ANNIVERSARY ISSUE FALL/WINTER 2011
www.gallerieswest.ca
A VIEW FROM THE WEST Jeffrey Spalding on a Decade in Visual Art Display until December 31, 2011
BEHIND THE SCENES At the Museum
CREATIVE SPACES 7 Serene Artist Retreats
CANADA $7.95
AUCTION REPORT Inside the Spring Sales FEATURED ARTISTS Harry Kiyooka, Brigitta Kocsis, Chris Millar, John Koerner, Reta Cowley
VI RGINIA CHRI STO PH E R FI N E ART
Ray Arnatt, Seamless Fragments series, cast hydrocal, 24”x24”x1”, March 1991
CELEBRATING 31 YEARS IN CALGARY
Sept 3 - 24 ARTWALK EXHIBITION: A Selection of Work by Regional Artists Calgary Annual Artwalk: Sept 17 & 18
Sept 29 - Nov 5
RAY ARNATT 1934 - 2004 BINARY VISION: A Selection of the Figurative Work Opening Reception: Thursday, Sept. 29, 5:30 - 8 pm
Nov 12 - Dec 17 NEW FACES: NEW WORK
816 11 Avenue SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0E5 403-263-4346
info@virginiachristopherfineart.com • www.virginiachristopherfineart.com Location of the
VUE CAFÉ
(“Best Ambiance”, Avenue magazine, 2011) OPEN FOR LUNCH Tues to Sat 11 am - 4 pm
Fall/Winter 2011 Vol. 10 No. 3
46
82
38
49
C O N T E N T S THE SCENE
FEATURES
16
34
38
News and events from across the region
The Colour of My Dreams: The Surrealist Revolution in Art, Vancouver Art Gallery
Sculpting in paint, Calgary artist Chris Millar creates spectacularly detailed 3D works
First Impressions
22
Feature Previews
Shows scheduled for the summer season Brigitta Kocsis................ 22 Prairie Gothic ................ 24 Harry Kiyooka ................ 26
28
Exhibition Reviews Exclusive reviews of recent shows throughout Western Canada
Art & Cold Cash ............28 Les Manning .................28 Pulse .............................30 Don Gill ........................30 Traditions & Transitions..32 Yam Lau ........................32
Feature Review
61
Previews and Profiles
What’s in the galleries this season Jackie Frioud ................. 61 Peak Year ...................... 63 Cold War Artefacts ........ 64 Roy Arden ..................... 66 Monuments to Maquettes .................... 66 Colleen Phillipi............... 68 Mark Dicey .................... 70 Leah Dorion .................. 72 Michael Campbell ......... 73 Cathryn Miller ............... 77 Animal .......................... 78 Ephemerals ................... 78
Special Effects
By Katherine Ylitalo
42
A View from the West
On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of Galleries West, Jeffrey Spalding surveys where we’ve been, and speculates on where we’re headed
46
A Contemporary Century
At 97, painter John Koerner recalls the decades-long evolution of the Vancouver art scene By Beverly Cramp
www.gallerieswest.ca
52
COLLECTORS
49
Behind the Scenes at the Museum
54
Collectors
For a new show on Nicholas Morant, Banff’s Whyte Museum is committing public acts of archiving By Jill Sawyer
52
Great Escapes
Inside seven serene artists’ retreats By Portia Priegert
Nine artists to consider right now Wayne Eastcott ............. 55 Sheila Kernan ................ 55 Scott Pattinson .............. 55 Annabelle Marquis ........ 56 Peter Ivens .................... 56 Renato Muccillo ............ 56 Blu Smith ...................... 57 Cindy Dyson .................. 57 Harold Lyon .................. 57
54
Auctions
82
Spring 2011 Review
Reta Cowley, Untitled (Cows in Field), watercolour on paper, 1971
Sources
Back Room
By Jill Sawyer
61
Where to find fine art galleries across the west
80
Directory
Services and resources for art makers and art buyers
Galleries West Fall/winter 2011 5
Editor
Reviews Editor Art Director Contributors
Publisher & Director of Advertising
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2011 TO SATURDAY, JANUARY 28, 2012 A unique survey of private and corporate collections in Calgary with rarely seen art on display for the general public. Calgary Collects traces the roots of modern and contemporary art and its evolution in local collections. Curator: Kayleigh Hall PUBLIC OPENING RECEPTION: Friday, September 9, 2011, 7-10pm
HOW TO START AN ART COLLECTION THE ROLE OF THE ART DEALER Wednesday, September 14, 6 - 8pm Learn tips from the experts and gallery etiquette and what to watch for when buying at auctions. THE COLLECTOR’S PERSPECTIVE Thursday, November 3, 6 - 8pm Collectors share insights into their focuses and how they research and identify the art and the artist.
Subscriptions
Mailing address and production deliveries
Prepress Printed in Canada
Jill Sawyer editor@gallerieswest.ca 1-866-415-3282 P.O. Box 5287, Banff, Alberta, T1L 1G4 Richard White reviews@gallerieswest.ca Wendy Pease Jack Anderson, Margaret Bessai, Beverly Cramp, Rachel Rosenfield Lafo, Douglas MacLean, Agnieszka Matejko, Gil McElroy, Mark Mushet, Janet Nicol, Portia Priegert, Quentin Randall, Jeffrey Spalding, Monique Westra, Liz Wylie, Katherine Ylitalo Tom Tait publisher@gallerieswest.ca 403-234-7097 Toll Free 866-697-2002 Published in January, May and September. $19.50 per year including GST/HST. For USA $24.50. For International $31.50. Subscribe online at www.gallerieswest.ca or send cheque or money order to: #301, 690 Princeton Way SW Calgary, Alberta T2P 5J9 #301, 690 Princeton Way SW, Calgary, Alberta, T2P 5J9 403-234-7097 Fax: 403-243-4649 Toll free: 866-697-2002 Island Digital Services Ltd. Transcontinental LGM-Coronet
Visit our website at: www.gallerieswest.ca Or send your questions and comments to askus@gallerieswest.ca We acknowledge the support of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts for our publishing program.
Publications Mail Agreement # 41137553 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Galleries West Circulation Dept 301, 690 Princeton Way SW Calgary, AB T2P 5J9
©All rights reserved ISSN No. 1703-2806 Reproduction in whole or in part is strictly prohibited. Galleries West makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information it publishes, but cannot be held responsible for any consequences arising from errors or omissions.
THE CURATOR’S PERSPECTIVE Thursday, January 5, 6 - 8pm Join The AGC’s Curator, Kayleigh Hall as she shares insights and discusses her research for Calgary Collects. FREE ADMISSION FOR SEPTEMBER 2011, courtesy TD Bank
1 1 7 - 8 A V E N U E S . W . C A L G A R Y, A L B E R TA , C A N A D A T 2 P 1 B 4 W W W . A R T G A L L E R Y C A L G A R Y. O R G
6 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
On the Cover: Galleries leries Westt celebrates its Tenth Anniversary Anniversa with this issue. www.gallerieswest.ca
STEPHEN LOWE art gallery ���������������
��������������� ���������������
������ �����������
������������������������������������� ��������������
�������������� ����������������� ���������������
��������������������������������������������������� Bow Valley Square (downtown) �������������������������� �������������������� ��������������
West Market Square��������������������� ��������������������������� �������������������� ��������������
WEST END GALLERY Fall 2011 Exhibitions September 10 – 22
IRENE KLAR Potlach Dreams Acrylic on canvas, 16” x 48”
September 24 – October 7
November 19 – 30
J.G. LAMBERT
W. H. WEBB
Spectaculaire #20 Acrylic on canvas, 48” x 48”
Porcupine Hills Sundown Acrylic on canvas, 36” x 36”
October 29 – November 10
BEV RODIN The Road Home Acrylic on canvas, 38” x 84”
12308 Jasper Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T5N 3K5 780-488-4892 Tuesday-Saturday 10-5 • View Online: www.westendgalleryltd.com
@ @westendgallery
S H I R L E Y
ELIAS Lirico, acrylic on canvas, 48" x 72"
(right) Shirley with a recent commission for Corus Entertainment Winnipeg.
Enquiries regarding Corporate and Private Commissions are welcomed. Seeking Gallery Representation in Victoria Pulse Points, acrylic on canvas, triptych, 36" x 132" (total)
Shirley Elias is represented by:
26 St. Anne Street St. Albert AB 1 - 78 0 - 4 5 9 - 3 6 7 9 www.ar tbeat.ab.ca
3650 Rue McTavish MontrĂŠal QC 1- 5 14 - 2 86 - 24 76 www.ar tap.com
6 -1170 Taylor Avenue Winnipeg MB 1- 8 0 0 - 8 2 2 - 5 8 4 0
www.birchwoodartgaller y.com
323 Howe Street Vancouver BC 1-604-687-7466
www.rendezvousar tgaller y.com
812-11 Avenue SW Calgary AB 1- 8 8 8 - 8 7 4 - 5 5 1 9
www.webstergalleries.com
www.emotesart.com
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Up front in the visual arts Saskatoon wins new landmark grant
T
he development of the new Remai Art Gallery of Saskatchewan (currently called the Mendel Art Gallery) in Saskatoon got an enormous boost in early June with the announcement of a $30-million grant from the Frank and Ellen Remai Foundation. It’s thought to be the largest philanthropic gift in the city’s history. The project, which will move the existing gallery just west of downtown Saskatoon to a new, purpose-built location on the North Saskatchewan River, has been enhanced by an increase in its capital campaign from an initial $8 million to $20 million (prompted by an unexpected surge in public interest). The total cost of the capital project is $84 million. The Foundation’s grant will be portioned into two parts — $15 million toward the capital cost of the new building, and $15
16 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
million for enhanced program- Artist’s rendering of the new Remai ming, a grant that will support Art Gallery of Saskatchewan. AGS programs and exhibitions for the next 30 years. It will more than double the Gallery’s current programming budget, and clear the way for attracting a new level of touring exhibition to Saskatoon. The Frank and Ellen Remai Foundation is managed by Ellen Remai, a long-time resident of Saskatoon, philanthropist, and entrepreneur. The new Gallery will be part of a riverfront arts and culture development, now called the Remai Arts Centre, which includes a new home for the city’s Persephone Theatre. The new four-story Gallery, designed by KPMB Architects in Toronto, is set to open in 2015. www.gallerieswest.ca
IMAGE: KPMB ARCHITECTS.
The new Remai Art Gallery of Saskatchewan
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Lethbridge museum gets recent-history donation The historic A.E. Cross photographic studio in Lethbridge has made another significant donation to the archives in that city’s Galt Museum, handing over photo negatives and prints shot between 1972 and 1999. Valued at around $1 million, the collection traces the recent history of Lethbridge, including portraits and commercial photography, and joins a previous donation from the studio, of historic photos dating back to 1924. The studio was established then, by English immigrant Cross, who recorded the history of Lethbridge in commercial commissions, aerial photography, and wedding portraits. Current studio owner Peter Etches turned over close to 300,000 prints and negatives to the Galt. Kelowna gallery 'winged' in recent gang shooting The Kelowna Art Gallery was caught in the crossfire of a recent gang shooting (obviously unusual activity in this central B.C. city) on August 14, when a bullet went through the front window during a regularly scheduled family art session. The shooting erupted across the street, www.gallerieswest.ca
Joe Fafard, Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Si Do (detail), powder coated steel plate, 2010.
at the entrance to the Delta Hotel, but one stray bullet hit the all-glass front of the Gallery. According to the Kelowna Capital News, Gallery staff level-headedly locked the front doors and moved all the visitors deeper into the exhibition spaces, waiting for the police to respond. Nobody (on Gallery property) was injured. Calgary, Quebec City twinned by sculpture The new Calgary courthouse building is now part of a permanent stampede — fitting for a city still celebrating all things western. The City of Calgary, in partnership with the Calgary Stampede, has installed eight life-size running horses on the grounds at 4 Street and 6 Avenue SW, powder-coated steel structures by Saskatchewan artist Joe Fafard, called Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Si Do. The public sculpture is the second installation in this series — the first was installed on Boulevard Champlain in Quebec City last fall, to celebrate a sister-city relationship with Calgary in honour of Quebec’s 400th anniversary. Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 17
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Coast exhibition pops up
E
The Sooke Art Show, Sooke, British Columbia, takes over the local arena.
very summer for the past 25 years, Sooke, B.C., just west of Victoria along the West Coast Highway, transforms its hockey arena into an art gallery and bistro. The juried Sooke Fine Arts Show attracts almost 10,000 visitors, from the Island and west coast regions. The transformation is so successful that some visitors have been known to ask “What do you use your art gallery for the rest of the year?” This is largely due to Alan Graves a professional exhibition designer and sessional instructor at the University of Victoria, who organizes the 400 or so works chosen each year into a visually coherent exhibition. This year’s show, in late July, attracted more than 500 artists who submitted over 1,300 works for adjudication. I was on the jury with Nanaimo-based artists Nixie Barton and Grant Leier of Barton Leier Gallery. For Barton, this was her first time jurying a major exhibition, but she was inspired by the variety and quality of the work. Leier, a veteran juror, was equally impressed. "This was one of the most diverse collections I’ve ever juried,” he said. “It’s a great showcase of what's being created in the Gulf Islands.” The jurying is a two-day process, with each juror independently choosing work they find most interesting on the first day, keeping the second day for discussion and final decisions by all three jurors, to determine works that will be exhibited, and selecting winners, honourable mentions and Jurors Choice awards. While there was no award for best of show, we were unofficially unanimous that the best piece in the 2011 show was Patrick Irwin’s Port Alberni. In total, more than $11,500 was awarded to artists. — Richard White
SAAG Director wins provincial arts award Marilyn Smith, director of the Southern Alberta Art Gallery in Lethbridge, was recently presented with the Rozsa Award for Excellence in Arts Management, Alberta’s foremost recognition for directors and administrators in the arts. Presented by the Calgary-based philanthropic organization, the Rozsa Foundation, the prize comes with a cash award and opportunities for mentoring and further professional development at the business schools of the University of Calgary and the University of Alberta. The award was created to match accomplished not-for-profit managers in the arts with foundational professional opportunities in business and management. With more than 30 years of management experience in the arts, Smith has been director at SAAG since 1999.
stood the test of time and become national landmarks,” says Alex Rankin, Chancellor of the RAIC College of Fellows. “They’re a testament to how architecture can add qualityof-life to society. They are proof positive that architecture matters.” Designed to house the MOA’s spectacular collection of Pacific Northwest Coast art and artifacts, Erickson’s
Inside the Sooke Fine Arts Show
18 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
One of the highlights of her tenure has been the three-year redevelopment of the Gallery’s downtown exhibition space, which opened last year after the addition of 6,000 square feet, and an increase in visitors that added a large boost in revenue.
The Museum of Anthropology, Vancouver, designed by Arthur Erickson.
building sits on wooded cliffs overlooking the Pacific, with soaring ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows in its main gallery space. Other 2011 recipients include the University of Regina’s precast concrete Heating and Cooling Building, designed by www.gallerieswest.ca
PHOTO: JAMES CHENG.
Museum of Anthropology becomes national landmark Architecture Canada and the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada have named the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia one of four buildings given the 2011 Prix du XXe Siecle Award for enduring excellence in Canadian architecture. The award is fitting tribute to architect Arthur Erickson (whose Robson Square design in Vancouver was another 2011 winner), who designed the 80,000-square-foot museum on the UBC campus in 1976. “These iconic buildings have
ARTIST: JOHANNES LANDMAN
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
������
FINE Sarah Anne Johnson, Cheerleading Pyramid, C-print, acrylic inks, 2011.
Clifford Wiens in 1967, and the modernist Ottawa Train Station, designed in 1966 by John B. Parkin Architects. Video art rides Vancouver’s new Canada Line The popular public video series 10 Seconds has incorporated a partnership with Vancouver’s secondary schools, bringing together a high school-age artist with mentors to create a new video work. Produced by the City of Vancouver Public Art Program and On Main, the series posts a new artist video every month on Vancouver’s new Canada Line rapid transit system. Running April 2011 to March 2012, 10 Seconds features work by artists including Dana Claxton, Michael Turner, and Laiwan. For June, the series posted a work by James Yan, a student at King George Secondary School, who won a call for submissions by secondary school students. Yan’s piece, One Percent, toys with viewers’ sense of anticipation and expectation. Inspired by the idea that Vancouver is technologically behind his native China, Yan created a work based on the now-obsolete interface of Microsoft’s Winwww.gallerieswest.ca
dows 95, with a slow-moving buffering graphic that never quite loads. Sobey shortlist picks Johnson, Stankievech Western artists Sarah Anne Johnson and Charles Stankievech have made it onto the shortlist for the 2011 Sobey Art Award, one of Canada’s foremost prizes in contemporary Canadian Art. Chosen by a jury appointed by the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and the Sobey Art Foundation, the Award is given to Canadian artists under 40, and includes a $50,000 prize for the winner and $5,000 to four finalists. Shortlisted artists are chosen from regions across the country, including the Atlantic provinces, Quebec, Ontario, the Prairies and the North, and the West Coast. Winnipeg-based photographer Sarah Anne Johnson was winner of the Grange Prize, from the Art Gallery of Ontario. A graduate of the University of Manitoba, she is active as a mentor with the Winnipeg arts group Mentoring Artists for Women’s Art. Her photography series are in the collections of galleries including the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography, and the Art Gallery of Ontario.
ART ����
Collecting Art COLLECTING�MEMORIES
OCTOBER 14, 15, 16 Friday & Saturday 9 am-9 pm Sunday 9 am-5 pm
AT THE MARY WINSPEAR CENTRE 2243 BEACON AVENUE IN BEAUTIFUL SIDNEY BY THE SEA, BRITISH COLUMBIA
ART SHOW PACKAGE $318 two night stay + 3-day Art Show Pass
Experience our 55 room boutique hotel with spectacular ocean views, and an easy walk from the Mary Winspear Centre. Join us at Haro’s Restaurant & Bar, open daily for lunch and dinner, and relax and rejuvenate at Haven Spa & Salon. 9805 Seaport Place, Sidney, BC Tel: 250 655 9445 or toll free 1 866 659 9445 www.sidneypier.com
www.sidneyfineartshow.com Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 19
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Arts on Atlantic Gallery "O &DMFDUJD .JY PG 'JOF "SU BOE $SBGU
) & 97*** Âł Y Âł
Dedicated to showcasing the very best in regional fine art.
Rodney Graham, Artist Model Posing for The Old Bugler, Among the Fallen, Battle of Beaune-Roland, 1870 in the Studio of an Unknown Military Painter, Paris 1885, photograph, 2009. Graham was awarded the 2011 Audain Prize.
Judy Ueda " %*''&3&/5 1&341&$5*7&
.Z 'BWPVSJUF 5JNF PG :FBS Âł Y Âł
4FQ ° 0DU
Sharon Lynn Williams &/ 1-&*/ "*3 &91"/%*/( )03*;0/4 /PW ° %FD " ° UI "WF 4& *OHMFXPPE $BMHBSZ "# 5 ( 5 5 … ' JOGP!BSUTPOBUMBOUJD DPN … www.artsonatlantic.com
20 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
Stankievech’s site-specific, conceptual “field works� explore landscapes and technology, incorporating curating and teaching into the overall experience of the art. His work has been shown in spaces including the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, the Canadian Centre for Architecture, and the Xth Biennale of Architecture in Venice. He’s a co-founder of the Yukon School of Visual Arts in Dawson City, and currently splits his time between there and Montreal. Jeffrey Spalding lands at Calgary public gallery The Triangle Gallery of Visual Arts, one of Calgary’s most innovative public gallery spaces, has appointed artist, curator, arts manager (and Galleries West contributor) Jeffrey Spalding to the newly created position of Artistic Director. A prolific presence in the arts across Canada, Spalding will enable the Triangle to build on its capacity for important exhibitions by local, regional, and international artists. Longtime curator and manager Jacek Malec is now Managing Director and Associate Curator at the gallery. Spalding has a
long history of involvement with western galleries. He was professor of art, and Director / Curator at the University of Lethbridge from 1982 to 1999, and President of the Glenbow Museum from 2007 to 2009. He has also been Director and Chief Curator of the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, visiting professor at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, and President of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. He and Malec have previously collaborated on two Triangle exhibitions, including Patterned After: Pattern, Ornament and Repetition in Modern and Contemporary Art, and Gershon Iskowitz: A Path of Colour. Artists to possibly populate downtown Eastside A group of Vancouver developers plan to bring a new creative edge to the city’s grim downtown Eastside, planning a new living / working complex for artists in the 100 block of East Hastings street. Though there isn’t much to go on now, the plan, called Sequel 138, could be a shot in the arm for the neighbourhood, long over-run with drug culwww.gallerieswest.ca
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Reece Terris, Ought Apartment, installation (detail), 2008 – 2009. Terris is a winner of a 2011 VIVA Award.
+FBOOF $BNQCFMM 3JQ BU 3BDF 3PDLT Oil on Canvas, 30� x 40�
Winnipeg Art Gallery partners on Venice architecture project A project called Migrating Landscapes will bring together young Canadian architects and designers to create the exhibition infrastructure — based on the idea of an abstract landscape — for the Canada Pavilion at the 2012 Venice Biennale in Architecture. A collaboration of the Winnipeg Art Gallery and Winnipeg’s 5468796 Architecture, the project will bring together ideas of cultural memory and the Canadian landscape. Invited architects will each provide a dwelling for the invented landscape, building on the idea of settlement and migration, and how they’ve affected the state of Canada’s physical, social, and cultural environment. Contributors were chosen through a national competition this past summer, and models for the project will be on view in the spring of 2012 at the Winnipeg Art Gallery.
Jeanne Campbell & Frances Baskerville $SFTDFOEP "VHVTU 4FQUFNCFS
)JEFBXBZ "DSZMJD PO $BOWBT Âł Y Âł
Rodney Graham awarded 2011 Audain Prize Conceptual photo-based artist Rodney Graham was awarded the 2011 Audain Prize for Lifetime Achievement in the Visual Arts by the Vancouver Art Gallery and the Audain Foundation for the Visual Arts. He joined artists Althea Thauberger and Reece Terris, winners of this year’s VIVA Awards, given by the Jack and Doris Shadbolt Foundation, in a co-presentation in early May. Graham’s work is in the permanent collection of the VAG, and he was the subject of a solo show, Rodney Graham: A Little Thought, in 2005. His work is also in the collections of galleries including the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the
Centre Georges Pompidou. Terris’ monumental installation, Ought Apartment, took over the main lobby space of the VAG in 2009, and Thauberger’s work in photography, video, and performance focuses on how identities are formed in relation to popular culture. The VIVA Awards are given annually to mid-career artists, as chosen by a jury panel.
Rick Bond /FX 8PSLT 0DUPCFS
2BWBWBV .BOOVNJF 6OUJUMFE (SBQIJUF BOE JOL PO QBQFS Âł Y Âł
ture, though it’s close to the revitalized Simon Fraser University / Woodwards arts building. The developer, Sequel 138 Development Corp., owns the Pantages Theatre and a group of adjacent vacant buildings. The plan, designed by Studio One architects, is to build 79 units of entry-level housing for artists, and employees of neighbourhood not-for-profits. The space will also include a gallery and retail outlet.
Contemporary North %SBXJOHT GSPN $BQF %PSTFU 4IVWJOBJ "TIPPOB 2BWBWBV .BOOVNJF 5JN 1JUTFPMBL *UFF 1PPUPPHPPL /JOHFPLVMVL 5FFWFF BOE +VUBJ 5PPOPP
/PWFNCFS 7JFX 4U ] 7JDUPSJB #$ ] 7 8 + ] JOGP!NBESPOBHBMMFSZ DPN XXX NBESPOBHBMMFSZ DPN www.gallerieswest.ca
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 21
PREVIEWS AND PROFILES
BRIGITTA KOCSIS
BRITISH COLUMBIA: Secret Mechanisms, August 4 to November 2, Vernon Public Art Gallery, Vernon, B.C. You could call Brigitta Kocsis a figurative painter, but that would shortchange the complexity of her work. True, there are figures, but they are disassembled and combined with mechanical components within a more abstract and painterly field. Drips, loosely reworked forms and swathes of color document her concern with process. “I’m interested in finding a place between abstraction and representation through layers and images and patterns and colors, and forming accidental abstractions,” says the Hungarian-born artist, whose exhibition, Secret Mechanisms, opened in August at the Vernon Public Art Gallery. “I start with a human figure — that’s what I know — and then I break it down or destroy it, subtracting from that image. Somebody once said to me that I work backwards.” Kocsis spent time as a multi-media installation artist and is fascinated by technology and how it integrates with the human body and affects our sense of self. “I think it has a huge impact on our concept of the body and a huge impact on humanity, physically and mentally,” she says. She cites the influence of Donna Haraway’s 1985 essay, A Cyborg Manifesto, and says she’s interested in both communications and medical technologies. “Both have an impact on the human body and how we actually communicate and function,” she says. “If you have a pacemaker or if you have anything replaced in your body, it has as much impact on your body as a cell phone or an iPod.” Kocsis, who works in acrylic, admires the work of Matthew Barney, Albert Oehlen and Daniel Richter. She trained in figurative painting, but felt the need to challenge herself. “I was always interested in cubism and abstraction,” she says. “So I wanted to bridge those too. It’s a very exciting process. I’m just trying to push the boundaries of painting within my LEFT: Brigitta Kocsis, Secret Mechanisms #5, own limitations.” acrylic on canvas, 2008, 84" X 66". One painting shows a human face and hand, a skeletal leg and spinal column, along with forceps, tubing RIGHT: Secret Mechanisms #7, acrylic on and other medical paraphernalia within an atmospheric grey and sky-blue background. Other works include canvas, 2009, 48" X 36". wheels and gear mechanisms, imagery she finds in magazines or on the web. Viewers may find their identification with the human form challenged by the mechanical devices and dismemberment, even as they’re seduced by the appeal of the abstract. Kocsis simply says she wants viewers to engage. “I hope they find something in it that they’re familiar with, or that makes them realize something — I guess impacting them in some way, emotionally or intellectually.” Kocsis left Hungary in the late 1980s, and lived in London for several years. She met her Canadian husband there and came with him to Canada, settling first in Montreal, where she studied art at Concordia University, and then Vancouver, where she has lived since 1994. She completed her BFA at Emily Carr University in 2005. Since then, she’s had solo exhibitions at the Campbell River Art Gallery, the Vancouver East Cultural Centre and the Maple Ridge Art Gallery. She received a Canada Council project grant in 2010, which allowed her to spend five months expanding her artistic horizons in Paris and Berlin. She will have her first European show in Switzerland this year. Kocsis is represented by Petley Jones Gallery in Vancouver. — Portia Priegert 22 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
www.gallerieswest.ca
4RÏPANIER"AER &ALL #HRIS -ILLAR 3EPTEMBER /CTOBER 6IKKY !LEXANDER /CTOBER .OVEMBER 4ORONTO )NTERNATIONAL !RT &AIR "OOTH /CTOBER TH #HRIS #RAN .OVEMBER $ECEMBER %VAN 0ENNY -USEUM DER -ODERNE 2UPERTINUM 3ALZBURG !USTRIA .OVEMBER TH TO &EBRUARY TH #HRIS -ILLAR 'UTTERBALLS "ACK #OVER !CRYLIC ON WOOD PANEL X CM
4RÏPANIER"AER 'ALLERY 3TREET 3 7 #ALGARY !LBERTA #ANADA 4 2 *
www.gallerieswest.ca
WWW TREPANIERBAER COM 4
4UESDAY 3ATURDAY A M P M
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 23
PREVIEWS AND PROFILES
PRAIRIE GOTHIC
LEFT: COLLECTION OF THE MACKENZIE ART GALLERY. PHOTO; BLAIR ROBINS.
SASKATCHEWAN: October 22 to January 12, MacKenzie Art Gallery, Regina Just what is it that makes Prairie art so darkly delicious? Prairie Gothic, curated by Timothy Long for the MacKenzie Art Gallery in Regina, explores the roots of what has become the prairie sensibility — art that observes from a place of isolation, thinks deeply and speaks drily. The exhibition spans four decades, featuring new acquisitions and old favourites from the Gallery’s permanent collection, including sculpture by Graeme Patterson, Ann James, Bill Burns, and Victor Cicansky, and drawings by Marcel Dzama and Lorne Beug. The theme was inspired by research in conjunction with Tactile Desires: The Work of Jack Sures, a retrospective the MacKenzie co-curated with the Tom Thomson Art Gallery, which will run concurrently before touring nationally. To understand Prairie Gothic, we must go deeper than a set of small-town secrets. Historically referring to vernacular architecture also known as Folk Victorian or Carpenter Gothic, the term refers to a 19th-century revival of Northern European Renaissance mixed with factory production. Decorative elements were mass-produced well into the 1940s — entire houses could be ordered by catalogue. In 1930, painter Grant Wood chose to document the contradictions inherent in the fad, with a portrait of a couple and their house, American Gothic. Today, the dour farm-wife standing beside her man is one of the most parodied images in North America, and has become a meme for heartland values. Wood himself is remembered as a staunch regionalist, a keen observer, but also a wit who had no time for the pompous — these qualities still resonate in the work of prairie artists today. Juxtaposing an outhouse, a pin-up girl and a pickle, the light-hearted earthiness of Cicansky’s sculpture, is an early example of humour in Saskatchewan art, and the hallmark wit of Prairie Gothic, influenced by visiting artists such as David Gilhooly and other members of the California Funk art movement. Embodying locality, irony and humour, Funk opposed the dominant universalizing abstraction of Modern art previously established in Saskatchewan by the Regina Five and the Emma Lake workshops. Funk also opened the door to incorporating and critiquing the other great universalizing force of the 20th century, pop culture. The darker desires and grittier reality in Prairie Gothic come from Sures, another influential artist and teacher. Long’s research for a retrospective on Sures revealed early contact with French Surrealism, themes of sexuality, and humour through absurd juxtaposition. But for Sures, the work developed with a different ABOVE: Bill Burns, Safety Gear for Small Animals, purpose. Instead of unlocking the subconscious, Sures reflects on the physical world. Nature, in his sculptures, (detail), mixed media, 2004. is impartial, deadly, fecund, fantastic, primal. The work of Bill Burns, represented with selections from Safety BELOW: Graeme Patterson, Woodrow, Gear for Small Animals, typifies this dark mirror, a playful examination. installation view. Deadpan, Safety Gear proposes solutions for animals whose lives have been disrupted by human development, wars, or pollution. Animal prosthetics — ridiculous or inevitable? The connection between humans and animals runs the gamut, from callous injury to intense rehabilitation efforts. Burns highlights our conflicting desires. We all want to defend the planet, yet are implicated in its destruction. Traveling the prairies, Long has often read the socio-economic history of farms in their outbuildings. This drew him to include Graeme Patterson’s work, The Grain Bins (excerpted from his installation, Woodrow.) Floating island-like on a table top, the hand-made diorama models the history of grain storage — an old square wooden bin, two round bins, one in wood, one metal, and the gleaming metal hopper, on stilts. Inside, three short stop-motion animations play out the social life on this farm, slapstick one-upmanship between two brothers, Pierre and Gerrard. Isolated, yet connected. Sharply funny, critical and yet earnest, with a love of local spaces and community — these works evidence a “make do with what you have” practicality, dosed with cabin fever. This sensibility has led to epic, wily invention by a rising number of prairie artists including Guy Maddin, Diana Thorneycraft, Chris Reid, Sylvia Ziemann, Gerald Saul, Twyla Exner, Neal McLeod, David Hoffos, and Shanell Papp. Prairie Gothic is about more than a place, it’s a state of mind. — Margaret Bessai
24 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
www.gallerieswest.ca
Inglewood Fine Arts is proud to represent internationally acclaimed artist Charles Carson in permanent exhibition.
