In this edition of Apartment Crush, we visit Jennie, Matthew and their dog Rogue Eclipse in their Lowertown two-storey apartment. Their home houses a unique collection of original artwork, whimsical figurines and heirloom furniture.
While both Jennie and Matthew have day jobs (in arts administration and design/marketing, respectively), they also work as independent artists: Jennie makes art about television and the internet, Matthew makes video and gifs, and was recently on Tumblr’s 2014 Artists to Watch list.
They spend their spare time hanging out with their dog, Rogue Eclipse, a retired racing greyhound from Florida (recently featured in Hounds Around Town on Apartment613). Jennie describes Rogue Eclipse as “handsome and gentle and generally well-behaved. He likes to sleep on the couch, and most recently, enjoys fetching sticks.”
Apt613: Tell me about this amazing tree! Where did you find it?
I (Jennie) inherited it from my great auntie Bea and great uncle Neil. Auntie Bea passed away when I was relatively young, but my Uncle Neil lived to the age of 101. He was a champion curler and a prize-winning gladiolus grower. He was also an amateur (but good) painter and was excellent at calligraphy. The tree and most of the ornaments (save the pickle, the Star of David and a few dog-related ones) are from the ’50s and ’60s – the boxes that the ornaments are stored in still have the funnies from a 1967 newspaper used as padding.
What brought you to this apartment?
We moved to Ottawa for Jennie’s work. At first, we rented a furnished apartment in the neighbourhood until Matthew found employment and Jennie’s job contract got extended. We love the neighbourhood, so when it was time to move all our possessions from Matthew’s mom’s garage and find a place of our own, we knew that we wanted to stay in the Lowertown/North of the Market (NoMa!) area. We found this apartment through a friend who lives a few doors down. We felt like this apartment had a winning combo: the charm of an older home mixed with modern day upgrades (we have heated floors in the bathroom, a dishwasher and a washer/dryer).
Describe what you love the most about your place.
We love the neighbourhood and in particular our street; it’s full of great folks and lots of dogs! Plus, we love our local businesses, like Ideal Coffee, Cylie, Victoire Boutique, and our favourite restaurant – Mellos. As for our home, we love the high ceilings, the generous amount of closet space, the aforementioned amenities, and, our stuff (which, as previously stated, sat in Matthew’s mom’s garage for nearly a year).
What is important to you when it comes to setting up your studio(s)?
Separate studios! We work very differently, and we’ve always had our own studios. It’s been a challenge combining both of our studios, in a space that also functions as a dining room. In this place, we turned our back hallway into an equipment depot and materials space. It has been helpful in terms of keeping our studio organized. We both work mainly on our computers, and don’t have very “messy” practices, so it’s easy enough to switch from studio to dining room. That said….we have yet to use the space as a dining room, but we totally could!
What are your biggest challenges about this apartment?
See above!
Tell me about the art in this apartment. What’s the story behind the giant white cat photograph?
Our art is a funny combination of Jennie’s grandparent’s art, family pics/childhood gems, and our more contemporary collection, which is largely drawn from our talented friends. The cat photo is by our friend Jay Muhlin. The cat pictured is the late Boo (RIP little one). Boo had been photographed many times by Jay, and was a feature in his MFA thesis exhibition. Other highlights of our art/visual collection include: a cast pizza slice by David Poolman, a photo of a Chinese suburban home by Kotama Bouabane, a forest painting by the late George Swinton, two geometric paintings by Frema Berman (circa 1971), test prints of our wedding invitation, a photo of Jennie’s great uncle Neil with his prize winning gladiolus, a Jamie Campbell photograph, an orb, a usb-powered salt-lamp, a weird toad/sci-fi etching, a flock-print of the late Aaliyah by Sarah Gotowka, a clock from Found Design (also where we purchased our nesting tables) and maybe most importantly, a 1961 portrait of Victor Hugo by a distant relative of Jennie’s who was an amateur painter (and avocado pit carver….to be acquired for our collection the next time we visit Winnipeg). We also have a million and one tchotchkes and art exhibition ephemera (posters, invite cards, small art books).
What is your best advice on apartment living?
Stay organized. Stop buying tchotchkes.
How will you be celebrating the holiday season this year?
We celebrate both Christmas and Chanukkah in this house, so we have double the reasons to celebrate! We will drink eggnog and eat latkes, listen to Christmas records and light the menorah, and most importantly, we will be spending time with family and friends.
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