARD

Ray-Ban Smart Glasses; TOKK Magic Mirror; Facebook's new tech Hub in Toronto, Canada; HT Aero's Flying car set for 2024.

The Struggle for Human Rights. The full speech delivered on September 28th, 1948 in Paris, France.

Feature Cover Story: "Substance over Style."

by Rose Marie Bresolin Feature Interviews with Glenn and David Dixon.

By Joseph Edward Schur With Jeanne Beker, Hillary MacMillan, Tyrone Edwards, Leslie Hampton.

At Peter's Flagship Art Gallery, a milestone in his career as one of Canada's most important artists.

An extraordinary evening at The Carlu in Toronto, Canada. Celebrating Fashion and Art.

42 ON THE COVER RAVI H. NARINE, in front of An Te Liu's abstract bronze sculpture "Mixer" at the Park Hyatt luxury hotel in Yorkville, Toronto.

The enchanting pair of cast bronze figures stand 3.5 meters tall, truly monumental in scale.

Creative Directors: Dan Walsh and Joseph Edward Schur Photographer: Justin Brito Stylist: Dev Ramsumair Make-up: Paola Ortiz With Jonathan Levy & Richard Emmanuel

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Spencer Design

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DAVID DIXON

Canada's premier Shoe Designer.

By Joseph Edward Schur Feature interview with one of Canada's most important Fashion Designers. By Joseph Edward Schur

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ROGER GINGERICH

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FAMILY TREASURES

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JEWELLERY AWARDS

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STEEP DANIELS

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GLENN DIXON

An exclusive interview with the Architect, featuring the Point William Project. By Rose Marie Bresolin Feature interview with the Canadian Interior Designer.

By Joseph Edward Schur

Arts & Culture

Spencer Style 46

BRIGITTE SHIM

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46 RON WHITE

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MAX JAMALI

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THE END OF THE ART OLIGARCHY

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JOURNEY OF AN ARTIST SERIES

Taking luxury art to the max! Feature interview with this extraordinary artist. By Joseph Edward Schur And the democratization of the art market.

By Estelle Ohayan The "Manic Mannequin" mural story.

By Joseph Zambri.

Fashion + Film: The Canadian International Fashion Film Festival. By Harlen Troost The power of jewellery, passed down from generations to generation. By Analucia Beltran Anita Bhandari and Anita Agrawal collaborate to win three prestigious design awards.

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Caution Couture by 777OV: Toronto's most progressive street brand.

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Spencer Lifestyle 92

PICKING OLIVES UNDER THE SUN

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APATANIS OF ZIRO VALLEY

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THE FUTURE OF SUSTAINABLE BEAUTY

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On the steep slopes of west facing Appenine mountains in northeastern Umbria. By Vian Andrews

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The world's anthropological hotspot!

By Subhasish Chakraborty Environmental responsibility, increased effectiveness, and long-term health. By Paola Ortiz

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GV80 GENESIS DEBUT

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ASK CAPTAIN JOEY

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SPENCER RESOURCE DIRECTORY

CANADA'S BROWN SPIRITS IN THE SPOTLIGHT With Canadian Club 44 Years Old Chronicles, St-Roc Distillery Fondation Rum, Willibard Farm Distillery Barrel Gin, Alberta Distillers Ltd. Alberta Premium Whisky, and Newfoundland Distillery Gunpowder and Rose Rum.

By Blair Phillips and Davin De Kergommeaux

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New series for all your travel experiences... on the water and in the air. By Joey Benoliel

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Featuring the new luxurious Sport Utility Vehicle.

By Darren Dobson

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Spencer's

World

Spencer Spotlight, Eleanour Roosevelt's "The Struggle for Human Rights," Ravi H. Narine's Feature Cover Story, The Dixon Brothers, The FGI 2021 Visionary Awards Gala, Peter Triantos: Yorkville Gallery, The Vanguard

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Spencer Spotlight

"Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand."

Albert Einstein That's why at Spencer Magazine, we embrace the imagination... leading to new ideas, inventions, great products, design and so much more. We encourage creativity! Here's our curated collection of cool:

Ray-Ban SMART GLASSES Are you ready for Smart Glasses?

Capture, share and listen with Ray-Bans first generation of smart glasses.

Make yours Ray-Ban Stories, the latest in wearable tech. Our smart eyeglasses and smart sunglasses, with camera and audio, combine legendary Meta technology and iconic Ray-Ban style. With Ray-Ban X Meta glasses you can take photos and videos, listen to music and calls, and share content directly to your social media channels. Choose your Ray-Ban tech glasses from 3 timeless shapes and 20 frame and lens color combinations.

Featuring: Dual M5 camera; Touch Control; Audio; Charging Case; Facebook View App. Available in Wayfarer, Round and Meteor.

For more information: www.ray-ban.com

TOKK™ Magic Mirror The Magic Mirror TV is a futuristic home accent that transforms right before your eyes. This waterproof, fog-free mirror becomes a high definition display with access to all your favorite content at the touch of a button. It's simple to install in any room in your home, or even out by the pool, so you can watch what you want, where you want, without compromising the look of your space.

Learn more:: https://tokktech.com/tokk-mirror-tv/ 20 w w w. s p e n c e r- m a g a z i n e . c o m

Facebook’s Meta announces huge new tech hub in Toronto with plans for 2,500 jobs Get ready for Mark Zuckerberg’s ambitious vision to create an immersive digital realm in Toronto. Yes, that's right: the metaverse will be built right here in Ontario. Why, you may ask?!

Toronto is North America's third largest city for tech, for now.

Austin, Texas and Miami, Florida are in the lead but that could change, considering the incredible talent pool that we offer.

This is exciting news! Meta is really investing in Canadian talent to help build for the Metaverse.

“Canada is poised to play a key role in driving the next evolution in social technologies, so we plan to help establish the country as a global leader in this effort,” says the California-based company.

HT Aero touts flying car that can also operate on roads, with plans for 2024 rollout Coming soon to a road near you! Maybe the 401, or the DVP? We'll see.

HT Aero's vehicle will have a lightweight design and a rotor that folds away, the company said. That will allow the car to drive on roads and then fly once the rotors are expanded.

A flying sports car? Okay, it's about time!

How much you ask? Likely a bit more than a Lamborghini.

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Eleanor Roosevelt Standing up for humanity in a world of chaos

By Joseph Edward Schur

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Universal Declaration of Human Rights

his is really important to me. I encourage our readers, friends and colleagues to read Eleanor Roosevelt's address, delivered on September 28th, 1948 in Paris.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a milestone document in the history of human rights.

Drafted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world, the Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948 (General Assembly resolution 217 A) as a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations. It sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected and it has been translated into over 500 languages.

The UDHR is widely recognized as having inspired, and paved the way for, the adoption of more than seventy human rights treaties, applied today on a permanent basis at global and regional levels (all containing references to it in their preambles.I have come this evening to talk with you on one of the greatest issues of our time -- that is the preservation of human freedom.

As the Publisher of Spencer Magazine, I believe that I would be remiss in not reminding the people of Spencer's World, our world, how incredibly important this speech is, especially right now.

No colour pictures, no dreamy text. Just reality. Black and white. Eleanor Roosevelt was so ahead of her time, almost prophetic. It's alarming that today, in this century, we are potentially pushed backed to the stone ages...

Right?

It only takes one crazy person (guess who?!) to destroy our world, and all of Earth's creatures, great and small.

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SPENCER'S WORLD

Eleanor Roosevelt

in New York in the spring of 1948. The Economic and Social Council has sent it without recommendation to the General Assembly, together with other documents transmitted by the Human Rights Commission.

The Struggle for Human Rights Delivered on the 28th of September, 1948 in Paris, France

It was decided in our Commission that a Bill of Rights should contain two parts:

I have come this evening to talk with you on one of the greatest issues of our time -- that is the preservation of human freedom. I have chosen to discuss it here in France, at the Sorbonne, because here in this soil the roots of human freedom have long ago struck deep and here they have been richly nourished. It was here the Declaration of the Rights of Man was proclaimed, and the great slogans of the French Revolution -- liberty, equality, fraternity -- fired the imagination of men. I have chosen to discuss this issue in Europe because this has been the scene of the greatest historic battles between freedom and tyranny. I have chosen to discuss it in the early days of the General Assembly because the issue of human liberty is decisive for the settlement of outstanding political differences and for the future of the United Nations.

1. A Declaration which could be approved through action of the Member States of the United Nations in the General Assembly. This declaration would have great moral force, and would say to the peoples of the world "this is what we hope human rights may mean to all people in the years to come." We have put down here the rights that we consider basic for individual human beings the world over to have.

Without them, we feel that the full development of individual personality is impossible.

2. The second part of the bill, which the Human Rights Commission has not yet completed because of the lack of time, is a covenant which would be in the form of a treaty to be presented to the nations of the world. Each nation, as it is prepared to do so, would ratify this covenant and the covenant would then become binding on the nations which adhere to it. Each nation ratifying would then be obligated to change its laws wherever they did not conform to the points contained in the covenant.

The decisive importance of this issue was fully recognized by the founders of the United Nations at San Francisco. Concern for the preservation and promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms stands at the heart of the United Nations. Its Charter is distinguished by its preoccupation with the rights and welfare of individual men and women.

The United Nations has made it clear that it intends to uphold human rights and to protect the dignity of the human personality. In the preamble to the Charter the keynote is set when it declares: "We the people of the United Nations determined...to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and...to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom." This reflects the basic premise of the Charter that the peace and security of mankind are dependent on mutual respect for the rights and freedoms of all.

One of the purposes of the United Nations is declared in article 1 to be: "to achieve international cooperation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion."

This covenant, of course, would have to be a simpler document. It could not state aspirations, which we feel to be permissible in the Declaration. It could only state rights which could be assured by law and it must contain methods of implementation, and no state ratifying the covenant could be allowed to disregard it. The methods of implementation have not yet been agreed upon, nor have they been given adequate consideration by the Commission at any of its meetings. There certainly should be discussion on the entire question of this world Bill of Human Rights and there may be acceptance by this Assembly of the Declaration if they come to agreement on it. The acceptance of the Declaration, I think, should encourage every nation in the coming months to discuss its meaning with its people so that they will be better prepared to accept the covenant with a deeper understanding of the problems involved when that is presented, we hope, a year from now and, we hope, accepted.

This thought is repeated at several points and notably in articles 55 and 56 the Members pledge themselves to take joint and separate action in cooperation with the United Nations for the promotion of "universal respect for, and observance of, human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion."

The Declaration has come from the Human Rights Commission with unanimous acceptance except for four abstentions -- the U.S.S.R., Yugoslavia, Ukraine, and Byelorussia. The reason for this is a fundamental difference in the conception of human rights as they exist in these states and in certain other Member States in the United Nations.

The Human Rights Commission was given as its first and most important task the preparation of an International Bill of Rights. The General Assembly, which opened its third session here in Paris a few days ago, will have before it the first fruit of the Commission's labors in this task, that is the International Declaration of Human Rights.

In the discussion before the Assembly, I think it should be made crystal clear what these differences are and tonight I want to spend a little time making them clear to you. It seems to me there is a valid reason for taking the time today to think carefully and clearly on the subject of human rights, because in the acceptance and observance of these rights lies the root, I believe, of our chance of peace in the future, and for the strengthening of the United Nations organization to the point where it can maintain peace in the future.

The Declaration was finally completed after much work during the last session of the Human Rights Commission 23

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SPENCER'S WORLD the people to participate in the decision that the government should do this. A society in which everyone works is not necessarily a free society and may indeed be a slave society; on the other hand, a society in which there is widespread economic insecurity can turn freedom into a barren and vapid right for millions of people.

We must not be confused about what freedom is. Basic human rights are simple and easily understood: freedom of speech and a free press; freedom of religion and worship; freedom of assembly and the right of petition; the right of men to be secure in their homes and free from unreasonable search and seizure and from arbitrary arrest and punishment.

We in the United States have come to realize it means freedom to choose one’s job, to work or not to work as one desires. We, in the United States, have come to realize, however, that people have a right to demand that their government will not allow them to starve because as individuals they cannot find work of the kind they are accustomed to doing and this is a decision brought about by public opinion which came as a result of the great depression in which many people were out of work, but we would not consider in the United States that we had gained any freedom if we were compelled to follow a dictatorial assignment to work where and when we were told. The right of choice would seem to us an important, fundamental freedom.

We must not be deluded by the efforts of the forces of reaction to prostitute the great words of our free tradition and thereby to confuse the struggle. Democracy, freedom, human rights have come to have a definite meaning to the people of the world which we must not allow any nation to so change that they are made synonymous with suppression and dictatorship.

There are basic differences that show up even in the use of words between a democratic and a totalitarian country.

For instance "democracy" means one thing to the U.S.S.R. and another the U.S.A. and, I know, in France. I have served since the first meeting of the nuclear commission on the Human Rights Commission, and I think this point stands out clearly.

I have great sympathy with the Russian people. They love their country and have always defended it valiantly against invaders. They have been through a period of revolution, as a result of which they were for a time cut off from outside contact. They have not lost their resulting suspicion of other countries and the great difficulty is today that their government encourages this suspicion and seems to believe that force alone will bring them respect.

The U.S.S.R. Representatives assert that they already have achieved many things which we, in what they call the "bourgeois democracies" cannot achieve because their government controls the accomplishment of these things. Our government seems powerless to them because, in the last analysis, it is controlled by the people. They would not put it that way -- they would say that the people in the U.S.S.R. control their government by allowing their government to have certain absolute rights. We, on the other hand, feel that certain rights can never be granted to the government, but must be kept in the hands of the people.

We, in the democracies, believe in a kind of international respect and action which is reciprocal. We do not think others should treat us differently from the way they wish to be treated. It is interference in other countries that especially stirs up antagonism against the Soviet Government. If it wishes to feel secure in developing its economic and political theories within its territory, then it should grant to others that same security. We believe in the freedom of people to make their own mistakes. We do not interfere with them and they should not interfere with others.

For instance, the U.S.S.R. will assert that their press is free because the state makes it free by providing the machinery, the paper, and even the money for salaries for the people who work on the paper. They state that there is no control over what is printed in the various papers that they subsidize in this manner, such, for instance, as a trade-union paper. But what would happen if a paper were to print ideas which were critical of the basic policies and beliefs of the Communist government.? I am sure some good reason would be found for abolishing the paper.

The basic problem confronting the world today, as I said in the beginning, is the preservation of human freedom for the individual and consequently for the society of which he is a part. We are fighting this battle again today as it was fought at the time of the French Revolution and as the time of the American Revolution. The issue of human liberty is as decisive now as it was then. I want to give you my conception of what is meant in my country by freedom of the individual.

It is true that they have been many cases where newspapers in the U.S.S.R. have criticized officials and their actions and have been responsible for the removal of those officials, but in doing so they did not criticize anything which was fundamental to Communist beliefs. They simply criticized methods of doing things, so one must differentiate between things which are permissible, such as criticism of any individual or of the manner of doing things, and the criticism of a belief which would be considered vital to the acceptance of Communism.

Long ago in London during a discussion with Mr. Vyshinsky, he told me there was no such thing as freedom for the individual in the world. All freedom of the individual was conditioned by the rights of other individuals. That of course, I granted. I said: “We approach the question from a different point of view/ we here in the United Nations are trying to develop ideals which will be broader in outlook, which will consider first the rights of man, which will consider what makes man more free; not governments, but man."

I think the best example one can give of this basic difference of the use of terms is “the right to work.” The Soviet Union insists that this is a basic right which it alone can guarantee because it alone provides full employment by the government. But the right to work in the Soviet Union means the assignment of workers to do whatever task is given to them by the government without an opportunity for

The totalitarian state typically places the will of the people second to decrees promulgated by a few men at the top.

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Our trade-unions grow stronger because the people come to believe that this is the proper way to guarantee the rights of the workers and that the right to organize and to bargain collectively keeps the balance between the actual producer an the investor of money and the manage in industry who watches over the man who works with this hands and who produces the materials which are out tangible wealth.