L: Parc Tairona III, 20 x 24 inches, Acrylic on canvas R: Éveil fleurie, 40 x 30 inches, Acrylic on canvas
1223B 9th Avenue SE, Calgary AB T2G 0S9 | 403-262-5011 Hours: Tues-Wed, Fri-Sat, 10:30am – 5pm | Thurs 10:30am – 7pm | Sun 12 – 4pm
����������������������������������������������������
# # $ "# #
! # # # # #! # "# # # " # !
www.gallerieswest.ca
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 25
PREVIEWS AND PROFILES
HARRY KIYOOKA
ALBERTA: Venetian Paintings, November 26 to December 23, Herringer Kiss Gallery, Calgary While Harry Kiyooka (b. 1928) has been neither as prolific nor as ambitious as many other artists in this province, he does occupy a singular place in the history of art in Alberta. As a professor at the University of Calgary, he influenced a generation of artists. Later, following his retirement in 1981, he continued to be a vigorous advocate for the local arts scene. One of his most important achievements was the foundation of the Calgary Contemporary Arts Society (CCAS) where, as president, he played a seminal role in the establishment of the Triangle Gallery in 1988. His many contributions to the visual art community have been recognized in a number of prestigious awards and honours. Yet, the range of his own art hasn’t yet been as well known or appreciated as it should be. Kiyooka remains best-known for a series of exquisite Aegean paintings executed in the 1970s — an austerely beautiful and refined series of monumental abstractions. In 2005, he astounded the art community with an exciting exhibiTOP LEFT: Harry Kiyooka, Ducal Palace tion (his first in 30 years) of a series of colourful, dynamic abstracts done in the 1960s that had been almost Evening Venezia, oil on board, 1995. unknown. In the spring of 2011, Kiyooka and his wife, sculptor Katie Ohe, announced the creation of the KO TOP RIGHT: Rive Delgi Schiavoni Venezia, Arts Centre, a unique foundation to promote contemporary art through exhibitions, workshops, symposia, and oil on board, 1995. lectures. BELOW: Campanile Piazza San Marco And now he’s come up with another surprise. In late November, the Herringer Kiss gallery in Calgary will Venezia, oil on board, 1994. present a “new” body of work, featuring one of the most challenging subjects in the history of art — Venice. Who knew that this abstract artist has been painting images of Venice for half a century? The exhibition will feature approximately 20 works, including oil paintings, sketches and watercolours. All the paintings are representational, with clearly recognizable subject matter, rendered in a vigorous style that can be described as a cross between impressionism and expressionism. The Venice works don’t constitute a series exactly, but instead represent a beloved subject which the artist returned to over and over again, over an extended period of time. Kiyooka had spent three memorable and formative years (1958 to 1961) as a young artist in Italy, returning many times from the 1970s to the early 1990s. Venice was a source of endless fascination for him, and his youthful rapture became a lifelong obsession. He was enamoured with the city — its stunning palaces, churches, museums, bridges and canals, and especially its light. Kiyooka admired the Venetian artists of the Renaissance, like Titian, Giorgione, Tintoretto and Veronese; the 18th century veduti painters Canaletto and Guardi; and Turner and Monet, who captured the mysterious and shifting beauty of the city in the 19th century. Like them, Kiyooka painted the famous sites at different times of day and in variable conditions, including the Grand Canal with its resplendent palazzi and the Piazza San Marco. Kiyooka felt compelled to grapple with the formal problems presented by this famous but elusive subject. The oil paintings are studio works based on photographs, sketches and watercolours done over the years in situ. The canvases share an intense sense of painterly ardour, built up with layers of heavily encrusted impasto, animated by evanescent light which glows on the surfaces of structures and in reflections on the water. There’s something deeply private about these passionate works, wrestled from time, place and imagination. This may explain Kiyooka’s reluctance to show them publicly. Seen together for the first time, these beautiful paintings will reveal what an extraordinary painter Kiyooka is: truly a painter’s painter. — Monique Westra 26 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
www.gallerieswest.ca
GIBSON FINE ART
ANGELA MORGAN OCT 2 - 15
RICHARD HERMAN OCT 22 - NOV 3
SHEILA KERNAN NOV 4 - 19
628 11 Ave SW | Tel. 403.244.2000 | Calgary AB, T2R 0E2 | www.gibsonfineart.ca
Celebrating 25 Years !-!+ $ ! !*-!' !+ 2 -) !+ !+ & .& !+ +&!(! ,1&1( #.% -) !+ 2 )/!' !+ !( 1 %) )/!' !+ 2 (($/!+, +1 #)0 )/!' !+ 2 ! !' !+
2 -+!!- ')(-)( & !+- #)(! 000 , )--" &&!+1 )' www.gallerieswest.ca
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 27
REVIEWS
What we saw at exhibitions in the West Hand in the Dark, she explores the fact that the transmission of knowledge traditionally gouache on paper, 2006. passed down via storytelling was supplanted by impersonal mass-media, market-driven television imported from the south. The work also shows how the nature of ‘knowledge’ itself changed as a result. Jack Butler’s large, red gouache drawings of flowers arise from his childhood memories of selling seeds door-to-door in Winnipeg. Also based on Inuit ‘storybone’ games, his art links the geographies and histories of the north and south, while embedding questions less about art and money than art and its social value. In Patrick Mahon’s drawings, ballpoint pen designs curlicue delicately around coloured pencil drawings of fish and whales. Referencing paper currency — the new means of exchange in the north — here, art and money are one. William Noah’s paintings and drawings address how art brought money into Inuit communities, creating a new way of life and effectively erasing the past. Unfolding this notion further, one of several videos included in the show records a small group of hunters on snowmobiles traversing a barren expanse of white snow, one behind the other — in a way, poetically tracing their presence in the land as if drawing a line on paper. Ruby Arngna’naaq’s video, The Money Stories — Nanutuak, Do You Remember When You First Used Money?, gives voice to elder members of the community, who answer that very question through their own experiences. Their remembrances are simultaneously humorous and disturbing. Art & Cold Cash exposes the cultural and social imperatives of the Canadian North and south through the production and circulation of Inuit art, prompting viewers to consider how art and money mix in those regions, and in the larger global art economy. This is interesting stuff, but given that this particular iteration of the show is a substantially edited version of a larger touring exhibition, we’re teased into wanting more. — Jack Anderson Jack Butler, Sananguagite /
Pinguagite Kinaujalluaviluu,
The soapstone carvings and graphic prints of the Inuit peoples of Canada’s Arctic are likely the most recognized ‘Canadian’ works in the international art market, forms that soared in popularity largely due to the efforts of James Houston, who set up art-making co-operatives and collectives in First Nations communities in northern Quebec in the early 1950s. The work of the five artists in this show, Art & Cold Cash, is focused on the social transformations that followed the boom in Inuit art — Houston’s interventions dramatically altered the lives of individuals and whole communities as a result of the introduction of market capitalism to previously nomadic fur-trading communities in the Baker Lake region. Three of the artists lived and worked in communities affected by this change. Jack Butler and Sheila Butler lived and taught art in Baker Lake beginning in the late 1960s, and Patrick Mahon’s experience of the region began in the mid-1980s. Revisiting the region again between 2004 and 2007, they created a temporary counter-collective aimed at de-constructing the consequences of the imported, constructed economy created by Houston’s original forays into Inuit geographic, social and cultural space. Working with Inuit artist William Noah and Inuit writer Ruby Arngna’naaq, who lived through those early cultural and social changes, all the works in the exhibition recall a way of life before capitalism and cash supplanted the barter system, and forever altered the region’s historical means of exchange. Each artist addresses change within the framework of direct experience of the Arctic. Sheila Butler’s images fuse past with present, focusing on technological changes in the region over the last 30 years. In one suite of six drawings, Reach for a 28 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
Les Manning, Common/Opposites, April 30 to June 19, Esplanade Art Gallery, Medicine Hat. Review by Quentin Randall.
Common/Opposites, an exhibition of new ceramic work by artist Les Manning, is an excellent example of how contemporary artists are attempting to capture a sense of place. It’s an exciting body of work on a subject that’s received little attention historically — the Canadian prairie — presented in a way that demands reflection and interpretation. Manning offers an excellent opportunity to step outside the environment and hold it in our hands, giving us the best vantage point to begin understanding the complex forces of place. Find the complete review online at www.gallerieswest.ca www.gallerieswest.ca
LEFT: COURTESY DUNLOP ART GALLERY
Art & Cold Cash, May 14 to July 7, Dunlop Art Gallery, Regina
DANIEL BARKLEY
SUSAN COLLETT
FRANCE JODOIN
Sept 8 - Oct 8
Oct 13 - Nov 12
Nov 17- Dec 23
3PE $IBSMFTXPSUI
Grant Leier
0DUPCFS – /PWFNCFS
/PWFNCFS – 24, 2011
Clayoquot, Sunset Mists Oil on canvas, 36� x 36�
Color Wave Acrylic on canvas, 30� x 30�
WEST END GALLERY
1203 Broad Street, Victoria B.C. V8W 2A4 (250) 388-0009
!XFTUFOEHBMMFSZ
.POEBZ 'SJEBZ 4BUVSEBZ 4VOEBZ t 7JFX 0OMJOF XXX XFTUFOEHBMMFSZMUE DPN www.gallerieswest.ca
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 29
REVIEWS Pulse: The Alberta Society of Artists at 80 Years, July 7 to August 24, Triangle Gallery of Visual Arts, Calgary
This exhibition celebrates the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Alberta Society of Artists in Calgary. It includes a small historical section featuring early works by well-known artists that recall the origin of the society, as well as a much larger section devoted to contemporary practice. Many of the more than 250 artists currently associated with the ASA understandably expected a survey exhibition featuring a large number of artists, but the approach taken by guest curator Mary-Beth Laviolette is bold. Instead of a wide survey, she presents a tightly curated selection featuring only 11 artists (all women), each of them represented by several works. This strategy is consistent with the compelling title of the exhibition — Pulse — in reflecting the vitality and energy of art in Alberta today, and yielding a more meaningful result than a staid, broader sampling ever could. Laviolette introduces many artists whose names may be unfamiliar. Indeed, only Bev Tosh is a senior Linda Daoust, Corporate Mothering, ink, artist with a national repugraphite, charcoal, oil stick and paint on tation, and it’s clear that watercolour paper, 2010. Laviolette’s research was exhaustive. In the end, only two selection criteria prevailed — outstanding quality and currency of practice. One common theme that underpins the work of all the artists in Pulse is the innovative approach to media. Familiar fine art media are adapted to new purposes — the use of encaustic as a sculptural medium, Roberta Murray’s Pictorialist suite of photographs layered with watercolour, Liv Pedersen’s whimsical “shaped tapestry” faces on a black ground, woven intuitively on a small, rudimentary Dutch plank loom. With their sexually charged, searing and humorous context, Barbara West’s knitted everyday objects represent the most postmodern works in the show. Her installation, Drinking Games, subverts the benign and comforting activity of knitting into an agent of social commentary. The most dazzling example of artistic ingeniousness in medium is the stunning, all-white installation of Eveline Kolijn. Using an X-acto knife, she has transformed ordinary Styrofoam containers into delicate and mesmerizingly intricate cut-out patterns that look like lace. But instead of simple decorative designs, the patterns reveal organic forms (plants, bees), reinforcing the paradox of using a ubiquitous, synthetic material associated with transience, waste, pollution and fossil fuels to conjure up the infinite complexity and fragility of nature. Each artist in her own unique way seems fascinated by round shapes, organic forms and circular elements. This is clear in the colourful oil on paper paintings by Linda Daoust, whose vital, organic and spontaneous images feature a profusion of brilliantly hued and high-contrast rounded forms, concentric spirals and scratchy lines. One dominant colour — greenish blue — in her work finds uncanny visual resonance in many of Kim Bruce’s strangely breast-like encaustic cones, and links 30 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
the work of both artists to the lyrical tonal orchestration in aqua of Lynn Malin’s radiant grid of sketches mounted onto Plexiglas sheets. These translucent, floating images, like Daoust’s work, hover between abstraction and landscape. Tender Steel, an extraordinary new work by Bev Tosh, creates a gracious calligraphic response to the linearity of both Daoust and Malin — a monumental group portrait is rendered as a continuous line drawing in steel wire. The use of flowing, uninterrupted line symbolically represents the bonds, continuity and shared experiences of young women who left Canada as war brides during the Second World War. Tosh’s Strand recounts another moving tale of departure, in handwriting which unfurls in a spiral of diminishing thicknesses of rough twine, hand-stitched onto a huge unadorned sheet of gently billowing, suspended sepia-coloured fabric. The fabric, which looks like silk moiré, shimmers like water and in this way “rhymes” with the fluid expanse of Malin’s luminous grid. Connections between the works in this exhibition lend it a sense of cohesiveness and relevance. The Alberta Society of Artists should be proud. — Monique Westra Don Gill, Erratic Space: Bowmanville, April 24 to May 22, Visual Arts Centre of Clarington, Bowmanville, Ontario
The small community of Bowmanville is known today as the home of one of Ontario’s nuclear reactors, but its history dates back to the 18th century as a busy harbour and grain mill site. It was also the site of Camp 30, a World War II facility used to imprison captured Nazi officers, including Otto Kretschmer, the most successful U-Boat commander of the war. While temporarily teaching at Trent University in nearby Peterborough, Lethbridge-based artist Don Gill focused on Bowmanville to give shape to the most recent incarnation of his Erratic Spaces series of exhibitions — he tries to aesthetically upend the rigid, spatial organization of urban centres by randomly meandering through them and accumulating imagery of his encounters along the way. The work captures the tension that exists in our everyday urban world between order and chaos, and we’re reminded of the second law of thermodynamics, which bluntly reminds us that everything falls apart unless we put in the energy needed to maintain some sense of order. We encounter this tension everyday and everywhere — if only at the very mundane level of unmaintained roads and cracked sidewalks, with grass growing up between. Like many cities, Bowmanville has made no attempt to maintain or preserve its old POW camp, preferring instead to wait for new urban development Don Gill, Erratic Space, Bowmanville, digital photographs, newspaper clippings, Inkjet on canvas mural, 2011.
www.gallerieswest.ca
UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY PRESS
THE ART OF JOHN SNOW BY ELIZABETH HERBERT 4 6 - -". 6 - $"/ ,),1. -) 0"/
),+$ ,2".!1" .&0& ) /01!5 ,# 2&0 ) +! &+91"+0& ) 8$1." &+ 0%" 1)01. ) !"2"),-*"+0 ,# )$ .5 +! -&,+"". &+ 0%" .0 ,# -.&+0* (&+$ &+ + !
$49.95
JUST RELEASED
CULTURAL MEMORIES AND IMAGINED FUTURES The Art of Jane Ash Poitras
COVER AND UNCOVER Eric Cameron EDITED BY ANN DAVIS
4 6 - -". 6 - $"/
3 ,),1. -) 0"/ & )&,$. -%5
,1. ,# + ! 7/ *,/0 ."/-" 0"! +! ."+,3+"! .0 .&0& / //"// 0%" .0 +! -%&),/,-%5 ,# .& *".,+ ,+" ,# + ! 7/ *,/0 &*-,.0 +0 ,+0"*-,. .5 .0&/0/
$49.95
ALWAYS AN ADVENTURE: AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY BY HUGH A. DEMPSEY
4 6 - -". 6 - $"/ 6 3 &* $"/
BY PAMELA MCCALLUM 4 6 - -". 6 - $"/ ,),1. -) 0"/
%" 8./0 ,,( )"+$0% /01!5 0, "4 *&+" ,&0. /7/ ."". / 3%,)" ." ,1+0&+$ %". !"2"),-*"+0 / + .0&/0 - .0& &- 0&,+ &+ * ',. "4%& &0&,+/ +! ." ,$+&0&,+ / /&$+&8 +0 + !& + +! &+0".+ 0&,+ ) .0&/0
COMING SOON
$34.95
+" ,# ) ".0 7/ *,/0 "/0 ),2"! +! &+91"+0& ) %&/0,.& +/ 0"))/ %&/ /0,.5 &+ %&/ 3 5 &0% 0%" 0. !"* .( "*-/"5 "5" #,. !"0 &) +! )&2")5 +" !,0"/ 0%&/ *"*,&. 3&)) -0&2 0" +5,+" &+0"."/0"! &+ 3"/0".+ 1)01." +! &./0 0&,+/ %&/0,.5
$34.95
, -1. % /" 0%"/" 0&0)"/ ,+0 0 5,1. # 2,1.&0" ,,(/"))". ,. .0 $ ))".5 $&#0 /%,- 2&/&0 1/ ,+)&+" 0 www.uofcpress.com
www.gallerieswest.ca
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 31
REVIEWS that has no interest in referencing the past. So the site, with its broken buildings and overgrown lots, has inevitably succumbed to entropy, while the roadways around and through the site denote order. Based on a series of walks he took through Bowmanville over the course of a year, Gill gathered and assembled digital and video images en route, making maps documenting the stages and visual shapes of those walks, to create the largest component of this show at the Visual Arts Centre of Clarington. Gill used the gallery’s airy third-floor loft as a working studio to create his Bowmanville project. The walls were replete with evidence of his activities — the computer-made maps of his walks in and around the community, scores of images documenting the typically un-photogenic reality that makes Bowmanville indistinguishable from virtually anywhere else, and national newspaper clippings from the time period of the walks, detailing events going on in the larger world at the time (including the debate over showing Osama bin Laden’s death photographs). Lying by itself on a desk in the centre of the loft was the singular piece, the
Mark Bovey, Plume, digital print, screen print, video projection, 2010, from Traditions and Transitions.
aesthetic end of all this activity in the form of one completed component of the Bowmanville project — July 14 Bowmanville 9.4km. The work comprises two digital images printed side-by-side on a small rectangle of paper, the shattered glass panes of a window juxtaposed with a map of the artist’s walk that day, complete with scale and compass markings which make for a visually interesting drawing in its own right. We’re at what was Camp 30, in the decaying remnants of a POW camp renowned for the daring escapes by prisoners once held here. Gill has walked the space of its disappearance. The map of his movements details the shape of an order imposed by city streets and the larger intentions of urban planning, the juxtaposed image of a broken window, the inevitability of disorder and destruction. Erratic Space: Bowmanville is a compelling work that articulates the subliminal tensions that make up the everyday urban spaces we inhabit. — Gil McElroy Traditions and Transitions: A Group Printmaking Exhibition, April 8 to May 21, Alternator Centre for Contemporary Art, Kelowna
Temporarily switching his inky studio apron for the classic black apparel of a curator, Kelowna-based printmaker Briar Craig took on the role of organizing this intriguing exhibition of recent work by five Canadian printmakers. Craig is a great supporter and promoter of printmaking, but is all too aware of the defensive position typically taken with a project that could be branded by many as old-fashioned, due to its medium-based theme. To counter this, Craig selected works only by printmakers who are investigating new technologies and pushing the limits of the discipline. 32 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
Mark Bovey (currently teaching at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design in Halifax) has a single piece in the show called Plume. It’s a double-sided work created on a large sheet of Plexiglas suspended in mid air. The front side is taken up by a photo-reproduction of an open spread in an old ledger book, with faint entries in fountain pen. The reverse side has a projected moving image of a changing cloudy sky — the impression is that it symbolizes the inexorable passage of time. Jesit Gill of Toronto situates his screen-printing in the niche/tradition of the proletarian multiple, both in medium and its casual look — posters and newspapers printed in flat, bright colours, all with a pop-grunge look to them. Gill’s paper is, intentionally, of poor quality and dog-eared, giving the impression that these have been salvaged from telephone poles and coffee shop bulletin boards. Dana Tosic of Calgary made use of a three-dimensional scanning device while on a visit to the UK, and came back with digital images of fragments of her own body — hands touching a foot, hands undoing shirt buttons. These appear in an eerie half tone, looking somewhat like the images from the new airport security scanners. The Big Brother-style overtone is reinforced by their pale silver/grey monotone colour and the repeated stuttering of the images, centred only in the middle area of large sheets of smooth white paper. They seem a bit like chicken parts wrapped for sale in the supermarket. Kelowna’s Laura Widmer focuses on traditional linocut to produce large-scale portraits. The variety and repetition of masses of marks that eventually evoke likeness and mood make it impossible not to think of pixels, as Craig points out in his catalogue essay. But it’s been a much older human tradition to work with tiny repeated “bytes” to construct a larger image — we see it in needlework. Regina-based Robert Truszkowski produces cool, post-modern works, mashups of seemingly unrelated images. What does the image of a $20 bill with the Queen’s face scratched out have to do with his repeated ball-form, which is made up of rectangles that optically pop in and out, like a cross between a soccer ball and Buckminster Fuller’s geodesic dome? Truszkowski works up interesting backdrops, and with these, seems something of a printmaker’s printmaker with his blind embossing, trompe l’oeil crumpled paper and brushstrokes. The overall tone in his prints is urban grunge, made up of unrelated images as they might have been seen randomly from a moving bus. They’re of wild visual interest, but make no more sense when combined than when seen individually. The work of these five artists, their utilization of new technologies and various processes, goes hand in hand, equally, with their imagery and content. It speaks to the health of print-making today and is underscored with smart thinking and decision-making, so that content and method come together to create powerful expressions, visually and intellectually engaging. — Liz Wylie
Yam Lau, Room, April 2 to June 4, Surrey Art Gallery, Surrey, B.C. Review by Rachel Rosenfield Lafo
Toronto-based artist Yam Lau creates hybrid worlds that blend real and digitally generated space in intersecting and overlapping layers of metaphysical complexity. Two of his recent works were included in Surrey Art Gallery’s Dwelling, three thematically related exhibitions that focused on house and home. Presented as part of the gallery’s TechLab digital art exhibition program, Lau’s two computer-generated animations and digital videos occupied their own room — one shown on a monitor inside the darkened space and the other on a monitor just outside. The gallery became the container for the rooms depicted in Lau’s videos, effectively echoing the “room within a room” structure used by the artist. Find the complete review online at www.gallerieswest.ca www.gallerieswest.ca
%2/$'0 8 '%'-$'0
IMMERSE YOURSELF IN A MAGICAL WORLD OF MOVING PICTURES.
www.glenbow.org
Above left to right #5 ,'*1%)'0 Betty Boop 8 9 #2*/.#, 0%)*4' /$ #$*12/. Snack and Drink /302'16 /( ,#2 ,#%+ *,-1 *=< !0.+# The Hand,
9 :! ; # 1 "*,,*1 7 0*'. The Lost World, 9 /$12'0 *,-1 /,,'%2*/. #,#1 #.& #2%)',/0 Cel from Animal Farm, /302'16 #.& 9 !)' #,#1 #.& #2%)',/0 /,,'%2*/.
5)*$*2*/. %30#2'& $6 #0$*%#. 02 #,,'06 /.&/.
Fine Art Gallery Framing & Design Centre
Gilbert Marosi
Richard Riverin We Looked & We Saw Him
Onyx Leaves Larry Guterson
6999 - 11 Street SE, Calgary, AB www.gallerieswest.ca
Dean McLeod Richard Riverin Larry Guterson
Autumn Maple Lois Baumann
Au Coin de Prenombre
Marilyn
Blade Dean McLeod
2011 Fall Gallery Shows
Gilbert Marosi Art of Dr. Seuss Lois Bauman
Visit artevo.com for monthly promo�ons
Art of Dr. Seuss
(Irene Besse Keyboards bldg) 403-265-7723 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 33
FEATURE REVIEW
THE COLOUR OF MY DREAMS THE SURREALIST REVOLUTION IN ART, MAY 28 TO SEPTEMBER 25, VANCOUVER ART GALLERY
This exhibition is filled with surprises. Guest curated by Dawn Ades, one of the world’s leading scholars of surrealism, and featuring the works of more than 80 artists from over 60 museums and collections around the world, The Colour of My Dreams draws new ties to Canada’s First Nations and Pacific Northwest culture. The surrealists were among the first European artists to recognize the talents of First Nations people and to exhibit indigenous work alongside their own. As early as the late 1930s, surrealists such as Kurt Seligman and Wolfgang and Alice Paalen traveled to remote Haida Gwaii and Northwest coast communities in British Columbia to purchase work, draw, film, photograph and collect stories and myths. Many never-before-exhibited drawings and photographs are included in this show. And while Andre Breton (the father of surrealism) did not venture to Canada, one of his prized possessions was a Yaxwiwe peace dance headdress from the West Coast. He spent hours gazing at it in the last year of his life, including the night he died. In the first room of the exhibition, a large Yakan’takw (Speaking-through post) from the Kwakwaka’wakw nation dominates the entrance. It towers over Giorgio de Chirico’s The Child’s Brain Awakes and the Pietà or Revolution by Night by Max Ernst. The nobility of the Aboriginal work contrasts sharply with the paintings, about troubled relationships that de Chirico and Ernst had with their fathers. It only took the first two rooms of this labyrinthine exhibition to realize the ineptness of my own knowledge of surrealism. The show is superbly organized — a clear guide to complex subject matter. Each thematically arranged space, with excellent curatorial panels, opened doors to startling, even shocking, perspectives to this least-understood and most-maligned of all 20th century art movements. To begin with, surrealism was not initially a visual movement at all. It began as a literary concept that moved reluctantly into visual art — a bourgeois commodity. The founders, notably Breton, were writers whose passionate ideas were born in the trenches of World War 1. These young men, who witnessed some of the worst horrors that European culture ever produced, launched
a fervent plea for a revolution of thought to overthrow a morally bankrupt European culture founded on rationality. Inspired by Freud’s pioneering theories, they developed fascinating ways to loosen the grip of reason and tap into the seat of creativity, the unconscious. As the “Cadavre Exquis” room aptly shows, they often adapted children’s games as a means of fostering creativity. In one telling game, each participant drew a body part on folded paper without seeing the work of others. Later they unraveled the paper to reveal strange, human-like forms beyond logical recognition. The “Automatism” section of the exhibition describes Rorschach test-like techniques which tap into the unconscious. The most evocative method was developed by Wolfgang Paalen who, using candle smoke, “painted” smudges onto canvas and drew spontaneous images into the mysterious shapes. Max Ernst created rubbings over textured surfaces such as old wooden floors, evoking images from the intricate patterns of the grain. Rayographs were widely used by American photographer and painter Man Ray, who placed objects directly on light sensitive paper, exposed the image to light, and then developed the photograph. The surrealists had a desire to break with established norms, and it wasn’t confined to paper or canvas. Their acceptance of sexuality, alternative lifestyles and suppressed inclinations is disturbing even today — as the warning sign to the “Anatomies of Desire” room cautions. Hans Bellmer’s photos depict pubescent doll parts rearranged into contorted poses. The most troubling of his works is based on a turn-of-the-century pornographic photograph depicting a sexual act between a child and an old man — the latter with a face altered into Bellmer’s own. The surrealists’ sexual tolerance is admirably expressed in the works of Claude Cahun (originally Lucy Schwob, who changed her name to obscure both her gender and her Jewish roots), whose photographic work plays with role reversal and androgyny. Despite their small scale, her images glow with theatrical power, outshining those of her male colleagues. In one magnetic work, Self Portrait (1920), Cahun poses with a partly exposed back; head shaved, her bird-of-prey profile stark against a dark background. She gazes back with contempt and potent, erotic confidence. Viewers can’t leave this superbly curated exhibition without an increased appreciation for the depth and breadth of surrealism. Their experiments can take the viewer into hauntingly disquieting places, yet the sheer fascination of the mind let loose to dream keeps us riveted. www.gallerieswest.ca
THIS PAGE LEFT: COURTESY OF CHEIM & READ AND HAUSER & WIRTH. PHOTO: CHRISTOPHER BURKE. ABOVE: PHOTO TREVOR MILLS, VANCOUVER ART GALLERY. OPPOSITE LEFT: THE ISRAEL MUSEUM, JERUSALEM. RIGHT: TATE, PURCHASED 1981 © ESTATE OF MAX ERNST/SODRAC (2011). PHOT 0:TATE, LONDON/ART RESOURCE, NY
BY AGNIESZKA MATEJKO
Opposite Top: Kwakwaka’wakw, Ya x wiwe’ (Peace dance headdress), maple, abalone, paint, cloth, ermine fur, sea lion whiskers, 1922. Opposite Below: Louise Bourgeois, Untitled, bronze, painted white and blue, and stainless steel, 1947–49. Left: Edith Rimmington, The Oneiroscopist, oil on canvas, 1947.Below: Max Ernst, Pietà or Revolution by Night, oil on canvas, 1923.
Q & A: DAWN ADES, CURATOR, THE COLOUR OF MY DREAMS Beverly Cramp: What does the term surrealism mean to you? Dawn Ades: As an historian, it means very specifically the movement founded in Paris in the 1920s, which grew and grew. Surrealism became incredibly widespread in terms of its reach and its influence, making it hard to do exhibitions about it. How far up-to-date do you go? Should one fix it as an historical period or is surrealism something that’s still very much alive? I feel it’s still an active movement but I also thought it would be interesting to do a focused exhibition on the great years of the first surrealist artists. We included works up to the 1960s. BC: Does this exhibition say anything new about surrealism that hasn’t been said before? DA: One of my intentions was to show a paradox underlying surrealism. On the one hand it has been a tremendous stimulus to visual artists, a great inspiration. At the same time there has been no such thing as a surrealist style. You can’t say, if you paint like this or do that, or if your work looks a particular way, then you’re a surrealist. Although many people think if it looks like Salvador Dali, it must be surrealism. So part of my motive was to trace the ideas that www.gallerieswest.ca
gave surrealism the capacity to generate visual works, objects, paintings, and other mediums. Another of our original contributions in this show was to look at a whole range of film that the early surrealists loved or made themselves. Other exhibitions about surrealism haven’t touched on this subject in such great depth. This is quite radical. Another new angle in the show is the inclusion of Pacific Northwest First Nations material and how it inspired the early surrealists. I think we have uncovered an important chapter there. Again, like the use of film in surrealist art, it was not totally unknown, but we’ve been able to develop that link more fully. BC: Why did surrealism start when it did? DA: I can never be sure when to pin it down but there were several key factors. One is the tremendous upheaval of the First World War, when society was shattered, old empires destroyed and the world had to be reformed. Also, surrealism grew out of dada. It was partly a reaction against the negativity of dada, which put a veto on art. Surrealism was about rolling up the sleeves and doing things in a new and different way. Then Freud comes into it in a major Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 35
way. The surrealists were the first generation to be impacted by Freud’s ideas. They were one of the few groups struggling to reconcile Marx and Freud. The early surrealists realized that most Marxists didn’t value the mind, the emotions, and the unconscious. Marxists generally thought everything had to do with material change, improvement, reform and revolution. The Surrealists believed it was also important to know about ourselves. They felt Freud uncovered an extraordinary world in the unconscious. Of course, the actual start of the surrealist movement came with the publication of André Breton’s Manifesto of Surrealism in 1924. He was responding to all the aforementioned events that I have described. BC: What impact do you think that having a visual arts movement start with words rather than visuals had on surrealism? AD: It’s true painters only appear in Breton’s manifesto in a footnote. The manifesto was written about language. But it’s also talking about Breton’s experiments with automatic writing, about Freud, about dreams, and he’s really inviting people to join him on a voyage. He doesn’t really know where the voyage is going. He does know they have to explore other ways of creating. A major point about these early experiments was that there were no restrictions on how surrealism was to be practiced. Artists quickly cottoned on to it. It didn’t begin as one of the 20th century visual art ‘isms at all. It wasn’t like cubism or fauvism. Surrealism inherited artists who had been associated with dada like Man Ray, Max Ernst, Hans Arp, as well as attracting others to the movement. They quite literally began to congregate around Breton in 1924 and 1925. They would turn up at cafes in the evening. He was very local and immediate. This growing group was attracted to surrealism because it offered a wider intellectual purchase on life. It wasn’t just a style or a manner of painting. Everything was a constant experiment. Mat totem de Gitenmaks Hill (Totem Pole of Gitanmaax Hill), gelatin silver print. Right: Giorgio de Chirico, Le cerveau de l’enfant (Child’s Brain), oil on canvas, 1914.
THE SURREALISTS BELIEVED IT WAS ALSO IMPORTANT TO KNOW ABOUT OURSELVES. THEY FELT FREUD UNCOVERED AN EXTRAORDINARY WORLD IN THE UNCONSCIOUS
BC: Were there works you wanted for this exhibition that you couldn’t get on loan or that were otherwise unavailable? DA: I did want to get a large totem pole and put it in the VAG’s rotunda. It didn’t work out. I went to the new anthropology museum in Paris where they have an enormous totem pole brought to Europe by Kurt Seligmann (who visited the Pacific Northwest in 1938) but the logistics were too great to move such a piece. I wanted a piece by Frida Kahlo too. When André Breton visited Mexico, he met Diego Rivera, Frida and the Marxist, Leon Trotsky, among others. When he saw Frida’s works, he said to her, “you are one of us.” Overall though, I’m very happy with what’s in the show. BC: Did you have any other difficulties putting together this large collection of over 350 surrealist items? DA: I’m not superstitious at all but something very strange occurred while I was working on the show. I had spent most of one evening hanging two of Leonora Carrington’s paintings. I really struggled with those two works. The next morning I was told Leonora had died in the night. She must have passed while I was hanging her work. Very strange indeed and it gave me a queer feeling. — Beverly Cramp Dawn Ades, OBE, is a Fellow of the British Academy and a lecturer in art history at the University of Essex. She is the author of 13 books on surrealism and visual art, guest curator of exhibitions at museums including the Tate Gallery and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and is an expert on surrealism, dada, and the Mexican muralists.
