The StarPhoenix, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Monday, December 16, 2002
By Darren Bernhardt
of The StarPhoenix
A fund has been set up in Saskatoon to raise money for a bronze
statue to honour Joni Mitchell, one of Saskatoon's most famous
daughters, and it's getting international support.
The initiative was undertaken by Sarah Gibb, an expatriate Englander
who moved to the city last year and has been a longtime fan of the
accomplished painter, poet, singer and songwriter.
"My first thought when I saw the downtown was, 'What, no Joni
Mitchell statue?'" she said. "She's known all over the world and
whether you like her music or not, there's no denying she's been
tremendously influential on a whole generation of artists. I was
amazed Saskatoon wasn't celebrating her.
"I at least expected plaques saying, 'This is where Joni Mitchell
lived' and 'This is where she went to school' and 'This is where she
first sang in public'. We do this in England with our novelists,
artists and historical figures, and it often injects a lot of
visitors into an area because they want to see where Charles Dickens
stayed when he wrote Bleak House or whatever."
Mitchell is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and listed No. 5 on
VHI's list of The 100 Greatest Women of Rock and Roll. She was given
the Order of Canada earlier this year, the nation's highest honour
for lifetime achievement.
Gibb was inspired to take action after reading a StarPhoenix story
about a British Columbia man who wrote a letter to Saskatoon city
council suggesting the council commission a statue. Mark Salzl was
raised in Paradise Hill but plans to eventually move from B.C. to
Saskatoon, which he calls his "home city".
But a program doesn't exist for commissioning artwork. Salzl was
told to look into private sponsorships.
Recognizing the difficulty of campaigning two provinces away, Gibb
took up the venture. A committee was created consisting of Gibb,
Salzl and Les Irvin, founder of a Joni Mitchell Web site and
discussion list (www.jmdl.com) in California.
"Already, in response to the fund being set up, fans on the
discussion list are talking about a pilgrimage to Saskatoon to have
photographs taken with the statue," said Gibb.
Salzl is amazed his suggestion garnered so much attention and that
the process has begun.
"I have to chuckle about the power of one little letter," he said.
"But I don't think it would have happened so quick if Sarah didn't
take it up. I'm very pleased," he said, adding he has received
e-mails of encouragement from people in San Francisco.
The committee's effort is The Joni Mitchell's Beside Herself Fund,
stemming from an interview two weeks ago when Joni Mitchell talked
about a bench with a statue of herself sitting at one end. She
remarked that when she came here and sat on the bench, she could
literally be beside herself.
She expressed a preference for something that wasn't "on a pedestal"
because it's not her style. It should be functional "where people
could sit and muse," she said.
The good-humoured Mitchell often visits her parents, who still live
here. She said a statue would be an honour as well as "a place for
birds to perch."
Gibb and the rest of the committee members plan to approach local
businesses for donations, as well as city council "who we hope will
give us permission to locate the statue in a prominent place," she
said. "We would love to see it overlooking the river near the
Bessborough Hotel, as Joni Mitchell has the Bessborough featured on
the cover of one of her early albums, Clouds."
Another option is to have it in Broadway, where Mitchell started her
singing career in the Louis Riel coffee house, as it was known then.
Calories now occupies that spot. Regardless of where the statue
goes, the coffee house site should have a commemorative plaque, said
Gibb.
The committee is in the process of approaching artists to have a
campaign poster designed for distribution around the city. Joe
Farfard, the Saskatchewan sculptor whose work in bronze is known
internationally, has told the committee he is interested in doing the
piece.
"We don't know when we'll be in a position to commission something,
as we have no idea how long it will take to raise the money," said
Gibb. "We estimate we're going to need $100,000-$120,000, and so far
we have $175. But we're determined to raise the rest."
If anyone would like to help, the committee can be reached at
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Donations can be made directly to the fund at the Saskatoon Credit
Union, Broadway Avenue branch, account number 7230444. Or cheques
and money orders can be sent to Joni Mitchell's Beside Herself, P.O.
Box 22100 (RPO Wildwood), Saskatoon, S7H 5P1.