Naturally there must always be consideration of the rights of others; but in a democracy this is not a restriction. Indeed, in our democracies we make our freedoms secure because each of us is expected to respect the rights of others and we are free to make our own laws. Freedom for our peoples is not only a right, but also a tool. Freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of information, freedom of assembly -- these are not just abstract ideals to us; they are tools with which we create a way of life, a way of life in which we can enjoy freedom.

In the United States we are old enough not to claim perfection. We recognize that we have some problems of discrimination but we find steady progress being made in the solution of these problems. Through normal democratic processes we are coming to understand our needs and how we can attain full equality for all our people.

Free discussion on the subject is permitted. Our Supreme Court has recently rendered decisions to clarify a number of our laws to guarantee the rights of all.

Sometimes the processes of democracy are slow, and I have known some of our leaders to say that a benevolent dictatorship would accomplish the ends desired in a much shorter time than it takes to go through the democratic processes of discussion and the slow formation of public opinion.

But there is no way of insuring that a dictatorship will remain benevolent or that power once in the hands of a few will be returned to the people without struggle or revolution. This we have learned by experience and we accept the slow processes of democracy because we know that shortcuts compromise principles on which no compromise is possible.

The U.S.S.R. claims it has reached a point where all races within her borders are officially considered equal and have equal rights and they insist that they have no discrimination where minorities are concerned.

The final expression of the opinion of the people with us is through free and honest elections, with valid choices on basic issues and candidates. The secret ballot is an essential to free elections but you must have a choice before you. I have heard my husband say many times that a people need never lose their freedom if they kept their right to a secret ballot and if they used that secret ballot to the full. Basic decisions of our society are made through the expressed will of the people.

That is why when we see these liberties threatened, instead of falling apart, our nation becomes unified and our democracies come together as a unified group in spite of our varied backgrounds and many racial strains.

This is a laudable objective but there are other aspects of the development of freedom for the individual which are essential before the mere absence of discrimination is worth much, and these are lacking in the Soviet Union. Unless they are being denied freedoms which they want and which they see other people have, people do not usually complain of discrimination. It is these other freedoms -- the basic freedoms of speech, of the press, of religion and conscience, of assembly, of fair trial and freedom from arbitrary arrest and punishment, which a totalitarian government cannot safely give its people and which give meaning to freedom from discrimination.

In the United States we have a capitalistic economy. That is because public opinion favors that type of economy under the conditions in which we live. But we have imposed certain restraints; for instance, we have antitrust laws. These are the legal evidence of the determination of the American people to maintain an economy of free competition and not to allow monopolies to take away the people’s freedom.

It is my belief, and I am sure it is also yours, that the struggle for democracy and freedom is a critical struggle, for their preservation is essential to the great objective of the United Nations to maintain international peace and security. Among free men the end cannot justify the means. We knowthe patterns of totalitarianism -- the single political party, the control of schools, press, radio, the arts, the sciences, 25 Spencer

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SPENCER'S WORLD whether to doubt their heritage of rights and therefore to compromise the principles by which they live, or try to accept the challenge, redouble their vigilance, and stand steadfast in the struggle to maintain and enlarge human freedoms.

and the church to support autocratic authority; these are the age-old patterns against which men have struggled for three thousand years. These are the signs of reaction, retreat, and retrogression. The United Nations must hold fast to the heritage of freedom won by the struggle of its people; it must help us to pass it on to generations to come.

People who continue to be denied the respect to which they are entitled as human beings will not acquiesce forever in such denial.

The development of the ideal of freedom and its translation into the everyday life of the people in great areas of the earth is the product of the efforts of many peoples. It is the fruit of a long tradition of vigorous thinking and courageous action. No one race and on one people can claim to have done all the work to achieve greater dignity for human beings and great freedom to develop human personality. In each generation and in each country there must be a continuation of the struggle and new steps forward must be taken since this is preeminently a field in which to stand still is to retreat.

The Charter of the United Nations is a guiding beacon along the way to the achievement of human rights and fundamental freedoms throughout the world. The immediate test is not only to the extent to which human rights and freedoms have already been achieved, but the direction in which the world is moving. Is there a faithful compliance with the objectives of the Charter if some countries continue to curtail human rights and freedoms instead of to promote the universal respect for an observance of human rights and freedoms for all as called for by the Charter?

The field of human rights is not one in which compromise on fundamental principles are possible. The work of the Commission on Human Rights is illustrative. The Declaration of Human Rights provides: “Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own.” The Soviet Representative said he would agree to this right if a single phrase was added to it -- ”in accordance with the procedure laid down in the laws of that country.” It is obvious that to accept this would be not only to compromise but to nullify the right stated. This case forcefully illustrates the importance of the proposition that we must ever be alert not to compromise fundamental human rights merely for the sake of reaching unanimity and thus lose them.

The place to discuss the issue of human rights is in the forum of the United Nations. The United Nations has been set up as the common meeting ground for nations, where we can consider together our mutual problems and take advantage of our differences in experience. It is inherent in our firm attachment to democracy and freedom that we stand always ready to use the fundamental democratic procedures of honest discussion and negotiation. It is now as always our hope that despite the wide differences in approach we face in the world today, we can with mutual good faith in the principles of the united Nations Charter, arrive at a common basis of understanding.

As I see it, it is not going to be easy to attain unanimity with respect to our different concepts of government and human rights. The struggle is bound to be difficult and one in which we must be firm but patient. If we adhere faithfully to our principles I think it is possible for us to maintain freedom and to do so peacefully and without recourse to force.

We are here to join the meetings of this great international Assembly which meets in your beautiful capital of Paris. Freedom for the individual is an inseparable part of the cherished traditions of France. As one of the Delegates from the United States, I pray Almighty God that we may win another victory here for the rights and freedoms of all men.

The future must see the broadening of human rights throughout the world. People who have glimpsed freedom will never be content until they have secured it for themselves.

In a truest sense, human rights are a fundamental object of law and government in a just society. Human rights exist to the degree that they are respected by people in relations with each other and by governments in relations with their citizens.

The world at large is aware of the tragic consequences for human beings ruled by totalitarian systems. If we examine Hitler’s rise to power, we see how the chains are forged which keep the individual a slave and we cans e many similarities in the way things are accomplished in other countries. Politically men must be free to discuss and to arrive at as many facts as possible and there must beat least a two-party system in a country because when there is only one political party, too many things can be subordinated to the interests of that one party and it becomes a tyrant and not an instrument of democratic government.

Eleanor Roosevelt, (born October 11, 1884, New York, New York, U.S.—died November 7, 1962, New York City, New York), American first lady (1933–45), the wife of Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd president of the United States, and a United Nations diplomat and humanitarian. She was, in her time, one of the world’s most widely admired and powerful women.

The propaganda we have witnessed in the recent past, like that we perceive in these days, seeks to impugn, to undermine, and to destroy the liberty and independence of peoples. Such propaganda poses to all peoples the issue 26 w w w. s p e n c e r- m a g a z i n e . c o m

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Photo Credit: Justin Brito

RAVI NARINE: SPENCER COVER FEATURE Spencer Cover Feature

RAVI H. NARINE

substance over style:

RAVI NARINE His friends perceive him as a Robin Hood of business, and he shares, “Why wouldn’t I help someone I know who’s motivated and deserving when the opportunity presents? Especially when the connection can benefit both parties.”

By Rose Marie Bresolin

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and companies make the connections that they need.

But we’ll get to that later. Let’s talk about what attracted you to fashion in the first place.

n first meeting Ravi, one immediately gets a sense of his strong presence. At home with the attention he attracts, I was happy when the opportunity presented itself to interview him for Spencer. We arranged to meet up at One Restaurant in Yorkville.

Ravi: I have always been very interested in fashion and the luxury lifestyle space. During my teenage years, I started asking myself, how can I curate someone’s lifestyle? How can I get you out at the hottest events, tell you what the best styles are to wear or the type of sports car to drive? At that time, I wasn’t connected to that space, so these questions couldn’t be easily answered, but I had that vision from early on. If you want to become a doctor or a lawyer, there is a path for you to follow. If you want to get into the luxury lifestyle space, there isn’t necessarily an established path to guide you, so as I got closer to graduating high school, I figured that going into marketing was the best way to build that foundation.

Rose Marie: Ravi, in the times we’ve run across one another at fashion events, what stands out most is your sense of style and unwavering confidence but yet there is a humility you have about yourself. You also show a genuine interest in the person you introduce yourself to which is impressive. I’m aware that you work in the lifestyle field and a big part of your role is business development and strategic partnerships. I’ve since learned that you also have launched a consulting company – 10Eleven Consulting Firm - that’s primarily focused on the luxury fashion industry to help individuals

Opposite: Ravi is very much at home along the stretch of Bloor Street in Toronto, referred to as The Mink Mile.

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SPENCER'S WORLD Post high school - I studied marketing and advertising and over the course of my career, I have been fortunate to collaborate with major luxury brands. Where I always excelled was on the creative side of things. I still remember one of my major assignments was to create a clothing line – including the marketing strategy, brand name, product categories, price-point, etc. I had a demographic in mind in terms of a target audience to reach and how I would market it to that group. I had a friend who was an artist, and he did the sketches and the renderings of all the pieces for me, which was really great because it provided the visuals and gave the audience the look and feel for the brand.

While I did events for the entire store, most of my time was spent working with the high-end cosmetics and fragrance brands. I worked with the respective brand managers to organize and execute their events. It really gave me great exposure at the time. It sounds glamorous but it really wasn't (laughs). What it proved to be was a great opportunity for me to learn and see firsthand how important it was to be part of a team, building strong relationships and I worked hard at it.

What did you specifically do in the work-up to an event in that role?

Did either of you sew?

No, not at all. As a matter of fact, I didn’t do any of the technical type of stuff.

Did you realize how different that was?

Back then, no. Now, yes – because I work with designers all the time, so I know what they do and what goes into it on the back end.

You were designing without actually putting pieces of fabric together. I would think that’s harder to do.

The way I looked at it was that I was creating the concept… the vision for the brand. I wasn’t sewing, measuring, and cutting but I knew fashion, fabrics and what looks good and the brand positioning that would resonate with consumers. Now you see major brands appointing celebrities with no design background as creative directors because of their artistic vision.

Impressive. To go back to your notion of curating, you’re looking at how you can do that for individuals in real time, and I’m thinking how this story might curate a path for young people interested in following your tracks. Because, while the questions you had weren’t easy to get answers to when you first started on your path, you now have an opportunity to provide a platform where you can speak about your experiences and it just might be the ‘lightbulb’ moment for someone who wants to get into the industry, looking for direction and how they might get started.

In my final semester of college, one of the requirements was to secure an internship in my field of study. During that period, I was working part-time at a well-known department store and while they didn’t have a specific role available, the manager, who knew how I worked, gave me an opportunity to do my internship there. Shortly after I graduated, the position for a Special Events Coordinator became open and it was offered to me. So that was my first official full-time role in my career. I think they must have been observing me and saw something in the way I worked, because there were certainly people more seasoned than me for the role at that particular time.

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RAVI NARINE: SPENCER COVER FEATURE My role was to work with the brand managers on planning and organizing the event concept and details, coordinate physical logistics, work with the merchandising teams when necessary and also to promote the event to clients. Like I said previously, it wasn’t the most glamourous role, but I was given a lot of creative freedom in this role. As I’ve progressed in my career, that’s become one of the most important elements for me – to have a certain degree of control in terms of how I get my work done including planning and execution. Obviously, there are guidelines I have to work within, but for the most part I’ve been fortunate to have that flexibility to really

get creative and add my own spin on things. I think that you really need to live and breathe this space to fully understand how to be successful within it. An accountant knows how to manipulate numbers. A journalist knows how to put the right spin on a story. For me, I know how to successfully curate luxury partnerships and experiences.

Tell us what that means precisely, and how it plays out.

Firstly, this industry is not 9-5, so if you approach it like that, you’re already on your heels trying to keep up. Secondly, you always need to have a pulse on what’s new and

“If you want to become a doctor or a lawyer, there is a path for you to follow. If you want to get into the luxury lifestyle space, there isn’t necessarily an established path to guide you.”

Photo Credit: Justin Brito

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SPENCER'S WORLD

“An accountant knows how to manipulate numbers.

A journalist knows how to put the right spin on a story.

For me, I know how to successfully curate luxury partnerships and experiences.”

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Photo Credit: Justin Brito

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Photo Credit: Justin Brito

RAVI NARINE: SPENCER COVER FEATURE hot to determine what type of partnerships would be most impactful. From there, I would then layer in elements that would truly elevate the experience. I understand the luxury clientele base in the Canadian market and what resonates with this group. The standards are high and there is a level of expectation that must be met. I take great pride in my work, so I always want to ensure that anything that my name is attached to is successful. My expectations of myself are more than what anyone else can place on me. This calls for months of work on the back end with planning and preparation but the positive feedback I receive from my peers in the industry, business partners and clients keep me inspired.

For sure, there’s lots to be said about starting from the ground up. I want you to go back to what you said about being interested in fashion at an early age and think even farther back to what inspired you, and then to what kept your interest alive until it became a possibility.

My parents were an early source of inspiration. They both paid attention to how they dressed, and always made sure my siblings and myself were well dressed as kids. As I got older, that love for fashion continued to grow throughout my teenage years, early adulthood and continues to grow even now.

I have a good sense of trends but fashion is such a personal thing, so I think the key is being able to add your own touch to it to really make your style uniquely yours.

Another source of inspiration now is my family and close friends who come to me for my opinion on certain outfits or looks.

They trust my opinion, so I guess I must be doing something right (laughs).

With 10Eleven Consulting, my goal is to deliver a bespoke service that is forward thinking and delivers results to luxury brands in the areas of: strategic brand consultancy, content strategy and creation, partnerships and collaborations and experiential. I work as an extension of their in-house teams to achieve the desired business objectives.

“I have a good sense of trends but fashion is such a personal thing, so I think the key is being able to add your own touch to it to really make your style uniquely yours.”

Well the fashion world certainly fits you well.

A career in this industry requires you to have certain skills outside of the creative only. You need to be a strong communicator – both written and verbally. You also need to have a specific social decorum and the ability to collaborate effectively. I am able to merge these elements together with 10Eleven Consulting Firm.

And how might anyone needing that level of service find you?

If you want to get in contact with me, you can email me directly at: ravi.narine@10elevenconsulting.com.

And lastly, this is a chance to name your strongest influencers if you haven’t already done so, and maybe a key defining moment.

I didn’t have to look too far – my strongest influences are my parents. They taught me to have a strong work ethic, how to deal with and manage adversity and being a person of integrity. These are all things that have helped me get to this point in my career and I continue to apply these teachings today. When you see me, you see them, along with my sister and brother, and they continue to be my biggest supporters.

Outside of my immediate family, I am blessed to have a close group of friends that constantly push and support me and I do the same for them. Loyalty is a very big thing for me, so if you’re in my circle, there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you.

Thank you – I appreciate that. And thinking back, I almost gave it all up. A few years ago, I had to deal with a major setback in my personal life and it was such a difficult time for me that I decided that I needed a break from everything to sort my life out, recharge and refocus. Before making a final decision, I had a conversation with one of my mentors and it was a very honest discussion that I am grateful for to this day because it helped me to put things into perspective and understand that I had greater things that I still needed to achieve. As we all progress towards our individual goals, we have ‘turn back’ moments where we can either keep pushing and working through adversity or choose not to deal with it and go in another direction. In hindsight, that was a ‘turn back’ moment in my career and I am glad that I didn’t, because we would not be sitting here right now having this conversation. It was a turning point for me and I never looked back..

Lastly, my peers in the industry are also a great influence.

It’s always great to see the initiatives that other creatives are working on. I love seeing everyone succeed and am excited when an opportunity to collaborate presents itself because, although we are all very like-minded individuals, we all bring our own unique talents to the table.