36 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
www.gallerieswest.ca
ABOVE: PHOTO: MUSÉE DU QUAI BRANLY/SCALA/ART RESOURCE, NY. LOWER: MODERNA MUSEET, STOCKHOLM © ESTATE OF GIORGIO DE CHIRICO
Above: Kurt Seligmann,
T 403 290 0145 1226A Ninth Avenue SE www.circa5060.ca www.gallerieswest.ca
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 37
SPECIAL EFFECTS
SCULPTING IN PAINT, CALGARY ARTIST CHRIS MILLAR CREATES SPECTACULARLY DETAILED 3D WORKS THAT PUSH THE CONVENTIONS OF THE FORM
BY KATHERINE YLITALO
Chris Millar is arguably the most inventive, unorthodox young artist to emerge in Calgary in the last decade. Nimble-minded, he folds in hi-lo references to popular idioms, phrases, jokes, games, rituals, art, outsider art, architecture, music, TV shows, sci-fi, heroes, anti-heroes and characters of his own making, creating concoctions of mind-boggling density and visual wonder. Millar makes art out of paint, building the medium up on a flat surface into three dimensions. In his early work, he layered paint on canvas and board, but soon began to use the dried skin of acrylic as a structural material, pouring, stretching, cutting and adhering tiny pieces of paint to build intricate sculptures. Over the last seven years, each of his works has drawn the viewer into a convoluted, irreverent, and absurd story. 38 Galleries West Falll/Winter 2011
www.gallerieswest.ca
Opposite left: Artist Chris Millar in his apartment / studio in Calgary. Left: Chris Millar, detail from 370H55V (this page), mixed media, 2010 - 2011, 70" X 32" X 45". www.gallerieswest.ca
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 39
Chris Millar, RIME (detail), acrylic, styrene, wire on wood panel, 2010, 17" X 15.5".
His first foray into storytelling, Friend (2004/5), incorporated an involved story around the characters from Star Trek. The canvas initially reads like a large-scale comic book, tracking left to right in horizontal lines, but Millar soon decided to reposition the flow of images so that narratives could loop, coil, overlap and twist across the canvas. Shortly thereafter, he added small, three-dimensional objects, made all of paint, to inch out from the edges — a taco on Twas, miniature record albums on Facebiter. In conversation in his Calgary basement apartment/studio, Millar says, “I could see the potential of making the work totally three-dimensional as a way of being able to include even more tangents in the story.” Consider him beyond modernism and post-modernism. He has cheekily called his work “post-interesting.” His newest sculpture is 370H55V (2011), a hugely ambitious, exquisitely crafted work that took seven months to complete. “This one,” Millar says, “is crazy.” As if rising in an imaginary spiral force-field, the spacecraft-like form lifts from a pool of transparent resin on the floor to human height. Multi-tiered, every part and every surface is carefully considered, even the undersides. Visual games and wordplay abound — read the license plate (that doubles as the title) upside down. The elaborate vessel appears to be lured into the cosmic void, chasing after the carrot dangling on a fishing line at its prow. The purpose of the voyage is unclear, but on close inspection, we realize we’re seeing the ship at a moment of peril, when creative endeavors on several platforms are teeter40 Galleries West Falll/Winter 2011
ing between brilliance and disaster. You can read it as a kind of medieval Sci-Fi illumination, an architecture of amoral meditations that constitute the struggle Millar grapples with in the studio. He describes it as “the tension between making something and wanting to destroy it as you’re making it. It’s the act of making something beautiful and possibly destroying it every step of the way.” At the centre of the work, the house of cards (700 of them, each scaled down from a Civil War Poker deck to measure a mere 20 x 13 millimeters) is a technical tour de force, and an effective metaphor for a flimsy structure in danger of collapse. Almost every addition he makes seems to increase the potential for destruction, testing the amount of creative critical mass the work can bear. If the work is an outward manifestation of creative process teetering on the edge, Millar’s own feet are more firmly planted on the ground. Since graduation from the Alberta College of Art & Design in 2000 with a BFA, major in painting, he’s exhibited in solo and group shows in Alberta, across Canada, in Chicago and Madrid. In 2007, he was selected as the first runnerup in the RBC national Painting Competition for artists under 30. In 2009, the Calgary Public Library Foundation gave him an Art of the Book Award for Simon & Farfenougan & Hunter. The National Gallery of Canada recently purchased Millar’s major threedimensional narrative, Bejeweled Double Festooned Plus Skull for Girls (2009), which was featured in Timeland: 2010 Alberta Biennial of Contemporary Art www.gallerieswest.ca
Chris Millar, Bejewelled Double Festooned Plus Skull for Girls (detail), acrylic paint, styrene, ABS, metal, 2009, 55" X 44" X 24".
at the Art Gallery of Alberta. In September 2011, TrépanierBaer Gallery in Calgary will debut 370H55V and launch the record multiple, Gutterballs. In 2012, Nancy Tousley will curate a mini-retrospective of Millar’s work since 2004 at the Art Gallery of Alberta. Born in Claresholm, Alberta, Millar’s family moved to Lethbridge when he was five, and later to Sherwood Park where his father, Dr. Garnet Millar, worked as an educational psychologist for the province of Alberta and authored books on creativity. His mother became an accomplished quilter and his younger brother, Adam, grew up to be a novelist. Pursuing a Fine Arts Diploma at Grant MacEwan Community College in Edmonton was a natural step, and Millar flourished in the classes taught by Darcy Mallon and Cheri Moses. When he moved to Calgary to continue his studies at ACAD, his teachers included Chris Cran, Bill Rogers, Mary Scott and Bill MacDonnell. “In terms of content, I didn’t realize that you could make art and jokes at the same time,” Millar says about moving from one school to another. “At Grant MacEwan, we were encouraged to make work that was more about identity and politics. It was an ironic twist to be with people making things that were ridiculous and kind of ‘dumb art,’ a reaction to that kind of ‘smart art.’” Millar aligns himself with music more than visual art, adding, “It seemed really punk rock to be comfortable about playing with materials and not being super intellectual.” Millar recalls his studio mate Patrick Lundeen (now a full-time dad in New York City) as his biggest inspiration at ACAD. “We pushed each other to take our ideas further. We started shopping at Crafts Canada — buying tons of glitter and doll’s hair. When we went to Toys ‘R’ Us and Patrick bought all the plastic swords they had, that’s when I realized you didn’t have to use fine art material to make art. He pushed the limits of bad taste and super irony, playing the role of bad artist and homophobic racist. He stopped doing that kind of work after 9/11. He said that people hate each other for real now; you can’t joke about it. I’m still interested in bad art and bad music.” It may help define Millar’s aesthetic by noting that he listens mostly to grindcore, death metal and black metal, with some folk and blues thrown in. “Music for underdogs, that’s what I like.” After art school, Millar worked briefly as a house painter, a stock boy at Grand & Toy and a gallery assistant at Stride Gallery before landing a job at Livingstone & Cavell Extraordinary Toys that sustained him for eight years. Millar’s move to Chicago in 2008 marked a commitment to full-time studio practice without having to rely on other part-time jobs. After a year and a half, he returned to Calgary, where he’s had a period of great productivity and positive critical attention. Because his methods are so time-consuming, he’s limited in the number of pieces he can make, but most are already in public and private collections. “It’s a risky profession when you don’t make a lot of things. In 2010, I made four things,” he says. “That’s why I’ve opted to make more multiples. My goal is to make this next record project accessible for people like friends and art students to buy.” When I asked, “Where do you go next?” he answered, “I think I’ve taken detail and craft as far as I can. Now it’s the narrative arc — a grand narrative over years, that’s where I’d like to take it. I also hope to travel to Europe for the first time.” Chris Millar will have a solo exhibition at the TrepanierBaer Gallery in Calgary
Chris Millar,Gutterballs (front cover), acrylic on wood, 2011, 8.5" X 8.5". www.gallerieswest.ca
September 8 to October 8; and a solo exhibition at the Art Gallery of Alberta in Edmonton January 27 to April 9, 2012. Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 41
ON THE OCCASION OF THE TENTH ANNIVERSARY OF GALLERIES WEST, JEFFREY SPALDING SURVEYS WHERE WE’VE BEEN, AND SPECULATES ON WHERE WE’RE HEADED
fine art as well as fine craft, province by province, city by city. What’s all the more remarkable is that the magazine has chosen to work within a spirit of true pluralism. It’s managed well the difficult task of balancing the attention paid to all its constituents across prairie Canada, B.C. and the north. It is quite a feat to be perceived as ‘local’ and relevant to readers wherever they pick up and read their copy. Galleries West straddles parallel universes reaching out to divergent audiences whose personal preferences span the admiration for traditional pictures, western bronzes, artists of senior achievement to others pushing the envelope, extending from Royal Art Lodge, First Nations to the vivid critique of gender and social politics within the artist-run centres. The trick is, how to maintain inclusiveness without parochialism, jingoism
A VIEW FROM G
alleries West magazine hit the streets running in 2002. Without institutional pomp it launched right into a program of informing and advocating on behalf of the vibrant art scene in Canada’s western provinces. It didn’t pause to declare an editorial manifesto, define its market niche, or justify its reason for being — it simply weighed in. Looking back over the features and reviews, its unstated agenda is evident, and it’s evolved into a valuable forum giving voice to the contemporary arts and artists in western Canada. It would be fair to wonder why this was deemed necessary. After all, we do have national periodicals, dailies and electronic media covering the arts. You’d imagine that intriguing art news from across the country would be avidly covered by these vehicles, and accrue extra benefit through the advantage of exposure upon a national stage. But while the nationals might defend that they give representation proportional to population, art patriots in western Canada would observe that far too few of their artists, exhibitions and issues were given adequate attention. Into this breach stepped Galleries West, as an alternate mechanism, methodically reporting about the bountiful number of key figures, stories and themes. Since some of its readership will consider that the magazine exists, as consequence, to right historical wrongs, to overturn regional slights and pay homage to overlooked areas, Galleries West must itself be extra vigilant not to repeat the same pattern. Each of us might have our personal favourite, thus we might quibble about this inclusion versus that exclusion. However on balance the magazine has done a thorough job highlighting all the usual suspects, both long-established and bright new emerging stars,
42 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
or pandering? This is the leitmotif for this anniversary issue, and the place we’re collectively situated on the cultural landscape of western Canada. Surveying the pages of its past 29 issues acts as a primer for discussing where we’ve collectively visited. Following are some observations concerning things that I personally consider ten years of highlights — pro and con. SURVIVAL IS ITS OWN REWARD The most evident thing to remark upon a tenth anniversary is that the magazine survived (let alone that it seems set to flourish.) Set against the backdrop of a stern economic downturn and dour predictions of doom, the arts, a sector of the economy purportedly the most vulnerable and fragile, seems to have not only weathered the storm but actually gained momentum. Among the few but lamentable losses were the closures of longstanding contributors such as the Upstairs Gallery (Winnipeg), Susan Whitney Gallery (Regina), Fran Willis Gallery (Victoria), Kensington Fine Art (Calgary), Diane Farris Gallery (Vancouver), and Buschlen Mowatt (Vancouver). However, most noted artists, artist-run centres, alternate, public institutions and commercial galleries that were in operation ten years ago remain unflagging, still thriving. In fact, more have emerged and many are in expansion mode. This good news is tempered by the sad news relayed through In Memoriam features. This past decade we lost many leading figures who had come to define the standards for so many disciplines, far too many to recount. Among them, Arthur Erickson, whose extraordinary buildings are emblems of civility, intellectual clarity, grace and classical refinement. If this is who we are, then we should be very proud indeed. www.gallerieswest.ca
FROM THE OUTSET: VOL 1 NO 1 Contemporary art predominated in the magazine and in gallery exhibitions. It embraced the current and the progressive, while keeping at bay more traditional practitioners (perennial favourites of the corporate, oil-patch world were little in evidence). Historical art was barely visible. In latter issues of the magazine, the back page began addressing one select historical topic. It was a scant number of column inches, yet greatly appreciated given the scarce opportunities to see exhibitions of historical art in western Canada. Our arts agencies had come to believe that audiences preferred an emphasis on the present, rather than sharing attention paid to achievements of our past.
another large-scale work (a companion work was also sited at Quebec City). It would appear that Fafard has the lock on public commissions combining the right mix of popular recognizable subject matter, modernist flair and socio-historical references. While we all would applaud their considerable qualities, it leads me to wonder if we can ever truly move past this as a formula for satisfying the demands for public art? The 2002 announcement of Calgary’s 1 per cent for public art program was greeted with great optimism, but ten years on, do we have much to show for it? It’s produced few memorable works. Much of the excitement has been fuelled by initiatives like the Vancouver Sculpture Biennial, private companies and individuals.
THE WEST I still long to see firsthand the works of many figures from British Columbia’s auspicious recent past, among them: B.C. Binning, Lawren Harris, F. H. Varley, and Jock MacDonald. Surely affection can be offered to more than Emily Carr, Northwest Coast art and photo conceptualism? Galleries West filled part of this void with articles on mid-career and senior figures, including Gordon Smith, Ann Kipling and Gathie Falk. And our public art museums have recently displayed a number of significant historical exhibitions as counterbalance — Takao Tanabe (Vancouver Art Gallery), William Perehudoff (Mendel), Nicholas de Grandmaison (University of Lethbridge / Art Gallery of Alberta), William Brymner (Winnipeg Art Gallery). Viewed from the opposite side of the same question, articles, reviews and exhibitions reveal a culture returning over and over to embrace a recurring cadre of artists in mid-career. Certainly we witnessed many bright new faces. Among them, Ron Terada, David Hoffos, Shelley Ouellet, Chris Dorosz, K.C. Adams, and recurring contributions by artists like Marie Lannoo, John Noestheden, Terence Houle and Diana Thorneycroft. FLOCKING TO FAFARD Do the math. Joe Fafard was the artist most often mentioned in articles, cover stories, ads, commissions and awards throughout the decade. His works were seen perennially in commercial and public gallery exhibitions throughout the west and across Canada, not the least of which included a National Gallery of Canada retrospective tour. The magazine’s first issue discussed a sculpture commission, an event often repeated for other works he developed for Edmonton and across Canada. This past July, the Calgary Stampede unveiled www.gallerieswest.ca
WHERE THE WORLD MEETS THE WEST Articles celebrated prominent regional artists, while tipping a hat towards national and international exhibitions. The magazine showcased the art of the west, moreso than providing a venue to discuss art on view in the west. This situation is shifting, part of a new dynamic born of self-confidence. In the 1970s and 1980s, western artists had to battle for a place at the table. Some might proclaim that recently the west ran the table. Principal among these changes, national as well as international powerhouses (including the Museum of Modern Art, Smithsonian, the Guggenheim and Documenta) collected and showcased, to acclaim, the works of many western-based artists including the Vancouver School of photo-conceptualism, Brian Jungen, Annie Pootogook, Sarah Anne Johnson. CALGARY QUAGMIRE For much of the 1970s through the 1990s the action in the Alberta visual arts community swirled around Calgary, with its vibrant and hip commercial galleries. In 2002, the sale of the Encana Art Collection signalled a collapse in corporate collecting, and though it now seems to have been a momentary retraction, it was nevertheless a serious blow. The Art Gallery of Calgary revealed its plans for expansion in the first issue of Galleries West in 2002. While providing considerable, much-needed improvement, even with further renovation it has never fully served the bill. The Gallery will announce another capital campaign this year, the most recent instalment of a three-decade-long Calgary quest to secure a more Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 43
appropriately-scaled contemporary art museum. The AGC is not the only contender for this crown, which may be part of the problem — partisan noncooperation keeps Calgary from moving forward. While Calgary fragmented, the Edmonton Art Gallery jumped in. The Alberta Biennial of Contemporary Art was initially a co-production equally shared with the Glenbow Museum. When Glenbow pulled itself out of the mix, EAG reinforced a well-earned position at the head of this signature project, inheriting the mantle as de facto regional leader for contemporary art. Soon they upped the ante. They abandoned their city-state art gallery status, and re-branded as the Art Gallery of Alberta, extending bragging rights to a new territorial mandate. The completion of the new AGA building sealed the deal. Funding agencies could now channel support to Alberta through the AGA, with the intention that they provide outreach services province-wide.
need buildings, exquisite structures to facilitate the delivery of superlative art services, but buildings are solely the boxes that hold the contents. Better be sure it also leaves plenty of room for the soul. BUILD IT AND (IDEALLY) THEY WILL COME From the first issue of the magazine certain topics sprung to the forefront, reflective of the reality shared in the galleries and the chatter on the streets. Many communities and institutions lamented that they needed more space to deliver better services, while some wanted entirely new spaces. Even the alternate galleries are looking in the same direction. Winnipeg’s Plug-In Institute of Contemporary Art has received high commendations for the elegant, clever architectural design of its new location, though the jury is still out on whether new capacity was added. Let’s hope that in any of these places, changes in physical scale and building type don’t result in escalated annual
“SURVEYING THE PAGES OF ITS PAST 29 ISSUES ACTS AS A PRIMER FOR DISCUSSING WHERE WE’VE COLLECTIVELY VISITED” WHERE’S THE BEEF? Calgary still hasn’t recovered, re-grouped or re-thought the situation in light of the AGA’s ascendancy. Finding a resolution to secure a new contemporary art facility seems as problematic as it did ten or even 30 years ago. Perhaps as consequence, belatedly, certain factions seem to have concluded that they need to sue for peace. Rumours abound of Calgary groups in private discussions to forge long-term service arrangements with the AGA as well as the National Gallery of Canada, (so much for fierce western independence — welcome back to the 1970s model of a national exhibition centre.) It might work but it’s a risky gambit, and a high price is extracted when you offer to plea bargain away the artistic autonomy, voice and unique personality of a community in order to secure bricks and mortar. To be sure, we
operating costs that can’t be moderated in times of revenue retractions. This continues to be the Achilles heel of many not-for-profits. Certain costs, such as building and staffing, are fixed and difficult to trim; budget directors have little choice but make cuts to program budgets to balance the shortfall, and too often we are left with attractive physical plants sitting on low idle. Meanwhile in many smaller centres, a mini building boom has given us new exhibition gems such as the Esplanade in Medicine Hat, the Kelowna Art Gallery, the Reach Gallery in Abbotsford, the (newly renamed) Mann Gallery in Prince Albert, while others including Kamloops Art Gallery, Art Gallery of Calgary and Okotoks Art Gallery have benefited from upgraded climate controls. A few, notably the Southern Alberta Art Gallery in Lethbridge and the Prairie Art Gallery in Grande Prairie, have refurbished and expanded existing structures.
BLOW THIS HOUSE DOWN! ASSESSING THE TREND IN BIGGER, SHINIER, NEWER GALLERY SPACES A new purpose-built structure is not the only museum model. Notable institutions such as the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and Atlanta’s High Museum, with foresight, established themselves on a ‘campus’ property to accommodate inevitable expansion. Whenever opportunity and need arise, they can maintain their accrued value by retaining their existing structures. Then they can either build an addition or a new 44 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
adjacent stand-alone structure to showcase specialty subjects. The Tate innovatively amended this cumulative notion by establishing the Tate Modern and Tate Britain in two separate London locations. They also opened branches in other UK cities. I hope that the Vancouver Art Gallery will investigate this concept. I could foresee the use of their current exquisite downtown museum as an exemplary place to primarily
showcase their phenomenal public collection, with a new purposebuilt contemporary art and special exhibitions centre offsite. It could be phased in as funds permit and with any luck it could be built on a plot of land that permits additions to be made over a 100-year plan. In western Canada we seem more inclined to bulldoze and start all over again. To be clear, it is not simply the architecture of the old Edmonton
Art Gallery that was swept away by levelling its previous building, it was an entire re-brand. The Gallery’s own distinguished collection remains out of view, and the re-formulated AGA sheds its institutional history. Previously, Edmonton had a unified alignment of agencies, the artists in the city, instructors at the University of Alberta and Grant MacEwan, the commercial galleries were all reading off the same page, a dedication to www.gallerieswest.ca
WHERE THE WEST MEETS THE WORLD This summer, the world gathered for the 54th Venice Biennale. After 100 years in operation, it’ s still housed in some pretty rudimentary, run-down buildings. Forget environmental controls, chic refurbishing or retrofitting — the Biennale is held in rough and ready raw spaces. Nevertheless, it’s a premier influential international event, and the same might be said for Art Basel and Documenta, which cobbles together the use of borrowed space offered within existing museum buildings throughout Kassel, Germany. But the main exhibitions are housed in massive temporary tent-like structures. The hundreds of thousands of international visitors seem not to take special notice of these less-thanperfect architectural surroundings. They’re too busy experiencing the best contemporary art the world can offer. For western Canada, building bigger and bigger palaces, left under-fund-
ed and scantily programmed doesn’t seem an attractive alternative. We need a new plan. If we can afford both: outstanding exhibitions plus fabulous inspiring new buildings, then great. If not, then show me the most moving pertinent art that can be assembled under the big top. We’ve seen some phenomenal international exhibitions at public as well as commercial galleries. The Vancouver Art Gallery presented Andrea Zittel, Glenbow hosted the National Gallery of Canada exhibition Zidane. The Illingworth Kerr Gallery at the Alberta College of Art and Design recently presented a first-rate presentation of Brazilian artist, Iran do Espirito Santo. His work was a highlight at the 2007 Venice Biennale, and the IKG exhibition is in every way the equal if not superior to his Venice display. Last year, the VAG organized an impressive exhibition by
modernist-formalist art. Formalism has been toppled, and undoubtedly, the Edmonton modernist hegemony had to be re-balanced. But what once was united and coherent is now fractured, or at best scattershot. Saskatoon’s Mendel Art Gallery seems determined to take a page from the AGA playbook. Excitement about the phenomenal Remai gift of capital and operating funds must be tempered by what it may, after www.gallerieswest.ca
all, produce. They’ve announced that they’ll abandon their current facility and riverside location to move to what, from all accounts, is a very constricted footprint with no adjacent properties available for long-term expansion. All of these dynamic agencies, by nature, need to expand, yet physical constraints make growth on these types of sites financially impractical. The Mendel plans to drop its
African-American artist Kerry James Marshall, whose work stood out at Documenta in 2007. All these facilities were equal to the task of showing these works to full advantage, though tellingly the VAG elected to keep the Marshall show on view for nearly nine months — too long a run. It was a practical matter, in response to a lack of adequate staff and funding resources to mount more exhibitions in the same year, but it seems to me that if this is truly the situation, then the VAG should be advocating for a program endowment to help better utilize their current facility rather than seeking capital funds to triple the size of their gallery spaces. AND SO... As for Galleries West, how might it exercise its most effective role in its next ten years? In 2002, unquestionably it served a critical purpose as a
staunch defender and unabashed booster for western Canadian art. Much has evolved — recognition for the finest of our artists has grown considerably, spreading well beyond our regional and national borders, so advocacy for the local hero may not be the primary purpose to be served by the magazine. Worldwide, artists are engaged in an international dialogue, and the magazine is a forum to extend this discussion, to keep the entire arts community informed, engaged in the debates, and to be a vehicle that welcomes the world to the West. Recently appointed Artistic Director of the Triangle Gallery in Calgary, Jeffrey Spalding is an artist, curator, former museum director, past President of the Royal Canadian Academy of Art and member of the Order of Canada.
historical name. Initially it was slated to be rebranded the Art Gallery of Saskatchewan, and is now set to be called the Remai Art Gallery of Saskatchewan. Leaving aside for the moment the question of whether there will be any net gain in space or capacity — supporters of the AGA expansion insist that they gained ground, but I don’t see it. As a frequenter of the old Edmonton Art Gallery, it seems
to me that there is less space for exhibition in the new AGA, and fewer constituencies served. Remai seems headed down the same path, and I worry about what this exercise in re-branding is really about. The Mendel family collections featured outstanding Canadian historical as well as unique holdings of German expressionist art. Where will this stand in the priority rankings of the new Remai? — Jeffrey Spalding Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 45
46 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
www.gallerieswest.ca
A CONTEMPORARY CENTURY
AT 97, PAINTER JOHN KOERNER RECALLS THE DECADES-LONG EVOLUTION OF THE VANCOUVER ART SCENE
PHOTO: MARK MUSHET
BY BEVERLY CRAMP On June 25th, an unexpectedly large crowd filled the Elliott Louis Gallery to hear senior artist John Koerner’s talk about his six decades of living and painting in Vancouver. Accompanying a retrospective of Koerner’s work, 40 folding chairs were quickly occupied, and gallery owner Ted Lederer hustled to bring out the remaining 40 chairs he had rented for the occasion. “I thought 80 chairs would be more than enough,” Lederer tells the audience. “We only had 60 people show up for a [Jean-Paul] Riopelle event.” Koerner, a slight man wearing gray flannel trousers, white shirt and burgundy sweater, spoke at length. He barely glanced down at the sheaf of papers he brought with him. The stories poured out of him, beginning in a small town near Prague in 1913 where Koerner was born. He first studied law at the University of Prague. “My father thought law would be more reliable than art,” he says. “He was right. Yet he also supported my passion for, and commitment to art.” After finishing his law degree, Koerner went to Paris with his father’s blessing to study philosophy and art history at the Sorbonne. The city bristled with new art ideas in the 1920s — artists like Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, André Breton and Salvador Dali were shaking up old traditions. “I attended Dali’s first exhibition in Paris,” Koerner recalls. Koerner’s paintings were, from the beginning, expressionistic and verging on the abstract. He painted mostly landscapes and only a few figurative works, but the events of World War II overtook Koerner’s life and his family wisely chose to leave Europe. An uncle bought a lumber mill in the Vancouver area and Koerner decided to join him in there. When his Parisian friends found out that he was relocating, they didn’t know where Vancouver was and told him he must be going to some far-off corner of the world. Koerner arrived at his new home in May, 1939. “Vancouver was a small city. I was taken on a sight-seeing tour the day I arrived. At one point, near UBC, I could see the opening of the harbour and the mountains surrounding the city and the beaches. I was immediately in love with Vancouver. Even as a boy I had always hoped to live by the sea and there it was.” These outdoor vistas became the main subject of Koerner’s landscapes. The city’s art venues impressed much less. “There was one commercial gallery on Robson Street and it was mostly a framing shop. And there was also the Vancouver Art Gallery on Georgia Street. This was before the VAG moved to its present location on Robson Street.” The art collected and shown at the VAG during this early period underwww.gallerieswest.ca
Opposite: The artist John Koerner. Above: The Fives, acrylic on paper, 1988, 17" X 22".
whelmed Koerner, as he wrote in his autobiography A Brush with Life. “[It] was a small, sad edifice with a small sad art collection. The Group of Seven was represented by a motley group of sketches and minor canvases, works that an amateur collector might have gathered at auction, and there were no Emily Carr paintings.” Koerner goes on to write that the gallery vastly expanded its permanent collection after the 1950s. The most influential man behind these changes was Group of Seven painter Lawren Harris, who lived in Vancouver from 1940 until he died in 1970. Koerner and Harris became friends in the late 1940s. “When he asked me to join the Vancouver Art Gallery’s exhibition committee, we spent even more time together,” wrote Koerner. “I found his cosmopolitan attitude and sensitive manner most appealing.” Harris organized Saturday night parties at his West Vancouver home, where classical or jazz music played, coffee was served, poetry read, and art debated. “We had some very good times together,” says Koerner. “People discussed ideas, sometimes we looked at what we had produced and discussed in great detail the directions our work was taking.” Koerner recalls that Harris often painted in his living room. “His walls were painted white and most of his furniture was white. He would put down Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 47
Clockwise from top left: African Scenes: African Memory, acrylic on board, 1977, 32" X 40". Celebration: Opus 14, oil on canvas, 2005, 42" X 50". Cosmic 15, acrylic on board, 2011, 11" X 15.5".
a small canvas covering in a corner of room and do his paintings. It surprised me that he never smudged his white carpet.” It was Harris who first drew Koerner’s attention to Emily Carr. Her vividly painted British Columbia landscapes, although noticed by critics and forward-thinking artists, were mainly ignored by the general public. “Lawren had switched to pure abstract form but he didn’t limit himself by any means to that. He realized there were all kinds of different ways of saying certain things. But he certainly was interested in showing what abstract art was about, because it was virtually unknown here, hadn’t been seen in Vancouver.” Gordon Smith, a contemporary of Koerner’s, recalls that even Harris had a difficult time getting his abstract work recognized. In an interview for a 1982 documentary about Harris, Smith said: “I really feel that his new work was neglected to some degree because everyone thought of the Group of Seven as a Canadian sort of landscape tradition, and at that time, he began to paint in a very abstract way, almost like Kandinsky...I think in British Columbia there’d been a...landscape tradition with people like Varley and Jock Macdonald...and Emily Carr. There was very little abstraction. Even Jack Shadbolt 48 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
hadn’t really become involved in that kind of expression, so really, it was a great impact on the young artist. Harris was a sort of hero figure to us all.” The struggle for acceptance in Western Canada of the emerging modernist works by Koerner and his colleagues is exemplified by a catalogue essay for a ground-breaking show at the University of Manitoba’s New Gallery in September, 1953. Called Progressive Painters of Western Canada — the phrase modern art wasn’t yet in vogue — the exhibition was formally opened by Harris. The curator, William McCloy wrote: “...the artists in the West are divided into two major groups: the Conservatives — those mainly concerned with skill in rendering with imitation of nature especially in its picturesque manifestations, and with emphasis on good taste; and those whom I term Progressives, who are concerned with personal interpretation, and with emphasis of design and material.” Artists in the show were a who’s who of avant-garde artists of the time, including Koerner (who spelled his name without the ‘e’ in those years) and others: B.C. Binning, Bruno Bobak, Molly Bobak, Lawren Harris, Donald Jarvis, Roy Kiyooka, Joe Plaskett, Jack Shadbolt, Gordon Smith, and Takao Tanabe. The excitement over new ways to make art was building in Vancouver. “I remember meeting with Jack Shadbolt and Bert Binning at my house on Adera Street. We agreed that we should find ways to exhibit our works here,” says Koerner. They were to get their opportunity when New Design Gallery opened in West Vancouver in 1955. “We all exhibited there,” Koerner recalls. Events in the United States helped turn the tide for Vancouver modernist painters. “I think that with the appearance of the abstract impressionist school in New York, there was an immense increase in publicity, not only in the art publications, but also in the press,” says Koerner. “And that was a stimulus for the public to realize that what was being seen here in Vancouver was not that crazy.” That was the turning point. Koerner, who had been working for his uncle, eventually turned to teaching art in the 1950s, first at the Vancouver School of Art and later the University of British Columbia. He continued painting almost every day and is still actively producing works today. www.gallerieswest.ca
BEHIND THE SCENES AT THE MUSEUM FOR A NEW SHOW ON PHOTOGRAPHER NICHOLAS MORANT, BANFF’S WHYTE MUSEUM IS COMMITTING PUBLIC ACTS OF ARCHIVING BY JILL SAWYER
Venturing into the Rummel Room at the far end of the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies in Banff, visitors might think the gallery had forgotten to put a few things away. Stacked in one corner, a clutch of eight-foot light stands, in another, a pile of long, slightly dusty suitcases. One wall is lined with a typical artifact storage case, a tall bureau faced with shallow, felt-lined drawers. Next to that, a young staffer sits at her desk, working on a computer, as if this corner of the gallery has been transformed into an office. In a sense, it has. Or more accurately, it’s been transformed into an archival workspace, where artifacts are researched, catalogued, and conserved. Work that normally happens either deep in the back rooms of most galleries and museums, or offsite away from the public eye, forms the substance of this new show at the Whyte — Behind the Scenes with Nick Morant, which will be on through the fall. In an age where everything is out in the open, people are increasingly hungry for insider info. They want to see how everything works, and the museum world is starting to become more interested in this concept, finding ways to bring visitors a more hands-on, interactive, content-rich, behindthe-scenes experience. For curators and gallery directors, it’s a creative challenge, but one that promises to carry the museum-going experience into the future. For the Whyte’s Executive Director and Chief Curator, Michale Lang, the concept for this new show started with a visit to The Rooms in St. John’s in 2009. Wandering through that gallery, she came across what in gallery www.gallerieswest.ca
parlance is called an “open storage exhibition” — the collected artifacts of a local St. John’s family with a long history in the area, left untouched for visitors to see in their pre-museum-quality state. “There was a conservator on site, and I picked her brain about how it all worked,” Lang says. In the three years since, she’s been thinking about ways to bring this idea to the Whyte, finally settling on the Morant collection, which is large enough to make the enterprise worthwhile, and is filled with quirky, interesting objects that tell the story of a talented, creative man. Nicholas Morant (1910 - 1999) was best-known as one of the Canadian Pacific Railway’s foremost photographers. Hardy and up for almost anything, he travelled the country looking for great shots, archiving the history and scenic beauty of the rail lines, with a short period during World War II when he worked for the Wartime Information Branch, photographing supply manufacturing. One particular beauty spot in Banff National Park, a bend in the Bow River where the rail line hugs the shore, was a frequent subject, and is still unofficially known as “Morant’s Curve”. When he died in 1999, Morant bequeathed more than 500 objects, both personal and professional, and more than 20 artworks from his home and studio in Banff to the Whyte. Though the collection was accessioned in 2006, the Whyte didn’t have the time or resources to sort through it and start cataloguing. This exhibition gave them a good start. Hiring a couple of young archival assistants, and bringing in a conservator from Calgary once a week, Lang and her staff were able to bring the public into the multi-faceted world of documentation, research, and conserving. “It also allows us to get some work done,” Lang says of the ‘two birds / one stone’ aspect of putting the process on display. Though there was a huge amount of work leading up to the exhibition (just culling the many multiples of familiar objects in the collection took several dust-filled months), the public response has been gratifying. “People will come in and immediately start asking questions,” Lang says. She’s also heard from several people who knew Morant who have stories to share, and because the exhibition space is staffed constantly with an archival assistant, the Museum
Artifacts from photographer Nicholas Morant’s personal and professional life have been installed in this open storage exhibition at Banff’s Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies.
