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11 | W aterloo C hronicle | T hursday,January 17,2019 w aterloochronicle.ca I think I have always felt the real- ity of portrait painters, with some of my favourites being Frida Kahlo, An- dy Warhol and Alice Neel. As an artist, I have drawn and painted thousands of portraits, and I believe I have captured a piece of my own reality in my images of others. When I look at my own portraiture pieces, they summon a flood of mem- ories of the subject, the studio, the time in my life, the students I taught - tastes, sounds, smells and more. Especially magical is knowing that a work of art can do the same for any viewer, triggering synapses and memories entirely unique to that person. No two people have viewed the Mona Lisa in exactly the same way, because each person views it through the lens of their own unique experiences, senses and predisposi- tions. So many people have puzzled over what Mona Lisa herself was think- ing, but equally intriguing to me is the infinite range of thoughts and emotions she - and every portrait subject - can spark in the beholder. My daughter's portrait of me al- lowed me to feel the connection to art in a different way. Though I've drawn thousands of portraits of other peo- ple, I've rarely been the subject of one. It's a unique feeling, to see your- self through the eyes of another, re- presented on a canvas. It is a glimpse at a culmination of ideas, experiences, senses and feel- ings. I recommend you ask someone to draw you. Perhaps my daughter will start taking commissions one of these days. Marshall Ward is a freelance writer and artist. Email is welcome at marshall_ward@hotmail.com. On Christmas Day, my oldest daughter Mason surprised me with a huge portrait she painted of me. At first, all I could muster was an awestruck "Wow!" The painting was inspired by a photograph taken of me when I was a studio instructor in the Fine Arts program at Wilfrid Laurier Universi- ty, teaching courses in painting and drawing. In one of my favourite art books, How Art Can Make You Happy, au- thor Bridget Watson Payne writes about portrait painting: "There are any number of cases where the peo- ple depicted in art are obviously liter- ally real: Renaissance portrait paint- ings, Civil War tintypes, Diane Arbus photographs, Jeff Koons' Michael Jackson statue. A person who lived and breathed and loved and hated and cried and napped is looking out at you from across space and time. If you let it, that can blow your mind a little." It blew my mind to think my daughter could create something so visually powerful, and for me, emo- tional. Looking at the painting, I feel something magical. Payne writes that looking at a por- trait has a magical quality that con- veys the subject, the artist, and the "wider world that inspired it." "This artist had unique percep- tions and unique ways of expressing those perceptions that no one else alive before or since has ever had or will ever have. There is no surer proof of the reality of others than the things they actually create." PORTRAIT OF AN ARTIST IT'S A UNIQUE FEELING TO SEE YOURSELF THROUGH THE EYES OF ANOTHER, SAYS MARSHALL WARD MARSHALL WARD Column Progress is evident on two important issues for the Wa- terloo Region business sector and being addressed by the Ford administration as a new calendar year commences - namely fair tendering and enhanced GO services be- tween Waterloo Region and Toronto. While progress is being made, significant work remains to make the local business sector a global lead- er for innovation and job cre- ation. As I noted at the end of 2018, the provincial govern- ment tabled a bill that chang- es the rules around munici- pal tendering on major infra- structure projects. Bill 66, the Restoring Ontario's Competi- tiveness Act 2018, was intro- duced for first reading in De- cember. However, it will have no positive impact on local taxpayers, municipalities and business until it passes third reading. Our chamber will be working with local MPPs to ensure this happens relatively early in the next session of the legislature to ensure new rules are in place for the spring construction season. On Dec. 17, newly appoint- ed Minister of Transporta- tion Jeff Yurek was at the Kitchener Via station to an- nounce additional local GO train service. One additional weekday morning train and one additional afternoon re- turning train are now avail- able to local commuters. This transit announce- ment is an important first step and is a step along the way to our ultimate goal of all-day, two-way GO service. The Connect The Corridor coalition, an advocacy group of local businesses, post-sec- ondary institutions and mu- nicipalities, is currently lob- bying the Ontario govern- ment to provide a funding commitment in the 2019 pro- vincial budget for fast, fre- quent two-way, all-day GO Trains between Waterloo and Toronto through the expan- sion of services on the Kitche- ner GO line. Faster and more frequent train service in the Waterloo- Toronto innovation corridor is a top issue for businesses across the region. There is more work to be done, and we will all continue to work with Premier Ford and his minis- ters to deliver the required transit services. A public opinion poll com- missioned for the coalition indicated that 80 per cent of people surveyed across Onta- rio support frequent two- way, all-day GO train servic- es. A further 86 per cent of re- spondents support the expan- ded train service for its po- tential positive impacts on daily commute times and tak- ing more cars off the road. Our colleagues at the To- ronto Region Board of Trade estimate that congestion and delays along the corridor cost Canadian businesses and consumers between $500 mil- lion and $650 million annual- ly in higher costs for goods and services. A rapid and fre- quent rail solution could save $20 billion in passenger trav- el time savings, road mainte- nance cost avoidance and re- duced congestion. Connecting the innovation corridor is key to cementing Ontario's role as a global leader in the innovation economy, attracting more in- vestment and creating thou- sands of good, high-paying jobs for Ontarians. Two-way, all-day GO service within the Toronto-Waterloo Region corridor has broad support from businesses, universities and municipalities, and the time to make the concept a re- ality is right now. Ian McLean is president and CEO of the Greater Kitchener-Waterloo Chamber of Commerce. WORK REQUIRED FOR ADDITIONAL PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT SUPPORT OPINION GO TRANSIT ANNOUNCEMENT AN IMPORTANT FIRST STEP IN ACHIEVING ULTIMATE GOAL OF ALL-DAY, TWO-WAY GO SERVICE, WRITES IAN MCLEAN IAN MCLEAN Column SUBMIT YOUR MARCH BREAK EVENTS AT WATERLOOCHRONICLE.CA