SHOT ON LOCATION in Yorkville, Toronto, Canada.

Photographer Justin Brito captured these images in the heart of Toronto's luxury "Fashion District." Special thanks to Charles Khabouth's Sofia Restaurant & Bar, Chanel Yorkville and the Park Hyatt Hotel.

I can imagine how thankful you are in having stayed the course. You have a genuine way with people, and forming connections that would be of benefit to any organization.

And now tell us a little about the consulting firm that you’ve launched.

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Embracing Success: the

DIXON BROTHERS

By Joseph Edward Schur

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As David states: “My introduction to fashion was through two sources; Barbie and television, specifically 'The Love Boat.' On this one episode they had designers acting as themselves for a fashion show on the high seas. Gloria Vanderbilt, Geoffrey Beene, Halston, and Bob Mackie were the designers and they put a name to a career I didn't know existed.”

very so often, I get the chance to meet and chat with some very cool, accomplished people, and in this case, the Dixon brothers. I was captivated by their friendliness, charm, wisdom and selflish generosity.

So, where to begin with Glenn and David?

The brothers were born and raised in Toronto, Canada in an Irish-Catholic family, with six kids. Their early exposure to fashion can be attributed to the ambitions of their mother, who wanted her children to dress in the latest style.

Glenn adds that when he was just a kid, their mother would often help him rearrange the furniture while everyone was out of the house, and wait for the surprise when the family came home to see the "new improved" layouts!

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It should be no surpise that the brothers continue to work together; they compliment each other with their creative brilliance.

One of their most spectacular collaborative alliances was when Mattel, in honour of Barbie's 50th Anniversary, partnered with them to create a special collection. David's fashion designs, along with Glenn's furniture line were a huge hit. David's Barbie-inspired collection opened LG's Fashion Week, with Glenn producing the runway show.

Whether it's interior design, fashion design or anything really, there's a lot of 'noise" out there that I have to shift through to consider editorials in Spencer. But I'm thrilled to have had the distinct pleasure of interviewing these remarkable brothers.

David Dixon: See page 51 for his feature interview on Fashion Design

Glenn Dixon: See page 75 for his feature interview on Interior Design

SHOT ON LOCATION in Toronto's "Distillery District" at GOTSTYLE. All wardrobe generously supplied by their style department.

Spencer's Photography Director, Jonathan Levy captured these images during a fun evening with the Dixon Brothers and the Spencer team, shooting some pool, enjoying Bushmill's Single Malt Irish Whiskey.

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SPENCER'S WORLD

The

FGI 2021

Visionary Awards Gala

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t the FGI event in Toronto's Shangri-La Hotel, this past November, FGI Regional Director Klaudia Capalbo and other members of the FGI Board presented Jeanne Beker, Leslie Hampton, Tyrone Edwards and Hillary MacMillan with Visionary Awards. The awards are in recognition of their individual impact on the fashion, art and entertainment industry.

Established to acknowledge outstanding contributions, the forum also provides an opportunity for winners to share their various journeys and inspire others.

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SPENCER at the VISIONARY AWARDS GALA

Visionary Awards Gala Back Row, L to R: Janice Ronan, Anita Bhandari, Hillary MacMillan, Jeanne Beker, Klaudia Capalbo, Tyrone Edwards, Lesley Hampton, Carmen Martinez, Audrey Ross, Matty Nyman.

Front Row, L to R: Elle Bulger, Joanne Li. Photo Credits: Jack Hathaway

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PETER TRIANTOS

GRAND OPENING - YORKVILLE T

he Grand Opening of Peter Triantos' Flagship Art Gallery located at 21 Avenue Road, in the heart of Yorkville, was a huge success! Although it took 8 months to prepare to open due to the Covid situation, over 600 wonderful friends attended and had a fantastic time, thrilled to finally reunite and celebrate something truly exciting Peter Triantos's ART. Peter's very first 'Serious Ape' series NFT and physical artworks were officially released and sold that evening!

Inquiries may be made about the physical artworks on their website (http://petertriantos.com/serious-ape), and NFTs can be purchased from OpenSea (https://opensea.io/cryptocrazee?tab=created).

Rabbi Meir Dubrawsky and Deputy Mayor Michael Thompson were also in attendance, with the latter making a really great warm and passionate speech: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=sN8J_pnAsFk.

Not only is the opening a milestone for Peter's career, but a significant pivot to refine and elevate Canadian art. The new gallery already felt like home, with happy and positive vibes, music, wine, and new intriguing releases surrounded

by Peter's colourful, iconic 'Jelly Bean' series pieces... and they will soon be hosting more fun and unique events!

Pay attention to exhibition announcement releases via their Instagram @petertriantos or website: petertriantos.com.

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nspired by the most fabulous fashionista red carpets, world music and global culture, this was Canada's international night of live Music and avant-garde Fashion showcased.

The Vanguard was an exclusive annual celebration for a night of healing and giving, centered in the heart of downtown, held at Toronto's historic grand venue of the Carlu.

The Vanguard is inspired by the world’s most coveted red carpets; this was a charity night of personal expression, haute couture, and uninhibited style in support of mental health wellness and community initiatives. This inaugural Launch event began as a preview for their bigger event in the Fall.

Glen Baxter, host of the event said “I am thrilled to be hosting The Vanguard Launch, the inaugural event benefiting mental health initiatives, an evening that was first-of-its-kind to bring out some of the city’s most fashion forward personalities, notables and creatives.

The evening began with a Famed Carpet, followed by the Savoir Faire After Party with special guests, Marieme, DJ Evalicious, and Sofonda.

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Photo Credits: Jonathan Levy

SPENCER at THE VANGUARD

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Spencer

Style

with Roger Lamoureux, STYLE EDITOR

Ron White, David Dixon, Roger Gingerich and CANIFFF, Family Treasures with Analucia Beltran, The Jewellery Awards with Anita Bhandari and Anita Agrawal, and Steep Daniels and Caution Couture

Ron White: Canada's Premier Shoe Designer 45 Spencer

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Spencer Feature Article

RON WHITE

RON WHITE Canada's Celebrated Shoe Designer

By Joseph Edward Schur

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ome 40,000 years ago, during the Middle Paleolithic period, according to archeologists, shoes were invented. I'm guessing that they didn't include such adornments as Swarovski® crystals or Dr. Scholl's insoles. And I very much doubt that they were particularly fashionable at the time.

We've come a long way since then.

Meet Ron White, the genius who re-engineered footwear using today's technology. For instance, he uses NASA-created PORON material paired with unique construction materials for making elegant, sophisticated shoes that can be comfortably worn all day. Now that's a far stretch from what our ancestors came up with!

So, how did this genuinely friendly, charming guy, get his start innovating shoe design?

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SPENCER STYLE Originally from Winnipeg, Ron moved to Toronto to study retail business management mixed with fashion at Sheridan College in Oakville. Upon graduating, he accepted his first job in the men's shoe department at a Bretton's store.

It wasn't long before someone recognized his potential; a chiropodist offerered Ron an opportunity to run his orthotics store. Not exactly what he was looking for at the time, but it was double the salary he was earning at Brettons. And it proved to be a defining moment that changed his life.

During his two years at the orthotics store he faced a common dilemma in shoe design. Customers would state that the shoes felt great, but they were ugly. That was the opposite of his experience at Brettons where customers would tell him that the shoes looked beautiful but they were uncomfortable.

Then came Ron's "Aha!" moment: Why not combine style with biomechanics?

Taking his knowledge of orthopedic footwear, along with an education in fashion, Ron took an entrepreneurial leap and opened his first store on Yonge Street in mid-town Toronto, near Eglinton. There he specialized in selling stylish, upscale but comfortable shoes from leading designer brands.

Not content with just selling other brands, and with the dream of becoming a designer himself, he decided to produce his own line. Over time, Ron created and patented his incredibly comfortable All Day Heels®. Once he nailed the technology his focus shifted to aesthetics, creating a sophisticated, elegant style. It worked.

Three decades later, Ron White Shoes is an important and highly respected brand in the luxury footwear market. You can find Ron's collections in over 80 stores and boutiques, including Nordstroms and Neiman Marcus. He continues to add to his loyal celebrity following... I won't drop names here, but they include many A-listers, headsof-state and royalty.

2019, he started designing and producing luxury handbags to compliment his shoe collections. You can find some examples of his Spring/Summer 2022 collection on page 50.

Just how comfortable are Ron White Shoes? Well, let me tell you! I had recently acquired a pair of Ron's Thaxton black velvet dress shoes (patent piping and blind penny).

Super, SUPER classy. I happened to be going to an important event at the Shangri-La Hotel - FGI Visionary Awards! I pulled on the brand new, "never-worn" Thaxtons. Attended said event. Complimented on my shoes, a lot. Then, while waiting forever for an Uber, I decided to just walk home.

FIVE MILES. Incredibly, my feet loved the Thaxtons.

Seriously, a brand new pair of shoes, never worn or broken in? No blisters the next day? How is that even possible? But I know: Ron White, thank you for your innovative designs!

Like a true designer who never rests on their laurels, Ron has been busy launching his new handbag collection. In

In closing, I'd like to add: When the Spencer team was at Ron's luxurious Bayview store for his photo shoot (thank you Roger Lamoureux, Jonathan Levy and Paola Ortiz); His amazing staff displayed so much respect and love for him that if I knew nothing else about the man, that would be enough.

Above: Function over fashion? The oldest known leather shoe, recovered at the base of a Chalcolithic pit in the cave of Areni-1, Armenia. No doubt that Ron could make this into something!

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RON WHITE

SPRING/SUMMER 2022 FOR HIM

The Ron White Men's collection brings together indulgent leathers, supple suedes and cutting edge comfort technology.

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1) DENZELL CAMO Slip-On Sneaker in Military Camo Embossed Suede.

Fully Removable Terry Footbed with Arch Support. Terry Lined. Double Padding. Weatherproof. Made in Italy.

2) DANARIUS CAMO Sneaker in Military Camo Embossed Suede. Fully Removable Terry Footbed with Arch Support. Double Padding.

Weatherproof. Made in Italy.

3) KENNETH SUEDE Penny Loafer in Navy or Buck Cashmere Suede.

Unlined. Double Padding. Weatherproof. Made in Italy. Also available in Ash and Whiskey.

4) HENRI Slip-On Loafer in Onyx or Cognac Antiqued Supple Tumbled Calf. Arch Support and Double Padding. Weatherproof. Made in Italy.

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5) DANARIUS Sneaker in Camel or Aqua Suede. Fully Removable Terry Footbed with Arch Support. Terry Lined. Double Padding. Weatherproof. Made in Italy. Also available in Ice Pebble Grain Calf.

6) MACKLAN Sneaker in Military Suede or Ice Calf with Micro ber. Removable Footbed with Arch Support. Weatherproof. Made in Italy.

7) MATHEW GATOR Sneaker in Onyx, Army or Carob. Alligator Embossed Calf. Removable Footbed with Arch Support. Weatherproof. Made in Italy.

8) BOGART Oxford in Matte Black Calf. Arch Support and Double Padding. True Blake Construction.

Weatherproof. Made in Italy.

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9) BILLY Slip-On Loafer in Matte Black Calf. Arch Support and Double Padding. True Blake Construction.

Weatherproof. Made in Italy.

10) THURSTON Slip-On in Indigo All-Over Velvet. Patent Piping and Blind Penny. Arch Support and Double Padding. True Blake Construction. Made in Italy.

11) BRONKO Smoking Slipper in Black Gloss Patent and Velvet. Grosgrain Trim. Arch Support and Double Cushioning. True Blake Construction. Made in Italy.

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RON WHITE

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SPRING/SUMMER 2022 FOR HER

This elegant and sophisticated collection brings together striking design, luxurious materials and Ron’s unique All Day Heels® technology.

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Spring/Summer 2022 Collection!

Online Web Store | RonWhiteShoes.com

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1) KAMARA Shoulder Bag in Dove Ruched Nappa with Matching Enamel Chain Shoulder Strap. Top Inside Cell Pocket and Zipper Pocket. Made in Italy.

Also available in Onyx and Taupe.

2) KALIANN Mule in Dove Nappa with Matching Enamel Chain Detail. Double Padding. Weatherproof. Made in Italy. Also available in Daffodil.

3) MADIERA Circular Crossbody in Nappa with Embroidery on Screen. Double Top Zipper Closure. Made in Italy. Also available in Silver and Platino.

4) CARMELLA Pump in Nappa with Embroidered Screen. Double Padding. Made in Italy. Also available in Platino.

5) MAYLEE PITONE Slip-On Sneaker in Jeans Metallic Embossed Nappa. Ice Nappa Trim and Mirror Welt. Double Padding. Ultralight Wedge Outsole.

Weatherproof. Made in Italy. Also available in Nude.

6) NOVELLA AVANTE Sneaker in Lilac Painted Shimmer Nappa with Nappa Trim and Mirror Welt. Double Padding. Ultralight Wedge Outsole. Made in Italy. Also available in Apricot or Champagne.

7) NOVELLA CAMO Sneaker in Camou age Printed Suede with Nappa Trim and Mirror Welt. Double Padding. Ultralight Wedge Outsole. Made in Italy.

8) NELLAYA CAMO Slip-On Sneaker in Military Printed Suede. Nappa Trim and Mirror Welt. Double Padding. Ultralight Wedge Outsole. Weatherproof.

Made in Italy.

9) KAMARA Shoulder Bag in Taupe Ruched Nappa with Matching Enamel Chain Shoulder Strap. Top Zipper Closing. Inside Cell Pocket and Zipper Pocket. Made in Italy. Also available in Onyx and Dove.

10) KADESHA Loafer in Taupe Nappa with Matching Enamel Chain Detail. Double Padding. Weatherproof. Made in Italy. Also available in Onyx.

11) KAMARA Shoulder Bag in Onyx Ruched Nappa with Matching Enamel Chain Shoulder Strap. Top Zipper Closing. Inside Cell Pocket and Zipper Pocket. Made in Italy. Also available in Dove and Taupe.

12) WENDA Sandal in Onyx Nappa with Matching Enamel Chain Detail. Double Padding. Adjustable Buckle. Asymmetrical Heel. Made in Italy. Also available in Taupe.

13) ABRIALL Sneaker in Lilac Cashmere Suede. Fully Removable Footbed with Arch Support. Functioning Laces with Outside Zipper. Weatherproof.

Made in Italy. Also available in Dove.

14) OPAL Sneaker in Fuchsia or Jeans Calf & Cashmere Suede. Fully Removable Footbed with Arch Support. Functioning Laces with Outside Zipper.

Weatherproof. Made in Italy. Also available in Cognac.

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FASHION

Spencer Feature Interview

DAVID DIXON

DAVID DIXON

Catching up with the Canadian Fashion Designer in his studio!

By Joseph Edward Schur

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avid Dixon probably won't admit to being one of Canada's most important fashion designers, but he certainly is.

Furtado, Meagan Follows, Catherine O'Hara, Jann Arden, Sarah Polley, Meg Ryan, Nicole Kidman, Katie Holmes, Alanis Morissette, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Kristin Booth, Coco Rocha, just to name a few!

Dixon has made a mark on the international fashion scene with his feminine, romantic style, using the finest fabrics in the world. No wonder he has earned a following with celebrities, including Jeanne Beker, Suzanne Rogers, Nelly

It was a pleasure to meet with David in his studio for the photo shoot, and later with his brother Glenn at Gotstyle in Toronto's Distillery District.

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SPENCER STYLE Joseph Edward Schur: David, how would you describe your introduction to fashion?

a black dress comes to mind, during prom, maybe?

Yes, my first attempt at sewing was a bean frog and a pair of track pants. My first actual design was a mermaid style black strapless lace dress for our school fashion show.

David Dixon: My introduction to fashion was through televison, specifically "Loveboat." On this episode they had designers acting as themselves for a fashion show on the high seas. Gloria Vanderbilt, Geoffrey Beene, Halston, and Bob Mackie were the designers and they put a name to a career I didn't knew existed. Finally my drawings made sense.