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 49
Right: One of Nicholas Morant’s CPR photographs of Morant’s Curve in Banff National Park; Below: Photographer Nicholas Morant, with tools of his trade; Lower, right and left: Inside the Whyte Museum exhibition Behind the Scenes with Nick Morant.
PHOTOS: COURTESY WHYTE MUSEUM OF THE CANADIAN ROCKIES
gets instant feedback on the show, letting them know which of the artifacts are most intriguing (information stored up for a possible comprehensive exhibition on Morant in the future). “I think it’s always interesting to put art in context with objects and artifacts,” Lang says. “This might be a work in progress for three or four years, but then once the work is done, we’ll be able to do a real kick-ass exhibition of Nick Morant’s work in context.” Museums and galleries are looking more and more for opportunities to engage the public in new ways, from costumed characters roaming the exhibition halls, to meticulously prepared demonstrations of the conservator’s art — the Frick Collection in New York has a small exhibition this summer on a research project into Giovanni Bellini’s gorgeous 1475 oil painting St. Francis in the Desert. It’s a long way from the days of packing everything away behind glass and encouraging people to view from a distance. For Lang, perhaps the most valuable aspect of open storage is the interaction with the public, the immediacy of visitors’ feedback as they get up close to with Morant’s most personal effects. “This puts a face on the whole behind-the-scenes aspect of bringing artifacts into a collection,” she says. She’s already thinking ahead to other collections that would lend themselves to open storage. The Whyte’s extensive collection of First Nations art and artifacts springs to mind — objects that the public just doesn’t get a chance to see, because there is never enough room to display them. “It would be great to show people the wealth of that.”
50 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
www.gallerieswest.ca
GRAND HOTEL: TWITTER-ASSISTED CURATING AT THE VANCOUVER ART GALLERY The Vancouver Art Gallery is trying something new this year — posting a comprehensive online presence for a show that won’t open until 2013. “We’re opening up the research process to the public sphere,” co-curator Bruce Grenville says about Grand Hotel. The site, a first for the gallery, allows the public to follow the research and curatorial process leading up to the show opening, to interact with curators, and give input and feedback as it’s all coming together. For Grenville, blogging about the process allows curators to use more casual language than would normally be used in a formal gallery context, and provides the public with a sense of immediacy to the research. It will also get the VAG a head-start on content for the accompanying publication. Grand Hotel examines the history, design and social construction of hotels. “Everyone has a hotel story,” Grenville says. “They’re part of people’s lives.” The show compiles stories of travel, architecture, and culture in a global context. www.gallerieswest.ca
Though the United States continues to set the trend in hotel innovation, Grenville says unique hotels can be found around the globe — citing the Michelberger Hotel in Berlin, transformed from a factory space situated on former communist land. It’s a guest experience, he says, “that can only happen in Berlin.” The show’s website will be continuously updated as the exhibition develops, and include floor plans and design sketches, guest contributions, research papers, photographs, and personal musings from the curators. Particularly keen followers of the process can get updates right away, via Twitter. The final few weeks before the show will be especially engaging for blogfollowers, Grenville says. “People like to know, ‘how does it get to that point when everything comes together?’” By 2013, wired-up fans will know it all. Follow the process at www.grandhotelexhibition.org — Janet Nicol Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 51
GREAT ESCAPES INSIDE SEVEN SERENE ARTISTS’ RETREATS BY PORTIA PRIEGERT WHAT: Gushul Studio and Cottage WHERE: Blairmore, Alberta
Inside the Gushul Studio and Cottage in Blairmore, Alberta.
52 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
The mining town of Blairmore in the Crowsnest Pass is the site of the Gushul Studio and Cottage, a residency program for artists and writers operated by the University of Lethbridge. Based in the former home of a pioneer photographer, Thomas Gushul, the program has hosted some 200 artists since 1988. “We don’t often turn people away,” says Don Gill, the professor who heads the committee that oversees the Gushul. “We’re trying to increase the number of submissions we get. I don’t think it’s that well known.” While some residencies offer artists intense urban stimulation and the chance to build their networks, Gushul’s rural setting has few distractions. “It’s a place you can go without having to worry about other things,” says Gill. “You can focus on your work specifically. You can walk out of the cottage and go hiking without having to drive anywhere. If your work deals with the outdoors or with ecological concerns or that sort of thing, you’d be quite happy at the Gushul.” Thomas Gushul, who emigrated from the Ukraine in 1906, moved the studio from an abandoned town in 1918. He worked in the studio for decades with his wife, Lena, documenting the region’s spectacular landscape as well as its people and the mining industry. Gushul died in 1962 and his collection of 18,000 negatives and prints is now housed at the Glenbow Museum in Calgary. Lethbridge artist Shanell Papp counts herself lucky to have done a 2007 residency, with funding from the Trap/door artist-run centre in Lethbridge. Papp worked on a large-scale embroidered image of two skeletons, and constructed miniature houses from plaid shirts. Both projects reflected her interest in the region’s colourful history, which has seen everything from rumrunners and mining disasters to a town council with Communist leanings. “The whole Crowsnest Pass is soaking in this fantastic history and the town is old and charming,” says Papp. “The beauty of the location is that it’s historically rich and untouched, to a certain extent. You completely feel free to discover and explore things for yourself.” The studio, built in 1902, has been upgraded in recent years. It typically hosts 12 visual artists a year, although artists sometimes stay longer than a month. Repeat visits are not uncommon. The Gushul is open to professional artists in any medium and has hosted painters, printmakers, photographers and writers. Although many are from Western Canada, a few have come from Europe and the United States. The fee for visual artists is $750 per month, although Gill says work is underway to provide more subsidized spots, including one this year for an indigenous artist from Australia. www.gallerieswest.ca
Medalta’s historic beehive kilns and the rugged cliffs of the South Saskatchewan River in Medicine Hat, Alberta.
WHAT: Medalta International Artists in Residence WHERE: Medicine Hat, Alberta Potter Jim Etzkorn had such a good time last year at the Medalta International Artists in Residence Program that he bought a house and moved permanently to Medicine Hat. “I had just gone through a relationship break-up and was looking for a place to work,” says Etzkorn. “It’s a really amazing place … it’s the only thing like it in Canada.” The residency program operates out of the 150-acre Historic Clay District, which once housed some of Canada’s most important clay factories. The district includes a working museum, an education centre, gallery space and a new 12,000-square-foot ceramics studio for residencies. “The idea is to have artists who are used to working in their own studio space at home, or in different facilities, coming to a new environment,” says Jenn Demke-Lange, the program’s acting artistic director. “They can get new inspiration from the environment here.” Etzkorn, who creates functional pots, made many friends in the community during his yearlong residency, and says the area’s prairie landscape reminds him of his childhood in Kansas. An added bonus — the Medalta community allows him to stay current. “A lot of really good artists come through, so you have a pulse on what’s happening in the contemporary scene,” says Etzkorn, who works part-time making historical replicas for the museum gift shop as he sets up his home studio.
WHAT: Emma Lake Kenderdine Campus WHERE: Emma Lake, Saskatchewan Opened in 1935 as an adjunct to fine arts at the University of Saskatchewan, this retreat has a storied history in the province’s art scene. Residencies are offered in for-credit courses, and community workshops, in multiple disciplines of fine art and craft. Artists’ workshops bring together emerging and senior artists in a collaborative environment. www.gallerieswest.ca
WHAT: The Arctic Circle WHERE: International territory, ten degrees from the North Pole Organized by the not-for-profit The Farm, Inc. and funded by international arts organizations, this expedition-style residency gathers contemporary artists, scientists and innovators on-board a traditionally rigged, ice-class sailing vessel in the High Arctic. Work produced here travels on an international exhibition tour following each expedition.
Medalta isn’t just for clay veterans. It also offers shorter residencies that are open to emerging artists. “I was a guy they took a chance on,” says Sam Hammer, a biology professor from Boston who spent a month at Medalta last summer creating non-figurative sculpture. “You’d think people would poke fun, but they’re kind.” Hammer, who’s been working with clay for three years, says one draw is the broad range of technical equipment, including several types of kilns. Another is working with so many experienced artists. “I’m picking up a lot of tips. On any given day, we’re all back and forth about what we’re doing.” The clay industry began in Medicine Hat in the early 1900s, to take advantage of easy access to the CPR, cheap natural gas to fuel kilns, and ample clay along the banks of the South Saskatchewan River. Companies such as Medalta Potteries, Hycroft China, National Porcelain and Alberta Clay Products produced everything from brick and tile to sewer pipe. But a changing business climate — particularly the ready supply of cheap plastics and stiff overseas competition — sent the industry into a downward spiral in the 1950s. By the 1980s, most factories had closed. The residency program began over a decade ago, but expanded in 2009 to year-round programming. It can accommodate up to 18 artists at a time and offers special month-long summer residencies led by well-known figures from the clay world. Last summer the program featured Josh DeWeese, a professor at Montana State University, and Sukjin Choi, a Korean-born artist and educator now working in Virginia. Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 53
Artists Caroline Anders and Paula Scott working in the studio at the 2011 Toni Onley Artists’ Project.
Annerose Georgeson has returned several times to Wells, B.C., to work with mentoring artists at the Toni Onley Artists’ Project for Professional and Emerging Artists. Georgeson, a painter who focuses on the region’s changing forests, is grateful to have worked with artists like David Alexander and Lyndal Osborne. “Becoming familiar with the artwork of such brilliant Canadian artists is an important benefit of the project,” she says. Nora Curiston, an artist from Grand Forks, B.C., also praises the mentors, saying they challenged her to push boundaries. “Both mentors were extremely supportive, but Peter von Tiesenhausen, in particular, encouraged me to work at what truly interested me.” The Artists’ Project is different from a typical residency, because of the educational opportunity provided by the two mentors. It’s also more communal — some 20 artists work together in shared studios in the community’s elementary school. Georgeson, who lives in Vanderhoof, B.C., says the project helps artists from smaller communities counter cultural isolation. “Four or five artists work side by side in each room, sharing techniques, working practices and experiences, as well as the joys and frustrations,” she says. “I think the Artists’ Project is especially welcome in Northern B.C. It’s one of the only opportunities for regional artists.” The Artists’ Project runs for eight days each July, at a cost of $890, with
WHAT: Leighton Artists Colony WHERE: The Banff Centre, Banff, Alberta Built in 1985 as a series of eight small studios in a secluded wooded setting, each one was designed by an individual Canadian architect. Open to visual artists in all media, writers, composers, musicians, and other artists, residents have accommodation and meals provided by The Banff Centre. 54 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
WHAT: Deep Bay Artists’ Residency WHERE: Riding Mountain National Park, Manitoba In a renovated Parks Canada cabin in the woods, this two-week residency has been attracting artists in all disciplines, as well as arts administrators on retreat since 2006. Administered by the Manitoba Arts Council.
scholarships available. Artists usually stay in hotels, pitch tents at a campground or board with local residents. Wells, a former gold-mining town with some 200 year-round residents, has an old-fashioned feel to it, with brightly painted houses dating from the 1930s. You can walk across town in about 20 minutes. “There’s a real sense of community,” says Julie Fowler, who manages Island Mountain Arts, the artist-run centre that has organized the Artists’ Project for the last decade. “We’re never going to have a Walmart in Wells. It’s all small businesses run by people you know.” The town is on the western slopes of the Cariboo Mountain Range, about an hour’s drive from Quesnel and two-and-a-half hours from Prince George. Some 100,000 visitors pass through Wells each year en route to the historic museum town of Barkerville, eight kilometers down the highway. Another draw is the provincial wilderness park at Bowron Lake, a popular destination for canoeing, and Wells is working to capitalize on that tourist influx by marketing the arts. The town is home to about a dozen serious visual artists as well as musicians and other creative people, drawn in part by some of the province’s most affordable real estate. Island Mountain Arts is a key cultural driver. It operates one of the town’s four galleries and hosts workshops on everything from blues guitar to creative writing. For the last eight years, it’s also organized the ArtsWells Festival of All Things Arts, which attracts music lovers from around the province on the August long weekend. www.gallerieswest.ca
PHOTO: BARBARA LOUGHEED
WHAT: Toni Onley Artists’ Project WHERE: Wells, B.C.
COLLECTORS 9 ARTISTS to consider right now WAYNE EASTCOTT
SHEILA KERNAN
Born: Trail, BC Studied: Vancouver School of Art 1966 Lives/Works: Vancouver Price Range: $450 - $5000
Born: Saskatoon, 1982 Studied: BFA, Alberta College of Art and Design, 2007 Lives/Works: Calgary Price Range: $1,000 - $5,000
For S.H.1, silkscreen, digital, and stenciled enamel on aluminum and paper, 34" x 44".
1
Staff at The Bellevue Gallery in West Vancouver enjoy working with collectors. “Each one is on an individual journey based on their personal tastes in art, their knowledge, experience and creative instincts. I love watching people fall in love with art in general and a particular artist. It can happen at any age.” says executive director, Lynn Ray. “I remember one patron who came in looking for something specific, fell in love with the work of another artist and changed direction completely.” For new collectors, she observes that art by established printmakers workng in small editions can be an affordable way to start. For example, Wayne Eastcott and Michiko Suzuki have work available for less than $500. They’ve also done a collaborative exhibition, Interconnection, which weaves their creative processes together. Eastcott’s innovative printmaking led to new techniques based on drawing and photographic imagery with a strong technological basis, often reworked with gestural effects. Producing mostly silkscreen prints, with a variety of inks (often handmade), he prints on paper and aluminum to create visually rich collages of man-made and natural images.
COLLECTOR TIP Research is an enjoyable aspect of art collecting. Attend “meet the artist” receptions; read reviews in newspapers and magazines to see what critics say about the artist or the genre that interests you. www.gallerieswest.ca
2
Mary and Jeremy Weimer at Assiniboia Gallery in Regina have embraced social media as a way of communicating with potential collectors and making sales. For example, in the gallery’s last solo show featuring Sheila Kernan, they sold one of her paintings over Twitter to a first-time art buyer. He had been following the gallery on Twitter and was intrigued by the information circulated in the days leading up to the show. So he emailed the artist directly (by googling Kernan) to ask specific questions. He ultimately came to the show, met the artist and bought a painting. “It’s all about making things easy, transparent and fun for the buyer,” says Mary Weimer. After four years of painting professionally, Kernan is on the fast track, currently represented in several Western Canadian commercial galleries. Her work is often described as intense, electric and buzzing, as the bold primary colours she uses have
By Richard White
Catching Dreams, mixed media on canvas, 36" x 48".
the impact of neon lighting. She often paints urban streetscapes, and seems fascinated with how cities come to life at night, a theme ideally suited to her palette and process.
COLLECTOR TIP Use the internet, Facebook and Twitter to search out new artists. Don’t be afraid to email or text the artist or the gallery with questions, to find out about new work and upcoming exhibitions. Enjoy the thrill of the hunt – however, you choose to hunt!
SCOTT PATTINSON
young but established artist based in Guelph, Born: Toronto, 1974 Ontario, who first studied Studied: University of architecture, but is now Toronto, 2003 a full-time artist and has Lives/Works: Guelph, ON received significant media and collector attention. His colourful abstracts Asked how art collecting has combine architectural eleevolved during her time as a ments with various motifs gallery owner in Edmonton, and symbols. Bugera Agnes Bugera was quick to noted he’s represented in note: “There is a new genseveral galleries which is eration of art buyers who are Pacific #58, acrylic on canvas, 12" x 12". important for collecting more adventurous. They are as it means several gallery not afraid of collecting someowners recognize his talent. thing different in texture and content. Ten or 15 years ago, people looked for representational art depicting COLLECTOR TIP canola fields or landscapes — things they could relate Bugera recommends that first-time collectors look too. Before that it was old grain elevators and barns around the galleries, develop your own taste and which were falling apart. I think people bought more listen to the dealers talk about the artists. But sentimentally. Today it seems collectors are looking in the end buy what you love rather than what for edgier, more innovative art.” someone may say is an investment, because art as An artist she would recommend for someone an investment is always a gamble. starting a collection is Scott Pattinson. He is a
3
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 55
COLLECTORS ANNABELLE MARQUIS
PETER IVENS
Born: Montreal, 1979 Studied: Fine Arts, C.E.G.E.P. St-Laurent (College)/ Graphic arts, C.E.G.E.P. Ahuntsic Lives/Works: Montreal Price Range: $1,000 - $3,000
Born: Calgary, 1955 Studied: BFA University of Alberta, 1987 Lives/Works: Calgary Price Range: $600 - $7,000
Chrysalide, mixed media on canvas, 30" x 40".
4
Co-owners Dan and Lana Hudon at Edmonton and Victoria’s West End Gallery stress two things to collectors — quality and personal visual satisfaction. “You have to like — no, love — the work if you’re going to live with it for long time,” says Dan. One of their recent finds is Annabelle Marquis an emerging artist who has captured the interest of several patrons, including experienced collectors. In fact she recently acquired representation in New York. Marquis devoted six years to graphic arts and illustration before the desire for more artistic freedom prompted her to pursue her own creativity. Her first solo exhibition in 2006 was a success and she has continued to pursue her artistic vision with a passion. Marquis combines her vibrant youth with her artistic maturity in an approach to painting that is deeply tied to colour and composition. Working with both representational and abstract images, her mixed media, collage-inspired canvases strike a graceful balance between fragmentation and beauty. Blending rugged edges and torn paper motifs with painterly brushwork, she has created a dynamic interaction of electric colour, with abstract and real forms, and various textures.
COLLECTOR TIP Learn to trust your own tastes and don’t get caught up in hype and trends. Good art endures. If you’re moving or redecorating, consider reframing or rearranging your art. Educate yourself with the guidance of a qualified art dealer. 56 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
5
Anna Ostberg at Ruberto Ostberg Gallery in Calgary loves working with both new and experienced collectors. For some of her clients, it’s almost an addiction. “I love telling people who buy a work of art that they are now collectors. They’re shocked to hear this. They think of collectors as larger than life, important, rich people who purchase millions in artwork. Not them!” she says. Ostberg hesitantly says “It’s tough to pick one artist to recommend to collectors. It really depends on their tastes. Peter Ivens is someone who would be good to look at.” He’s collected nationally and internationally (Disney, Alberta Foundation for the Arts, Esso, Suncor and Marriot Hotels) and yet is affordable. “I love the way he paints with a sense of freedom and expressiveness taking traditional landscapes and transforming them into something fresh
Saturate, acrylic on canvas, 29" x 40".
and unexpected. He’s a master of material, medium, colour and light. People often marvel at his execution and combination of colours” Ostberg says.
COLLECTOR TIP The biggest hurdle for many first time collectors is getting past the price of art. But remember it’s one of the few purchases you’ll make that will hold or increase in value over time. Amortize the cost over 20 or 25 years, and factor in the dividends of pleasure it will pay you every time you look at it, and buying art is a bargain.
RENATO MUCCILLO
stems from a professional approach that is inherBorn: Vancouver 1965 ently, restlessly, dynamic. Studied: Largely self-taught. In fact, his mind brims Studied briefly under with curiosity and he Harold Powell revels in treating each Lives/Works: Vancouver day as an opportunity to Price Range: $800 - $15,250 discover new ground.” She thinks it’s this cast of mind that, together with Visitors to White Rock his intimate knowledge Gallery sometimes refer to it of his subject, fuses the as their ‘oasis of calm’ in this bond with the individual. increasingly frenetic world. Neaves Road Canal, oil, 24" x 24". Muccillo’s work rangIt’s an experience owner/ es from the diminutive 4 x director Dennie Segnitz 4 inches to the more typical 24 x 24 or 36 x 36, with openly encourages. “Good art rejuvenates and a few pieces as large as 60 x 60, meaning that his art reveals something fresh every time you see it,” she is available across a wide spectrum of prices. says. “It creates a bond that makes you want to grow old together.” COLLECTOR TIP One of her gallery’s artists, landscape painter Don’t hesitate to visit galleries often — they’re Renato Muccillo, creates just that kind of work. His free. It’s one of life’s great pleasures. And if you largely rural landscapes are subtle studies of light see something you like, ask the staff whether you and atmosphere imbued with colour. They’ve been can try the painting at home before you commit. described as having a ‘preternatural stillness’. “It’s Layaway possibilities are also worth asking about. a paradox,” explains Dennie, “because this quality
6
www.gallerieswest.ca
COLLECTORS BLU SMITH
HAROLD LYON
Born: British Columbia, 1968 Studied: BFA University of Victoria Lives/Works: Victoria Price Range: $1800+
Born: Ontario, 1930 Studied: Meinszinger School of Art, Detroit; Ontario College of Art, Toronto Lives/Works: Arizona Price Range: $650 - $25,000
7
In a recent conversation, Heather Wheeler at Victoria’s Avenue Gallery picked up on a trend of collectors becoming more interested in historical Canadian painters, other than the Group of Seven. “Collectors are becoming more eclectic, combining contemporary and historical works in their collections” she said. She is also noticing that collectors are becoming more interested in abstract art. Blu Smith is a relative newcomer to the Victoria gallery scene. “I’ve been watching Blu’s work over the last couple of years. The Art Gallery of Greater Victoria’s installation at Victoria International Airport featuring one of his paintings, Eagle’s Perch, drew me in immediately. This was the first I had seen his work in person and I was very impressed by his powerful and masterful application of paint as well as the subtle textures — his technique was confident and mature,”
Growth, acrylic on canvas, 36" x 46".
CINDY DYSON Born: Winnipeg, 1968 Studied: BFA, University of Manitoba School of Art, 2009 Lives/Works: Winnipeg Price Range: $500 - $2,500
8
At Birchwood Art Galleries in Winnipeg, codirectors Lyn Chercoe and Carole Solmundson note that younger patrons are tending less toward limited edition prints and more to photography. As well, they note some gallery visitors seem more
www.gallerieswest.ca
Eagle Perch, mixed media, 54" x 96".
Wheeler says. “When deciding who will be a ‘fit’ in the gallery, there’s a question of balance in my existing stable of artists — Blu’s clear abstracts filled a niche we had been looking to expand. The response from clients and fellow artists has been enthusiastic.”
COLLECTOR TIP Most reputable galleries offer a trial period, where you can take a work home for a period of a week, maybe two to see how the work fits into your space. If you’re interested in a piece, don’t be afraid to ask the gallery if you can take it home on a trial basis.
concerned with decorating than collecting. The gallery has seen strong interest in the work of Cindy Dyson, a recent addition to their stable of artists. Lyn and Carole love her brilliant use of the palette knife — something not often seen in contemporary painting. She paints everyday events and places, with titles like: Coffee Break, Parking Lot and Hair Shop. Dyson fell in love with the sheer physicality of the palette knife in a painting class taught by Bill Pura at the University of Manitoba. “I love that even though it can be an aggressive tool, with control it can produce lovely intricate detail. The marks the knife can make — large swooping blends of paint, tiny soft dabs, scrapes, sprays, and blobs — intrigue me,” she says. “I’m always looking for new ways to utilize the knife. I love to experiment.”
COLLECTOR TIP Don’t be concerned about ‘too much’ art. It’s fun to take down pieces and replace them with something else, then bring them out and hang them in a different location to see them in a different light or context. Go ahead and play curator with your collection.
9
Co-owners Marie and Robert Wood at Gainsborough Galleries manage one of Western Canada’s oldest commercial galleries. Located in downtown Calgary, they represent a wide variety of painters and sculptors and see collectors of all ages and interests. Recently they’ve noticed a desire for more colourful and dramatic paintings, and also a change in framing preferences. More clients are displaying paintings either unframed, or in various liner-less styles of frames. One of their most collectible artists is Harold Lyon. “He just turned 80, has had a productive 50-year career and is still producing fantastic work,” Robert says. “He was recently the subject of a major article in Arabella magazine, and his art has been acquired by the Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville, GA and the Desert Caballeros Western Museum in Wickensburg, AZ for their permanent collections. He’s at a stage in his career where his values will be on the rise again. Known as a traditional Western artist, he also paints a wide variety of landscapes, old buildings, portraits and even florals. His work appeals to a diversity of collectors.”
The Great Escape, oil on canvas, 36" x 48".
COLLECTOR TIP Purchase pieces of the best quality possible. Not all works by a given artist are equal; developing an eye for quality is critical to building a strong collection. Better to buy a well-executed smaller piece, than a less well-executed large piece. Taking courses to learn more about art techniques can be useful. Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 57
COLLECTORS AUCTIONS REVIEWS
Spring 2011 Review SOLD: $120,000
SOLD: $60,000 SOLD: $85,000
Edwin Headley Holgate, The Ski
Bertram Charles (B.C.) Binning, Four Ships in Variable
Christopher Pratt, French Doors, oil on
Patroller, oil on board, 1949,
Weather No.1, oil on board, 12" x 18".
board,1973, 32" x 32".
With auction sales in the larger markets of London, New York and Hong Kong hitting huge highs, our Canadian market sometimes pales in comparison. Nevertheless, Canadian art is attracting a larger audience and higher values at auctions across the country. As an advisor and private dealer, I’ve been paying attention to these sales for many years. This brief review concentrates on the larger auction houses and not on the regional auctions. I see a strong role for these regional sales to connect locally and dig out important western artists, historical, modern and contemporary. But this spring, the larger houses attracted the attention of prominent collectors and dealers with important consignments. On May 17 in Vancouver, Heffel Fine Art held a two-part sale featuring historical and modern works on the same day. Heffel managed to consign yet another large important estate for their sale. Edgar and Dorothy Davidson were collectors of the best kind, buying what they loved, high-quality art well in advance of the market interest. Although they had some very good historical works in the collection, the primary focus was modern art bought in the 1960s, primarily in Montreal. The standout work in the historical sale was The Ski Patroller by Edwin Holgate. This small portrait from 1949 was a gem. The best story of the picture was that the owner (the subject) is still with us, and brought the work in to Heffel herself. It sold for a stunning $60,000. Another beautiful piece was David Milne’s Woman and Bright Trees, West Saugerties, NY painted in 1914 by the innovative artist, from his important New York period. This period of Milne’s work was highlighted by his prominence in the Armory Show of 1913. The work sold for $350,000. The historical sale fell slightly short of estimates overall, but still did well. Collectors no doubt were focused on the modern sale, and it started with a bang. Lot #1, Four Ships in Variable Weather No. 1 by B.C. Binning, British Columbia’s respected early abstract painter, sold for $85,000, nearly double its 58 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
estimate. And on it went, an exciting group of modern works including Painters Eleven, William Kurelek, Quebec painters, E.J. Hughes and others brought in close to $14 million in one night. The quality was high and interest keen, the Davidson collection a credit to the sale. So much for a soft market — as elsewhere around the world, great things inspire interest even in tougher times. The Canadian auctions are usually held within a short time frame. It keeps interest high, media notes on the front page and dealers on the move. Sotheby’s Canadian sale and Joyner Fine Art were up next in Toronto. All of the larger auctions now tend to extend their sweep across Canada. With previews in major centres, and catalogues out about a month in advance of sales, the buzz was clear. Sotheby’s Canadian sale previewed May 23 to 26 at the Royal Ontario Museum. It’s a great preview space to show art — light and airy with generous wall space. The catalogue cover this year featured the broad thick paint of Marcelle Ferron, a Quebec Automatiste. In years past the cover was usually reserved for a work of historical interest. This cover choice suggests Modern art has come to the table. Inside, illustrated in full colour, was a Tom Thomson, the feature work of the sale. The preview was well attended, with Sotheby’s staff noting the largest crowd ever, with lots of poking and looking, over a period of four days. The sale itself was held in the largest space on the main floor, dominated by a huge important Buddha figure. However the exuberance of Vancouver was not to be repeated. Any time a sale starts with a withdrawn, “pass” lot it’s not a great sign. And this continued. The room went quiet when Tom Thomson’s Early Snow, estimated at a reasonable value of $450,000 to $650,000 failed to find a buyer. I counted 65 lots withdrawn through the night. Some works did get positive results — David Milne’s Trillums and Trilliums, an odd painting in my opinion, supported by excellent provenance, it sold for $240,000 and he was the artist of the sale with strong values on excellent etchings and a brilliant watercolour. www.gallerieswest.ca
IMAGES COURTESY OF HEFFEL FINE ART, JOYNER FINE ART AND SOTHEBY’S CANADA
16" x 12 3/8".
COLLECTORS REVIEWS
By Douglas MacLean SOLD: $60,000
UNSOLD: $450-$650,000 EST
SOLD: $1,500,000
Tom Thomson, Early Snow, Algonquin Park,
Alexandra Luke, The Cloister, 1953, oil on
Lawren Stewart Harris, Island off Greenland,
oil on canvas, mounted on wooden panel,
canvas, 47" x 33".
Arctic Sketch XIX, oil on board, 12" x 15".
Spring 1914.
Once again, the modern works shone through. A late addition to the sale, Promenade by Millar Gore Britton sold for $65,000; the small Marcelle Ferron, Caravane, featured on the catalogue cover, sold for $27,500, nicely over its $15,000 to $25,000 estimate. The highlight of the contemporary art was a stellar work, French Doors, by Christopher Pratt estimated at $60,000 to $80,000 and selling for $120,000. It’s one of the very few smaller “figure” paintings created by Pratt. With the “french doors” acting as a possible barrier between the artist and the beautiful young model, it was serene and rare. Overall there was “quiet“ in the room, some heads of Sotheby’s staff shaking, and collectors and dealers at the end wondering, “what just happened”? In a quick assessment I believe it’s due to lack of high quality historical works, and finding the very best in contemporary /modern works. Collectors are getting savvy, and dealers are buying important works before auctioneers consign them. And in my very odd opinion, holding a huge commercial sale in the presence of a massive, important Buddha is possibly not keeping with Zen! The other sale in Toronto was Joyner on May 27, holding the preview in the familiar rooms of Waddingtons Auctions on Bathurst Street (they’ll be installed in their new quarters on King Street for the November auction). At Joyner, I urge people to see the works in real life. Catalogue reproduction quality is adequate, but seeing size and colour and details is important in any buy. Joyner appeals to a large, broad audience. The feature lot on the catalogue cover was a Lawren Harris’ Island off Greenland and it turned out to be the most expensive painting in Canada for this round of sales. Estimated at $500,000 to $700,000 it was hammered down at $1,500,000 after extensive bidding. The pre-sale chatter (which always takes place) was that Joyner “had a few things” but in the end, it turned out they had the things people wanted. Tom Thomson’s tiny panel, Fall Woods sold for www.gallerieswest.ca
its estimated $400,000 and a wonderful rare Walter J. Phillips folio of 11 wood engravings sold for $12,000. Once into the contemporary /modern sale, things began to falter somewhat, and this is where quality of consignments plays a huge role. In Joyner’s case more attention is needed in this area. Good things followed by weak and inconsequential items make for a long and boring sale. The star in this area was Alexandra Luke, of the Painters Eleven, with a low estimate of $20,000 to $30,000 on The Cloister, which sold for $60,000, a record for her work. William Kurelek did well in all the sales, including this one, with sales of $85,000 and $40,000, both double their estimates. With some fine-tuning of the modern/contemporary part of the sale, Joyner will continue to hold a strong position in Canadian art auctions. Overall, it was an interesting spring season — some outstanding works for sure, some surprises, and some big sales to further encourage the investigation of Canadian art at auction. One thing I always tell people about the previews whether big or small is that they’re like mini-museums, free for the effort of attending or even just exploring the catalogues online. Remember that often the best art you see, you will not have an opportunity to see again when it goes into a private collection.
FALL AUCTIONS November 24, 2011 Heffel Fine Art, Vancouver www.heffel.com November 25, 2011 Joyner Fine Art, Toronto www.joyner.waddingtons.ca November 28, 2011 Sotheby’s Canada, Toronto www.sothebys.com Douglas MacLean of Canadian Art Gallery is an art advisor and private dealer living in Canmore, Alberta. Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 59
BANFF SEPTEMBER 30 – OCTOBER 2
Pick up your Banff Culture Days pin for $5 for free bus transportation all weekend long! A portion of proceeds from the pin will support the Arts program at the Banff Community High School.
Linda Wilder, Misty Cascade. 24”x36”
WILD AND SACRED PLACES Saturday, October 1, 9 a.m. – 10 p.m. Exhibition opening and reception, 2 – 5 p.m. MOUNTAIN GALLERIES AT THE FAIRMONT BANFF SPRINGS
We are pleased to introduce one of our newest Artists Linda Wilder. Bold energetic strokes and a vivid imaginative palette define the character of her work. Please join us to celebrate new paintings by Linda Wilder. The artist will be present for the opening. THE FAIRMONT BANFF SPRINGS GROUND FLOOR 403.760.2382 banff@mountaingalleries.com www.mountaingalleries.com
Darren Petersen, detail
CONTINUITY JOURNEY OF WILDLIFE AND ART WILLOCK & SAX GALLERY
September 30 - October 6 Reception: Saturday, October 1, 2 – 4 p.m.
