• All the prints were to be monochrome printed with one run of black ink.
• The Lithographs were to be printed to the edge of the litho stone (that's why the edges of the prints are organic).

• Stencils and splattered lacquer would be the primary drawing medium.
• The prints would be done in very small editions.

The paper show in frames under glass was accepted at only two venues:

• The Bowmanville Civic Centre, Ontario, under the auspices of Margaret Rodgers, director of the Visual Arts Centre of Newcastle.
• The Chameleon Cafe in Ajax, Ontario; produced by Peter Wedig, chief cook and bottle washer.

The Canadian Statesman, Smylie (left) Toms (right)

Avril Lavigne picked up guitarist, Adam Carr, and drummer, Andre Spicklike (Spic for short) from a band called Sulphur that played regularly at the Chameleon Cafe. My daughters and their friends, some in bands, were regulars at The Chameleon. I often drove them out to the warehouse district of Ajax in my seven seat van with instruments in the cargo space. Sum 41 cut their teeth at that club and so did Closet Monster and Suburban Sunrise.

In 1996 Peter Wedig, owner of The Chameleon Cafe said to journalist, Paul Turko as published in Backbeat:

...Peter Wedig is the man behind the cultural revolution in Ajax. Owner of the Chameleon Cafe with wife Lynne, Wedig enjoys the “shock value” of having an arts base spring out of an industrial park.

“[People] like it because it’s different. They like what goes on. It’s cool; it’s relaxed. They’re on a first-name basis. They can talk to one another here.”

Artists of all types gather at the Chameleon to paint, jam, recite poetry, or whatever sparks their creativity. There’s no set objective, Wedig points out. Though the walls may be fixed, the look of the cafe is in constant swing, a never-ending work in progress that changes according to the whim of its patrons.

Wedig explains. “It’s ‘in search of...’ It’s really like a fishing line. We just toss it out and we’re seeing what kind of groups, what interests we can pull in. Hopefully, we can produce a stable foundation to work from.... It seems to be working so far but there’s no true direction yet. We’re still trying to tie our shoelaces together to walk forward.”...

Back in 1996, Black and White was hanging on the two walls radiating from the stage built in the North East corner of the cafe room.

Most of the prints are in the possession of other people. The prints in this internet show by Richard Toms are in my collection and are not for sale. The remaining available prints designed by me are in such limited editions that I must ask $500.00 (U.S.) a sheet. The images sizes of the prints are posted under the jpeg reproductions. The size of the paper that the image is printed on is larger than the image size.

If you want to see how Richard made his lithographs at the Boxcar Studio, click.

I printed one edition at the Station Gallery Boxcar Studio, the rest were done in my own lithography studio in the basement of our home. My studio was more spacious, better equipped and more easily accessed than the boxcar was. My old 19th century litho press and stones were inherited from the estate of Maxwell Bates. I guess that's what it's all about, passing stuff down from generation to generation.

Here is a sample of the visual art air in Durham during the late 1990's: Perceptio featuring some of the artists we hung out with.

Yeah Richard, we should get together for a beer sometime again soon.