And in your last year of high school, you apprenticed with the iconic Canadian designer, Alfred Sung. What an incredible opportunity for you! What did you learn from this valuable experience?

I understand that your first fashion show was when you were still in high school... something about introducing

My time at Alfred Sung was amazing. It really secured that this is what I wanted to do. I learned so many skills from cutting, pattern making, fitting, quality control and collection development.

Shortly after, you attended Ryerson University and upon graduation, you joined the Toronto Fashion Incubator.

After graduation, I had worked for another Canadian Designer and what was to be a paying job, did not turn out to be as all the cheques bounced! So I decided if I was going to work for free, I would do it for myself.

I applied the TFI in 1995-2000, where I began wholesaling my collection.

And then you established your own signature label, out of TFI. At the best of times, it's challenging to start a new business, so what was the catalyst for you taking the risk?

For me the catalyst was the lack of jobs within the industry at the time. My parents and family were very supportive of me developing a business and branding.

That same year, in 1995 you were named City of Toronto's "New Designer of the Year." This amazing achievement must have been a great encouragement for you as a fashion designer.

Yes, being recognized so early on gave me the encouragement to keep going.

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FASHION Fabric for me is like pages in a book, the fabric has a voice and I am listening to it, observing it and working with it to create a piece that will relate to others.

What's next for you, David? I mean, it's 2022 and following so many successful runway shows, introducing your collections to the world... you must have something up your sleeve!

2022 is shaping up to be an exciting year, especially after 2 years of pivoting and restructure due to COVID. As a designer we always have something up our sleeves, as we design them as well.

Photo Credits: Jonathan Levy

Your signature style can be found around the world, from the United States to Tokyo, from Switzerland to Kuwait. International acclaim from a kid born in Toronto. Other than your creative vision, what do you attribute your success to?

My achievements are not just my own, they are shared with the people I share my life with, work with and a little bit of luck!

You're currently teaching in college, sharing your knowledge with aspiring designers. That suggests an undeniable spirit of generosity. But you're known to be rather shy, reserved even, and yet, you're now a teacher?! What changed?

I started teaching very early on as a way of getting out of my comfort zone, to speak with confidence and share my journey.

I've visited you at your fabulous studio. It's exciting to see how your eyes light up when you are looking at a sheet of fabric stretched out on your work table. Scissors in hand. What are you thinking in that moment, before making the cut? Creating something that's voluminous?

Streamlined? Something glamorous?

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Roger Gingerich. Photo Credit: Brogan McNab

SPENCER STYLE

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Photot Credit: Jack Hathaway

FASHION & FILM

the Roger Gingerich Formula: fashion + film =

The Canadian International Fashion Film Festival

By Harlen Troost

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s CEO of the Canadian International Fashion Film Festival (CANIFFF), Roger Gingerich brings over 35 years of various roles in the fashion industry. Roger was also recently appointed to the Board of Directors of the Commonwealth Fashion Council (CFC). Based in London, England, the CFC is a fashion body of 54 nations promoting fashion education, youth and gender empowerment, and responsibility. Gingerich, 54, served eight years on the board of directors of Fashion Group International Toronto, including three years as its Regional Director.

Furthermore, he sat on the board of directors of Canada Fashion Group Inc. which hosted the largest fashion weeks in Canada: Toronto Men’s Fashion Week and Toronto Women’s Fashion Week.

Opposite: Roger Gingerich, CEO of CANIFFF.

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Photo Credit: Arina Mikhailova

The Canadian International Fashion Film Festival curates fashion film screenings. This past March, CANIFFF collaborated with Beauty Hub Magazine and the chic Yorkville’s LashGod Salon, showcasing an evening of fashion films from around the world with the theme of “Beauty.” VIP guests included Alex Jordan (producer of Mayor of Kingstown & Private Eyes TV Show) and wife Lara Amersey (actress), Alysha Newman (Pole Vault Canadian Olympian), Penny Oleksiak (Canada’s most decorated Olympian), Paul Mason (model, Fashion Santa), Kristy Neagle (Supermodel Search Canada Winner).

Early in 2022, CANIFFF has already been engaging with brands, designers, filmmakers, and consumers to showcase the very best international fashion films, and host engagements with like-minded brands and creatives.

Top Left: Raquel Da Silva. Paul Mason and Cheryl Gushue. Bottom Right: Roger Gingerich and Penny Oleksiak. Photo Credits: Jack Hathaway

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"Best Set Design 2021" Deena Lynch X Christian Louboutin

2021 CANIFFF AWARDS

In the Fall of 2021, the Canadian International Fashion Film Festival’s annual “Award Show” was pre-recorded in the historic atelier of designer Stephan Caras. Co-hosts Keysi Sayago (former Miss Universe Venezuela) and Shanye Stephens (Host of Style Scout), interviewed Skylar Cambell and Jackie Oakley (principal dancers with the National Ballet of Canada), Deanna Sciortino, (president of CAFT CAD), and designer Kyriako Caras (House of Caras).

The 2022 CANIFFF Festival edition will be celebrating its nominees and winners this November 28th - 30th with multiple screenings, along with industry panels and a culminating Award Show.

Left: Co-hosts Keysi Sayago ( former Miss Universe Venezuela) and Shanye Stephens (Host of Style Scout). Photo Credit: Brogan McNab

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Top Left: Kyriacko Caras.

Photo Credit: Brogan McNab Top Right: Deanna Sciortino and Shayne Stevens. Photo Credit: Brogan McNab Middle Left: Skylar Campbell and Jackie Oakley (Principal Dancers, National Ballet of Canada). Photo Credit: Brogan McNab Middle Right: Dani Doucette and Reno Silva. Photo Credit: Brogan McNab Bottom Left: Carolina Lopez.

Photo Credit: Brogan McNab Bottom Right: Martine Gingerich, Roger Gingerich. Photo Credit: Brogan McNab

www.canifff.com

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JEWELLERY

Family

TREASURES

By Analucia Beltran

How many of us have ever received a family heirloom? A piece of jewellery passed down from generation to generation in our own familes?

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here is a special feeling that only ‘jewellery that stays in the family’ can give us. A unique sensation of pride, joy, care, and love.

These “family jewellery traditions” transcend the actual gemstones or gold value itself, and turn into emotional pieces that form a deep attachment with each person that receives it, especially because these pieces are given with love by a family member.

How special is receiving our first piece of fine jewellery as a child in response to a religious celebration, a birthday or even our first pair of earrings as a baby?

Have any of us played with our mom’s pearls? That was me, as a little girl, yet back then I didn’t understand the powerful meaning behind each piece of jewellery.

The most wonderful part of this type of family tradition is that it can remain in a family for several generations.

From the engagement ring to the wedding and anniversary bands, each piece of jewellery carries a story behind it, that then becomes a part of a family legacy, something of tremendous value you can pass down to the next generation.

Also, given that each gemstone comes from Mother Nature, carrying thousands, millions and in some cases billions of years in them, each gemstone has a very special energy that serves a purpose for each person that wears it.

Whether you love precious emeralds, rubies, sapphires or fabulous diamonds, it is truly fascinating that these alluring gemstones are natural formations that are then transformed into remarkable pieces of wearable art.

It begins with a Ring

Stories to Tell

For example, let’s think about how a diamond engagement ring marks the beginning of a union, symbolizing the love of two people that then start a family.

There is a magical component which is the rich meaning imbedded in each piece of jewellery. As many of out mothers and grandmothers go through their own jewellery box, they can tell us the exact moment and describe the ‘feeling’ they experienced when they received each piece, who gave it to them, the occasion it represented and much more. A beautiful trip down memory lane.

Maybe many of you have even received an engagement ring that once belonged to a dear family member, a true piece of family history.

When we look into it deeper, I find it truly fascinating that many of the most memorable family “gifts,” the ones that truly stand the test of time, are predominantly jewellery.

We’d be surprised at the many amazing stories behind each piece of jewellery.

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SPENCER STYLE When you think about it, that jewellery box of ours is like a precious and sparkling “Scrapbook.” In Royalty for instance, jewellery is a symbolism for family and tradition at its maximum splendour.

mom with a celebratory ring: five diamonds to represent the four children and himself. It gives me goosebumps just to remember it. This was such a big deal because these diamonds represented so much for them. I remember the joy and the celebration; my mom’s pride on receiving the jewellery and my father’s pride in having worked hard to be able to afford it, captured in the moment, and recorded in the piece.

Who can forget Princess Diana’s blue sapphire and diamond engagement ring, that now belongs to Kate, Duchess of Cambridge?

Or Diana herself, wearing a stunning diamond tiara on her wedding day to Charles, known as “The Spencer Tiara,” from her own family tradition.

This memory has stayed with me and had such great impact in my life, so much so that it is one of the main reasons I got into the diamond industry and became a jewellery designer. I am sure many of you reading this right now have at least one family jewellery memory that comes to mind and remains in your hearts.

From Royalty to Celebrities to our own families, it is astonishing how much history these pieces carry.

The Power of Jewellery

What special memory do you have when it comes to family treasures?

With that said, I remember the precise moment I fell in love with jewellery within my own family. My youngest brother had just been born and my father surprised my

For that and much more, all of us at some point, have or will experience the power of jewellery.

TORONTO DESIGN COLLABORATION WINS THREE PRESTIGIOUS INTERNATIONAL JEWELLERY DESIGN AWARDS

The duo has tangentially known of each other for over 20 years, but this was their first collaboration. Their friendship and partnership were expedited by the global pandemic, when Bhandari, a board member of Fashion Group International Toronto (FGI Toronto), asked Agrawal to participate in an Instagram live session to discuss jewellery trends.

Anita Agrawal of Jewels 4 Ever (Aka Best Bargains Jewellery) and Anita Bhandari of Aarkish Diamonds win three international jewellery design awards, INSTORE magazine’s 2021 annual design contest. The duo won the following awards: Second place by the judges’ selection and also won the Retailer's Choice Award in the Best Earring Over $5,000 Category for their “Spring Goddess Earrings” and the Retailer's Choice Award in the Colored Stone Jewelry Over $5,000 Category for their “Blue Flame Pendant”, in the 2021 INSTORE Design Awards.

Of the recognition, Agrawal says “it’s an honour to be recognized as a small business owner and Canadian manufacturer. I’ve worked in this industry for so long, and both of us have made 1000’s of pieces, but it feels far more significant an achievement when other industry retailers select your designs.” Bhandari adds “We were up against legendary designers and multi-million-dollar businesses in this competition, such as Gabriel & Co, and Erica Courtney. So, there were a lot of very strong submissions.”

Both second-generation jewelers and daughters of immigrant parents, Agrawal and Bhandari have a combined experience of 72 years in the jewellery industry. Their contrasting specialties, allowed for the duo to take bold steps in the design process. Jewels 4 Ever (Agrawal) specializes in affordable fine coloured stone jewellery and Aarkish Diamonds (Bhandari) specializes in high-end custom diamond jewellery.

Agrawal and Bhandari are also grateful to the several local goldsmiths, artisans, CAD designer and stone setters that helped bring their creations to life. Agrawal says “This pandemic really highlighted the necessity of small businesses to come together and collaborate.” Bhandari adds “There is so much talent in this city.”

Blue Flame Pendant: 14kt White and Yellow Gold Pendant with over 18cts of natural sapphires and 0.73cts of natural yellow fancy diamonds. Total weight 35.7grams.

Evaluated at $26,000 CDN

Spring Goddess Earrings: 14kt Green Gold Earrings set with 84 rare colour graduating alexandrite stones approximately 7.5cts, 2 large green Afghan Aquamarines, weighing 30.96cts, and several diamonds. Total Weight 30.96gms. Evaluated at $50,000 CDN Reach Anita Agrawal: www.jewels4ever.ca

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FASHION/ART

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Spencer

Design with Chris Daly, DESIGN EDITOR Architect Brigitte Shim: The Point William Project, Glenn Dixon: Interior Designer Feature Interview

Brigitte Shim's Point William Project

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Point William Project

THE EXPERIENCE

By Rose Marie Bresolin

rview e Inte

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s part of my research, I began with a visit to The Corkin Gallery in Toronto’s Distillery District. Touring a space that brought the outside in, while still protecting visitors from the elements, I began to get a feel of a space that Brigitte Shim shaped. And after watching several videos on social media, I was left thinking that this was an amazing and humble individual that I would soon be meeting. In a clip from an engagement as keynote speaker, Brigitte was introduced by a former student whose generous recounting of his experience with her stand outs. More remarkable is that on reaching the podium, Brigitte didn’t give the usual thanks and break quickly into speaking of herself, to an audience who had come for exactly that. Instead, she began to share her experience of having mentored that very student. It made me fling off my editor’s hat, and I found myself uttering out loud, “I like this person!” As a teacher, I recognize that this is the stuff that makes a difference in the shaping of the future.

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A project that was begun in 1997 and completed in 2018, the Point William home stands as a tribute to critical regionalism. Built on granite, a part of this large granite mass rises untampered from the ground between the site’s home and cottage that afford spectacular views of the water and a generous streaming of light. The compound is a testament to underscore that the needs of man and nature need not be seen in opposition to one another.

Above, Left: Rose Marie Bresolin with Architect Brigitte Shim

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Above, Photo Credit: Scott Norsworthy

Point William is one of three slender peninsulas jutting into Lake Muskoka, located on the Canadian Shield with a rich geographic and cultural history. The masterful work at Point William intertwining landscape and the building of Point William is documented in the publication of a wonderful book by Kenneth Frampton and Michael Webb. Its construction has been a multi-decade tale of innovation and obstacles. The Architecture of Point William: Shim Sutcliffe, features striking illustrations and photography by some big names like Edward Burtynsky. With detailed write-ups that include the masterly crafted article by writer Ben Dreith and stunning photos by Scott Norsworthy of Nuvo magazine 2018 edition, Spencer turns its spotlight on the brilliant creative minds behind the 21-year project.

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Photo Credit: James Dow

For the Interview, Brigitte Shim and I met at the Toronto Convention Centre in a media room with a view of the bustle of the Toronto Interior Design Show 2022.

You mentioned that in the evolution, they came to love their home and the land it sits on. I’m thinking you must have done the same.

Rose Marie Bresolin: Let’s start from behind the scenes for the Point William Peninsula Project. Did the owners seek you out at the onset or were you part of a selection process?

Oh yeah. We learned a lot, and it’s such a very special place. Being on the Canadian Shield is very special. It’s a unique landscape; to the whole world it’s a special place.

Wow, how lucky they are and how lucky am I to be listening to the experience.

Brigitte Shim: They came to us. So, they asked us to visit the site before they purchased it, and we told them that they should buy it. Actually, most of these properties stay in families for generations, and are seldom offered for sale. There are only small windows of when they are available, and if you don’t go for it, the window closes.

Between when you completed the boathouse and moved on to the guest cottage, did the owners have second thoughts, like, ‘maybe we should stop now?’

Well we did the boathouse first, and then we didn’t do the cottage until 10 years later. There was time for them to adapt. It was kind of a 1907 building, and because it was a vernacular building, we had to keep to the same footprint and the same silhouette. The cottage that was there was a turn of the century cottage and was falling apart. But to receive permission to retain it on the same sight we had to follow certain rules. And that’s what we did. So, that Photo Credit: Shim-Sutcliffe became the guest cottage, and they moved into that when we demolished the main cottage. They got to stay there while the next building was under construction.

It’s apparent that your guidance was important to them even before they bought the property. Would I be correct to think that in launching the journey for the build with them you also began to build a relationship?

For sure.

What was the first major obstacle that set the project date back, because we’re looking at something that took a long time.

It did. We actually had to get to know what they really needed, and we had to do a master plan in order to request a rezoning for the whole property. The owners then presented it to the local municipality to get their approval before starting. The rezoning was completed in 1997, which was quite a while ago. But without doing that they would not have been able to build all the various buildings that we built over time.