Blown Glass: Darren Petersen; Printmakers: D. Helen Mackie, John Topelko, Illingworth Kerr; paintings and drawings Dwayne Harty WILLOCK & SAX GALLERY 110 BISON COURTYARD, 211 BEAR STREET 403-762-2214; 1-866-859-2220 fineart@willockandsaxgallery.com www.willockandsaxgallery.com
Emerald Lake, oil on canvas. 48” x 72”
GLENN PAYAN – NEW WORK
DRAWN TO NATURE
September 27 – October 11 Reception: Saturday, October 1, 1 – 3 p.m.
Friday, September 30, 7-9 p.m.
CANADA HOUSE GALLERY
Payan’s whimsical style combined with his refined technique creates a visually stunning body of work. Having spent much time in the mountains climbing and hiking, Payan has an intimate knowledge of the strata and drama of the Rockies. CANADA HOUSE GALLERY 201 BEAR STREET T: 1-800-419-1298 E: info@canadahouse.com W: www.canadahouse.com
BANFF PARK MUSEUM NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE
Walter Phillips Gallery invites youth (ages 7+) and families into the Banff Park Museum after hours to explore various still-life sketching techniques. All levels of experience are welcome. Advanced registration is required at 403-762-6281. All materials will be provided.
Most events are free. For more information visit banfflakelouise.com
COLLECTORS GALLERIES Fine art galleries in Western Canada
For our comprehensive guide go to www.gallerieswest.ca
BRITISH COLUMBIA GALLERIES BOWEN ISLAND Commercial Gallery COASTAL PATTERNS GALLERY 582 Artisan Lane, Box V60, RR2, Bowen Island, BC V0N 1G0 T. 778-997-9408 www.coastalpatternsgallery.com Coastal Patterns Gallery features the work of Gregg Simpson, a west coast artist active in the contemporary visual art scene. His vibrant and colorful work reflects modernist traditions in abstraction and surrealism. Gregg’s work has been exhibited in North America, Europe, Malaysia, and South America. Exhibitions change monthly. Wed to Sun noon - 5 pm. CHILLIWACK Commercial Gallery GREY AREA GALLERY 101-7408 Vedder Rd, Chilliwack, BC V2R 4E6 T. 604-846-0088 greyareagallery@gmail.com www.greyareagallery.com This spacious contemporary gallery has an NYC feel with its eclectic collection featuring both established and emerging Canadian artists. The 1700 square foot space is also available for special events. Owners, Louisa and Jacquie believe that what is interesting in life can be found within its grey area. Minutes off Hwy 1 in Chilliwack, south on Vedder Road. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm. @galleries_west
Carol Cram and Gregg Simpson have opened Coastal Patterns Gallery on Bowen Island showing primarily Gregg’s work. DUNCAN Commercial Gallery E.J. HUGHES GALLERY 28 Station St, Duncan, BC V9L 1M4 T. 250-746-7112 pacific@islandnet.com www.ejhughes.ca The art of E. J. Hughes is now available at his hometown gallery on Vancouver Island. Hughes is a master. His use of color, moody coastal skies and timeless places keeps connoisseurs coming back for more. Shop the Hughes Gallery online or, in person Mon to Fri 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 10 am - 4 pm. Sun by appt. BRITISH COLUMBIA INDEX Bowen Island ......................................................... 61 Chilliwack .............................................................. 61 Duncan .................................................................. 61 Invermere............................................................... 61 Kamloops............................................................... 61 Kelowna................................................................. 61 Penticton ............................................................... 62 Prince George ........................................................ 62 Qualicum Bay/Beach ............................................... 62 Salmon Arm........................................................... 62 Salt Spring Island ................................................... 62 Sidney .................................................................... 62 Silver Star Mountain ............................................... 62 Vancouver .............................................................. 63
www.gallerieswest.ca
Jackie Frioud, Slipstitch, September 2 to October 4, Circle Craft Gallery, Vancouver
Jackie Frioud’s stitch-design ceramics complement narrative hooked rugs by Judy Robertson in a show called Slipstitch, at Circle Craft in Vancouver. “I was attracted to pottery as a functional form,” says Frioud, “even though my fine arts degree is in printmaking and sculpture.” She began by creating jewelry boxes, plate sets and other functional forms of white pottery. With a slip-coloured clay, she’s added a blue ‘stitching’ motif on each form. “I’ve sewn in the past and I always liked the stitching pattern used in printmaking,” she says, adding that her designs are influenced by a minimalist, Japanese aesthetic. “I began making multiple slabs to form one piece,” Frioud says. “I realized my pottery, based on function, was now becoming sculpture.” She shares a childhood in the Okanagan with Robertson, and says the muted colours of Robertson’s hooked rugs complement her white porcelains. “Words are embroidered into the fabric before she hooks,” she says. “The text has hidden meanings, giving a subversive element to the rugs.” — Janet Nicol ABOVE: Jackie Frioud, white porcelain ceramics, at Circle Craft Gallery. INVERMERE - WINDERMERE Commercial Gallery EFFUSION ART GALLERY 1033 7 Ave, Invermere, BC V0A 1K0 T. 250-341-6877 info@effusionartgallery.com www.effusionartgallery.com Describing itself as ‘an unrestrained expression of emotion’, the gallery is created on the energy of contemporary art with a collaboration between established and emerging artisans from coast to coast. Friendly staff happily provide advice on installation and design specifics to clients, whether Vernon................................................................... 66 Victoria .................................................................. 66 Whistler ................................................................. 67 ALBERTA INDEX Banff...................................................................... 67 Black Diamond ....................................................... 68 Bragg Creek ........................................................... 68 Calgary .................................................................. 69 Camrose ................................................................ 72 Canmore ................................................................ 73 Cochrane ............................................................... 73 Drumheller ............................................................. 73 Edmonton.............................................................. 74 Grande Prairie ........................................................ 75
homeowners, interior designers or from the corporate world. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sun noon - 4 pm. KAMLOOPS Commercial Gallery HAMPTON GALLERY KAMLOOPS 167 4 Ave, Kamloops, BC V2C 3N3 T. 250-374-2400 F. 250-374-2400 hamptongallery@telus.net www.hamptongalleries.com Since its opening in 1994, Hampton Gallery has earned a reputation for excellence in the local comHigh River ............................................................. 75 Jasper .................................................................... 75 Lacombe ................................................................ 75 Lethbridge ............................................................. 75 Medicine Hat ......................................................... 76 Okotoks ................................................................. 76 Red Deer ................................................................ 76 Waterton ............................................................... 76 SASKATCHEWAN INDEX Assiniboia .............................................................. 76 Estevan .................................................................. 76 Meacham............................................................... 76 Moose Jaw............................................................. 76 North Battleford ..................................................... 77
munity, and it has become a destination spot for art lovers travelling through the interior of British Columbia. Hampton Gallery represents approximately 40 regionally and nationally acclaimed Canadian artists. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm. KELOWNA Commercial Galleries HAMBLETON GALLERIES 1290 Ellis St, Kelowna, BC V1Y 1Z4 T. 250-860-2498 info@hambletongalleries.com www.hambletongalleries.com/ Prince Albert .......................................................... 75 Regina ................................................................... 77 Saskatoon .............................................................. 77 Swift Current.......................................................... 78 Val Marie ............................................................... 78 MANITOBA INDEX Brandon................................................................. 78 Gimli...................................................................... 78 Portage La Prairie ................................................... 78 Winnipeg ............................................................... 78 NORTHERN TERRITORIES INDEX Whitehorse ............................................................ 79
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 61
Established in 1964, the Hambleton has provided a showcase for leading Canadian artists whose works grace many national and international private and corporate collections. At their new location, owners Stewart and Tracy Turcotte offer investment art opportunities to their clientele and have added ceramics, and bronze sculpture to complement the paintings. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm. JULIA TROPS ARTIST STUDIO Studio 113, Rotary Centre for the Arts, 421 Cawston Ave, Kelowna, BC V1Y 6Z1 T. 250-215-0079 Julia@juliatrops.com www.juliatrops.com Canadian artist Julia Trops works from her studio/ gallery in the heart of Kelowna’s Cultural District, in the Rotary Centre for the Arts. Dramatic and bold figurative artworks in charcoal and oils. Artwork available for purchase from her studio and on her website. Mon to Fri 10 am - 2:30 pm or by appt. SOPA FINE ARTS 2934 South Pandosy St, Kelowna, BC V1Y 1V9 T. 250-763-5088 info@sopafinearts.com www.sopafinearts.com Okanagan’s major contemporary art gallery, Sopa Fine Arts prides itself on providing an ever-changing selection of contemporary art from leading international artists, with new exhibitions opening the first Thursday each month. Sopa features high calibre, original and innovative artworks; in the media of painting, sculpture, and assemblage. Tues to Sat 11 am - 5 pm, Sun noon - 4 pm or by appointment.
Original Canadian Art Since 1964 HAMBLETON GALLERIES PRESENTS
()34/2)#!, )-!'%3
TURTLE ISLAND GALLERY 115-1295 Cannery Lane, Kelowna, BC V1Y 9V8 T. 250-717-8235 info@turtleislandgallery.com www.turtleislandgallery.com The gallery has a stunning selection of Northwest Coast wood carvings including ceremonial masks, totem poles, talking sticks, plaques and bentwoodstyle boxes. Also stone carvings, hand-carved gold and silver jewellery, original paintings and limited edition prints both contemporary and traditional. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm (Summer only: also Sun 11 am - 4 pm).
/2)').!, !.$ 02).4 3(/7 September 10 – 24, 2011
Lawren Harris , c. 1941, After Algoma Lake Oil Silkscreen on Paperboard, 30 x 40”
RECEPTION: September 10, 12:00 – 4:00
hambleton galleries 1290 Ellis St, Kelowna, BC V1Y 1Z4 • Ph: (250) 860-2498 info@hambletongalleries.com • www.hambletongalleries.com
> `Ê ÌÊ Cowichan Sweaters
i> iÊ i Ê Ê-ÌiÀ }Ê- ÛiÀÊ À>Vi iÌÃ
, ÞÊ i ÀÞÊ6 V iÀÃÊ The Whaler
4524,% )3,!.$ '!,,%29 115 - 1295 Cannery Lane - Kelowna’s Cultural District Óxä Ç£Ç nÓÎxÊUÊÜÜÜ°ÌÕÀÌ i à > `}> iÀÞ°V
62 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
Public Galleries GALLERIA AT ROTARY CENTRE FOR THE ARTS 421 Cawston Ave, Kelowna, BC V1Y 6Z1 T. 250-717-5304 F. 250-717-5314 info@RotaryCentreForTheArts.com www.RotaryCentreForTheArts.com The Galleria is an important venue for local artists to display their work and organize their own shows. Located in the heart of the cultural district, the Rotary Centre for the Arts is a multi-disciplinary facility with working studios for artists and artisans, galleries, a theatre, pottery studio, bistro, dance studio and meeting spaces. Daily 8 am - 8 pm. KELOWNA ART GALLERY 1315 Water St, Kelowna, BC V1Y 9R3 T. 250-762-2226 F. 250-762-9875 info@kelownaartgallery.com www.kelownaartgallery.com Located in the heart of Kelowna’s Cultural District, the gallery serves the Central Okanagan Valley with regular exhibitions by contemporary Canadian artists, while the permanent collection has a focus on Okanagan and other BC-based artists. The gallery is a unique venue for special events and offers a variety of classes, workshops, etc for people of all ages. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Thur till 9 pm, Sun 1 pm - 4 pm.
.!4)6% !24 ')&43 Õ Õ ÃÊÜ Ì Ê >À L ÕÊ/ÕvÌ }Ê > `Ê,>LL ÌÊ ÕÀ
TUTT STREET GALLERY 9-3045 Tutt St, Kelowna, BC V1Y 2H4 T. 250-861-4992 F. 250-861-4992 info@tuttartgalleries.com www.tuttartgalleries.com Established in 1984, Tutt Street Gallery is a recognized dealer of original fine art -- representing regional, national and international artists whose works can be found in private, corporate, and government collections, in Canada and abroad. The gallery extends a warm welcome to art enthusiasts and experienced collectors. Tues to Fri 10 am - 5 pm, Sat 10 am - 4 pm or by appt.
PENTICTON Commercial Gallery THE LLOYD GALLERY 18 Front St, Penticton, BC V2A 1H1 T. 250-492-4484 art@lloydgallery.com www.lloydgallery.com New location on colourful Front St. Experience the beauty of the Okanagan through artist’s eyes.
Browse through a large viewing gallery hung French salon-style. Original oil, acrylic, watercolour, pastel, mixed media and sculptures depict the many faces of the Okanagan, Canada and Asia. Mon to Sat (Summer) Tues to Sat (Winter) 9:30 am - 5:30 pm. Public Gallery PENTICTON ART GALLERY 199 Marina Way, Penticton, BC V2A 1H3 T. 250-493-2928 F. 250-493-3992 agso@shawbiz.ca www.galleries.bc.ca/agso The Penticton Art Gallery (formerly AGSO) presents contemporary art and historical exhibitions of both established and emerging artists in four exhibition spaces. A place of inquiry, interest and enjoyment, the gallery proudly promotes Okanagan as well as provincial and national artists. Admission: Adults $2, students and children free, weekends free. Tues to Fri 10 am - 5 pm, Sat and Sun noon - 5 pm. PRINCE GEORGE Public Gallery TWO RIVERS GALLERY OF PRINCE GEORGE & REGION 1725 Civic Plaza, Prince George, BC V2A 1H3 T. 250-614-7800 F. 250-563-3211 Toll Free: 1-888-221-1155 info@tworiversartgallery.com www.tworiversartgallery.com QUALICUM BEACH Public Gallery THE OLD SCHOOLHOUSE ARTS CENTRE 122 Fern Road West, Qualicum Beach, BC V9K 1T2 T. 250-752-6133 gbtosh@shaw.ca www.theoldschoolhouse.org The arts centre provides rewarding opportunities to enjoy, learn and experience art with three galleries offering a pleasant venue for appreciating and purchasing distinctive works. Artist studios are open to visitors. Creations by artisans are available in the gift shop. Gallery concerts on Sundays. Mon noon - 4:30 pm; Tues - Sat 10 am - 4:30 pm; (Summer only: Sun noon - 4 pm). SALMON ARM Public Gallery SAGA PUBLIC ART GALLERY S70 Hudson Ave NE, PO Box 1543, Salmon Arm, BC V1E 4P6 T. 250-832-1170 F. 250-832-6807 sagapublicartgallery@telus.net SALT SPRING ISLAND Artist-run Galleries POINT GALLERY South Ridge Dr, Salt Spring Island, BC T. 250-653-0089 pointgallery@telus.net Celebrating ten years of exhibiting challenging work from Salt Spring and Western Canada, the Point Gallery is a uniquely rural alternate space, minutes from Fulford Harbour. Curated by artist/ owner Margaret Day, contemporary art is chosen to reflect the diversity of current art practice and to engage, provoke and involve the audience in the world of visual ideas. Exhibits March to October. Fri, Sun to Tues 11 am - 5 pm or by appointment. @galleries_west
Lee and Bon Roberts recently opened their contemporary Goldmoss Gallery at Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast. Commercial Galleries GALLERY 8 (FORMERLY J. MITCHELL GALLERY) 3104-115 Fulford Ganges Rd, Grace Point Square, Ganges, Salt Spring Island, BC V8K 2T9 T. 250-537-8822 art@gallery8saltspring.com www.gallery8saltspring.com Representing 30 of the finest Gulf Island artists. The gallery’s extraordinary collection of art in a broad range of media, showcases the dynamic and innovative work of these accomplished local artists. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun & Hol Mon 11 am - 4 pm.
www.gallerieswest.ca
MORLEY MYERS STUDIO & GALLERY 7-315 Upper Ganges Rd, Salt Spring Island, BC T. 250-537-4898 F. 250-537-4828 mgallery@telus.net www.morleymyersgallery.com The gallery shows the progression of earlier works of stone to Morley Myers’ latest bronze creation. In the lower level studio you can see and visit with the artist at work on his next piece. His work is influenced by cross-cultural indigenous art forms. Sat and Sun 11 am - 5 pm or by appt. PEGASUS GALLERY OF CANADIAN ART Mouat’s Mall, 1-104 Fulford-Ganges Rd, Salt Spring Island, BC V8K 2S3 T. 250-537-2421 F. 250-537-5590 pegasus@saltspring.com www.pegasusgallery.ca Established in 1972, Pegasus offers investmentquality historical Canadian art including The Group of Seven, Robert Pilot, WJ Phillips, Sybil Andrews, The Beaver Hall Group and Cornelius Krieghoff. They also represent fine contemporary painters and sculptors as well as rare Northwest Coast Native art and baskets. Summer: Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun noon - 5 pm; Winter: Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun, Mon by appt. @galleries_west
Artist and book publisher Mona Fertig has recently opened a portion of her home on Salt Spring Island as The Porch Gallery.
T. 250-537-8448 F. 250-537-9233 Toll Free: 1-877-537-8448 info@steffichfineart.com www.steffichfineart.com Formerly the Thunderbird Gallery, established in 1992. Contemporary, historic, Inuit and Northwest Coast art. Local and national artists. Kids and dogs welcome. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun 11 am - 4 pm. THE PORCH GALLERY 290 Fulford-Ganges Rd, Salt Spring Island, BC V8K 2K6 T. 250-537-4155 info@mothertonguepublishing.com www.mothertonguepublishing.com The new salon-style Porch Gallery features original paintings, drawings and limited edition prints from BC artists: Jack Akroyd, George Fertig, Irene Hoffar Reid, Gordon Caruso, Ina D. Uhthoff, Peter Haase and Wim Blom and Mother Tongue Publishing books and limited edition letterpressed broadsides. Sun noon - 4 pm or by appointment.
morleymyersgallery.com Salt Spring Island
Plaster Bust #1 48” tall
SIDNEY, BC Commercial Gallery PENINSULA GALLERY 100-2506 Beacon Ave, Landmark Bldg., Sidney, BC V8L 1Y2 T. 250-655-1282 Toll Free: 1-877-787-1896 pengal@pengal.com www.pengal.com Since 1986 the gallery has offered original paintings and sculptures as well as a wide range of limited edition prints for sale onsite and through comprehensive website. Mon to Sat 9 am - 5:30 pm. SILVER STAR MOUNTAIN
STARFISH GALLERY & STUDIO 1108-115 Fulford Ganges Rd, Grace Point Square, Salt Spring Island, BC V8K 1T9 T. 250-537-4425 andrea@starfishgalleryandstudio.com www.starfishgalleryandstudio.com Year-round exhibitions of painting, photography and sculpture by West Coast artists specializing in landscape and wildlife art. Featuring work by Robert Bateman, Darlene Gait, Susan Haigh, Birgit Bateman and Andrea Collins. Tues to Sat 11 am - 4 pm or by appointment. STEFFICH FINE ART GALLERY 3105-115 Fulford-Ganges Rd, Salt Spring Island, BC V8K 2S3
Commercial Gallery GALLERY ODIN 215 Odin Road, PO Box 3109, Silver Star Mountain, BC V1B 3M1 T. 250-503-0822 F. 250-503-0822 info@galleryodin.com www.galleryodin.com The gallery proudly represents a talented group of Okanagan, British Columbian and Canadian artists, some of them well-established and highly accomplished, others just emerging, but all of them work in a distinctive and original style -- oils, acrylics, watercolours, scrimshaw, sculpture, pottery. (Summer) Thur and Sat 2 pm - 6 pm; (Winter) Wed and Sat 1 pm - 6 pm or by appt.
Peak Year, October 1 to 31, SAGA Public Art Gallery, Salmon Arm
Steve Mennie will not be celebrating the unusually high volume of Adams River sockeye salmon that occurred in the autumn run of 2010. Instead, the Salmon Arm-based artist brings a warning to an installation he’s created in collaboration with artist Jen Dyck, part of the Peak Year exhibition at SAGA Public Art Gallery. “I’ve been painting the sockeye for years,” Mennie says. “I’ve lost faith in the power of images to move people.” He says this new work will feature frozen water, and involve the exaggerated sounds of melting ice and a visual of water dripping. “We want to depict the relentlessness of global warming,” Mennie says. “It’s changing everything. People are either blind to this or they’re incapable of dealing with it. The work is to remind us that nothing has changed, even though we have had this great salmon run.” Six other artists from the Shuswap/Thompson area, including Otto Pfannschmidt, Lisa Figueroa, Eric Kutschker, Lynn Erin, and Patrick Hughes will also bring unique interpretations of the salmon run to the exhibition, sponsored in part by the Adams River Salmon Society. — Janet Nicol www.gallerieswest.ca
Original acrylic painting by Theresa Heinrichs Summer Dance, 36” x 48”
Nadines’ 3101 - 31st Ave, Vernon *°ÊÓxä°x{Ó°nx{{ÊUÊ °ÊÓxä°Îän°äÇxn www.nadinesfineart.com
FineArt & Frames
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 63
Gil McElroy and Peter Dykhuis, Cold War Artefacts: Logroad: The Baldy Hughes Project, July 15 to October 9, Two Rivers Gallery, Prince George
“I was an army brat,” artist and writer Gil McElroy says. “My father was one of the ‘cold warriors’ in the 1950s.” The Pinetree Line was one of three cross-country arrays of manned radar stations guarding against Soviet attack, and McElroy’s father worked on bases from coast to coast. Some buildings and artefacts of the period remain — including the Baldy Hughes Air Station in Prince George, and now McElroy and collaborating artist Peter Dykhuis have created installations about the Station, the second in a series of four Cold War exhibitions. “A wall of text provides a timeline of the history of the U.S.-built and manned site,” McElroy says. “It was a boring history until the Cuban Missile Crisis came along and things got exciting at the station for a very short time.” The exhibition also includes collages, maps and drawings. McElroy says many bases were either dismantled or simply abandoned and left to decay, and only a handful, including the Prince George site, were re-purposed. “Nobody remembers this time or wants to remember,” McElroy says. “But these military sites existed and shaped the fabric of our communities.” — Janet Nicol ABOVE: Peter Dykhuis and Gil McElroy, Cold War Artefacts: Logroad: The Baldy Hughes Project, installation view. GREATER VANCOUVER Commercial Galleries ART EMPORIUM 2928 Granville St, Vancouver, BC V6H 3J7 T. 604-738-3510 F. 604-733-5427 tvk@theartemporium.ca www.theartemporium.ca The Art Emporium offers a large inventory of paintings by all members of the Group of Seven and several of their contemporaries, as well as other major Canadian, French and American artists of the 20th Century, for serious collectors and investors. The Estate of Donald Flather. Mon to Sat 10 am - 6 pm. ART WORKS GALLERY 225 Smithe St, Vancouver, BC V6B 4X7 T. 604-688-3301 F. 604-683-4552 Toll Free: 1-800-663-0341 info@artworksbc.com www.artworksbc.com Celebrating 25 years in business, Art Works offers one of the largest selections of art and framing solutions in Western Canada. Providing installation services, custom-framed mirrors and large-scale commissions. Deliver locally and ship worldwide. Art Works is a long-time official sponsor of the Interior Designers Institute of BC. Mon to Fri 9 am - 6 pm, Sat 10 am - 6 pm, Sun noon - 5 pm. BECKER GALLERIES Pier 32, Granville Island, 210-1333 Johnston St,, Vancouver, BC V6H 3R9 T. 604-681-7677 admin@beckergalleries.com www.beckergalleries.com The gallery’s aim is to contribute directly to Canada’s artistic and cultural development by representing both established and emerging artists and hosting exhibitions of international significance. Their current roster includes more than 30 artists
64 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
working in painting, sculpture and photography. Located second floor, Pier 32. Wed to Fri 10 am - 5 pm or by appointment. BELLEVUE GALLERY 2475 Bellevue Ave, West Vancouver, BC V7V 1E1 T. 604-922-2304 F. 604-922-2305 info@bellevuegallery.ca www.bellevuegallery.ca Devoted to representing contemporary fine art, Bellevue Gallery features artists of local and international appeal. Giving voice to the experimentation of new technologies in printmaking, divergent and individual approaches to drawing, photography and painting, and distinctive sculpture, the gallery serves both private and corporate collectors. Tues to Fri 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 11 am - 5 pm and by appointment. BUCKLAND SOUTHERST GALLERY 2460 Marine Drive, West Vancouver, BC V7C 1L1 T. 604-922-1915 cboulton@telus.net www.bucklandsoutherst.com An eclectic gallery owned by Chris Boulton. His aim is to hang quality art without too high a price tag. The gallery represents 18 artists, many with international roots. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5.30 pm, Sun noon to 4 pm. DOUGLAS UDELL GALLERY 15586West 6th Ave 2nd floor, Vancouver, BC V6J 1R2 T. 604-736-8900 F. 604-736-8931 Vancouver@douglasudellgallery.com www.douglasudellgallery.com In the art business in Edmonton since 1967 and Vancouver since 1986, Douglas Udell Gallery represents many of Canada’s leading contemporary artists as well as some of the leading young artists gaining momentum in the international playing
www.gallerieswest.ca
field. The gallery also buys and sells in the secondary market in Canadian historical as well as international. Tues to Sat 10 am - 6 pm, Mon by appt. ELLIOTT LOUIS GALLERY 258 E 1st Ave, Vancouver, BC V5T 1A6 T. 604-736-3282 F. 604-736-3282 gallery@elliottlouis.com www.elliottlouis.com The gallery features Canadian fine art representing contemporary artists and historical masters. Art dealer Ted Lederer prides himself on the standard and diversity of work the gallery carries, their innovative programs and excellent service, providing “in-house” art consultations and an art rental program available to private and corporate clients and the entertainment industry. Tues to Sat 10 am - 6 pm or by appointment. FEDERATION GALLERY 1241 Cartwright St, Vancouver, BC V6H 4B7 T. 604-681-8534 fcagallery@artists.ca www.artists.ca The Federation of Canadian Artists Gallery on Granville Island offers sale, exhibition and gallery rental opportunities to members. New exhibitions are usually scheduled every two weeks throughout the year. Tues to Sun 10 am - 5 pm (mid-May - Aug), 10 am - 4 pm (Sep - mid May). GALLERY JONES 1725 West 3rd Ave, Vancouver, BC V6J 1K7 T. 604-714-2216 info@galleryjones.com www.galleryjones.com The gallery represents established and emerging Canadian and international artists in the mediums of painting, sculpture and photography. Exhibitions change monthly. Second location in West Vancouver at 1531 Marine Dr. Tues ñ Fri 11 am ñ 6 pm, Sat noon ñ 5 pm. GRANVILLE FINE ART 2447 Granville St, Vancouver, BC V6H 3G5 T. 604-266-6010 info@granvillefineart.com www.granvillefineart.com Canadian artworld veterans Linda Lando and Ken Macdonald have reputations of building collections for collectors. They are merging their talents into Granville Fine Art, representing fine contemporary artists and showcasing works by Canadian and international master painters. Northwest corner Broadway and Granville. Tues to Sat 10 am - 6 pm. JACANA GALLERY 2435 Granville St, Vancouver, BC V6H 3G5 T. 604-879-9306 jacana@jacanagallery.com www.jacanagallery.com Jacana Gallery opened in Vancouver in 2000. The Gallery proudly represents more than 20 Canadian and international artists working in various media and styles. Tues to Sat 10 am - 6 pm, Sun noon - 5 pm. JENKINS SHOWLER GALLERY 101-15735 Croydon Dr, The Shops at Morgan Crossing, Surrey, BC V3S 2L5 T. 604-535-7445 Toll Free: 1-888-872-3107 mail@jenkinsshowlergallery.com www.jenkinsshowlergallery.com NEW LOCATION Established in 1990, and representing the work of over 40 Canadian artists -- from emerging local talent to internationally respected painters including Toni Onley, Toller Cranston, and Robert Genn -- Jenkins Showler Gallery offers a diverse selection of original art. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sun noon - 5 pm. @galleries_west
Jacana has moved upstairs and Kurbatoff Art Gallery has moved two doors south to take the ground floor, both at 2435 on South Granville. LATTIMER GALLERY 1590 W 2nd Ave, Vancouver, BC V6J 1H2 T. 604-732-4556 F. 604-732-0873 info@lattimergallery.com www.lattimergallery.com Since 1986, clients have enjoyed the unique, warm atmosphere of a Northwest Longhouse while browsing the large selection of original paintings
www.gallerieswest.ca
and limited edition prints by many well-known native artists -- as well as finely-crafted gold and silver jewellery, argillite carvings, soapstone sculptures, steam bent boxes, masks, totem poles and more. Mon to Sat 10 am - 6 pm, Sun & Hol noon - 5 pm. MARION SCOTT GALLERY 2423 Granville St, Vancouver, BC V6H 3G5 T. 604-685-1934 F. 604-685-1890 art@marionscottgallery.com www.marionscottgallery.com Vancouver’s oldest Inuit art gallery (opened in 1975) and one of Canada’s most respected has returned to South Granville. The gallery is committed to presenting the finest in Canadian Inuit art, with a wide range of Inuit sculpture, prints and wallhangings from many different regions of Canada’s North, with special emphasis on rare pieces from the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s. Mon to Sat 10 am - 6 pm, Sun 11 am - 5 pm. MONNY’S GALLERY 2675 W 4th Ave, Vancouver, BC V6K 1P8 T. 604-733-2082 monny@shaw.ca www.geocities.com/monnysenvisiongallery/ index.html This gallery of longtime collector Monny, has a permanent collection as well as a rotating schedule of exhibitions by local artists Kerensa Haynes, Ted Hesketh, Sonja Kobrehel, Shu Okamoto, Ruth Lowe and others working in a variety of media. Mon to Sat 10 am - 6 pm. MONTE CLARK GALLERY 2339 Granville St, Vancouver, BC V6H 3G4 T. 604-730-5000 F. 604-730-5050 info@monteclarkgallery.com www.monteclarkgallery.com PETLEY JONES GALLERY 1554 W 6 Ave, Vancouver, BC V6J 1R2 T. 604-732-5353 F. 604-732-5669 info@petleyjones.com www.petleyjones.com Established in 1986 by Matt Petley-Jones, nephew of the late Canadian and British artist Llewellyn Petley-Jones, the gallery specializes in 19th - 20th century Canadian, European and American paintings, sculpture and original prints. It also offers a range of fine art services, including framing, restoration and appraisals. Around the corner from former Granville location. Mon to Sat 10 am - 6 pm. SUN SPIRIT GALLERY 2444 Marine Dr (Dundarave), West Vancouver, BC V7V 1L1 T. 778-279-5052 gallery@sunspirit.ca www.sunspirit.ca Sun Spirit Gallery is proud to offer a superior collection of West Coast Native Art from renowned artists and emerging artists alike. The blend of contemporary and traditional work includes fine gold and silver jewellery, unique furniture and home accents, fine art prints, glass work and hand-carved masks and bentwood boxes. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm. @galleries_west
After more than 16 years, Guy Dagenais has retired from his Rendezvous Gallery on Howe St. New owners are Jessica Hedrick and Dave Steele. TRENCH CONTEMPORARY ART 102-148 Alexander St, Vancouver, BC V6A 1B5 T. 604-681-2577 Toll Free: 1-877-681-2577 info@trenchgallery.com www.trenchgallery.com The gallery exhibits international and local emerging, mid- and late-career artists working in all media. The gallery’s curatorial interest lies in both conceptual and formal art production but with an emphasis on relationship with the chosen material, rigorous discipline in the resolution of formal art problems and clarity of conceptual approach. In Gastown. Tues to Sat 11 am - 6 pm, or by appt. TRIBAL SPIRIT GALLERY 20435 Fraser Highway, Langley, BC V3A 4G3 T. 604-514-2377 F. 604-514-9281 Toll Free: 1-888-834-8757 jaye@tribalspiritgallery.com www.tribalspiritgallery.com Tribal Spirit Gallery represents fine First Nations art
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 65
VANCOUVER ART GALLERY 750 Hornby St, Vancouver, BC V6Z 2H7 T. 604-662-4700 F. 604-682-1086 info@vanartgallery.bc.ca www.vanartgallery.bc.ca The largest art gallery in Western Canada is a focal point of downtown Vancouver. Presenting a full range of contemporary artists and major historical masters, it is recognized internationally for its superior exhibitions and excellent interactive education programs and houses a permanent collection of almost 7,000 works of art. Tues to Sun & Hols 10 am - 5:30 pm, Thur 10 am - 9 pm. VERNON Commercial Galleries ASHPA NAIRA ART GALLERY & STUDIO 9492 Houghton Rd., Vernon, BC V1H 2C9 T. 250-549-4249 F. 250-549-4209 ashpanaira@telus.net www.ashpanairagallery.com Located in Killiney on the west side of Okanagan Lake, this contemporary art gallery and studio, owned by artist Carolina Sanchez de Bustamante, features original art in a home and garden setting. Discover a diverse group of emerging and established Okanagan and Canadian artists in painting, textiles, sculpture and ceramics. Open May 1 to October 15. Fri to Sun 10 am - 6 pm or by appt.