“Educating

We then told the owners that they should start with the smallest project, which was the boathouse. There was a boathouse there, but it was a one-boat garage, very small and had no sleeping accommodation. With these lakes, Muskoska, Rosseau, and Lake Joseph, there’s a long tradition of these incredible boathouses, and they’ve been around for several hundred years. So instead of starting with the largest project, we began with the smallest. But the boathouse is actually so much a part of the cultural heritage of this entire section of Ontario. We built it in 2004, and over time we constructed all of the other buildings.

the next generation of architects is essential to the fostering of design excellence

I would say that when we first started, they didn’t know if they would like living there or not, but they came to really love it, and it became a family centre for them. So as we built the one, they loved it. Then we built the second, the third and the fourth. It’s really kind of a process where they not only got to know the place Muskoka, but they came to love their property and spent a lot of time there, so It was kind of an evolution. As we said, by building the first; a) because it was not a very nice boathouse, and b) you’re adding value to the property, it was a great way for them to spend time right on the water.

in Canada and helping to guide the future of our world.”

Do the owners have children?

Yup, and that puts them in a good position to start a new tradition for their family.

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Photo Credit: Scott Norsworthy

The owners are from Toronto. Living on a peninsula would have been quite an adjustment for them?

Humour?

Oh Yeah. I think that they just love being there and while they take the project seriously, they’re not overly serious about themselves, so they’re a pleasure to be with.

Well, they still have a house in the city, so this was never their permanent residence.

Did the relationship between yourselves and the owners morph into a lasting one?

Howard Sutcliffe, the other brilliant mind behind your several undertakings, your husband and partner. You’ve been together since your days in university. Working on projects of this magnitude must get pretty intense at times, yes?

For sure, a very special one.

Looking back now, what were some of the highlights?

Oh for sure. We work out of a small studio here in Toronto on Queen Street East that is very small, and we work on every project together. It’s not like my project, your project. We work collaboratively, so sharing space has never been a real issue.

I just think an ongoing conversation over a time period is really amazing, right? Really positive.

Brigitte breaks into a large smile.

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ARCHITECTURE I would imagine that you would have had to ‘re-imagine’ the Point William House Project a number of times, given the 21 years that it took to accomplish the project. (they both laugh.) And given the constraints.

I actually think that constraints are always good, because they force a certain creativity, and you just have to work with them. I believe that’s a positive thing.

Have any of your other projects lasted nearly as long, or been nearly as challenging?

Yup – Our very first project was for Barbara Frum. We actually worked with Barbara and her partner-husband Murray and Murray’s second wife, Nancy Lockhart, on a property for 30 years.

Given the number of educational institutions you’re aligned with, it’s clear that teaching is very important to you. Can you elaborate?

Educating the next generation of architects is essential to the fostering of design excellence in Canada and helping to guide the future of our world. I see teaching as a form of design advocacy; part of permeating, contributing and being deeply invested in what really matters. The Daniels Faculty at the University of Toronto for example, fosters an environment of tremendous reciprocity.

Your advice for architectural students before they enter their professional life.

I believe the perceived boundaries between the disciplines of architecture, landscape and urban design, visual art and forestry are artificial.

Given the importance of linking site, design and place-making, as teachers we can provide students with the advantageous opportunity to discover each discipline and the very interesting territories in between.

You’re a keynote speaker here at IDS2022 on the occasion of its real-time revival since 2020. You must feel happy to go live again; to find yourself immersed in the energy of the countless eager designers from around the world. Not to mention the vibrant energy of a welcoming Toronto public!

Can you share a little about your presentation?

Yes; it’s really great to be here, seeing my colleagues again and interacting with the public. So, in the talk, I tried to share more about what we do. Architecture of course, but we also do furniture and hardware.

I tried to share a little of that, and I also tried to share that there were some early furniture pieces.

We worked with a company called Virtu, owned by Esther Shipman that’s been around for a long time.

So as young architects, we designed a lot of furniture. Some of them for Barbara and some for other people. But they were largely experiments in materiality, how things go together, and for us there was an important learning curve and a knowledge base for how to put things together.

Photo Credit: Scott Norsworthy

And in closing, back to the little girl Brigitte. Take us from there to becoming an architect. What motivation do you recall, and were there players to encourage you along the way?

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Photo Credit: Scott Norsworthy

That’s complicated really. I was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and my parents moved to Toronto when I was in grade one.

I never knew any architects and we didn’t have any in the family. It was just something I was interested in. I went to the University of Waterloo where I met Howard, and it was more like, ‘I’ll just stay until I don’t like it.’ It was just interesting to have a leap of faith to take the journey. Sometimes, if you know someone it really helps, but it wasn’t something I experienced.

Awards and Recognition The Order of Canada year – 2013, Ottawa 16 Governor General Awards Non-profit projects for housing in Toronto Constructing a Dining Hall at a campsite about 3 hours out of Toronto that’s operated by Mooreland Community Services in Toronto. The summer camp built in the wilderness supports young people who are at risk and has been in existence since 1907 Professor at the University of Toronto Visiting professor at Yale, Harvard and Calgary Universities The Aga Khan Award for Architecture – Brigitte has served on their master jury and their steering committee many times The American Institute of Architects National Honour Award- the highest honour awarded architects was received by Brigitte and Howard in 2012

Yeah but you did it! And there’s a message in that.

Sometimes there just isn’t that hand. From an architect working for a company to an entrepreneur working out of your own studio. You and Howard went into business for yourselves. That was another leap! Tell us something about that experience.

Yeah, so we worked in a lot of offices. I worked for Arthur Erickson and Baird Sampson in Toronto. My husband worked for Ron Thom Architect and then Barton Myers.

We also worked at Bloomberg, so we had a lot of experience. We kind of decided we didn’t want to work for a large firm, and we wanted to do our own work. For us, bigger was not better. It was about us wanting to control the work and doing things that were really meaningful.

And so we just decided to work on our own.

Canadian Architect RAIC Gold Medal 2021 – The publication is a special issue of Canadian Architect that is a celebration of Shim-Sutcliffe’s masterful transformation of Point William through architecture, landscape, furniture and fittings over two decades.

Meaningful and lasting! You inspire others. What, who keeps you inspired?

I feel like I’ve been pretty lucky to meet some amazing women, like Barbara Frum for inspiration. Phyllis Lambert who founded the Canadian Center for Architecture is another source of inspiration. I think that there have been some remarkable and compassionate women who have been really important role models for me.

As Brigitte set off to catch a colleague’s speech, I was left feeling how remarkably fortunate our up-and-coming architects are in having Brigitte as a guiding force. And next I realized I hadn’t asked the whereabouts of the font of energy she drinks from….

Right: Brigitte Shim with Howard Sutcliffe

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Spencer Feature Interview

GLENN DIXON

GLENN DIXON Meet one of Canada's most likeable Interior Designers

By Joseph Edward Schur

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any of you will know Glenn Dixon from Kimberly Carroll's hit television series 'Take This House and Sell It' on the W Network from 2004 to 2010. But there is much more to his story.

I met with Glenn at one of his recently completed interior design projects in a luxurious mansion in Oakville. Seeing first-hand his design aesthetic gave me a real insight to just how incredibly talented he is.

Charming and witty, it's no wonder that he's gained success as a television personality. Glenn is a brand expert, strategist and a highly respected Interior Designer specializing in retail, commercial and residential design.

Curious to learn how he tackles the challenge of retail design, Glenn suggested that we drop by another of his projects, 'Simply for Life,' a wonderful store promoting real food, nutrition and a healthy lifestyle. It proved to me that through excellent design practices, you can establish a relationship between the consumer and the retailer. The store was warm and inviting.

He's also co-developed an internationally successful fashion company from the ground up, along with his brother, the iconic fashion designer, David Dixon. See page 51 of this issue for David's feature interview.

In this interview, Glenn shares with us his professional journey and even some really great design tips!

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SPENCER DESIGN Joseph Edward Schur: Glenn, what are some of your earliest influences that drew you to interior design?

That's wonderful! What are the big lessons that you have learned during your career?

Glenn Dixon: I would have to say my earliest influence would be my mother, when I was just a kid, my mother and I would often rearrange furniture while everyone was out of the house and wait for the surprise when the family came home to see the "new improved" layouts! This was fun for me.

The biggest lessons I've learned during my career is to never doubt yourself or your creative vision. There are so many people that cast doubt your way, don't listen and keep the people closest to you that support you and only want the best for you.

I understand that your design aesthetic includes being inspired by nature.

One of my major influences is nature itself. Every space I've ever designed has one common denominator - Nature. Be it water, flowers, clouds, branches of trees and birds that fly. They all inspire me. Have you ever noticed that nature never gets colour or composition wrong? It comes so natural and beautiful.

What would you consider as one of your most career-defining moments?

“Good interior design must act as vessel, conduit or translator for people.”

One of the most career defining moments would have to be designing the Barbie home collection for Mattel. As a kid, my brother David and I would spend hours playing with Barbie and re imagining her life. I would build the perfect Barbie dream home out of cardboard boxes and popsicle sticks as hardwood floors.

To have a full circle moment in life and design a real life home collection and naming it Barbie by Glenn Dixon was truly special. The universe always responds when we put dreams out there.

Of all the projects you have worked on, both big and small, which of those would you say have changed and impacted your perceptions as an interior designer?

In the beginning of my career, I thought that designing a beautiful space was what Interior Design was, I was wrong. Good interior design must act as vessel, conduit or translator for people. The goal with design is to bring out the best in all of us, whether it's a home and a reflection of the people living in it, or a store, where you want the customer to understand your brand and feel great being there. All design has to be focused on the human experience.

It should always make us feel something.

What is the design process you adopt at the start of a project that you hope has a profound and lasting impact? I mean, when you walk into a room, do you have an immediate design vision?

When I walk into any space, always my first reaction is "How do I feel in this space?" I always check in with me.

One of the most important aspects to design is listening to your customer, who they really are and what do they want the space to say about themselves. It has very little to do with actual design. One of my super powers though is to immediately detect bad space planning and layouts, I can instantly tell what's wrong with the room.

As seen in the pictures here, your interior design of the Oakville, Ontario mansion, is nothing less than spectacular.

How did you come up with your overall design concept?

My clients wanted a modern, yet approachable home that reflected their love of entertaining and family. They wanted a warm palette and putting it together was taking their favourite things about life and incorporating it into the house.

What room was your favourite place to design in this home?

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INTERIOR DESIGN How do you approach a commercial project versus a residential project?

Although the approach is very similar for me, ie: understanding the client’s goals and aspirations etc. Commercial design casts a wide net and has very distinct requirements, could be a restaurant, clothing store, bank etc. and each has it's own very different needs whereas a residential project generally has the same requirement, creating a home to love. Also in residential design, I'm solely focused on the client/s and family.

Like most homes, I love starting in the Kitchen, that is where the heart is and sets the tone for the rest of the house.

Did you work closely with the owners?

I consider the owners like friends as well in this case, we've worked together on several projects and we work together perfectly. In fact, many of my customers still are a big part of my life. There is something very intimate about working with people in their homes, you create a very large bond.

You also had another project debut recently, but it was commercial, in a retail setting. Can you tell us a little about your design there?

The healthy living store in Oakville - "Simply for life" was a dream come true for me, I spent months in development to make this store a place for all. I started with space planning and integrated Nature and it gives me great joy to know that everyone who walks in, has their breath taken away and feels immediately at ease. It was very important for me to build an immersive environment for people to not only want to shop there, but stick around as well.

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SPENCER DESIGN In commercial design, it is imperative that you focus on the brand, the building and most importantly a wide range of customers so that they are satisfied.

What would you say is your biggest design pet peeve?

Poor lighting. It's really important to have various level lighting that is soft and also accomplishes several duties, be it task like in the kitchen or reading in the living room, I love a well lit room. Also as I get older, I like to take off a couple of years with the right amount of lighting! Dimmers are your friends.

What are your favourite home design tips that you can share with us?

- Start with a mood board, take clippings and colours and objects that inspire you. This will be your blueprint in designing your home - Don't buy a patterned sofa, stick to solids. While you may love a rose garden today, it will ultimately wither in time. Add texture and prints through things like throw cushions and accessories.

- Keep neutral walls, rooms should flow from one to another. Make the rooms stand out through through artwork and your life's belongings; the walls should be the blank canvas.

- Pay attention to lighting and make it feel wonderful during all times of the day.

- At all cost, avoid vertical blinds!

If you hadn't become an interior designer, what would you have been?

A super model!

Truthfully, what I love most in life is the ability to communicate with people and make them smile. So perhaps a comedian or an actor.

You are a media personality and an interior designer. In your career, you have spent a lot of time in front of the cameras, whether on "Take This Home and Sell It" or co-hosting "Daytime Toronto." Any plans for returning to television?

I've just finished a project for a new television show that's debuting soon, only this time, it's behind the scenes. I still get that rush from the work and I love it immensely. As for "in front of the camera,” who knows what time will bring.

What do you see as the overall future of interior design over the next decade?

I believe that given the world's direction that the "disposable design" aka: poorly made, instant gratification pieces will no longer play a role. I think that what people will demand will be sustainable pieces that will look good today and in a hundred years. People will be buying quality.

What's currently keeping you excited as a designer?

The most exciting thing about my job is to make my clients happy; it's never changed.

Photo Credits: Jonathan Levy

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Spencer

Arts & Culture

with Joanne McLennan, ARTS EDITOR Ann Shin's A.rtificial I.mmortality, Heidi von Palleske, Defining Moments by Stephen Wallis, Rosita Stone, Alyssa Rubino, NFT BAZL Miami Event, Eric McKinnon's Broken Cage Gallery: Featuring Todd Monk, Greg Max Rice, Jamali's Feature Interview "Lifeand Is ASonny, Mystery" Show atExhibit: the Vagabondo Restobar, Benz, Fanny Steep Daniels, Logan+Ford Transform Painting The Way Forward Estelle Ohayon's The End of the "Art Oligarchy," Joseph Zambri's "Journey of an Artist" Series

Max Jamali's "Life Indigenous is a Mystery" Show Canadian Artist, Joseph Saga

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ARTS & CULTURE

Spencer Feature Interview

MAX JAMALI

taking luxury art

to the MAX

As one of Canada's leading contemporary artists, Jamali is taking on the world by storm

By Joseph Edward Schur

I

first met Max through a friend of mine, Korrie Smith. She insisted that I get to know this guy... Max, as she vouched for him being a really cool, leading-edge artist. Now I owe her a debt of gratitude for the introduction, as Max, in my very humble opinion, is truly a gifted artist, and further, a really down-to-earth guy.

Joseph Edward Schur: You lived in the beautiful city of Dubai during your teenage years. How did that influence your interest in art?

Max: Growing up in Dubai certainly taught me to trust my imagination, to always think outside of the box and not to limit myself.

And then you arrived in Canada, quite a contrast from where you grew up.

Yes, I came to Canada in 2004 at the age of 17, to continue my education. Adapting to a whole new environment and not knowing a word of English was certainly the most challenging thing I have done to this date.

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Photo Credit: Jonathan Levy

Opposite and Above: Max Jamali's "Life is a Mystery" Show at the Vagabondo Restobar in Toronto, Canada 81 Spencer

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ARTS & CULTURE My day starts by me going through my day's schedule and 'to do list' that I usually organize the day before. I dedicate about half an hour of my morning to browsing the internet and specific social media pages for innovative design ideas. The next hour is focused on my daily sales and Marketing mentorship with Cardone mentoring program. Then I get ready to either head to my office or my first meeting of the day. I am usually busy with meetings and designing ideas and proposals the remaining of the day. The days that I am in studio, I dedicate the whole day to my art creation process.

How would you like people to interpret your art?

Your background was originally in fashion photography.

What was the catalyst for you transitioning to become an artist?

Throughout the 10 years prior to my transition to art, I was a portrait and fashion photographer. I loved expressing my artistic side through the camera lens, but one thing that was missing, was creating a form of art that lasted a long time.

Unfortunately, in photography, even after shooting a cover editorial, after a short period of time, that form of art is forgotten, which inspired me to want to become a mixed media artist.

You're famous for using materials such as diamond dust, Swarovski crystals, silver and gold. What was the inspiration to create artworks using such expensive materials? I mean, most artists don't have the luxury of utilizing such valuable materials.

Going back to spending my teenage years in Dubai, I wanted to create a form of artwork that by bringing harmony between luxurious materials, would elevate the client's living space and give it an ultimate luxurious touch.

Diamond dust. What an interesting material to work with! I understand that you have partnered with Analucia Beltran to supply you with diamond dust.

One of the most meaningful parts of my work is seeing individual interpretation of my artworks. I love hearing about every single first impression of my art on my collectors and the story it creates for them.

“When I create a

series, the direction and

Expressiveness and Storytelling are two major human elements that are constantly repeated in society. I believe sharing that element through art gives us the power to create a positive movement within society.

details on that

Name a couple of artists, past and/or present that you would like to be compared to.

series are all

There are certainly artists that I constantly get inspired by, but I honestly never wanted to be compared to anyone. I always wanted to create something new and innovative that has never been created before, hence the use of Augmented Reality in my last series "THE MOST COLLECTABLE" Mixed Media Art Series.

based on what makes me personally excited to have in my own living

Analucia Beltran and I created a one-ofa-kind concept that uses lab grown diamond dust/powder as one of the layers of the artwork. This series will be the first one of its kind in the world that will come with Diamond Certification from Analucia Beltran. We are working on launching the series sometime in the Fall of 2022.

space.”

Financial stability is a rarity for most artists. However, you have achieved an enviable level of success, including a loyal following of collectors and investors.

How does that make you feel, Max? When I create a series, the direction and details on that series are all based on what makes me personally excited to have in my own living space. I am honestly happy that what I create excites my followers enough that they would like to collect it and have it as a part of their lives.

And speaking of the business aspect of art, I used my marketing background to create the direction of my brand and its marketing, which is extremely vital. I strongly believe every artist should either invest the time, learning the right way of creating a brand and marketing it or find the right agent to partner with.

Please, take us through a typical day in the life of Max Jamali. What is the creative process like for you?

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Do you believe that art is important to society?

ART The price of a Max Jamali painting has skyrocketed recently. What are the primary factors that influence the price of one of your paintings?

You are the "Head of Business Development" at New World Inc. How did that opportunity happen? And how is it going?

It's all related to the brand created and the right partnerships that elevates that brand. When I launched my first series, the most challenging part of my branding was sticking with the evaluation I believed represented my brand properly and it took about year after my launch til that value was created through proper partnerships. That year taught me a lot about marketing a luxury product and I have been working on elevating that ever since.

New World Inc. was co-created by one of my close friends and amazing artists, Diogo Snow. I was introduced to the company through Diogo, and I loved the innovative direction they were creating to take the traditional art experience we are all familiar with to a completely new level. After I worked with the team for about two weeks, because of my experience in design, creative brand development and marketing, they brought me onboard as the Head of Business Development.

Of course, establishing a network of like-minded people in the arts is important for an artist. What is your network like and do you support each other?

At the moment we are working on multiple super innovative projects that will be launched by this summer.

Where do you see your work taking you in the next 10 years?

I strongly agree with that, I have networks of both artists that I always get inspired by, both design and marketing wise and also business minded individuals that constantly challenge me to want to be more innovative and create a stronger brand.

I want to see innovative art enhancing the experiences within industries such as tourism and hospitality. I would see myself working towards creating meaningful experiences using mixed media art and augmented reality to achieve that.

What does generosity as an artist mean to you? I mean, there are artists who you know, engaged in philanthropy, for example, Daniel Mazzone, Peter Triantos and the list goes on.

Thank you, Max. Any closing comments that you would like to share?

Giving back has always been a huge part of my brand. My partnerships with multiple fundraising channels every year from Sick Kids and Daily Bread Foodbank all the way to private fundraisings that helped people in need during Covid, makes my brand so much more meaningful to me, and gives me much more inspiration to want to grow more to be able to help more individuals in need.

I just want to invite everyone reading this article to not be afraid of dreaming. I know we hear that often, but that is the only way we will have access to the gifts we were all born with and one step at a time make this world a better and happier place with those gifts.

Photo Credit: Jonathan Levy

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"Life is a Mystery"

max jamali's show

at the Vagabondo Restobar in Toronto, Canada I recently attended Max's latest show in one of Toronto's coolest venues: the Vagabondo Restobar.

Packed house. It was tough navigating through the huge crowd, suggesting just how popular Jamali has become. "It was an evening of celebrating the future of art," says Jamali. With innovative Augmented Reality powered butterflies attached to the 'Most Collectable' mixed media art series." Not surprisngly, each piece was sold.

THE MOST COLLECTABLE Series was created with a combination of elements, all using the number 'twenty two,' inspired by the year 2022. The series consists of twenty-two, one-of-a-kind originals.

The series features Jamali's photorealism design of Kate Moss. Each piece is layered with a unique, transparent hand-painted butterfly, painted python skin, resin, diamond dust and 2,000 crystals.

Cheers, to another amazing event in Toronto!

Joseph Edward Schur

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ART

A new wave of art start ups had the art world in its sights.

Since 2013, $1 Billion has been raised for this sector.

Bringing to market products such as provenance trackers, collection management systems, blockchain, and virtual reality gallery experiences. Technology promises to affect every aspect of the art world for artists, galleries, dealers and auction houses.

The End of the ‘Art Oligarchy’ & the Democratization of the Art Market!

This digital disruption effectively is fueling the democratization of the art market, expanding the traditional boundaries of the art market to mass audiences in combination with virtual reality platforms expanding the reach of art. By decentralizing and expanding the market place, savvy collectors will find many more opportunities.

New buyers will find it easier to navigate the art market with easier access to artists on different platforms such as NFT BAZL.

By Estelle Ohayon

NFT BAZL was the brainchild of GDA Capital and Elitium.

The platform is now bridging the gap between the antiquated art world and disruptive technology, harnessing the NFT phenomenon.

A

It’s a showcase of how the blockchain will eliminate the need for tracking art, its provenance and source, which will not only facilitate the transaction itself but will ultimately reduce transaction time and the security the buyer will feel when completing a transaction.

s a novice art buyer, the art market seemed like a difficult space to navigate. Seemingly controlled by art dealers, gallerists, curators, art influencers and the select elite who had access to their knowledge and insight.

The globalization of the art market has opened many opportunities to reach broader audiences, with more transparency and efficiency by eliminating many unknowns of these unregulated markets. As collectors gain confidence in this new and accessible democratized art market, they will be able to evaluate and purchase art as an asset class further spurring the growth of this phenomena.

How would one know where to enter this space without the direct introduction or knowledge of the art or artists work themselves? This daunting undertaking has kept the art market and its buyers, in both primary and secondary art markets, very small and exclusive with no rights of entry. Plagued with inefficiencies, lack of transparency and regulation, it was overdue for an overhaul.

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ARTS & CULTURE

Journey of an Artist Series The Manic Mannequin Mural Story

By Joseph Zambri

A

s a graphic designer and illustrator, most of the artwork I have done up until now has been smaller in scale and size.

While working as a graphic designer and event organizer for a beauty company in Yorkville, I was helping to set up preparations for our grand opening event. To make our office look stunning, we acquired the help of artists Max Jamali and Diogo Snow to spray paint a stunning mural above our stairwell.

While using heavily detailed ink linework, I have usually stuck to using smaller sized canvases and then scanning them afterwards to bring them into a digital environment. This has been effective for me refining my style and providing a lightning quick output of content. I have been anxious to grow as much as I can as an illustrator and designer. I've had goals of putting myself out there more as I have been designing and creating in the shadows for the entirety of my career.

During this project I took the opportunity to learn as much as I could from Diogo and Max, who I now view as my mentors in the art world.

Before this whole installation took place, I was surprised to find several mannequins in my office waiting for me in the dark. Which, of course scared the hell out of me. Immediately I took a photo of the bizarre set-up and thought to myself. “I can do something very cool with this!” Diogo and Max were meant to decorate these mannequins during our event and they created amazing work out of them.

I was determined that my next project would be something large scale, utilizing a physical medium. I had no idea that this project would begin as a spontaneous, collaborative effort with many struggles along the way.

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JOURNEY OF AN ARTIST SERIES

After Diogo and Max finished with their mural, we set up a giant piece of cardboard about 96” x 44” in size. This originally contained Max’s piece of art. Diogo started to spray paint on the left side of the canvas. He then handed me the can. Keep in mind that I had never used spray paint before this point! So, what ended up happening was a cool contrast between Diogo’s precision and my sporadic style of spraying the paint. I thought, "Why not show Diogo what I am good at?" I took out some ink and started drawing on the cardboard with fine linework in a super fast manner. Diogo seemed impressed with my style and told me I should take the canvas with me and finalize it, almost like he was handing me the reins to the project.

I kept this giant piece of cardboard in my condo for months, meticulously doing fine linework on every inch of this canvas over my kitchen island. I had set up several live streams using Instagram as I continued working on this piece, with a very curious audience popping in every now and then.

Once I was done with the ink I wanted to incorporate elements of graphic design within it. So the next phase was to take a quality photo of the canvas and bring it into Photoshop to set a scene, manipulating photos I had taken of the mannequins and myself wearing my signature hat. I implemented vectorized versions of the linework I have done over the images to create a surreal effect.

At this point I had the images of the mannequins and the face printed as vinyl decals that I had carefully added to the canvas. Once this was done I used golden ink and painted highlights over key areas of the design to add more variety and bring more colour to the design.

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ARTS & CULTURE

At this point I added a subtle coat of metallic, reflective spray paint to the top of the hat image.

This, of course, started peeling off the vinyl from the canvass. This gave it a cool touch like the piece was starting to melt away and decay. And it gave it so much texture.

Once this was done I brought things into risky territory. The thing is I am a digital artist first and foremost. So a great deal of time my work is preserved as a crisp, digital file. However, this was a giant piece of cardboard and my concern was that it would get damaged over time. I was told that a great way to have this piece protected and looking good would be to use adhesive on the canvas, attached to a giant piece of wood. Then coat the top with resin and diamond dust and the result would be stunning.

This was my first time using resin and of course with a canvas this big the chance of failure would be high. Immediately the resin soaked through the cardboard. That provided a cool, almost concrete wall texture to every white part of the design.

This wasn’t my intention but it was a huge improvement to the look of the piece overall.

After a few days I noticed a bunch of red flags. The artwork looked gorgeous but The piece wasn’t dry yet. In fact, the artwork was sticky and pretty much destroyed everything it touched! There was an awful odor to it as well, which was seriously concerning me. My goal was to get this thing into a gallery or have it up on my wall and at that point it almost didn’t seem possible. Not to mention I couldn’t put this thing away as it was the size of my living room and it couldn’t touch anything, much less get it out of my place. I felt like I bit off more than I could chew with this project.

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JOURNEY OF AN ARTIST SERIES After about a week tragedy struck. The wood in behind the artwork was starting to warp and curve. I realized that this art was a ticking time bomb and had an expiration date. Chemistry 101: If you don’t mix resin 50/50 it won’t dry. Also putting it on cardboard is a horrible idea as it soaks right through and destroys the surface. Further, the weight of the coat of resin overall is enough to destroy wood. Stick with using it on canvas. That’s my advice.

thrilled to see that MG did a brilliant job and was able to take a truly amazing photo of it. Which is what you are seeing in this article. I am so incredibly satisfied with the end result of this project.

From this project I was able to successfully learn and perfect the diamond dust resin mix for my follow-up project. The “Golden Gothic Trilogy” piece. Unfortunately for the Manic Mannequin Mural piece the original has bit the dust. Which is incredibly disappointing but it’s been a real valuable journey. Most importantly, I learned an incredibly valuable lesson in the creative process of large-scale artwork. Never be afraid to ask for advice from people who have done this million’s of times as they may very well save your art.

I was left with only one option.

I hired a professional photographer (MG Ommert) to come in and take high-resolution photographs of this piece to preserve it before the piece bit the dust. I was so worried that all that detail I put in would get lost through the photograph; so much of it was microscopic. I was

Photo Credits: MG Ommert

ABOUT JOSEPH ZAMBRI Joseph Zambri is a graphic designer and illustrator based out of Toronto, Ontario, who began his creative career in 2010. His specialty is mixing various forms of art cohesively. Joseph finds inspiration from a large number of sources: album art, film, graffiti, punk rock music, pop-art and German expressionist paintings.

What helps give his work an edgy, psychedelic and at times surreal feel is incorporating retro and modern design methods, as well as using ink to create abstract hyper detailed line work. ‘Chaotic while contained within organized structure’ is how he best describes his work.

Such artists who are a key influence to Joseph’s Work are (H.R. Giger, Jackson Pollock, Aiden Hughes, Raymond Pettibon, Mike Parsons, Derek Riggs, Andy Warhol, Stefan Sagmeister, Art Chantry and Otto Dix) 89 Spencer

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Lifestyle with Darren Dobson, LIFESTYLE EDITOR Vian Andrew's Picking Olives Under the Sun, Subhasish Chakraborty's Apatanis of Ziro Valley, Paola Ortiz's "The Future of Sustainable Beauty," Canada's Brown Spirits in the Spotlight with Blair Phillips and Davin De Kergommeaux, GV80 Genesis Debut by Darren Dobson, "Ask Captain Joey" New Series

by Joey Benoliel, featuring the Cirrus Aircraft

Ask Captain Joey: Featuring the CIRRUS Aircraft

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PICKING OLIVES

UNDER THE SUN

By Vian Andrews

O

n the steep slopes of the west facing Appenine mountains in northeastern Umbria, three hundred meters or so behind the house in which I now live, people like Aldo have one, two, three or more groves of olives, each a hectare or less. Aldo has three, none of them contiguous. Together they contain nearly three hundred trees.

I am 73, recently arrived in Italy from Vancouver with my Italian-American-born wife of almost 40 years. We are not visitors; we will live here for the rest of our lives, close to family. Therein lies a long, fraught, beautiful tale that we will save for another day.

The first day or two of November, when Aldo and I began the pick (Claudio would join us later after dropping our grandkids at school), frigid air, driven by stiff winds from the Adriatic, poured down the mountain side, nipped at our ears and kept our coated bodies moving. But those days gave way to the Estate di San Martino, St. Martin’s Summer, what we call Indian Summer in Canada. And so our coats and gloves came off and our labours brought sweat to the brow. Days of glory, let’s call them.

Aldo is my son-in-law, Claudio’s, 79-year-old father. His father and his father’s father and great grandfathers born before the invention of the camera have been growing olives here for generations. Down in the Val di Cucco below the slopes, other farmers grow grains and hay.

Sheep and horses graze the mountain tops in the clement months, but by olive harvest time, they are back in their pens and corrals at the foot of the mountains.

I was minded, as the olives dropped to the nets stretched beneath the trees, of working in my stepfather’s apple orchards north of Burlington, Ontario during my teenage years. My muscles then, and my clear, sunlit mind were as glad and happy in those days, as I was in the olive groves this year. But, back then, I did not know it.

Aldo speaks little English and I speak less Italian, so during the olive harvest this year, we worked together, silently for the most part, picking the fruit off the local cultivars, all of it grown for oil, the kind you will pay at least $30 a litre for at your local market in Canada. Extra virgin, the real stuff, green to golden-green in the bottle, pungent to the nose and peppery in the throat, and far rarer than you probably know.

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LIFESTYLE Back then, I would arrive at the orchard and step into its light, into its ordered rows, into the new cut grass between them, and register a release that until these last years, remained well below my consciousness and obdurately inarticulate.

I came to those orchards out of a surrounding darkness, out of a dark and dangerous wood, for my mother’s new marriage was beset with intractable problems, including six kids, my mother’s three and the rest my stepfather’s children, all of us in the throws of loud, fractious and chaotic adolescence. Especially me.