Roy Arden, Vox, November 24 to January 7, Monte Clark Gallery, Vancouver
“What does voice mean?” This is the question Roy Arden is exploring in his upcoming mixed media exhibition, Vox at Monte Clark Gallery. Using collage, oils and sculpture, Arden focuses on types of voice—ranging from speaking and social to musical and poetic. Arden had been working in photography for more than three decades when he made a dramatic departure five years ago to explore new media. “I had lots of ideas stored up,” he says. “I was missing the possibilities other media offered, as well as the tactility.” Arden says the theme for Vox came to him following the completion of a few smaller works. Taken as a whole, the ambitious exhibition can be seen as a poem rich in allusions to people and events, from the French Revolution to the Beatles. “There will be an eclectic range of cultural and historical references,” Arden says. “I look at the personal and the political.” — Janet Nicol ABOVE: Roy Arden, West Coast Poets / Minimum Security Forest, collage, 2010. of the Northwest Coast of British Columbia. In addition to viewing cultural artifacts, visitors are invited to stroll through the 2000 sq. ft. commercial gallery celebrating the achievements of contemporary Northwest Coast First Nations artists. Located near the Cascades Casino and Hotel. Open Mon to Sat 10 am - 6 pm, Sun noon - 4 pm. WHITE ROCK GALLERY 1247 Johnston Rd, White Rock, BC V3B 3Y9 T. 604-538-4452 F. 604-538-4453 Toll Free: 1-877-974-4278 info@whiterockgallery.com www.whiterockgallery.com A destination for art lovers throughout the Lower Mainland since 1989. They feature an extraordinary selection of original fine art, ceramics and sculpture. Their custom framing is a blend of creativity, expert design, and skilled workmanship. Tue to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sun noon - 5 pm. Closed holiday long weekends. Cooperative Galleries CIRCLE CRAFT GALLERY 1-1666 Johnston St (Granville Island), Vancouver, BC V6H 3S2 T. 604-669-8021 F. 604-669-8585 shop@circlecraft.net www.circlecraft.net Excellence in design and craftsmanship is the hallmark of Circle Craft, a co-operative of both emerging and established BC craftspeople whose work covers the spectrum from cottage industry
66 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
NADINE’S FINE ART & FRAMES 3101 31 Ave, Vernon, BC V1T 2G9 T. 250-542-8544 nadinesfineart@shaw.ca www.nadinesfineart.com Artist/owner Nadine Wilson opened her gallery in 2005. She represents several local artists, presents regular classes in watercolour, oil and acrylic painting and drawing as well as offering professional framing services. In summer the gallery hosts guest artist workshops. Mon to Fri 9:30 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 9:30 am - 4 pm (winter: Sat 10 am - 2 pm). Public Gallery VERNON PUBLIC ART GALLERY 3228 31 Ave, Vernon, BC V1T 2H3 T. 250-545-3173 F. 250-545-9096 info@vernonpublicartgallery.com www.vernonpublicartgallery.com The Vernon Public Art Gallery presents exhibitions of emerging and established artists working in a variety of media, including paintings sculpture, video, and installation art. The Vernon Public Art Gallery is the largest public gallery in the North Okanagan, and provides exhibition opportunities to local artists and artisans. Mon to Fri 10 am - 5 pm, Sat 11 am - 4 pm. GREATER VICTORIA Artist-run Gallery OPEN SPACE 510 Fort Street, 2nd floor, Victoria, BC V8W 1E6
T. 250-383-8833 F. 250-383-8841 openspace@openspace.ca www.openspace.ca Founded in September 1972 as a non-profit artistrun centre, Open Space supports professional artists -- notably young and emerging -- who utilize hybrid and experimental approaches to media, art, music and performance. It reflects the wide diversity of contemporary art practices in Victoria, across Canada and beyond. Tues to Sat noon - 5 pm. Commercial Galleries ALCHERINGA GALLERY 665 Fort St, Victoria, BC V8W 1G6 T. 250-383-8224 F. 250-383-9399 alcheringa@islandnet.com www.alcheringa-gallery.com For 30 years, the gallery has exhibited contemporary tribal art from Papua New Guinea and later, graphic works by Aboriginal Australian artists and premium-quality work by established and emerging First Nation’s artists of Canada’s Northwest Coast. In the South Pacific, the work of master carvers still living a village lifestyle is selected on-site by gallery staff. Mon to Sat 9:30 am 5:30 pm, Sun noon - 5 pm. AVENUE GALLERY 2184 Oak Bay Ave, Victoria, BC V8R 1G3 T. 250-598-2184 F. 250-598-2185 info@theavenuegallery.com www.theavenuegallery.com Especially noted for finding and establishing new talent, the gallery considers itself a showcase for contemporary British Columbia, Canadian and international art, serving both corporate and private collectors -- those new to the contemporary art scene as well as knowledgeable collectors. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun noon - 4 pm. CHOSIN POTTERY 4283 Metchosin Rd, Victoria, BC V9C 3Z4 T. 250-474-2676 F. 250-474-2676 chosin@chosinpottery.ca www.chosinpottery.ca From their studio set in a beautiful, award-winning garden of a renovated house from the turn of the century, Robin Hopper and Judi Dyelle produce a wide range of work, mainly in high temperature, reduction-fired porcelain -- from one-of-a-kind pieces for decoration or contemplation to an excellent selection of functional pottery for everyday use. One half hour north of Victoria via Hwy 1, Exit 10 to Hwy 14 (Sooke Rd) and Metchosin Rd. Daily 10 am - 5 pm. ECLECTIC GALLERY 2170 Oak Bay Ave, Victoria, BC V8R 1E9 T. 250-590-8095 eclectichome@shaw.ca www.eclecticgallery.ca Specializing in original contemporary fine art paintings, sculpture, photography and jewellery, this welcoming light-filled gallery is known for its
to one-of-a-kind artist/craftspeople including both traditional and contemporary design. Juried exhibitions change monthly. Daily 10 am - 7 pm. Public Galleries MUSEUM OF ANTHROPOLOGY, UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA 6393 NW Marine Dr,, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z2 T. 604-822-5087 F. 604-822-2974 Jennifer.webb@ubc.ca www.moa.ubc.ca MOA is a place of architectural beauty, provocative programming, and exciting exhibitions -- including Bill Reid’s iconic ìThe Raven and the First Men,î and the new Multiversity Galleries, showcasing 10,000 objects from around the world. CafÈ MOA, an elegant shop, and free tours. Spring/Summer: daily 10 am - 5 pm Tues to 9; Fall/Winter: closed Mon, open Tues 10 am - 9 pm and Wed to Sun 10 am - 5 pm. Closed Dec 25 & 26. RICHMOND ART GALLERY 180-7700 Minoru Gate, Richmond, BC V6Y 1R9 T. 604-247-8300 F. 604-247-8301 gallery@richmond.ca www.richmondartgallery.org The Richmond Art Gallery plays a dynamic role in the growth of visual art in Richmond, and is a vital part of the contemporary art network in BC and Canada. Through excellence in exhibitions and education, the RAG strives to enhance an understanding and enjoyment of contemporary art. Mon to Fri 10 am - 6 pm, Sat and Sun 10 am - 5 pm.
The Studio West foundry and gallery in Cochrane, Alberta, is one of the most prolific producers of bronze statuary in western Canada, with commissions for significant public works including the RCMP National Memorial and Calgary’s statue of Sitting Eagle. The gallery will open its doors this fall with a show called Monuments to Maquettes, October 1 to December 31, which will juxtapose the large bronzes (some more than 11 feet tall) with the small models used in their designs, and include open studio installations with works in progress. ABOVE: Maquettes, bronze, at Studio West. www.gallerieswest.ca
MADRONA GALLERY 606 View St, Victoria, BC V8W 1J4 T. 250-380-4660 F. 250-380-4625 info@madronagallery.com www.madronagallery.com Open June 2010, Madrona Gallery represents emerging, mid-career and established Canadian artists. The gallery offers a welcoming environment to all visitors and Michael Warrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s expertise in Canadian art history and the contemporary art market facilitates the discovery of new artists and rare pieces from Canadian masters. Tues to Sat 10 am - 6 pm, Sun 11 - 6 pm. OUT OF THE MIST GALLERY 740 Douglas St, Victoria, BC V8W 3M6 T. 250-480-4930 oomistg@telus.net www.outofthemistgallery.com Dealers in classic and contemporary Northwest coast native art -- including traditional potlatch masks, basketry, shamanic devices, button blankets, totem poles, artefacts and more. There is also a selection of plains beadwork and artefacts and other North American, Oceanic, and African tribal art. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun noon - 3 pm. RED ART GALLERY 2033 Oak Bay Ave, Victoria, BC V8R 1E5 T. 250-881-0462 me@redartgallery.ca www.redartgallery.ca A small gem in the heart of Oak Bay Village, the gallery is dynamic, welcoming and above all, dedicated to the love of art. Along with regular new paintings by award-winning painter Marion Evamy, other artists also showcase artwork that is contemporary, confident and affordable. Relax on the red couch and enjoy art described (by critic Robert Amos) as ĂŹa blast of joyĂŽ. Tues to Sat noon - 4 pm. SOOKE HARBOUR HOUSE GALLERY 1528 Whiffen Spit Rd, Sooke, BC V9Z 0T4 T. 250-642-3421 F. 250-642-6988 gallery@sookeharbourhouse.com www.sookeharbourhouse.com/ Displayed throughout this award-winning inn, with its internationally-renowned dining room, the unconventional gallery was created in 1998 with carefully selected works by local artists on Vancouver Island. The art, in a variety of media, generally reflects themes of edible gardens, the ocean and the surrounding forest. Daily guided Garden Tours with art display in the Edible Gardens. Gallery open daily for self-guided tour. THE GALLERY IN OAK BAY VILLAGE 2223A Oak Bay Ave, Victoria, BC V8R 1G4 T. 250-598-9890 F. 250-592-5528 thegallery@shaw.ca Just a short distance from downtown in the picturesque Oak Bay Village, the gallery shows a variety of works by mostly local artists including Kathryn Amisson, Sid and Jesi Baron, Andres Bohaker, Bryony Wynne Boutillier, Tom Dickson, Robert Genn, Caren Heine, Harry Heine, Shawn A. Jackson, Brian R. Johnson, David Ladmore, Jack Livesey, Dorothy McKay, Bill McKibben, Ernst Marza, Hal Moldstad, Ron Parker, Natasha Perks. Mon to Fri 10 am - 5 pm, Sat 10 am - 3 pm. VIEW ART GALLERY 104-860 View St, Victoria, BC V8W 3Z8 T. 250-213-1162 info@viewartgallery.com www.viewartgallery.com Located in the Harris Green/New Town neighbourhood of downtown Victoria just a short stroll from the major hotels and downtown shops. The focus of the gallery is contemporary modern art works by a talented group of young and mid-career artists from Canada and the US. Tues to Sat 11 am - 5 pm or by appointment. WEST END GALLERY 1203 Broad Street, Victoria, BC V8W 2A4 T. 250-388-0009 info@westendgalleryltd.com www.westendgalleryltd.com First established in Edmonton in 1975, Dan and Lana Hudon opened a second Gallery located in the heart of downtown Victoria in 1994. Visitors are encouraged to explore and select from a wide range of styles and prices, from emerging to established artists and to purchase with confidence. Mon to Fri 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun/Holidays noon - 4 pm.
www.gallerieswest.ca
WINCHESTER GALLERIES 2260 Oak Bay Ave, Victoria, BC V8R 1G7 T. 250-595-2777 F. 250-595-2310 art@winchestergalleriesltd.com www.winchestergalleriesltd.com Exclusive fine art dealers handling Canadian historical and contemporary art. Opened in 1974, the gallery has been under the ownership of Gunter H.J. Heinrich and Anthony R.H. Sam since 1994 and in 2003 has moved to its own building in Oak Bay Village. They regularly run major exhibitions of two to three weeks both here and in two other downtown galleries. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm. Public Galleries LEGACY ART GALLERY 630 Yates St, Victoria, BC V8W 1K9 T. 250-381-7670 legacy@uvic.ca www.legacygallery.ca The Legacy Art Gallery features works from the University of Victoria Art Collections, including paintings, drawings and sculptures by some of the bestknown artists in the Pacific Northwest, bequeathed to the University of Victoria by Dr. Michael C. Williams. Two gallery spaces feature a variety of rotating exhibits. Phone, or visit website for hours. CLOSED FOR RENOVATIONS. Reopening early June. MALTWOOD PRINTS AND DRAWINGS GALLERY AT THE MCPHERSON LIBRARY Box 3025 Stn CSC, McPherson Library, Room 027 Finnerty Road, Victoria, BC V8W 3P2 T. 250-721-6673 F. 250-721-8997 maltpub@finearts.uvic.ca www.uvac.uvic.ca The Maltwood Prints and Drawings Gallery, located on the lower level of the McPherson Library, exhibits prints, drawings, paintings and photographs from the University of Victoriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s permanent art collection, including a large contemporary First Nations print collection. Hours of operation coincide with McPherson Library. Call for current hours.
Featuring Parkland Prairie Artists 4USFFU $BNSPTF "# 5 7 3 www.candlerartgallery.com DBOEMFS!TZCBO OFU
$JOEZ #BSSBUU "GUFS UIF 3BJO 8BUFSDPMPVS Âł Y Âł
Art Supplies, Picture Framing, Prints, Posters, Rocks & Crystals
V I R G I N I A B O U L AY End of Season, acrylic on canvas, 15â&#x20AC;? x 30â&#x20AC;?
vibrant selection of local and regional art. It offers rotating art exhibitions of excellent quality at its easily-accessible location in the heart of Oak Bay Village. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm.
WHISTLER Commercial Galleries BLACK TUSK GALLERY 108-4293 Mountain Square, Whistler, BC V0N 1B4 info@blacktusk.ca www.blacktusk.ca The Black Tusk Gallery creates unique acquisition opportunities for collectors with a variety of works by both established and up-and-coming First Nations artists whose work reflects the ancient histories and traditions of the coastal people. Located on the lobby level of the Hilton Hotel, next to Skiers Plaza. Open daily. MOUNTAIN GALLERIES AT THE FAIRMONT Fairmont Chateau Whistler, 4599 Chateau Blvd, Whistler, BC V0N 1B4 T. 604-935-1862 Toll Free: 1-888-310-9726 whistler@mountaingalleries.com www.mountaingalleries.com Located in The Fairmont Chateau Whistler, Mountain Galleries is a favourite stop for collectors of Canadian art, featuring museum-quality paintings, sculpture and unique Inuit carvings. With three galleries, a combined total of 6080 square feet of exhibition space, and a state of the art warehouse/ studio in Jasper, they frequently host exhibitions, artist demonstrations and workshops. Daily 10 am - 10 pm.
w w w. v b o u l a y a r t . c o m 403.242.4628
T H E A L I C AT G A L L E R Y Representing Western Canadian artists since 1987
24th Annual Exhibition & Sale Featuring new works by: Merv Brandel, Perry Haddock, Curtis Golomb, Steven Armstrong and Rachelle Brady Preview Wednesday, Thursday, & Friday, October 12, 13, & 14th, 11 am to 5 pm. Sales begin at the Gala Reception, by invitation only, Friday October 14, 7:30 pm.
ALBERTA GALLERIES BANFF Commercial Galleries CANADA HOUSE GALLERY PO Box 1570 201 Bear St, Banff, AB T1L 1B5 T. 403-762-3757 F. 403-762-8052 Toll Free: 1-800-419-1298 info@canadahouse.com www.canadahouse.com A Banff destination since 1974, just a short drive from Calgary. This friendly and fresh gallery represents a large collection of current Canadian art -- paintings and sculpture from Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best landscape, contemporary and Native artists. Check website for daily updates. Member of Art Dealers Association of Canada. Open daily. MOUNTAIN GALLERIES AT THE FAIRMONT Fairmont Banff Springs, 405 Spray Ave, Banff, AB
Merv Brandel, Marsh Grasses, oil on canvas, 30â&#x20AC;? x 30â&#x20AC;?
{äĂ&#x17D;Â&#x2021;Â&#x2122;{Â&#x2122;Â&#x2021;Ă&#x17D;Ă&#x2021;Ă&#x2021;Ă&#x2021;Ă&#x160;UĂ&#x160;Ă&#x153;Ă&#x153;Ă&#x153;°>Â?Â&#x2C6;V>Ă&#x152;}>Â?Â?iĂ&#x20AC;Ă&#x17E;°VÂ&#x153;Â&#x201C; Â&#x153;V>Ă&#x152;i`Ă&#x160;>LÂ&#x153;Ă&#x2022;Ă&#x152;Ă&#x160;Ă&#x17D;äĂ&#x160;Â&#x201C;Â&#x2C6;Â&#x2DC;Ă&#x2022;Ă&#x152;iĂ&#x192;Ă&#x160;Ă&#x153;iĂ&#x192;Ă&#x152;Ă&#x160;Â&#x153;vĂ&#x160; >Â?}>Ă&#x20AC;Ă&#x17E;Ă&#x160;Â&#x2C6;Â&#x2DC;Ă&#x160; Ă&#x20AC;>}}Ă&#x160; Ă&#x20AC;iiÂ&#x17D;]Ă&#x160; Â?LiĂ&#x20AC;Ă&#x152;>
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 67
Colleen Philippi, A to Z, September 17 to October 22, Newzones, Calgary
2011
S ATUR D AY S E P T E M B E R 17 S UN D AY SE P T E M B E R 18 11 - 5 rain or shine
OPENING CEREMONY/KICK-OFF EVENT FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 16 - 5:30 - 8 PM join us for the unveiling of a major outdoor sculpture by local artist Reinhard Skoracki at the south entry of the EEEL Building at the University of Calgary 750 Campus Dr. NW additional details at www.calgaryartwalk.com
Explore Calgary’s diverse visual arts community! participating galleries / events listings / maps available at -
www.calgaryartwalk.com
S p o n sored b y:
Five years in the making, Calgary artist Colleen Philippi has amassed a new series of tactile mixed media collages, based in meticulous references to pop culture, organic objects, segments of the human form, and meditations on colour. Philippi’s work draws the viewer to interact — small-handled drawers and doors can be opened, expanding the experience, and giving a new cast to each piece. Messages and ideas are hidden throughout in trompe l’oeil designs, inviting prolonged study. Key to this series is Philippi’s own life as an artist, and the inspiration she’s taken from a long career, the methods and techniques she’s used. Each work has an element of personal history, from the creative to the domestic, with the sense of opening up self-referential rooms. Originally from Winnipeg, Philippi graduated with a BFA from the University of Alberta, and has long been based in Calgary. This show is the result of the studied, sometimes years-long work, both representational and artisanal, that goes into these pieces. — Jill Sawyer ABOVE: Colleen Philippi, Plaza Martini, oil, mixed media on wood, 2011, 46" X 17". T. 403-760-2382 Toll Free: 1-800-310-9726 banff@mountaingalleries.com www.mountaingalleries.com Located in The Fairmont Banff Springs, Mountain Galleries is a favourite stop for collectors of Canadian art, featuring museum-quality paintings, sculpture and unique Inuit carvings. With three galleries, a combined total of 6080 square feet of exhibition space, and a state of the art warehouse/studio in Jasper, they frequently host exhibitions, artist demonstrations and workshops. Daily 10 am - 10 pm.
T. 403-762-2291 F. 403-762-8919 info@whyte.org www.whyte.org Located on a spectacular site beside the Bow River in downtown Banff. Discover the rich natural and cultural heritage of the Canadian Rockies. The Museum offers guided tours of Banff’s heritage log homes and cabins; historic walking tours of the Banff townsite; and exhibition tours of the galleries. Open daily, 10 am - 5 pm.
WILLOCK & SAX GALLERY Box 2469, 110 Bison Courtyard, 211 Bear St, Banff, AB T1L 1C2 T. 403-762-2214 Toll Free: 1-866-859-2220 fineart@willockandsaxgallery.com www.willockandsaxgallery.com Art reflects the spiritual and physical reliance of humanity on the natural world. The Willock & Sax Gallery is innovative and eclectic, rooted in the idea that art is about people, place, and community. They carry work by mainly Western Canadian contemporary and historic artists, who enjoy international, national, and regional reputations. Daily 10 am ñ 6 pm.
Commercial Galleries BLUEROCK GALLERY 110 Centre Ave, Box 1290, Black Diamond, AB T0L 0H0 T. 403-933-5047 F. 403-933-5050 store@bluerockgallery.ca www.bluerockgallery.ca Bluerock Gallery is a go-to place for one-of-a-kind fine art and craft, jewellery, cards and inspiring books. New art arrives regularly and the impressive collection by more than 100 artists is constantly being expanded and rotated. Wed to Mon 11 am - 5 pm; Dec 1 - 24 daily 11 am - 7 pm.
Public Galleries WALTER PHILLIPS GALLERY 107 Tunnel Mountain Road, Box 1020 Stn 40, Banff, AB T1L 1H5 T. 403-762-6281 F. 403-762-6659 walter_phillipsgallery@banffcentre.ca www.banffcentre.ca/wpg/ The gallery is exclusively committed to the production, presentation, collection and analysis of contemporary art and is dedicated to developing a thoughtful and stimulating forum for visual art and curatorial practice. The WPG develops exhibitions, commissions new works and engages in dialogues about curatorial practice through symposia and workshops. Wed to Sun 12:30 pm - 5 pm, Thurs till 9 pm. Free gallery tours Thurs 7 pm. WHYTE MUSEUM OF THE CANADIAN ROCKIES PO Box 160 111 Bear St, Banff, AB T1L 1A3
68 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
BLACK DIAMOND
MARYANNE’S EDEN -- THE ART AND GARDEN GALLERY 109 Centre Ave East, Box 964, Black Diamond, AB T0L 0H0 T. 403-933-5524 maryanneseden@persona.ca www.maryanneseden.com Working primarily with oil paints, Maryanne Jespersen’s works are an outlet of strength, light and emotion. From a unique imagination, her paintings exhibit a warm closeness to nature that is constantly evolving. She also creates hand-crafted concrete garden art. Maryanne’s artwork is represented at Gust Gallery in Waterton, AB. Daily 11 am - 5 pm or by appointment. BRAGG CREEK SUNCATCHER’S DESIGN STUDIO 1 White Ave, Trading Post Mall, PO Box 840, Bragg Creek, AB T0L 0K0 T. 403-949-4332 F. 403-278-6299 info@suncatchersdesigns.com
www.gallerieswest.ca
www.suncatchersdesigns.com Providing Calgary with custom stained glass since 1979, SunCatcherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s is an eclectic mix of original art, antiques and jewellery. Currently featuring a private collection of original art deco and art nouveau glass and metal works, along with works by Alberta artists Lisse Legge, Karin Taylor, Chris Zincan, Candice Meyer, Sandy Angle, Frank Calon, and blown glass by Robert Held and Kitras. Daily 11 am to 5 pm, Tuesday by chance or appointment. THE ALICAT GALLERY 1 Bragg Creek Village Centre, Box 463, Bragg Creek, AB T0L 0K0 T. 403-949-3777 F. 403-949-3777 gallery@alicatgallery.com www.alicatgallery.com Located about 30 minutes west of Calgary, the gallery opened in 1987. It represents more than 100 local and Western Canadian artists and artisans working in oils, acrylics and watercolours. Ceramics, carvings, sculpture and ironwork of the finest quality are also shown. Daily 11 am - 5 pm. CALGARY Artist-run Galleries THE NEW GALLERY 212-100 7 Ave SW (Art Central), Calgary, AB T2P 0W4 T. 403-233-2399 F. 403-290-1714 info@thenewgallery.org www.thenewgallery.org From its new location on the second level of Art Central, Calgaryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s oldest artist-run centre is committed to providing a forum for a wide spectrum of critical discourse and multi-disciplinary practices within the contemporary visual arts. Tues to Sat 11 am - 5 pm. TRUCK CONTEMPORARY ART IN CALGARY 815 1 St SW, lower level, Calgary, AB T2P 1N3 T. 403-261-7702 F. 403-264-7737 info@truck.ca www.truck.ca/ TRUCK is a non-profit, artist-run centre dedicated to the presentation of contemporary art. Their goal is to incite dialogue locally, which contributes to the global critical discourse on contemporary art. TRUCK presents dynamic programming, fosters innovative artistic practices, encourages experimentation, and promotes a dialogue between artists and the public. Free admission. Tues to Fri 11 am Ăą 5 pm, Sat noon Ăą 5 pm. @galleries_west
Bob Cook and wife Candy have opened a wildlife photo gallery in Bragg Creek as an extension of their Branded Visuals digital print business. Commercial Galleries ARTEVO.COM 6999 11 St SE, Calgary, AB T2H 2S1 T. 403-265-7723 customercare@artevo.com www.artevo.com Mixing the music of distinguished piano manufacturers such as Fazioli, Bechstein and Knabe with over 200 artists represented including global painters such as Jane Seymour, Fabian Perez and ĂŹThe Art of Dr SeussĂŽ along with Alberta and Canadian artists, notably Toller Cranston, Dean McLeod and Lois Bauman. Also offer framing and fine giclĂ&#x2C6;e reproduction. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm. ARTS ON ATLANTIC GALLERY 1312A 9 Ave SE, Calgary, AB T2G 0T3 T. 403-264-6627 F. 403-264-6628 info@artsonatlantic.com www.artsonatlantic.com The gallery showcases an eclectic mix of fine Canadian art and craft. Five minutes from downtown, it is a warm, intimate space in historic Inglewood. Mediums include painting, copper, glass, jewelry, wood, specialty cards, photography and native leather and beading. The book arts and classes are a specialty. Wed to Fri 11 am - 5 pm, Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun noon - 5 pm and by appt. AXIS CONTEMPORARY ART 107-100 7 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2P 0W4 T. 403-262-3356 info@axisart.ca www.axisart.ca
www.gallerieswest.ca
Represents professional Canadian and International artists working in diverse media including painting, sculpture, printmaking, drawing and photography. The artists represent distinctive artistic practices in terms of their approach, technique and themes. The result: work that is compelling, fresh and engaging. Mon to Fri 10:30 am - 5:30 pm, First Thurs till 9 pm, Sat 11 am - 5 pm. CIRCA 1226A 9 Ave SE, Calgary, AB T2G 0T1 T. 403-290-0145 Toll Free: 1-877-290-0145 circa5060@yahoo.ca www.circa5060.ca Circa is a one-of-a-kind gallery specializing in midcentury modern art glass from around the world. All items are hand blown works of art from the 1940-1960s. The focus is on European art glass from the best known studios and furnaces. Circa brings world-class vintage art glass to Calgary from centres across Europe. A visual spectacle of color, form and modernism. Daily 10 am - 5 pm. DADE ART AND DESIGN LAB 1327 9 Ave SE, Calgary, AB T2G 0T2 T. 403-454-0243 F. 403-454-0282 info@dadegallery.com www.dadegallery.com With a distinctive product mix and presentation philosophy DaDe Art & Design Lab favours the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;ecofriendlyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; in offering a complete product range for modern living -- including original art and sculpture by local artists, and exclusive furniture from around the world. Tues, Wed, Fri 11 am - 7 pm; Thurs till 9 pm; Sat till 6 pm; Sun noon - 5 pm and by appointment. (Winter: Tues, Wed, Fri 11 am - 6 pm; Thurs till 8 pm; Sat till 6 pm; Sun noon - 5 pm.) DIANA PAUL GALLERIES 737 2 ST SW, Calgary, AB T2P 3J1 T. 403-262-9947 F. 403-262-9911 dpg@dianapaulgalleries.com www.dianapaulgalleries.com Recently relocated to the heritage Lancaster Building just off Stephen Avenue Walk. Specializing in high quality fine art -- small and large format works -- in styles from super-realism to impressionism to semi-abstract. Featuring the work of emerging and well-established artists. Tues to Sat 10:30 am - 5:30 pm. ENDEAVOR ARTS 200-1209 1 St SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0V3 T. 403-532-7800 info@endeavorarts.com www.endeavorarts.com Endeavor Arts represents local artists who create art in new ways, focusing on mixed media and other types of innovative artwork and avoiding more traditional media and methods. Recognizing that art is being consumed differently, there is also a digital gallery, with 5 monitors, showing rotating artwork and videos or photos of the process of how some artists make a specific piece. Tues to Sat 11 am - 5 pm. FORTUNE FINE ART 3-215 39 Ave NE, Calgary, AB T2E 7E3 T. 403-277-7252 F. 403-277-7364 info@fortunefineart.com www.fortunefineart.com For sale or lease, long-time Calgary collector and philanthropist Lou MacEachern, offers works from his collection of 1,500 pieces of original Canadian art. The more-than-225 artists include well-known names such as Norman Brown, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Duncanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; MacKinnon Crockford, WR deGarth, N de Grandmaison, Roland Gissing, George Horvath, Georgia Jarvis, Glenn Olson, Torquil Reed, Colin Williams and Marguerite Zwicker. Browsers welcome. By appointment. GAINSBOROUGH GALLERIES 441 5 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2P 2V1 T. 403-262-3715 F. 403-262-3743 Toll Free: 1-866-425-5373 art@gainsboroughgalleries.com www.gainsboroughgalleries.com Extensive collection of fine artists including Tinyan, Raftery, Wood, Desrosiers, Lyon, Hedrick, Min Ma, Simard, Brandel, Schlademan, Bond, Cameron, Crump and Charlesworth. Calgaryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest collection of bronze -- by Stewart, Cheek, Lansing, Taylor, Danyluk and Arthur. Gemstone carvings by Lyle Sopel. Mon to Fri 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sat till 5 pm. GALLERIA - INGLEWOOD 907 9 Ave SE, Calgary, AB T2G 0S5 T. 403-270-3612 galleria@shaw.ca www.calgarycraftedgifts.com Galleria Inglewood represents more than 25 emerging and established artists.
ďż˝
ďż˝ ďż˝
ďż˝
����������������������������� ������������������������� ������������������
�������������
�����������������
������������������������ ������Main Floor Art Central, #104, 100-7th Ave SW t
403-266-5337ďż˝
September 16 - October 8 Errol Lee Fullen & Greg Robb Errol Fullen, Ne + Ultra, 2011
Greg Robb, Twist, Spalted Birch, 2011
October 14 - November 5 Cameron Lee Roberts Dreams in Repair, fired clay, 13â&#x20AC;?h x 13â&#x20AC;? w x 8â&#x20AC;? d
November 18 - December 17 Anna Ostberg
Welcome, acrylic on canvas, 36â&#x20AC;? x 60â&#x20AC;?
2108 - 18 Street N.W., Calgary, AB T2M 3T3 1IPOF t XXX SVCFSUP PTUCFSH DPN Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 69
ALBERTA SOCIETY OF ARTISTS GALLERY AT LO U G H E E D H O U S E
Artists Choice - Celebrating 80 Years August 31 to October 30, 2011 Join us for ArtWalk: September 17 & 18, 2011 and Arts Days: September 30, October 1 & 2, 2011 10 am to 4 pm Arts Demos and Workshops
Linda Craddock “Woman Reading” 40” x 30” oil on canvas
Celebrating Children
Eleanor Lowden-Pidgeon “Pond Hockey” 16” x 20” acrylic on canvas
November 2, 2011 to early January 2012 Join us for Christmas All Through the House: November 19 to 27, 2011 10 am to 4 pm
Ballroom of Lougheed House, 707 - 13 Ave SW, Free admission to the Gallery and Gift Shop Open: Wednesday to Friday, 11am - 4pm, Saturday and Sunday 10 am - 4 pm, 403-244-6333
Torqil Reed 1920 - 1990
Torqil Reed, Oxen Team, Oil, 16” x 20”
Fortune Fine Art Art Sales and Rentals Featuring Historical and Contemporary Canadian Art With over 1,500 original works available
#3, 215 – 39th Avenue N.E., Calgary, Alberta T2E 7E3 For hours, please call 403-277-7252 www.fortunefineart.com
70 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
Mark Dicey, River Tour, September 15 to October 29, Jarvis Hall Fine Art, Calgary
Looking for an organic object that encompasses the idea of movement, flux, and continuity, it’s no surprise that Mark Dicey settled on the river as a source of inspiration for River Tour, this latest series of paintings at Calgary’s Jarvis Hall Fine Art. Born and raised in Calgary, a city with a strong identification with the river that courses through its centre, Dicey muses on other cities and other rivers for these abstracts. Each painting has the layered appearance of collage, and Dicey talks about the presence of a past and a future that flows by, seen from the static point on the bank of a river. In the work, each moment is represented by a layer, a patch, a point of colour on paper. Dicey has had a long-standing relationship with the Calgary art scene, painting in the city for close to 30 years. “Always appearing to remain constant, the individual drops of water from which the river is composed are constantly changing,” Dicey says. “But at the same time they represent the unity of life.” — Jill Sawyer ABOVE: Mark Dicey, Untitled 2153, acrylic, gouache, pencil crayon and collage on paper, 2010. Their contemporary works include oils, watercolour, acrylics and mixed media. In 3 separate galleries they also show functional, decorative and sculptural pottery by local clay artists and fine handcrafts by Canadian artisans. Minutes from downtown in historic Inglewood. Free parking. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun noon - 5 pm. GERRY THOMAS GALLERY 100-602 11 Ave SW - lower level, Calgary, AB T2R 1J8 T. 403-265-1630 F. 403-265-1634 info@gerrythomas.com www.gerrythomasgallery.com This contemporary, New York-style gallery boasts an impressive 4600 sq ft of original art work ranging from glass sculpture to abstract oil paintings and photography. The gallery, which can accommodate events of up to 300 people, is anchored by a central art deco bar, three plasma screens and a sophisticated sound system. Wed to Sat 10 am - 6 pm. GIBSON FINE ART LTD 628 11 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0E2 T. 403-244-2000 info@gibsonfineart.ca www.gibsonfineart.ca Now located in the Design District, the gallery showcases contemporary art in a wide variety of styles and media and of significant regional and national scope -- from emerging and established artists of the highest quality. Tues to Sat 10 am 5 pm. HERRINGER KISS GALLERY 709 A 11 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0E3 T. 403-228-4889 F. 403-228-4809 info@herringerkissgallery.com www.herringerkissgallery.com A member of the Art Dealers Association of Canada, the gallery represents over 25 artists working in a range of mediums including painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture and mixed media works. Gallery artists include Angela Leach, Toni Hafkenscheid, Akiko Taniguchi, Bill Laing, Marjan Eggermont, Tivadar BotÈ, Ken Webb, Harry Kiyooka, Reinhard Skoracki, Glen Semple, Elizabeth Barnes, David Burdeny, Dennis Ekstedt, RenÈe Duval, Ben Van Netten, Siobhan Humston, Bratsa Bonifacho, Eve Leader, Jude Griebel, Stefanja Dumanowski, Marianne Lovink and Eszter Burghardt. Tues to Fri 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 11 am - 5 pm.
INFLUX JEWELLERY GALLERY 201-100 7 Ave SW, Art Central, Calgary, AB T2P 0W4 T. 403-266-7527 info@influxgallery.com www.influxgallery.com Specializing in Canadian contemporary art jewellery, the gallery represents over 40 of Canada’s most talented jewellery artists with work ranging from subtle objects for everyday wear to extravagant and sculptural artworks -- rings, pendants, necklaces, brooches, bracelets and earrings. Also offer custom design services. Tues to Fri 10:30 am 5:30 pm, Sat 11 am - 5 pm. INGLEWOOD FINE ARTS 1223B 9 Ave SE, Calgary, AB T2G 0S9 T. 403-262-5011 info@inglewoodfinearts.com www.inglewoodfinearts.com Recently relocated from Montreal, owner/director Michel Arseneau is featuring the works of internationally-recognized artist Charles Carson in permanent exhibition at his new Inglewood Fine Arts gallery. He also represents several emerging artists from South America who will be introduced over the next several months. Tues to Sat 10:30 am - 5 pm, Thurs till 9 pm, Sun noon - 4 pm. JARVIS HALL FINE ART 617 11 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0E1 T. 403-206-9942 F. 403-206-1399 info@jarvishallfineart.com www.jarvishallfineart.com Exhibiting contemporary Canadian art in painting, drawing, printmaking and sculpture. Currently representing Mark Dicey, Elena Evanoff, Dean Turner and Carl White. Works of art on consignment are also available throughout the year by historical and contemporary Canadian and international artists. Submissions for representation or questions relating to consigning works of art for sale can be made via email. LATITUDE ART GALLERY 150-625 11 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0E1 T. 403-262-9598 info@latitudeartgallery.com www.latitudeartgallery.com Located in the Design District on 11 Ave SW, Latitude Art Gallery showcases a variety of Canadian and international artists. They specialize in contemporary style art including landscapes, still life’s, ab-
www.gallerieswest.ca
stract, and figurative. Tues to Fri 10 am - 5:30 am, Sat 11 am - 5 pm, and by appointment. LOCH GALLERY 1516 4 St SW, Calgary, AB T2R 1H5 T. 403-209-8542 Toll Free: 1-866-202-0888 calgary@lochgallery.com www.lochgallery.com Established in 1972 in Winnipeg, the Loch Gallery specializes in building collections of quality Canadian, American, British and European paintings and sculpture. It represents original 19th and 20th century artwork of collectable and historic interest, as well as a select group of gifted professional artists from across Canada including Ivan Eyre, Leo Mol, Ron Bolt, Peter Sawatzky, Anna Wiechec, Philip Craig and Carol Stewart. Also located in Winnipeg and Toronto. Tues to Sat 10 am - 6 pm. MASTERS GALLERY 2115 4 St SW, Calgary, AB T2S 1W8 T. 403-245-2064 F. 403-244-1636 mastersgallery@shawcable.com www.mastersgalleryltd.com Celebrating more than 30 years of quality Canadian historical and contemporary art. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm. MICAH GALLERY 100 7 Ave SW, Art Central, Calgary, AB T2P 0W4 T. 403-245-1340 F. 403-245-1575 sales@micahgallery.com www.micahgallery.com Now located in Art Central, the gallery specializes in unique First Nations art and jewellery from North America. Featured artists include Nancy Dawson a West Coast jeweller. They also offer Inuit soapstone carvings, traditional and contemporary turquoise jewellery, as well as Canadian ammolite gold and silver jewellery. Mon to Wed 10 am - 6 pm, Thur - Fri 9 am - 7 pm, Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sun 11 am - 5 pm. Seasonal hours may be in effect, please call. NEWZONES 730 - 11 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0E4 T. 403-266-1972 F. 403-266-1987 info@newzones.com www.newzones.com/ Opened in 1992, Newzones represents leading names in contemporary Canadian art. The gallery has developed strong regional, national, and international followings for its artists. The focus has been a program of curated exhibitions, international art fairs and publishing projects. Services include consulting, collection building, installation and appraisals. Tues to Sat 10:30 am - 5:30 pm and by appointment. @galleries_west
Jacek Malec has been appointed Managing Director and Associate Curator, and Jeffrey Spalding as Artistic Director, of the Triangle Gallery. PAUL KUHN GALLERY 724 11 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0E4 T. 403-263-1162 F. 403-262-9426 paul@paulkuhngallery.com www.paulkuhngallery.com Focuses on national and regional contemporary Canadian paintings, drawings, prints and sculpture; also shows contemporary American prints. Exhibitions change monthly featuring established and emerging artists along with themed group shows. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm.
ing an opportunity for both the uninitiated and the seasoned collector to view or acquire a dynamic range of painting, sculpture and photography from across Canada. Specializing in theme group exhibitions, with a focus on presenting topical art in an informed context. Monthly rotation of shows. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm and by appt. STEPHEN LOWE ART GALLERY 2nd level, Bow Valley Square III, 251, 255 - 5 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2P 3G6 T. 403-261-1602 F. 403-261-2981 stephenloweartgallery@shaw.ca www.stephenloweartgallery.ca Established since 1979, the gallery features an extensive portfolio of distinguished Canadian artists offering fine original paintings, glass, ceramics and sculptures in traditional and contemporary genres. Ongoing solo and group exhibitions welcome everyone from browsers to experienced collectors. Personalized corporate and residential consulting. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm. (Free Sat parking) NEW Second location at West Market Square. SWIRL FINE ART & DESIGN 104-100 7 Ave SW, Art Central, Calgary, AB T2P 0W4 T. 403-266-5337 tracy@swirlfineart.com www.swirlfineart.com Swirl Fine Art and Design showcases fine art originals from local and regional artists. The gallery focuses on art to beautify the home with a wide selection of paintings and sculptures from aspiring and well-established artists. New shows on the first Thursday of every month, coincide with Art Centralâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s First Thursday festivities. Encaustic workshops twice monthly. Mon to Fri 10 am Ăą 5 pm, Sat 11 am - 4 pm. THE COLLECTORSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; GALLERY OF ART 1332 9 Ave SE, Calgary, AB T2G 0T3 T. 403-245-8300 F. 403-245-8315 mail@cgoart.com www.cgoart.com Specializing in important Canadian art from the 19th to the 21st century including early topographical paintings, Canadian impressionists and Group of Seven. The Collectorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Gallery represents over 30 prominent Canadian contemporary artists. Tues to Fri 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 10 am - 5 pm. THE WEISS GALLERY 1021 6 St SW (corner 11 Ave), Calgary, AB T2R 1R2 T. 403-262-1880 info@theweissgallery.com www.theweissgallery.com A showcase for craft-intensive, descriptive art, The Weiss Gallery represents a dynamic group of artists whose approaches to painting, drawing, photography and sculpture, pay respect to timehonoured methods of artmaking. With an eye on history and old world aesthetics, these artists have found beautiful expression within a contemporary vision and context. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm or by appointment. TRĂ&#x2C6;PANIERBAER 105, 999 8 St SW, Calgary, AB T2R 1J5 T. 403-244-2066 F. 403-244-2094 info@tbg1.com www.trepanierbaer.com A progressive and friendly commercial gallery specializing in the exhibition and sale of Canadian and international art. In addition to representing wellknown senior and mid-career artists, the gallery also maintains an active and successful program for the presentation of younger emerging Canadian artistsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; work. Tues to Sat 11 am - 5 pm and by appointment.
RUBERTO OSTBERG GALLERY 2108 18 St NW, Calgary, AB T2M 3T3 T. 403-289-3388 anna@ruberto-ostberg.com www.ruberto-ostberg.com This bright exhibition space in the residential community of Capitol Hill shows a variety of contemporary art styles and media in an inner city location for artists and art lovers to meet and interact. Some of the work is produced on-site by artists working in the adjoining Purple Door Art Studio space. Tues to Sat noon - 5 pm.
VIRGINIA CHRISTOPHER FINE ART 816 11 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0E5 T. 403-263-4346 info@virginiachristopherfineart.com www.virginiachristopherfineart.com Established in 1980, the gallery has earned a national reputation among discerning collectors of contemporary Canadian art. Exhibitions change monthly, showcasing museum-calibre, original paintings, sculpture and ceramics by artists with well-established reputations. Representing the Estate of Luke O Lindoe (1913-1999). Gallery open Tues to Sat 11 am - 5:30 pm. The Vue CafĂ&#x2C6; serves lunch 11 am - 4 pm. Inquiries invited for private functions.
SKEW GALLERY 1615 10 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T3C 0J7 T. 403-244-4445 ebvisualarts@shaw.ca www.skewgallery.com A recently-opened contemporary art gallery, offer-
WALLACE GALLERIES LTD 500 5 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2P 3L5 T. 403-262-8050 F. 403-264-7112 colette@wallacegalleries.com www.wallacegalleries.com In the heart of downtown Calgary, Wallace Galler-
www.gallerieswest.ca
AGNES BUGERA GALLERY (SFH &ENPOTPO 4FQUFNCFS
&SOFTUJOF 5BIFEM 3$" 0$" 4FQUFNCFS 0DUPCFS
+BOJDF .BTPO 4UFFWFT 0DUPCFS
(BCSZFM )BSSJTPO %BWJE 8JMTPO /PWFNCFS %FDFNCFS
12310 Jasper Avenue, Edmonton, AB, T5N 3K5 4 s & info@agnesbugeragallery.com www.agnesbugeragallery.com Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 71
FALL WALK
October 15 & 16, 2011 SPRING WALK • April 21 & 22, 2012 Agnes Bugera Gallery 12310 Jasper Ave 780-482-2854
www.agnesbugeragallery.com
Bearclaw Gallery 10403 124 St 780-482-1204
www.bearclawgallery.com
Daffodil Gallery 10412 124 St 780-760-1278
www.daffodilgallery.ca
Peter Robertson Gallery 12304 Jasper Ave 780-455-7479
www.probertsongallery.com
Scott Gallery 10411 124 St 780-488-3619
www.scottgallery.com
SNAP Gallery 10123 121 St 780-423-1492
www.snapartists.com
ies Ltd. has been a part of the art community since 1986. With regular group and solo shows the gallery is proud to represent some of Canada’s most accomplished and upcoming contemporary artists working in oils, acrylics, mixed media and watercolor as well sculpture and pottery. There is always something visually stimulating to see at Wallace Galleries Ltd. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm. WEBSTER GALLERIES 812 - 11 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0E5 T. 403-263-6500 F. 403-263-6501 info@webstergalleries.com www.webstergalleries.com Established in 1979, the gallery exhibits an extensive collection of original oil and acrylic paintings, bronze, ceramic, stone sculptures and Inuit art in a 10,000 square foot space. Webster Galleries Inc also houses a complete frame design and workshop facility. Free parking at the rear of the gallery for customer convenience. Tues to Sat 10 am ñ 6 pm. Cooperative Galleries ALBERTA SOCIETY OF ARTISTS GALLERY AT LOUGHEED HOUSE 703 13 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0K8 T. 403-244-6333 north@artists-society.ab.ca www.artists-society.ab.ca Representing members of the society’s juried professional contemporary Alberta artists, the gallery strives to increase public awareness and appreciation of the visual arts through exhibition and education. Located in the lower level ballroom of historic Lougheed House. Wed to Fri 11 am - 4 pm, Sat and Sun 10 am - 4 pm. ARTPOINT GALLERY AND STUDIOS 1139 - 11 St SE, Calgary, AB T2G 3G1 T. 403-265-6867 F. 403-265-6867 info@artpoint.ca www.artpoint.ca Housed just behind the CPR tracks in Ramsay, the gallery is home to over 40 artists and members of the artpoint society. In the Upstairs and Downstairs Galleries, members and invited art groups show their work in monthly changing exhibitions -- from painting to sculpture; photography to textiles. Turn E from 8 St onto 11 Ave SE and follow gravel road. Thurs & Fri 1 pm - 5 pm, Sat 11 am to 5 pm, Sun 1 pm - 5 pm, or by appointment. Public Galleries ART GALLERY OF CALGARY 117 - 8 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2P 1B4 T. 403-770-1350 F. 403-264-8077 info@artgallerycalgary.org www.artgallerycalgary.org The Art Gallery of Calgary is an interactive and dynamic forum for contemporary art exhibitions and activities that foster appreciation and understanding of visual culture. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm. To
10 pm every first Thursday of the month. GLENBOW MUSEUM 130 - 9 Ave SE, Calgary, AB T2G 0P3 T. 403-268-4100 F. 403-262-4045 glenbow@glenbow.org www.glenbow.org/ Located in the heart of downtown Calgary - visitors experience Glenbow Museum’s diverse exhibits, special programs and vast collections including Asian, Contemporary, Modernist and Historical Art. Daily 9 am ñ 5 pm, Sun noon - 5 pm. Adult $14, Sen $10, Stu $9, Family $28.00; Members and under 6 free. Glenbow Shop open daily 10 am ñ 5:30 pm. LEIGHTON ART CENTRE Box 9, Site 31, R.R. 8 Site 31, Comp. #9., RR 8 By Millarville, 16 km south of Calgary off Hwy 22 west, Calgary, AB T2J 2T9 T. 403-931-3633 F. 403-931-3673 info@leightoncentre.org www.leightoncentre.org The Leighton Art Centre is situated on 80 acres of spectacular landscape in the Alberta foothills, 15 minutes southwest of Calgary. This Alberta Historic Resource houses the former home of landscape painter A.C. Leighton. They offer changing exhibitions, art sales, art workshops and children’s programming. Check website for full visitor’s information. Tues to Sat 10 am - 4 pm. TRIANGLE GALLERY OF VISUAL ART 104-800 Macleod Tr SE, Calgary, AB T2G 2M3 T. 403-262-1737 F. 403-262-1764 jacek@trianglegallery.com www.trianglegallery.com Dedicated to the presentation of contemporary Canadian visual arts, architecture and design within a context of international art, the gallery is engaged in the advancement of knowledge and understanding of contemporary art practices through a balanced program of visual art exhibitions to the public of Calgary and visitors. Admission: adults - $4; senior/students - $2; family - $8; members - free; free general admission on Thurs. Tues to Fri 11 am - 5 pm, Sat noon - 4 pm. CAMROSE Commercial Gallery CANDLER ART GALLERY 5002 50 St, Camrose, AB T4V 1R2 T. 780-672-8401 F. 780-679-4121 Toll Free: 1-888-672-8401 candler@syban.net www.candlerartgallery.com Fresh, vibrant and alive describe both the artwork and the experience when you visit this recently restored gallery. You will discover a diverse group of both emerging and established artists including J. Brager, B. Cheng, R. Chow, H. deJager, K. Duke,
West End Gallery 12308 Jasper Ave 780-488-4892
www.westendgalleryltd.com
SHOP THE WALK
The close proximity and diversity of the galleries provides an attraction for art lovers everywhere. Just west of the downtown core in the 124th Street area.
www.gallery-walk.com 72 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
There’s a tactility in Leah Dorion’s work that mimics her subject — the expression of Metis women in dance and domestic activity. Based in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, Dorion paints women in traditional pursuits, told in a colourful folk-art style, dotted with beads. Her show, Country Wives, on September 1 to October 15 at the Chapel Gallery in North Battleford, is one of three exhibitions this fall at the gallery by Metis artists. ABOVE: Leah Dorion, Spirit Dancers, acrylic, beads on canvas, 2007, 36" X 48". www.gallerieswest.ca
LEFT: PHOTO: PAUL LITHERLAND.
Take a self-guided walking tour of the seven member galleries on the Edmonton Gallery Walk.
Michael Campbell, Field Recordings of Icebergs Melting, September 3 to October 23, Esplanade Art Gallery, Medicine Hat
#SVTIGJSF (BMMFSZ JO +BTQFSÂľT 0ME 'JSF )BMM "O BSUJTU DP PQFSBUJWF HBMMFSZ "MBO #VUMFS 'MBNFODP %BODFS XD
Celebrating 10
Years
4VNNFS IPVST %BJMZ OPPO QN 7JDUPSJB %BZ XFFLFOE UP 5IBOLTHJWJOH
1BUSJDJB 4USFFU BU &MN "WFOVF #PY +BTQFS "# 5 & & www.jasperartistsguild.com
John H. Burrow October 6 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; November 5, 2011
Songs of Autumn, oil on canvas, 36 X 48"
Lethbridge-based artist Michael Campbell spends part of every year on Hornby Island off the coast of B.C., where he keeps a cabin with access to a rich source of inspiration and creative material. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been picking up the flotsam that ends up on the beach for years â&#x20AC;&#x201D; driftwood and chunks of buoy, rusted metal and unidentified floating objects. Much of it has ended up in this show, Field Recordings of Icebergs Melting, made up of a flotilla of small ships set sail across the gallery space, each with a name evoking the fondness boat-builders have for their creations â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the Janice May, the BettyJean. Campbell has a keen interest in forces of nature, and the sheer power of the sea. A previous work, The Elephantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Graveyard (2005) featured an installation centred on a haunting loop of video of an ice-locked ship. This show, developed over several years, and organized in partnership with the Agnes Etherington Art Centre in Kingston, Ontario, sets the battered remains of ocean-going vessels adrift. â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Jill Sawyer ABOVE: Michael Campbell, The Janice May II, mixed media installation, 2009.
Opening October 6 with wine tasting reception, sponsored by Vineyard Wines, St Albert.
J. Kamikura, E. Lower Pidgeon, J. Peters, A. Pfannmuller, K. Ritcher, D. Zasadny -- all well priced. Mon to Fri 9 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 9:30 am - 5 pm. Or by appt. CANMORE THE AVENS GALLERY 104-709 Main St, Canmore, AB T1W 2B2 T. 403-678-4471 theavensgallery@telusplanet.net www.theavensgallery.com Established in 1980, the Avens Gallery features original works by both established and up-andcomming artists from the local area and accross the West. The gallery prides itself on highlighting outstanding, and frequently changing displays of paintings, glass sculpture, clay, wood, metal, and bronze. Open daily 11 am - 5 pm with extended summer hours. THE EDGE GALLERY 612 Spring Creek Drive, Canmore, AB T1W 0C7 T. 403-675-8300 theedgegallery@shaw.ca www.edgegallery.ca In the gallery: ongoing exhibitions of historical paintings and prints to contemporary, abstract works. In the frame shop: experienced staff with 25 years experience offers a wide selection of frames for mirrors, objects, needlework, paintings and prints, specializing in the handling and care of original artwork. Tues to Sat 10 am -5:30 pm or by appointment. Public Gallery CANMORE LIBRARY GALLERY 950 8 Ave, Canmore, AB T1W 2T1 www.caag.ca This gallery, run by the Canmore Artists and Artisans Guild, has been in existence since 1980. There are seven CAAG member shows, seven private shows and several community and local schools shows per year. All media are represented in the gallery including fine arts, photography, textiles and sculpture. Mon to Thu 11 am - 8 pm, Fri to Sun 11 am - 5 pm. COCHRANE Commercial Galleries JUST IMAJAN ART GALLERY/STUDIO 3-320 1 St West,, Cochrane, AB T4C 1X8
www.gallerieswest.ca
T. 403-932-7040 jbarmstrong@xplornet.com www.justimajan.com This gallery features the work of Alberta artist Janet B. Armstrong and other local artisans. Visitors also enjoy the ambience of a cherrywood bar, fireplace and vintage memorabilia. Commissions and special events welcome. Tues 1:30 pm - 5 pm; Wed to Fri 11 am - 5 pm; Sat 10 am - 5 pm; Sun noon - 4 pm. RUSTICA ART GALLERY #4-123 2 Ave West, PO Box 1267, Rustic Market Square, Cochrane, AB T4C 1B3 T. 403-851-5181 Toll Free: 1-866-915-5181 info@rusticagallery.com www.rusticagallery.com Housed in a rustic log building in downtown Cochrane this inviting gallery specializes in original artwork, sculpture and jewelry by local and Western Canadian artists including the Western Lights Group. Appraisal, framing, cleaning and restoration services available. Wed to Fri 10:30 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 10:30 am - 5 pm. STUDIO WEST BRONZE FOUNDRY & ART GALLERY PO Box 550 205 - 2 Ave SE, Industrial Park, Cochrane, AB T4C 1A7 T. 403-932-2611 F. 403-932-2705 studiow@telus.net
26 St. Anne Street St. Albert, AB (780) 459-3679 www.artbeat.ab.ca Fine Art & Professional Custom Framing
September/October BARBARA BALLACHEY
Barbara Bellachey, South end of Summit Lake, Oil on canvas, 30â&#x20AC;? x 48â&#x20AC;?
November/December BARB FYVIE
DRUMHELLER Commercial Galleries ATELIERO VERDA Box 1708, 40 3 Ave W, Drumheller, AB T0J 0Y0 T. 403-823-2455 jsveda@highout.com www.sveda-art.com The resident artist, Jacqueline Sveda is originally from Magog, Quebec, but has lived in Western Canada for the last 30 years. Her work is inspired by her surroundings, in which imagination plays a big role. She works in acrylic and mixed media flat art, as well as stone and wood carving. Guest artists participate in periodic exhibitions. Thurs to Sun 1:30 pm - 5 pm. FINE PHOTOGRAPHY GALLERY Box 338, 20 3 Ave West, Drumheller, AB T0J 0Y0
Barb Fyvie, Grotto Glow, Oil on panel, 20â&#x20AC;? x 40â&#x20AC;?
612 Spring Creek Drive Canmore, Alberta T1W 0C7 403-675-8300 www.edgegallery.ca
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 73
ALBERTA SOCIETY OF ARTISTS GALLERY AT WA LT E R D A L E P L AY H O U S E
Peaks of the Canadian Rockies
Deborah Lougheed Sinclair “Heejee, Nom and Yamnee” 36” x 36” acrylic on canvas
Join us for Arts Days: September 30, October 1 & 2, 2011 10 am to 3 pm and during Neil LeBute’s Reasons to be Pretty October 12 to 22, 2011 Saturdays 10 am to 3 pm
Wyrd Sisters November 30 to December 10, 2011 Five women artists exploring the themes of the novel Wyrd Sisters
Wyrd Sisters, Novel by Terry Pratchett, stage adaptation by Stephen Biggs
by Terry Pratchett, stage adaptation by Stephen Biggs Saturdays 10 am to 3 pm
Lobby of Walterdale Playhouse, 10322 - 83 Avenue, Edmonton, 780-439-2845 Open: During performances Wednesday through Sunday, Saturdays from 10 am - 3 pm
FALL EXHIBITIONS BY
Jane Ash Poitras, Aaron Paquette & Paul Smith
T. 403-823-3686 Toll Free: 1-866-823-3686 mike@todorphoto.com www.todorphoto.com Owned and operated by Michael Todor, the gallery features pottery, watercolours, pen and ink sketches, pencil sketches and ammolite fine jewellery by Alberta artists -- along with a permanent rotating display of Todor photographs. New shows with guest artists open on the second Saturday of each month. 10 am - 5:30 pm (May to Sep: Daily) (Sep to May: Mon to Sat). GREATER EDMONTON Artist-run Galleries HARCOURT HOUSE GALLERY 10215 112 St - 3rd Flr, Edmonton, AB T5K 1M7 T. 780-426-4180 F. 780-425-5523 harcourt@telusplanet.net www.harcourthouse.ab.ca The Arts Centre delivers a variety of services to both artists and the community, and acts as an essential alternative site for the presentation, distribution and promotion of contemporary art. The gallery presents 10 five-week exhibitions, from local, provincial and national artists, collectives and arts organizations as well as an annual members’ show. Mon to Fri 10 am - 5 pm, Sat noon - 4 pm. SNAP GALLERY 10123 121 St, Edmonton, AB T5N 3W9 T. 780-423-1492 F. 780-424-9117 snap@snapartists.com www.snapartists.com Established in 1982 as an independent, cooperatively-run fine art printshop, the SNAP (Society of Northern Alberta Print-artists) mandate is to promote, facilitate and communicate print and printrelated contemporary production. A complete print shop and related equipment are available to members. Ten exhibitions are scheduled each year. Tues to Sat noon - 5 pm. Commercial Galleries AGNES BUGERA GALLERY 12310 Jasper Ave, Edmonton, AB T5N 3K5 T. 780-482-2854 F. 780-482-2591 info@agnesbugeragallery.com www.agnesbugeragallery.com Agnes Bugera has been in the art gallery business since 1975, and is pleased to continue representing an excellent group of established and emerging Canadian artists. Spring and Fall exhibitions offer a rich variety of quality fine art including landscape, still life, and abstract paintings as well as sculpture and photography. New works by gallery artists are featured throughout the year. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm and by appointment. ART BEAT GALLERY 26 St Anne St, St Albert, AB T8N 1E9 T. 780-459-3679 F. 780-459-3677 artbeat@telusplanet.net www.artbeat.ab.ca Located in the Arts and Heritage District of St. Albert, this family-owned business specializes in original artwork by Western Canadian artists. Paintings in all media, sculpture, pottery, and art glass. Home and corporate consulting. Certified picture framer. Part of St. Albert Artwalk - May through August. Tues to Fri 10 am - 6 pm, Thur to 8 pm, Sat 10 am - 5 pm. @galleries_west
Partners Karen Bishop and Rick Rogers have opened Daffodil Gallery at 10412 124 St in Edmonton’s Gallery Walk area.
Specializing in First Nations Art
bearclaw gallery Bearclaw Gallery 10403-124 St. Edmonton, Alberta T5N 3Z5
74 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
TEL: 1+(780) 482-1204 info@bearclawgallery.com www.bearclawgallery.com
BEARCLAW GALLERY 10403 124 St, Edmonton, AB T5N 3Z5 T. 780-482-1204 F. 780-488-0928 info@bearclawgallery.com www.bearclawgallery.com Specializing in Canadian First Nations and Inuit art since 1975 from artists including Daphne Odjig, Norval Morrisseau, Roy Thomas, Maxine Noel, Jim Logan, George Littlechild, Jane Ash Poitras, Alex Janvier and Aaron Paquette. A wide variety of paintings, jade and Inuit soapstone carvings, and Navajo and Northwest coast jewellery. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm. CHRISTL BERGSTROM’S RED GALLERY 9621 Whyte (82) Ave , Edmonton, AB T6C 0Z9 T. 780-439-8210 F. 780-435-0429
christl@christlbergstrom.com www.christlbergstrom.com This storefront gallery and studio, in the Mill Creek area of Old Strathcona, features the work of Edmonton artist Christl Bergstrom, both recent and past work including still lifes, portraits, nudes and landscapes. Mon to Fri 11 am - 5 pm, Sat by appt. DOUGLAS UDELL GALLERY 10332 124 St, Edmonton, AB T5N 1R2 T. 780-488-4445 F. 780-488-8335 dug@douglasudellgallery.com www.douglasudellgallery.com In the art business in Edmonton since 1967 and Vancouver since 1986, Douglas Udell Gallery represents many of Canada’s leading contemporary artists as well as some of the leading young artists gaining momentum in the international playing field. The gallery also buys and sells in the secondary market in Canadian historical as well as international. Tues to Sat 9:30 am - 5:30 pm, Mon by appt. LANDO GALLERY 11130 - 105 Ave NW, Edmonton, AB T5H 0L5 T. 780-990-1161 mail@landogallery.com www.landogallery.com Edmonton’s largest commercial art gallery in the centre of Edmonton was established as Lando Fine Art in 1990 by private art dealer Brent Luebke. It continues to provide superior quality Canadian and international fine art, fine crafts, custom framing, art leasing, appraisals and collection management. The gallery also buys and sells Canadian and international secondary market fine art. Mon to Fri 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 10 am - 4:30 pm, or by appt. PETER ROBERTSON GALLERY 12304 Jasper Ave, Edmonton, AB T5N 3K5 T. 780-455-7479 info@probertsongallery.com www.probertsongallery.com Representing a roster of over 40 emerging, mid-career, and senior Canadian artists, this contemporary gallery space features a wide range of media and subject matter. Whether working with established collectors, or with those looking to purchase their first piece, Peter Robertson Gallery strives to inform, challenge, and retain relevance within the broader art community. Tues to Sat 11 am - 5 pm. PICTURE THIS! 959 Ordze Road, Sherwood Park, AB T8A 4L7 T. 780-467-3038 F. 780-464-1493 Toll Free: 1-800-528-4278 info@picturethisgallery.com www.picturethisgallery.com Picture This! framing & gallery have been helping clients proudly display their life treasures and assisting them to discover the beauty of the world through fine art since 1981. Now representing the Western Lights Artists Group and offering a diverse selection of originals by national and international artists. Mon to Fri 10 am - 6 pm, Thurs till 9 pm, Sat till 5 pm. ROWLES & COMPANY LTD 108 LeMarchand Mansion, 11523 100 Ave, Edmonton, AB T5K 0J8 T. 780-426-4035 F. 780-429-2787 rowles@rowles.ca www.rowles.ca Relocated to LeMarchand Mansion. Features over 100 western Canadian artists in original paintings, bronze, blown glass, metal, moose antler, marble and soapstone. Specializing in supplying the corporate marketplace, the gallery offers consultation for Service Award Programs, and complete fulfillment for a wide variety of corporate projects. Open to the public. Mon to Fri 9 am - 5 pm, Sat - by appt. SCOTT GALLERY 10411 124 St, Edmonton, AB T5N 3Z5 T. 780-488-3619 F. 780-488-4826 info@scottgallery.com www.scottgallery.com Established in 1986, the Scott Gallery features Canadian contemporary art representing over thirty established and emerging Canadian artists. Exhibits include paintings, works on paper including handpulled prints and photography, ceramics and sculpture. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm. WEST END GALLERY 12308 Jasper Ave, Edmonton, AB T5N 3K5 T. 780-488-4892 F. 780-488-4893 info@westendgalleryltd.com www.westendgalleryltd.com Established in 1975, this fine art gallery is known for representing leading artists from across Canada -- paintings, sculpture and glass art in traditional and contemporary styles. Exhibitions via e-mail
www.gallerieswest.ca
ART GALLERY OF ST ALBERT 19 Perron St, St Albert, AB T8N 1E5 T. 780-460-4310 F. 780-460-9537 ahfgallery@artsheritage.ca www.artsheritage.ca/gallery Located in the historic Banque d’Hochelaga in St. Albert, the gallery features contemporary art, usually by Alberta artists, who show their painting, sulpture, video, quilts, glass and ceramics at both the provincial and national level. Monthly exhibitions, adult lectures and workshops, “Looking at Art” school tours, art rental and sales plus a gallery gift shop. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Thurs till 8 pm. VAAA GALLERY 10215 112 St, 3rd Flr, Edmonton, AB T5K 1M7 T. 780-421-1731 F. 780-421-1857 Toll Free: 1-866-421-1731 info@visualartsalberta.com www.visualartsalberta.com Visual Arts Alberta Association is a non-profit Provincial Arts Service Organization (PASO) for the visual arts which celebrates, supports and develops Alberta’s visual culture. The gallery hosts an ongoing exhibition schedule. Wed to Fri 10 am - 4 pm, Sat noon - 4 pm. GRANDE PRAIRIE Public Gallery PRAIRIE ART GALLERY 103-9839 103 Ave, Grande Prairie, AB T8V 6M7 T. 780-532-8111 info@prairiegallery.com www.prairiegallery.com Now partially open in the new, award-winning, Montrose Cultural Centre, the Prairie Art Gallery currently offers innovative programming in limited space. Construction is now underway that will complete the Gallery’s facility in late 2011. Mon to Sat 11 am - 6 pm, Sun 1 pm - 5 pm. HIGH RIVER Commercial Galleries EVANESCENCE GALLERY AND ART STUDIO 61 Veterans Way, 8 Ave SE, High River, AB T1V 1E8 T. 403-796-4873 evanescencegallery@gmail.com www.evanescencegallery.com A welcome and stimulating destination, Evanescence offers art services, classes and original art and fine craft including pottery, painting and sculpture. Features changing exhibits by professional emerging and mid-career Alberta artists. Artist’s reception first Friday of each month. Tues to Thurs 10 am - 5 pm, Fri and Sat 10 am - 4:30 pm and (Labour Day to Victoria Day) Sun noon - 4:30 pm. PIKE STUDIOS AND GALLERY 70 9 Ave SE, High River, AB T1V 1L4 T. 403-652-5255 info@pikestudios.com www.pikestudios.com From their studios Bob and Connie Pike produce a wide range of art and fine craft. Bob works in metal, making gates, art boxes, tables and assorted
www.gallerieswest.ca
Galleries in High River, AB ONLY 25 MIN SOUTH OF CALGARY
Commercial Gallery MOUNTAIN GALLERIES AT THE FAIRMONT Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, #1 Old Lodge Rd, Jasper, AB T0E 1E0 T. 780-852-5378 F. 780-852-7292 Toll Free: 1-888-310-9726 jasper@mountaingalleries.com www.mountaingalleries.com Located in The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, Mountain Galleries is a favourite stop for collectors of Canadian art, featuring museum-quality paintings, sculpture and unique Inuit carvings. With three galleries, a combined total of 6080 square feet of exhibition space, and a state of the art warehouse/ studio in Jasper, they frequently host exhibitions, artist demonstrations and workshops. Daily 8 am - 10 pm.