My father’s people were farmers in back road Nova Scotia. But, my father had enlisted in the Canadian Air Force when World War Two broke out, and once he’d seen the busted and broken streets of Paris and London and a hundred war torn towns, where, despite the tragedy, there was comedy, and despite the scarcity there was booze-addled fun and man-mischief in the tent cities and barracks where he and his surviving buddies rode out the hostilities on squeaky bunks, in those far off places where a young man could dream of a better life than hanging on to slack reins behind a plodding ox-pulled plough, or marrying a strict and officially sexless Baptist girl, there was no going “down home” again.

He married my city-born mother just after the war ended in Toronto where, when he was de-mobbed, he met her. It was a short-lived marriage. Maybe eight years or so, during which conflicts rose and became interminable. His thwarted ambitions. Her burden of motherhood, three kids born close together. Not enough money. Divorce by decree absolute.

Years of struggle later, working the three jobs she held because she had to feed us, an old girlfriend introduced her to a charming widower from Burlington. They married and we moved out of the big city to the Burlington suburbs from which he, and now I and my brothers, commuted to the orchards.

Suddenly, I became a kind of weekends and summer-time farm boy who, quite unable to know his own mind, could not, therefore, appreciate the subtle privileges and delights of the work he was asked to do by his stepfather, or how fabulous was the taste and feel in the mouth of a ripe, new-picked McIntosh. But I can taste them now, cold and tangy, each bite a snap.

Once off to university, once away from home, once I fell into the embrace of city noises and city smells and city traffic, fell into the night time glitter and the daily busyness, and, it must be said, into the arms of the flowering girl-women of my generation who had seized upon the looser morals of the ‘60s as a right (to the wild applause of we young men, lusty as ever), I stayed city-bound.

Without realizing it, I had followed in my father’s footsteps and fled the family and the farm, and later, in furtherance of a career started in Toronto, I put even more distance between us. I fetched-up in the gold-paved streets of a far-off city, Vancouver where in time, I also learned the agonies of my own thwarted ambitions and the searing pains of devastated relationships.

I did not return to the farm, to farm life. Well, not until I touched down here in Italy, decades later. Here the rhythm and flow of the sunlit work, in the quiet, unchattering groves, one has time to harvest one’s own memories, to squeeze the life-giving and life-affirming juices out of them, all bitterness and hurt removed in the process, and to drink deeply of them, a farm boy at heart.

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SPENCER LIFESTYLE

Apatanis of Ziro Valley World’s Anthropological Hotspot!

By Subhasish Chakraborty

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native of North East India, I graduated from Arya Vidyapeeth College in Guwahati in 1990, with Anthropology as one of my subjects. It has been nearly three decades since I left the city of Guwahati, the capital of Assam and gateway to the North East Region of India.

somewhere in India’s remote North Eastern state of Assam, you as a visitor will be taken into to the bewildering wildlife drama of the world famous Kaziranga National Park. Or you could choose to experience the wilderness from the cosy uber-luxury of the tented accommodations at Abor Country. With Nature Beckoning at Your Doorstep, any of the settings make for an invitation that is hard to resist!

Since then, I have become immersed in the fascinating world of travel & tourism and have come to believe that Indigenous Tourism or may I as an Indian put it this way – Tribal Tourism - is presently the coolest thing in the competitive world’s tourism arena. Australia’s Aboriginal Tourism, New Zealand’s Māori Tourism and Canada’s Inuit Tourism are receiving a lot of attention. Native Americans in the US have generated a momentum which has compelled the global tourism industry to innovate and evolve to a degree previously unthinkable.

And yes, these incredible experiential moments are every bit original, every bit Indian or Bharat as they come! And I as a Travel Writer based out of the metropolitan city of Kolkata, have no hesitation in declaring that India’s Marlboro Land, The North East which for centuries was neglected and given a step-motherly treatment, is beginning to make an indelible mark on the exploding global tourism arena.

Today’s jaded travellers are on the lookout for tourism experiences that are immersive, healing and slow. Yes SLOW!

The North Eastern Tribal Apatani Odyssey is a story with a purpose, a commitment as well as an ode to humanity to become more aware, to see more, to seek more and ultimately to transform from within the never-ending rat race of contemporary civilization.

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TRAVEL

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SPENCER LIFESTYLE India’s North East has remained in splendid isolation for centuries and the tourism path still remains largely untrodden. But then, this region is also the most sustainable organic and carbon neutral in the whole of the great Indian subcontinent. Attuned to the global tourism pulse, I can safely say that holidaying in India’s North East provides an opportunity to learn what sustainability is all about directly from the indigenous and original settlers of the land. You just might come away with some incredibly Raw & Awesome moments to add to your personal travel journey on our Planet Earth!

The outside world is largely unaware that Anthropologists are gradually unravelling the tribal diversity of India’s North East and learning how tribal societies have evolved within their own indigenous web of social relationships from the earliest prehistoric times, by way of kinship groups such as the family, the lineage, the clan, the moiety and the Village Council.

The Apatanis maintain their lives in an ecological balance with the environment and have developed their own indigenous method of sustainable cultivation, particularly wet-rice harvesting. An informal exchange with wizened Apatani folk reveals an intrinsic knowledge of Botany that will leave even the best of agriculture scientists speechless.

One such fascinating indigenous tribe in India’s North Eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh is the Apatanis of Ziro Valley. Cut off from civilization, the picturesque Ziro Valley is where most Apatanis dwell. The valley itself is around 32 square kilometres with a panorama of undulating mountains of the Eastern Himalayas offering a magnificent kaleidoscopic vignette.

The trademark of the Apatani model of agro ecosystem is in the harmony between nature and land utilization.

As a result, the region (Ziro Valley) is extremely rich in biodiversity, inclusive of best practices in terms of watershed. The greatest gift of the Apatanis to the scientific agriculture/horticulture world is their indigenous method of preserving soil fertility year after year through their unique crop recycling phenomenon.

Anthropologists worldwide are guided by the vision of Augustine – “Man wonders over the restless sea, the flowing waters, the sight of the sky and forgets that of all wonders, man himself is the most wonderful”. This is the overwhelming feeling that strikes you as you enter the world of the mysterious Apatanis of Ziro Valley. Anthropology being a study of human societies and cultures and their development, it isn’t surprising that India’s remote North East has emerged as the world’s Anthropological hotspot. It is blessed with close to 250 tribes, each one with its own distinct culture, traditions, rituals, and ancestry.

The landscape of Ziro Valley is dramatic, and oral history points to the existence of Apatanis in Ziro Valley as far back as the 8th century. Having been a student of anthropology, it amazes me no end, the manner in which these innocent tribals have developed the Valley into one of the world’s most harmonious indigenous hubs where humanity and nature can coexist.

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TRAVEL The Apatanis numbering around 60,000 are blessed with a mystical civilization of their own, and their culture is invigorating – festivals of great pomp and grandeur, elaborate handloom heritage, intricate cane and bamboo works – all these and much more under their own supervisory setup of Bulyan or the Village Council.

The manner in which Apatanis run their administrative matters through the Village Council or Bulyan is truly outstanding. The stress is on ethics and not the fear of law or policing; the end result of which is a society that is the epitome of peace, harmony and togetherness. Perhaps a lesson for contemporary lawyers on how a legal system should operate.

In addition to being recognized for their sustainable agro forestry heritage, the Apatani cultural traditions have also been acclaimed on a global level, with Ziro Valley’s inclusion in the hallowed UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

The Music Festival that attracts some of the best bands to entertain the thronging crowds. Outdoor music festivals are by far the best way to become immersed in cultural experiences, and many visitors use the Ziro Valley Music Festival as a launch for exploring the fascinating Apatani villages.

Under the heading of Justification of Outstanding Universal Value, the report submitted by The Permanent Delegation of India to UNESCO declares that ‘The Apatanis are among the few tribes in the world who continue to worship nature. It is their relation with nature that regulates their cultural practices. All the traditional festivals are, in a way, celebration of nature. Such a system designed for nature, culture and man to mutually support each other has timeless universal value.’

Festivals in previous years saw the introduction of artistic workshops, design induction, and comedy as well as storytelling sessions. And, when you inject creativity with some adrenalin pumping adventure sports, it makes for a truly compelling experience.

Ziro Valley is India’s Anthropological treasure, and it is hoped that this outstanding place of universal significance will offer us not just ancient wisdom, but also an understanding of the totality of human existence through the prism of conscience.

The focal point of attraction in Ziro Valley is the cluster of 7 villages located at an elevation of 2200 m. And what characterizes these villages are the tribal hutments that are built in a straight row; a combination of bamboo & timber that provides a rugged ambience.

Bronislaw Malinowski, the renowned Anthropologist made an observation long ago which I believe holds true today, particularly in the context of Indigenous Tourism: “The Anthropologist must relinquish his comfortable position in the long chair on the veranda of the missionary compound, Government station, or planter’s bungalow, where, armed with pencil and notebook and at times with a Whiskey and Soda, he has been accustomed to collect statements from informants ...He must go out into the villages, and see the natives at work in gardens, on the beach, in the jungles, he must sail with them to distant sandbanks and to foreign tribes.”

Belonging to the Tibeto-Mongoloid racial stock, these mythical people trace their ancestry to “Abotani” and their abiding faith in this supreme spiritual being. Apatanis are known to lead a patriarchal social system and their religion, Donyi Polo is every bit inspiring. A major distinguishing mark of an Apatani, the out-of-theworld tattooed on their face, is a practice that is slowly disappearing.

Time permitting, a week’s stay at Ziro Valley will unravel how the Apatanis have achieved a balance of their natural, social and supernatural world, while meeting their biological and spiritual needs. First time visitors find the archaic belief system, their ancient observances, folk tales, legends and riddles to be awe-inspiring.

For further information and reservations, please feel free to get in touch with: Abor Country Travels & Expeditions (ACTE) B sector, Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh – 791 111 Phone: +91 9863553243 +91 9436053870 +91-360-2292969

For those visitors desiring a dose of India’s own indigenous Cowboy Culture, Ziro Valley is the perfect place to descend upon. The ancient practice of domesticating and rearing animals is still prevalent in Apatani society. In fact, prosperity and the social status of a person is still measured in terms of the number of animals he or she possesses. The prized Mithun (Bos frontalis) is the most sought after, as the tribals just love the meat!

A particularly good time to visit Ziro Valley is in late September when the entire valley resounds with music.

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The Future of SUSTAINABLE BEAUTY

By Paola Ortiz

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ore than ever before, after fifteen years of experience in the beauty industry, I can see that consumers aren’t interested in a specific product.

They’re interested in the “personal experience” of the benefits to protect their health and the planet.

Consider glycerine, a natural derivative of palm oil. The clear, non-toxic liquid is used in soaps, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. Since it is a humectant, glycerine can retain water, making it an excellent moisturizer. Glycerine enhances the body hygroscopic characteristics, encouraging the skin to absorb and hold onto water. As a non-irritating substance, it can be applied anywhere on the body. It is an effective anti-aging ingredient and, due to its anti-microbial properties, can also serve as an acne treatment.

In the process of delivering beauty services to clients, I notice the attraction to sustainable cosmetics, and the urgency in their acquisition outweighs extra costs or research.

Three major draws of green cosmetics include environmental responsibility, increased effectiveness, and long-term health.

An oleochemical that has all the power of synthetic chemicals without any of the toxicity, glycerine is a perfect example of the natural effectiveness of sustainable cosmetics. That being said, I can tell you that the use of glycerine will continue for many more years.

1. Environmental Responsibility

3. Long-Term Health

Nowadays consumers have a growing global consciousness, and they care more than before about social and environmental responsibility. One of the main benefits of sustainable products is their reduced environmental impact.

While petrochemicals may deliver short-term results, the long-term effects can be highly toxic to humans and the environment. Years of synthetic cosmetics use has been traced to headaches, eye damage, acne, hormonal imbalance and premature ageing. Phthalates have even been linked to cancer and type two diabetes. By choosing sustainable cosmetics, a consumer forgoes the stress and uncertainty of toxic, synthetic products and invests in their long-term health and beauty.

Everyday, new stories surface about dangerous carbon output or vast plastic islands in the ocean. Many petrochemicals in conventional cosmetics are toxic pollutants and degrade the environment, as well as our bodies. As we become more ecologically-aware, consumers demand natural, low-polluting products.

As consumer interest in sustainability continues to increase, many cosmetic manufacturers are looking for more natural and environmentally-friendly emulsifiers and ingredients for their products. The benefits of “green” beauty products goes beyond trend. Constant display of studies showing the toxicity of conventional cosmetics, are changing people’s mind and perception of their ways to take care of themselves. The natural cosmetics market continues to grow rapidly and in a consistent way.

One company that is changing the game in the “Vegan” and “Cruelty Free” category is “TONOS”, a Colombian Cosmetic Company that entered the Canadian Market 4 years ago, passing all the Health Canada requirements to be safe for the responsible consumer. Their strategy is growing in the way that the consumer could re-use their containers in the near future, contributing to reduce the waste on the planet.

A recent example of pollution and consumer demand is the ban of microbeads by Health Canada. Microbeads are tiny pieces of plastic found in many shower scrubs and exfoliating products. However, they do not dissolve.

2. Increased Effectiveness Natural and oleochemical ingredients are less likely to cause skin irritation or allergic reactions. Without synthetic, toxic chemicals or artificial colours, sustainable products rely on the healing properties found naturally in plants and animals, the ingredients humans have used for centuries. One perfect example of natural substances used in a product that targets physical and mental health is the company “Saje Wellness”; they created a new culture of self-care, giving the consumer the opportunity to enjoy all-natural oils in a full range of options, from healing a headache to soothing your soul with the use of a diffuser.

In my personal experience, the oils are effective for all the purposes described.

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HEALTH & BEAUTY Manufacturers shifting to sustainable cosmetics production have a promising future.

Drunk Elephant: Committed to using clean, natural ingredients, they manufacture a range of sustainable skin care products. They have a devoted consumer following and strive to create products that are both clinically-effective and naturally-sourced.

Many manufacturers have found success using oleochemical-based products, and beyond creating high-quality and effective products, they have gained a loyal customer following. Here are some of the most well-known, sustainable cosmetics companies and their products: Native: Native produces deodorants with organic, natural ingredients. Native has built their brand around.

“Simple non-toxic ingredients you can understand”.

Their oleochemical-derived ingredients include shea butter, coconut oil and castor bean oil.

After all the information and research about the topic, the conclusion should be to develop a very conscious mind by the time we are choosing a product for our skin care routine, our body, or our mental-health. We need to read the labels to make sure the ingredients are what they said and what we really need. As we read the food labels, we have to be careful with the percentages of each ingredients, so we don’t saturate our cells with some actives that we know they could be good, or your friend recommended to you, but don’t forget that, what is working for your best friend won’t necessarily work for you. Learn more about your body and what it is telling you everyday.

Burt’s Bees: From simple beeswax candles to a lip-product empire, the company has become an international leader in sustainability.

The company creates cosmetics and personal care products, and in addition to natural, organic ingredients, it has a “no-waste” manufacturing policy. They rely on botanical oils, herbs and beeswax to come up with their world-recognized products.

RMS Beauty: provides a wide range of cosmetics, from foundation to mascara.

Dedicated to using organic ingredients, RMS creates non-toxic makeup products that heal and protect the skin. Low-heat processing ensures their ingredients remain as natural as possible.

Blissoma: Focusing on skincare, Blissoma offers a large selection of products organized by skin type and need. Their preservative-free cosmetics include natural ingredients like fruit enzymes, Vitamin C and organic herbs and grains.

Feel free to send me your questions and suggestions to my email: paola.ortiz@spencermag.com or give me a call if you want to talk about publishing your brand in Spencer: 1-800-719-2468. Ext 832

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Canada’s Brown Spirits in the Spotlight By Blair Phillips & Davin De Kergommeaux

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s cool spring winds keep us indoors, for now, Canadians can sit by the fire, slippers on their feet and a warming brown spirit in their hand and turn misery into luxury.

The bold, rich flavours of brown spirits have been our respite since before Canada was a country. And best of all, they care not a whit if the weather calls for sleet, snow or blazing sunshine. Sipped neat, over ice or mixed into a drink, the diverse flavours of whisky, rum and barrel-aged gin know no season. Canada has hundreds to choose from. Today we shine a spotlight on five with stories as enjoyable as the liquid itself.

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SPENCER LIFESTYLE Bootleggers further modified these super-cars with gadgets decades before James Bond did the same on the silver screen. Bullets bounced off steel-plated radiators and gas tanks, while oil poured into holes drilled above the exhaust system created a smokescreen. Custom oil tanks greased the road behind, as rear-end high beams blinded foolhardy pursuers.

As they roared through the twenties, those Whisky Sixes signalled cutting-edge stylishness – traits inherited by this exceptional 44-year-old whisky. Its big, lush flavours roar with glowing dark fruits that concentrate the hallmarks of Canadian Club into a gem.

The whisky cruises from start to finish on splendid oak notes that never skid to a stop. Issue 4 marks Canadian whisky luxury at its finest.

Canadian Club Brand Ambassador, Tish Harcus.

Photo Credit: Rick Vyrostko

Canadian Club 44 Years Old Chronicles

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Walkerville, Ontario

n 2018, with the first release of its annual Chronicles Series, Canadian Club claimed the title of oldest and most elegant whisky in Canada. Each year thereafter, a new Canadian Club whisky commemorated another chapter in the brand's history. This year's Canadian Club Chronicles Issue 4, dubbed “The Whisky Six,” celebrates that loosely organized fleet of hopped-up cars that outran the law on the frozen Detroit River in Prohibition days. At 44 years old, this year’s whisky is more exciting than any whisky-laden roadster that ever raced across that icy border.

On the Windsor side of the Detroit River, the Hiram Walker distillery is home to Canadian Club whisky and has a front-row seat to Detroit's automotive industry.

In the 1920s, as consumers demanded better and faster models, colourful V6 roadsters appeared on Motor City streets. Buick, Packard and Studebaker all fitted their vehicles with light but powerful V6 engines, improved suspensions and ample cargo room. To Prohibition bootleggers, this meant cars that could outrun the police. They dubbed them “Whisky Sixes.” Their favourite, a Studebaker, was built right in Windsor.

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St-Roc Distillery Fondation Rum Québec City, Québec

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uperman is widely hailed as the world’s first superhero because of his 1938 appearance in Action Comics. But, before the Man of Steel, there were others. The Shadow had powers to cloud minds, and the caped Mandrake the Magician, knew telekinesis. But history often forgets the first when others who follow make a bigger splash.

Canada’s first commercial distilleries in the late 18th century, such as Québec City’s St-Roc Distillery, didn’t leave a legacy behind. St-Roc made rum that had the power to cloud the minds of locals and not much else.

St-Roc was like Mandrake the Magician in the history books: the distillery pulled a disappearing act and with it? Poof! Quebec rums were forgotten.

Christophe Légasse and David Lévesque may not wear capes. Still, when they opened Distillerie de Quebec in 2016, they set out to correct the past and revive the city's distilling history while bringing those stories back to life. Reminiscent of Superman, their St-Roc Fondation Rum packs a wallop of flavours that leap across the palate in a single bound. This British-inspired amber indulgence pays tribute to the St-Roc Distillery by bringing rum-making back to Québec City.

Pull the cork to release wonderful blackstrap molasses aromas that waft up from the bottle, along with brown sugar, molasses and hints of black licorice. An intricate blend of sweet, spicy and peppery notes fairly sparkle on the palate then resolves in a settling dryness through the finish. Distillerie de Quebec’s rum declares that Canadian-made rum should shed its secret identity. You don’t need x-ray vision to see that rum has returned to Québec City and it’s here to stay.

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Willibald Farm Distillery Barrel Gin Ayr, Ontario

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n 1993, Waterloo Ontario's famous Joseph E. Seagram & Sons Distillery caught fire. As the flames died, so did hopes of reviving distilling in the region. It was 2017 before flashes of yellow were spotted on a farm 30 minutes down the road.

This time, when the fire department showed up, it was because they were thirsty.

Yellow is the brightest colour in the spectrum – a signature of the Willibald Farm Distillery. Here Cam Formica and brothers Jordan and Nolan van der Heyden launched their distillery with an aged gin labelled in brilliant yellow to attract attention. The original, yellow-waxed bottle recently went through a make-over.

Toronto artist Caitlyn Murphy effortlessly captured the warmth of the distillery’s barrels in a stylish new label.

Barrel Gin reflects the distillery's aesthetic. Willibald's is first and foremost a whisky distillery, but whisky takes time. So, while the whisky ages, the distillery found success with a gin aged in oak barrels and flavoured with botanicals that a whisky drinker would enjoy. Drawing characters from both whisky and gin, Willibald struck a chord with fans of both spirits.

Willibald punched up the gin’s complex nose with cardamom, sweet baking spices, bright floral notes, light earthy spiciness, fruits and lumber. All these flavours carry through to the palate along with tart accents and orange peel. Barrel Gin's barn burner finish is resplendent with fresh oak notes, ready to be sipped neat or enjoyed in a classic Negroni.

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Alberta Distillers Ltd. Alberta Premium Whisky

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Calgary, Alberta

946 was a busy year. Nat King Cole crooned of chestnuts roasting on an open fire for the first time, while French designer Louis Réard fought off Jack Frost and introduced the bikini to Paris shops. In the news, De Beers launched the marketing campaign that produced the modern concept of the diamond engagement ring. And over in Calgary, Frank M. McMahon saw diamonds in Alberta's rough rye fields.

He didn't need to get down on one knee to convince George H. Reifel to form Alberta Distillers Ltd and turn that rye grain into liquid gold. Seventy-five years later, as the distillery celebrates its Diamond Jubilee, it is still making what many call the finest rye whisky in the world.

Alberta Distillers had hit its stride when their iconic Alberta Premium whisky landed on store shelves in 1958. Its crisp, clean grain supported on a solid oak structure made it a true Canadian classic long before the rest of the world discovered it. Today, many of the planet's most celebrated rye whiskies originate in this Calgary distillery, even if bottled by others. ADL buys over six million dollars’ worth of rye grain from local farmers each year to keep its stills operating 24/7. The volume of rye whisky they produce is one reason why so many other producers seek them out. The most important reason, though, is quality.

To celebrate 75 years, late in 2021, they launched their third cask-strength edition of Alberta Premium, bottled at 63.7%. The rye’s crisp flavours rocket out of the glass, with brisk peppery spices landing on creamy dark fruits. With its blazing high proof, better exercise caution if you plan to blow out a 75-candled birthday cake. And watch for limited-edition collectible mugs attached to Alberta Distiller's spirits while supplies last.

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Newfoundland Distillery Gunpowder and Rose Rum

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n the early 17th century, British Royal Navy soldiers sailing into Newfoundland's Conception Bay were not on Spring Break trying to achieve what the name implies. They were there to protect the British fishing fleet from the Spanish. One of those British soldiers, Peter Easton, went rogue, ultimately sailing out of Newfoundland as one of the most famous pirates ever to sail the seas.

Conception Bay is now home to the Newfoundland Distillery Company. And though parrots may not perch on the staff’s shoulders, and no one pillages neighbouring businesses, their Gun Powder and Rose Rum tells a story as authentic as its local flavour.

With icebergs floating by in the bay, you can guess no one grows sugar cane here. So, the distillery imports aged Jamaican amber-style rum, which they spice with innovative local ingredients. Some of these go back to when a ship’s water was unfit to drink, and the British navy provided their soldiers with rum rations. To ensure their rum wasn’t diluted, quartermasters added gunpowder then lit it. If the rum flared, it meant quality liquid. If not, it was watered down hooch. This inspired the distillery to spice its rum with what should be coined "Newfoundland gunpowder." Instead of saltpetre, sulphur and charcoal, they use sea salt from the Newfoundland Salt Company, local kelp and charred birch, then temper the reaction with wild Newfoundland roses for aromatic contrast.

Using these ingredients, distiller William Carter delivers a broadside of flavour without overwhelming the palate. The nose blossoms with floral tones balanced by a fruity char. Those flavours show an even keel on the palate, as brown sugar, herbal tones and briny sea spray, making G&R a cocktail rum at its finest while also doing proper service in a tumbler with a chunk of ice.

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SPIRITS Blair Phillips Blair is a lifestyle and spirits writer specializing in Canada's growing landscape of spirits and distilleries.

He is the Canadian contributing editor for Whisky Magazine and writes for the popular Distiller app.

He also contributed features for drinkingmadeeasy.com during the TV Series' three season run. He judges several spirits competitions including the World Whisky Awards and Canadian Whisky Awards.

Davin De Kergommeaux Davin is a drinks writer, public speaker and spirits judge, recognized as the world expert on Canadian whisky. He has travelled to four continents to visit spirits producers and distilleries, and make presentations about Canadian spirits. In 2016 the Globe and Mail named him one of the 50 most influential Canadians in food and drink, then in 2018 the New York Times said his significance in the revival of Canadian whisky could not be overstated.

The Definitive Guide to Canadian Distilleries is an indispensable guide to the past, present and future of Canada's distilleries. Written by bona fide Canadian spirits expert Davin de Kergommeaux, this book covers more than 200 of the most exciting and cutting-edge distilleries, large and small, who are shaping the industry today.

Just a decade ago, fewer than a dozen distilleries, concentrated in two provinces, produced almost all the spirits (mainly whisky) made in Canada. Today, there is a movement afoot in Canada's spirits world. There has never been a better selection of rich specialty spirits--from gin to moonshine, from flavoured vodka to liqueurs--to tempt the palate and supplement your long-time favourites. Despite flourishing public enthusiasm for Canada's distillers, other than incomplete and inaccurate web-based information, no one has offered consumers an all-inclusive guide... until now.

DREAM DRIVE VACATIONS Join us for a tour in 2022!

1. Sunday 3 July - Friday 8 July 2. Sunday 24 July - Saturday 30 July (Golf Tour) 3. Sunday 21 August - Friday 26 August 4. Sunday 18 September - Friday 23 September 5. Sunday 9 October - Friday 14 October

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GV80 - GENESIS’ DEBUT SPORT UTILITY VEHICLE

By Darren Dobson

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enesis is a brand unfamiliar to most, but should it be? Hyundai has branched out to create a luxury brand, similar to Toyota creating Lexus, to woo the discerning clientele looking for an upscale vehicle with more panache.

option is the 3.5T Advanced; it has additional power from a V6 twin-turbocharged engine with 375 ponies on tap, a 21-speaker Lexicon audio system, natural wood, an electronically controlled suspension, and 22-inch alloy wheels incorporating Genesis’ signature G-Matrix pattern design. The top-of-the-line 3.5T Prestige trim adds a large 12.3-inch 3D digital instrument cluster, remote smart parking assist, which is so COOL, and Nappa leather upholstery with a driver’s massage seat.

New for 2021 is a brand new SUV, their first ever, created to capitalize on the highly lucrative market segment. Approximately 50% of all vehicles purchases are an SUV now.

There is a growing appreciation of the interior space, ground clearance, and higher viewpoint for the driver, sitting high above the tiny compacts.

Signature Genesis design elements include the Crest Grille, emphasizing ‘gravitas’. Quad Lamps use sophisticated lighting technology and will be the most recognizable and unique signature of the design. The interior focuses on “the beauty of white space,” characteristic of elegance from Korean architectural philosophy.

The 2021 Genesis GV80 can be yours from an all-inclusive starting price of $64,500, which includes a 5-year warranty and complimentary scheduled maintenance. The GV80 will be offered with all-wheel drive, a full suite of driver assistance and safety features. Discerning buyers want more design, luxury, safety, reliability, and performance. The GV80 responds with its "Boundless by Design" exterior and interior.

All vehicles come standard with the following Genesis at Home concierge services: Complimentary scheduled maintenance, At-home valet pick-up and drop-off for service, Complimentary navigation map updates, roadside assistance, and Genesis Connected Services subscription.

The 2.5T Advanced trim includes 20-inch alloy wheels, head-up display, around view monitor, leather seats that are ventilated in front and a 300-horsepower engine. Next 108 w w w. s p e n c e r- m a g a z i n e . c o m

MOTORING

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for first-class travel experiences...

Ask:

Captain Joey!

By Captain Joey Benoliel

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elcome to my series for Spencer Magazine.

I'll be sharing my travel experiences and answering your questions on planes and yachting. Captain.Joey@spencermag.com How long have you been flying?

Twenty-five years.

What got you into flying?

I have always wanted to fly - since I was very young.

The idea of getting to my destination effortlessly and at my schedule was the driving desire to get my license.

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How long have you been flying?

Twenty-five years.

When were you first exposed to Cirrus aircraft?

In 2002, quite early in their development.

Why did you choose the Cirrus aircraft?

I started learning about the two founders of the company and how they had rewritten the plot on how general aviation aircraft were developed. All decisions were made with a view toward safety… how to save a pilot and crew in a worst-case scenario. Like thousands of aviators, I was immediately interested in improving the odds in that eventuality. Among the list of incomparable features was the complete airframe parachute. Special seats were developed to reduce impact on your spine in a worst case, airbag front seat belts are another notable ground-breaking design feature, and this list goes on. Even today, the Vision jet is unique in its class in offering a one-button emergency-landing function that will deposit the plane at the nearest airport unassisted, and a one-button function to correct spatial disorientation.

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SPENCER LIFESTYLE Is this plane built for families or businesses?

Both the Vision jet and Cirrus SR22 series have amazing range, so it's just as good taking your family for a weekend getaway or an executive that has offices in several cities several hundred miles apart and would take an entire day to drive otherwise. Cirrus developed the interior of the aircraft to look like a comfortable BMW mid-size interior. Traveling two to three hours in the Cirrus is very enjoyable.

Is it safe?

The Cirrus is developed as a production aircraft under the rules of Canada and the USA. These are already designed for your ultimate safety.

Cirrus has taken that one step further and added a full aircraft parachute which a pilot can deploy in almost any emergency. This parachute deployment has saved numerous aviators to date, and in my opinion makes this aircraft the safest on the market.

How many passengers can the Vision and SR 22 hold?

The vision jet can seat up to six, while the Cirrus SR22 can seat four.

What is the range; how far can you go?

The Cirrus SR22 can fly for approximately 5 hours without stopping, a range of 700km-plus, and the Jet has a range of over 1000km making a trip from Toronto to Miami without stops.

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Why fly private?

First of all the freedom to soar above the everyday, is in itself a complete rush. The bigger reason for most, though, is the complete freedom, to come and go as you please. The only rules are generally your own. No airport or check-in delays etc. You're literally in the air twenty-five minutes after you arrive at the airport.

Is it difficult to fly such an airplane; should I get my pilot license?

Actually, it’s quite easy to fly, and yes, you should get your license. Although as this is a high performance aircraft you should preferably get more experience on a starter before moving up to the Cirrus SR 22; flying the jet will require more training and experience and a type certificate.

my wife and son on board, this cost would be divided by three or more making it much more reasonable.

Do I save time flying private compared to commercial?

On short flights you definitely save time, with regard to check-in and security. On longer flights, the larger jets may save time.

In your opinion, what is the #1 reason for private aircraft ownership?

I love flying above it all while taking myself to my next vacation or business meeting. Freedom.

Tell us about the Cirrus Self Landing Jet, how does it work?

The Cirrus jet is loaded with the absolute latest avionics technology. This means that the aircraft along with the existing external instrument landing systems, can virtually land themselves.

How does this compare to commercial flying, cost-wise?

Great question, this really depends on how many passengers will be on board.

For example, from Toronto to Miami, flying alone, would be expensive. But if I had 113 Spencer

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