70 - 9 Ave SE, High River, AB 403-652-5255 info@pikestudios.com www.pikestudios.com
Cooperative Galleries BRUSHFIRE GALLERY JASPER ARTISTS GUILD Box 867, 414 Patricia (at Elm), Jasper, AB T0E 1E0 T. 780-852-1994 info@jasperartistsguild.com www.jasperartistsguild.com Since opening in 2003 as a collective of more than 30 artists, Brushfire Gallery ignites the senses with a compelling presentation of local and regional art -- an ‘incendiary’ collection of oils, acrylics, watercolours, drawings, photo-based works, clay and metal sculptures. Located in the historic Old Firehall. May long wknd to Oct long wknd: daily noon - 8 pm; Jan to Apr: wknds only, noon - 5 pm. LACOMBE Commercial Gallery THE GALLERY ON MAIN 4910 50 Ave, 2nd Flr, Lacombe, AB T4L 1Y1 T. 403-782-3402 F. 403-782-3405 galmain@telus.net www.thegalleryonmain.com Located just off Hwy. 2 in the heart of Historic Downtown Lacombe, this gallery boasts the largest selection of original art in central Alberta. Representing over 60 Alberta artists, the gallery’s selection covers a wide variety of media. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm.
Bob Pike
Check website for Fall events.
Art and Soul Studio/Gallery 124 - 6 Ave SW, High River, AB 403-601-3713 artandsoulstudio@me.com www.web.me.com/ artandsoulstudio
Tyrrell Clarke Studio/Gallery 201-122 - 4 Ave SW, High River, AB 403-245-4281 tyrrell@tyrrellclarke.com www.tyrrellclarke.com
LETHBRIDGE Public Galleries GALT MUSEUM & ARCHIVES 502 1 St S ( 5 Ave S & Scenic Dr), Lethbridge, AB T1J 0P6 T. 403-320-3898 F. 403-329-4958 Toll Free: 1-866-320-3898 info@galtmuseum.com www.galtmuseum.com A vibrant gathering place meeting historical, cultural and educational needs, the Galt engages and educates its communities in the human history of southwestern Alberta by preserving and sharing collections, stories and memories that define collective identity and guide the future. Award-winning exhibits, events, programs. (May 15 - Aug 31) Mon to Sat 10 am - 6 pm; (Sep 1 - May 14) Mon to Sat 10 am - 4:30 pm; (year-round) Sun 1 - 4:30 pm. Admission charge.
Connie Pike
Pike Studios & Gallery
Tyrrell Clarke
ART GALLERY OF ALBERTA 2 Winston Churchill Square, Edmonton, AB T5J 2C1 T. 780-422-6223 F. 780-426-3105 info@youraga.ca www.youraga.ca Founded in 1924, the Art Gallery of Alberta is an 85,000 square foot premier presentation venue for international and Canadian art, education and scholarship. The AGA is a centre of excellence for the visual arts in Western Canada, expressing the creative spirit of Alberta and connecting people, art and ideas. Tues to Fri 11 am - 7 pm, Sat & Sun 10 am - 5 pm.
JASPER
Annie Froese
Public Galleries ALBERTA CRAFT COUNCIL GALLERY 10186-106 St, Edmonton, AB T5J 1H4 T. 780-488-5900 F. 780-488-8855 acc@albertacraft.ab.ca www.albertacraft.ab.ca Alberta’s only public gallery dedicated to fine craft presents four exhibitions in the main gallery each year. The Discovery Gallery features new works by ACC members. The gallery shop offers contemporary and traditional fine crafts including pottery, blown glass, jewelry, woven and quilted fabrics, home accessories, furniture and much more. All are hand-made by Alberta and Canadian craft artists. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm; closed Sun.
architectural accents. Connie makes high temperature, reduction-fired porcelain -- from one-of-akind pieces to an extensive selection of functional pottery for everyday use. Studio tours available by appointment.
Pekisko Trading Co — an Artisans Gallery Mark Garbutt
available by request. Second location in Victoria. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm.
118 - 3 Ave SW, High River, AB 403-601-0157 pekisko@live.com www.pekiskotradingcompany.ca
SOUTHERN ALBERTA ART GALLERY 601 3 Ave S, Lethbridge, AB T1J 0H4 T. 403-327-8770 F. 403-328-3913 info@saag.ca www.saag.ca One of Canada’s foremost public galleries, SAAG fosters the work of contemporary visual artists who push the boundaries of their medium. Regularly changing exhibitions are featured in three distinct gallery spaces. Learning programs, film screenings and special events further contribute to local culture. Gift Shop and a Resource Library. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun 1 pm - 5 pm. TRIANON GALLERY 104 5 St S - Upstairs, Lethbridge, AB T1J 2B2 T. 403-380-2787 F. 403-329-1654 Toll Free: 1-866-380-2787 trianon@savillarchitecture.com www.savillarchitecture.com Formerly the Trianon Ballroom (1930s-1960s), the gallery is an informal mix between a gallery and an architectural office. Its open space and philosophy allows for creative community responses. Exhibi-
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 75
tions range from nationally-renowned artists to aspiring students. A second exhibition space, Le Petit Trianon is now open downstairs.
A three-part visual art exploration of contemporary farming issues.
UNIVERSITY OF LETHBRIDGE ART GALLERY W600, Centre for the Arts, 4401 University Drive, Lethbridge, AB T1K 3M4 T. 403-329-2666 F. 403-382-7115 galleryinfo@uleth.ca www.uleth.ca/artgallery The gallery serves the campus community and general public with a permanent collection of more than 13,000 works; by presenting local and touring exhibitions; and by supporting research at all levels through publications and an on-line database. Main Gallery Mon to Fri 10 am - 4:30 pm, Thur till 8:30 pm. Helen Christou Gallery - Level 9 LINC, Daily 8 am - 9 pm. Special activities on website. MEDICINE HAT
October 15 - December 18 Artists: John Freeman, Cindy Jones, Brian McArthur, Pierre Oberg, Sally Smith Opening Reception & Meet the Artists: Friday October 14, 7:00pm
Public Galleries ESPLANADE ART GALLERY 401 First St SE, Medicine Hat, AB T1A 8W2 T. 403-502-8580 F. 403-502-8589 mhmag@city.medicine-hat.ab.ca www.esplanade.ca This is a new home for the Medicine Hat Museum, Art Gallery and Archives, as well as a 700-seat theatre. The gallery accommodates a wide range of art exhibitions, including contemporary and historical, regional, national and international art. Exhibitions are often accompanied by receptions, talks and tours. Adults - $4, Youth and Student - $3, 6 & Under - Free, Family - $12, Thur Free for all ages. Mon to Fri 10 am - 5 pm; Thur till 9 pm; Sat, Sun and Hol noon - 5 pm. @galleries_west
Red Deer Museum + Art Gallery 4525 - 47A Avenue Red Deer, AB T4N 6Z6 403.309.8405 www.reddeermuseum.com
Amber Andersen is the new curator of the Estevan Art Gallery and Museum. MEDICINE HAT CLAY INDUSTRIES NATIONAL HISTORIC DISTRICT 713 Medalta Ave SE, Medicine Hat, AB T1A 3K9 T. 403-529-1070 F. 403-580-5868 miair@medalta.org www.medalta.org The Medalta International Artists in Residence Program serves ceramic artists at all stages of their careers, encouraging cooperation and creativity with open, spacious, semi-private studios. Artists from all over the world bring different experiences, techniques, ideas and a vibrant energy to this working museum, education centre and studio complex. OKOTOKS Public Gallery OKOTOKS ART GALLERY | AT THE STATION PO Bag 20, 53 North Railway St, Okotoks, AB T1S 1K1 T. 403-938-3204 F. 403-938-8963 aboss@okotoks.ca www.okotoksculture.ca Themed exhibitions change monthly and feature local and regional artistic expression in a range of themes and mediums. Exhibiting artist members range from accomplished artists to the emerging beginner, offering a diverse look at artmaking in southern Alberta. Mon to Fri 10 am - 5 pm, Sat and Sun noon - 5 pm. RED DEER Commercial Gallery GALLERY IS 5123 48 St, Red Deer, AB T4N 1T1 T. 403-341-4641 galleryis.arts@yahoo.ca isgallery.blogspot.com Gallery IS represents local modern and contemporary fine art, in the heart of downtown Red Deer, with a unique variety of media and styles. The gallery features Live Studios with working artists, as well as monthly group and solo exhibits. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm. (Extended fall/winter hours.) Public Gallery RED DEER MUSEUM + ART GALLERY 4525 47A Ave, Red Deer, AB T4N 6Z6 T. 403-309-8405 F. 403-342-6644 museum@reddeer.ca www.reddeermuseum.com After a year-long renovation project, the trans-
76 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
formed Red Deer Museum + Art Gallery has reopened with spacious galleries, inspiring history and art exhibitions, innovative programs and engaging social events for families and adults. The renovated galleries have a contemporary, open look, providing new opportunities for exhibitions and programs. Mon to Sat 9 am - 5 pm, Sun noon - 5 pm, First Fri till 9 pm. WATERTON Commercial Gallery GUST GALLERY 112A Waterton Ave, Waterton Lakes, AB T0K 2M0 T. 403-859-2535 gustgal@telusplanet.net www.gustgallery.com The Gust Gallery embraces the art and landscapes of Southern Alberta reflected by the extraordinary talents of artists working in 2 and 3 dimensional mediums. Open daily mid-May to end-September.
SASKATCHEWAN GALLERIES ASSINIBOIA Public Gallery SHURNIAK ART GALLERY 122 3 Ave W, PO Box 1178, Assiniboia, SK S0H 0B0 T. 306-642-5292 F. 306-642-4541 shurniakgallery@sasktel.net Established in 2005, and located one hour south of Moose Jaw, the gallery houses the founderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s diverse private collection of Canadian and international paintings, sculptures and artifacts including several Group of Seven pieces. Periodic recitals, readings, lectures and touring exhibits. Tea room facilities. Tues to Sat 10 am - 4:30 pm, Sun 1 pm - 5 pm, closed public holidays and holiday weekends unless otherwise posted. ESTEVAN Public Gallery ESTEVAN ART GALLERY & MUSEUM 118 4 St, Estevan, SK S4A 0T4 T. 306-634-7644 F. 306-634-2940 eagm@sasktel.net www.eagm.ca This public gallery offers a free exchange of ideas and perspectives to reflect the rapidly expanding social and cultural diversity. With the collaboration of provincial and national institutions, the gallery seeks to make contemporary art accessible, meaningful, and vital to diverse audiences of all ages. Tues to Fri 8:30 am - 6 pm, Sat 1 pm - 4 pm. MEACHAM Commercial Gallery THE HAND WAVE GALLERY Box 145, 409 3 Ave N, Meacham, SK S0K 2V0 T. 306-376-2221 june.jacobs@handwave.ca www.handwave.ca Presenting the works of 70 Saskatchewan artists and artisans for 28 years -with changing gallery exhibitions during May through December. Works in fibre, glass, metal, wood and a large selection of clay including Anita Rocamora, Mel Bolen, Charley Farrero and Zane Wilcox. Thur to Mon 11 am - 6 pm; 1-6 pm Oct through Dec; by appt Jan to May; 55 km east of Saskatoon. @galleries_west
The former Art Gallery of Prince Albert has recently been renamed The Mann Gallery. Griffiths Aaron Baker is the new Director/Curator. MOOSE JAW Commercial Gallery YVETTE MOORE FINE ART GALLERY 76 Fairford St W, Moose Jaw, SK S6H 1V1 T. 306-693-7600 F. 306-693-7602 info@yvettemoore.com www.yvettemoore.com Showcasing the award-winning works of Yvette Moore, her gallery features her original artwork, limited edition prints, framed artcards and art
www.gallerieswest.ca
Saskatchewan artist Cathryn Miller takes literal inspiration from books and printed material, creating tactile representations in paper sculpture of the written contents of her materials â&#x20AC;&#x201D; pages of a book about plants are cut and sculpted into flowers. The work complements her other pursuit, creating new books with her own Byopia Press. Miller will show her new work in Altered, Addled, and Alphabetical at the Hand Wave Gallery in Meacham, Saskatchewan, October 1 to November 10. LEFT: Cathryn Miller, Plants (detail), mixed media. plaques along with the works of other artisans, shown amid the copper grandeur of the former 1910 Land Titles Office. Food service. Corner Fairford and 1 Ave. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5 pm. NORTH BATTLEFORD Public Gallery CHAPEL GALLERY 1-891 99 St, North Battleford, SK S9A 2Y6 T. 306-445-1757 F. 306-445-1009 chapelgallery@sasktel.net www.chapelgallery.ca The Chapel Gallery is a public gallery with special emphases on contemporary, regional and Aboriginal art in all media. It facilitates workshops, mentorship programs and supports the thoughtful reception of art. Proposals from artists, curators and collectives are accepted on an ongoing basis. Jun to Aug: daily noon - 4 pm; Sep to May: Wed to Sun noon - 4 pm. PRINCE ALBERT Public Gallery THE MANN ART GALLERY 142 12 St W, Prince Albert, SK S6V 3B8 T. 306-763-7080 F. 306-953-4814 curator@mannartgallery.ca www.mannartgallery.ca The Mann Art Gallery features a varied exhibition schedule promoting local, provincial and national artists, as well as curated exhibitions, lectures and workshops. It also houses a permanent collection of over 600 individual works from well-known provincial artists. Their education and professional development initiatives encourage public awareness and appreciation of the visual arts. Mon to Sat noon - 5 pm. REGINA Artist-run Gallery NEUTRAL GROUND 203-1856 Scarth St, Regina, SK S4P 2G3 T. 306-522-7166 F. 306-522-5075 neutralground@accesscomm.ca www.neutralground.sk.ca Neutral Ground supports contemporary art practices through both presentation and production activities. Its curatorial vision is responsive to its regional milieu in a translocal context. Programming emphasizes the contribution to new and experimental processes and supports inclusion and diversity. Tues to Sat 11 am - 5 pm and designated evening performances, openings, screenings. Commercial Galleries ASSINIBOIA GALLERY 2266 Smith St, Regina, SK S4P 2P4 T. 306-522-0997 F. 306-522-5624 mail@assiniboia.com www.assiniboia.com Opened in the late 1970s with the goal of establishing a gallery with a strong representation of regionally and nationally recognized artists reflecting a variety of style, subject and medium. The main focus is professional Canadian artists including Allen Sapp, Ted Godwin, W. H. Webb, Brent Laycock, Louise Cook and many more. Tues to Sat 9:30 am 5:30 pm.
www.gallerieswest.ca
MYSTERIA GALLERY 2706 13 Ave, Regina, SK S4T 1N3 T. 306-522-0080 F. 306-522-5410 info@www.mysteria.ca www.mysteria.ca Mysteria Gallery is an artist-owned venue for established and emerging local artists. Explore diverse media in a modern context. Experience fine art and fine jewelry in a fresh atmosphere. Mon to Sat noon - 5:30 pm or by appt. NOUVEAU GALLERY 2146 Albert St, Regina, SK S4P 2T9 T. 306-569-9279 info@nouveaugallery.com www.nouveaugallery.com At Nouveau Gallery, formerly the Susan Whitney Gallery, look forward to works by many of Saskatchewanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most recognized artists, the continuation of the Whitney Galleryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vision plus a few surprises as Meagan Perreault puts her personal stamp on the new gallery. Tues to Sat 10 am - 6 pm, and by appt.
��� ������ �������
��������������������������� ������������������������ ���������������������
�����������������������
���������������������� ������������������������������ �����������������������������
������������������������� �������������������������������� �����������������������������
�������������������� ���������������� ����������������������������������� �������������������������������������� ���������������������������������������� ���������������������������� ����������������������������������������
HAND WAVE GALLERY Aug 12 - Sept 29 For The Love Of Critters QBTUFM QBJOUJOHT TDVMQUVSF CZ ,BSFO )PMEFO )VNCPMEU 4, Oct 1 - Nov 10 Altered, Addled & Alphabetical CPPL BSU CZ $BUISZO .JMMFS (SBTTXPPE 4, Nov 11 - Dec 20 Mandala NJYFE NFEJB (BMMFSZ "SUJTUT
$BUISZO .JMMFS Mental Blocks EFUBJM
POF PG B LJOE BSUJTUÂľT CPPL TFU PG CMPDLT JO DMBNTIFMM CPY Y Y DN DMPTFE
"WFOVF MEACHAM 4, Only 55 km east of Saskatoon
Phone: 306-376-2221 KVOF KBDPCT!IBOEXBWF DB www.handwave.ca
TRADITIONS HANDCRAFT GALLERY 2714 13 Ave, Regina, SK S4T 1N3 T. 306-569-0199 traditions@sasktel.net www.traditionshandcraftgallery.ca Traditions exhibits the work of professional craft artisans who have successfully completed the exacting jury process of the Saskatchewan Craft Council. The gallery carries a full range of fine craft media, including ceramics, wood, fibre, metal, glass, and jewellery. Mon to Sat 10 am - 5:30 pm. Public Galleries ART GALLERY OF REGINA Neil Balkwill Civic Arts Centre, 2420 Elphinstone St, Regina, SK S4T 3N9 T. 306-522-5940 F. 306-522-5944 info@artgalleryofregina.ca www.artgalleryofregina.ca Features contemporary art with an emphasis on Saskatchewan artists. Exhibitions change frequently. Access via 15 Ave and McTavish St. Mon to Thur 1 pm - 5 pm and 6:30 pm - 9 pm. Fri to Sun 1 pm - 5 pm. MACKENZIE ART GALLERY T C Douglas Building, 3475 Albert St, Regina, SK S4S 6X6 T. 306-584-4250 F. 306-569-8191 mackenzie@uregina.ca www.mackenzieartgallery.sk.ca Excellent collection of art from historical to contemporary works by Canadian, American and international artists. Major touring exhibits. Gallery Shop, 175-seat Theatre, Learning Centre and Resource Centre. Corner of Albert St and 23rd Ave, SW corner of Wascana Centre. Mon to Fri 10 am - 5:30 pm, Fri till 9 pm; Sun and hol noon - 5:30 pm. SASKATOON Commercial Galleries ART PLACEMENT INC 228 3 Ave S, Saskatoon, SK S7K 1L9 T. 306-664-3385 F. 306-933-2521 gallery@artplacement.com www.artplacement.com Established in 1978, the galleryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s primary emphasis is on senior and mid-career Saskatchewan artists
Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 77
while also representing several established western Canadian painters and overseeing a number of artist estates. Presents a year round exhibition schedule alternating solo and group exhibitions. Centrally located downtown in the Traveller’s Block Annex. Tues to Sat 10 am - 4 pm. COLLECTOR’S CHOICE ART GALLERY 625D 1 Ave N, Saskatoon, SK S7K 1X7 T. 306-665-8300 F. 306-664-4094 sales@collectorschoice.ca www.collectorschoice.ca Represents Saskatchewan and Canadian artists including Lou Chrones, Malaika Z Charbonneau, Julie Gutek, Cecelia Jurgens, Paul Jacoby, Valerie Munch, Jon Einnersen, Don Hefner, Reg Parsons, Bill Schwarz. The gallery offers a variety of contemporary paintings in watercolour, acrylic, oil, and mixed media and sculpture in bronze, stone and metal plus a collection of estate art. Tues - Fri 9:30 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 9:30 ñ 5 pm. @galleries_west
Wanda Underhill’s Rouge Gallery has moved across the street to the second floor of the Glengarry Building at 200-245 3 Ave S in Saskatoon. DARRELL BELL GALLERY 317-220 3 Ave S, Saskatoon, SK S7K 1M1 T. 306-955-5701 darrellbellgallery@sasktel.net www.darrellbellgallery.com Exhibiting contemporary Canadian art with an emphasis on professional Saskatchewan artists, includ-
ing David Alexander, Darrell Bell, Lee Brady, Megan Courtney Broner, Inger deCoursey, Kaija Sanelma Harris, Hans Herold, Ian Rawlinson and various Inuit artists. Media include painting, sculpture, textiles, jewellery, glass and ceramics. Rotating solo and group shows year-round. Tues to Sat noon - 4 pm or by appointment. Public GallerY MENDEL ART GALLERY 950 Spadina Cres E, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5A8 T. 306-975-7610 F. 306-975-7670 mendel@mendel.ca www.mendel.ca The gallery is charged with collecting, exhibiting, and maintaining works of art and the development of public understanding and appreciation of art. Exhibitions of contemporary and historical art by local, national and international artists include those organised by Mendel curators and curatorial consortium members, as well as major touring exhibitions from other Canadian galleries. Daily 9 am - 9 pm. Admission free. KENDERDINE ART GALLERY 950 Spadina Cres E, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5A8 University of Saskatchewan, 51 Campus Dr - 2nd level, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5A8 T. 306-966-4571 F. 306-978-8340 kenderdine.artgallery@usask.ca www.usask.ca/kenderdine SWIFT CURRENT Public Gallery ART GALLERY OF SWIFT CURRENT 411 Herbert St E, Swift Current, SK S9H 1M5 T. 306-778-2736 F. 306-773-8769 k.houghtaling@swiftcurrent.ca www.artgalleryofswiftcurrent.org AGSC is a public art gallery featuring exhibitions of regional, provincial, and national works of visual
Animal, September to December, Kenderdine Art Gallery, Saskatoon
In Su Rynard’s installation work, Bear, the starved-looking form of a young black bear hesitates on the edge between wilderness and civilization, drawn out of the forest by a scattering of garbage. Stills from Kenn Bass’s video projection, Fugue, show the glare of a coyote as it runs past the camera, ears flattened back. This show, Animal, at the University of Saskatchewan’s Kenderdine Art Gallery, is a representation of wild animals as they exist within human consciousness, almost occupying a physical space between wild and civilized. Organized by Museum London and including work by Arnaud Maggs, John McEwen, Lyndal Osborne, An Whitlock, Rebecca Diederichs, Tom Dean, Dagmar Dahle, and Lois Andison, the show has elements of the sheer will of survival that exists in the wild. Dahle’s work touches on extinctions, crafted representations of natural forms, and the idea that humans can subsume the natural world into decorative objects, bringing them across the divide and into our homes. Animal, curated by Corinna Ghaznavi, demonstrates the close, but not entirely understood, relationship between human and non-human animals. — Jill Sawyer ABOVE: An Whitlock, Crow(d), plaster, 2000 to 2010. 78 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
The Aboriginal artist and curatorial collective The Ephemerals will bring their latest project to the University of Winnipeg just in time for the new fall term. Centred on the University’s Gallery IC03, with a series of vitrines onsite through December, Trending will include performance dates during the school’s Orientation Week September 6 to 9. Made up of local Winnipeg Aboriginal women artists, the collective’s project focuses on indigenous culture represented through identity in fashion. ABOVE: Ephemerals, UNESCO Project, video still, 2011. art. Contact the gallery to arrange guided tours. See something to think about -- visit your public art gallery. Mon to Wed 1 - 5 pm and 7 - 9 pm, Thurs to Sun 1 - 5 pm. Closed between exhibitions, statutory holidays, and Sundays in Jul and Aug. Admission free. VAL MARIE Commercial Gallery GRASSLANDS GALLERY Centre St and 1 Ave N, PO Box 145, Val Marie, SK S0N 2T0 T. 306-298-7782 laureenmarchand@sasktel.net www.grasslandsgallery.com Located at the gateway to Grasslands National Park in a land of rolling hills, rugged coulees and steep ravines centred on the Frenchman River Valley, Grasslands Gallery shows original art and craft by some of Saskatchewan’s finest artists, inspired by the Grasslands experience. May to Sept: Tues to Thurs 11 am - 5 pm, Fri - Sat noon - 5 pm; see website or call for seasonal hours.
MANITOBA GALLERIES BRANDON Public Gallery ART GALLERY OF SOUTHWESTERN MANITOBA 710 Rosser Ave, Suite 2, Brandon, MB R7A 0K9 T. 204-727-1036 F. 204-726-8139 director.agsm@mts.net www.agsm.ca Tracing its roots back to 1890, the gallery’s mission is to lead in visual art production, presentation, promotion and education in western Manitoba. Its focus is on contemporary art while respecting local heritage and culture. Mon to Sat 10 am - 6 pm, Thurs till 9 pm. GIMLI Commercial Gallery MERMAID’S KISS GALLERY PO Box 509, 85 Fourth Ave, Gimli, MB R0C 1B0 T. 204-642-7453 lakemail@mts.net www.mermaidskissgallery.com Just an hour’s scenic drive north from Winnipeg the gallery presents an eclectic mix of original art in painting, pottery, photography, raku, fibre and jewellery. Established and emerging artists take their inspiration from the lake and surrounding areas. Also offering archival giclÈe printing, photo restoration, certified custom conservation framing. Mon, Thur to Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun noon - 4 pm.
PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE Public Gallery PORTAGE & DISTRICT ARTS CENTRE GALLERY & GIFT SHOP 11 2 St NE, Portage la Prairie, MB R1N 1R8 T. 204-239-6029 pdac@mts.net www.portageartscentre.ca The gallery features a schedule of diverse exhibitions showcasing the works of local, regional and national artists. The gift shop offers art supplies as well as a mix of original art including pottery, stained glass, photography, wood turning, books and paintings by local and regional artists. Located within the William Glesby Centre. Tues to Sat 11 am - 5 pm. WINNIPEG, MB Commercial Galleries BIRCHWOOD ART GALLERY 6-1170 Taylor Ave, Grant Park Festival, Winnipeg, MB R3M 3Z4 T. 204-888-5840 F. 204-888-5604 Toll Free: 1-800-822-5840 info@birchwoodartgallery.com www.birchwoodartgallery.com Specializing in originals, prints, sculptures and bronzes, featuring a large selection of Manitoba and international artists. They also provide conservation custom framing, art restoration and cleaning, and home and office art consultation. Original commissions available on request. Mon to Thurs 10 am - 6 pm, Fri 10 am - 5 pm, Sat 10 am - 4 pm or by appointment. CRE8ERY GALLERY 2-125 Adelaide St (cor William), Winnipeg, MB R3A 0W4 T. 204-944-0809 jordan@cre8ery.com www.cre8ery.com Nestled in the heart of Winnipeg’s Arts District, cre8ery gallery is committed to the celebration of emerging as well as established artists. cre8ery takes pride in uncovering artistic gems of all media and genres and invites patrons of the arts to come discover their next art treasure. Tues to Sat noon - 6 pm; Mon & Thurs 6 pm - 10 pm. LOCH GALLERY 306 St. Mary’s Road, Winnipeg, MB R2H 1J8 T. 204-235-1033 F. 204-235-1036 info@lochgallery.com www.lochgallery.com Established in 1972, the Loch Gallery specializes in building collections of quality Canadian, American, British and European paintings and sculpture. It represents original 19th and 20th century artwork of collectable and historic interest, as well as a select group of gifted professional artists from across Canada including Ivan Eyre, Leo Mol, Peter Sawatz-
www.gallerieswest.ca
prints as well as professional custom framing. Tues to Fri 10 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 10 am - 5 pm.
MARTHA STREET STUDIO 11 Martha St, Winnipeg, MB R3B 1A2 T. 204-779-6253 F. 204-944-1804 printmakers@mts.net www.printmakers.mb.ca Martha Street Studio is a community-based printmaking facility offering equipment, facilities and support to produce, exhibit, and disseminate cutting-edge, print-based works. There are classes in both traditional and digital printing processes, and ongoing outreach programs. The gallery facility offers visual artwork from emerging and master artists. Mon to Fri 10 am - 5 pm.
Cooperative Galleries GWEN FOX GALLERY 101-250 Manitoba Ave, Selkirk, MB R1A 0Y5 T. 204-482-4359 gwenfoxg@mts.net www.gwenfoxgallery.com Built in 1907 and twice rescued from demolition, the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;old Post Officeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; is now the Selkirk Community Arts Centre and home to the Gwen Fox Gallery witn over 100 members. The gallery exibits the works of individual members monthly through the year with June and September reserved for member group shows. Tues to Sat 11 am - 4 pm.
MAYBERRY FINE ART 212 McDermot Ave, Winnipeg, MB R3B 0S3 T. 204-255-5690 bill@mayberryfineart.com www.mayberryfineart.com Located in Winnipegâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s historic Exchange District, the gallery represents a select group of gifted Canadian artists including Joe Fafard, Wanda Koop, John MacDonald and Robert Genn. With over 30 years experience, they also specialize in historic Canadian and European works of collectible interest. Regular exhibitions feature important early Canadian art as well as gallery artists. Tues to Fri 10 am - 6 pm, Sat 10 am - 5 pm.
MEDEA GALLERY 132 Osborne St in The Village, Winnipeg, MB R3L 1Y3 T. 204-453-1115 medea@mts.net www.medeagallery.ca This artist-run cooperative was established in 1976, and features traditional and contemporary original fine art by Manitoba artists, including oils, watercolors, acrylics, pastels, mixed media, intaglio and serigraph prints, ceramics, sculpture and photography. Rental plan and gift certificates available. Open Mon to Sat 10:30 am - 5 pm, Sun 1 pm 4pm.
WAREHOUSE ARTWORKS 222 McDermot Ave, Winnipeg, MB R3B 0S3 T. 204-943-1681 F. 204-942-2847 sasaki@mts.net www.warehouseart.mb.ca A Winnipeg fixture for more than 25 years, the gallery presents original art, in a variety of media, mainly from Manitoba artists. They also offer limited edition prints and reproductions along with a major framing facility. Mon to Thur 9 am - 5:30 pm, Sat to 5 pm.
Public Gallery WINNIPEG ART GALLERY 300 Memorial Blvd, Winnipeg, MB R3C 1V1 T. 204-786-6641 communications@wag.ca www.wag.ca Manitobaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s premiere public gallery founded in 1912, has nine galleries of contemporary and historical art with an emphasis on work by Manitoba artists. Rooftop restaurant, gift shop. Tues to Sun 11 am - 5 pm, Thurs til 9 pm.
WAYNE ARTHUR GALLERY 186 Provencher Blvd, Winnipeg, MB R2H 0G3 T. 204-477-5249 www.waynearthurgallery.com Artist Wayne Arthur and wife Bev Morton opened the Wayne Arthur Sculpture & Craft Gallery in 1995. After Wayne passed away, Bev moved the gallery to Winnipeg and together with new husband, Robert MacLellan, has run the Wayne Arthur Gallery since 2002. Some of Wayneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s drawings are available for purchase as well as the creations of more than 60 Manitoba artists, working in painting, print-making, mixed media, sculpture, pottery, jewellery, glass and photography. Tues to Sat 11 am - 5 pm.
GALLERY 1C03 University of Winnipeg, 515 Portage Ave, Winnipeg, MB R3B 2E9 T. 204-786-9253 F. 204-774-4134 j.gibson@uwinnipeg.ca www.gallery1c03.uwinnipeg.ca
WOODLANDS GALLERY 535 Academy Road, Winnipeg, MB R3N 0E2 T. 204-947-0700 info@woodlandsgallery.com www.woodlandsgallery.com Located among the boutiques and restaurants of Academy Road, Woodlands Gallery represents an engaging selection of contemporary works by emerging and established Canadian artists. In addition to original paintings, the gallery offers handmade jewellery, ceramics, blown glass and mono-
Commercial Gallery COPPER MOON GALLERY 3 Glacier Rd, Whitehorse, YT Y1A 5S7 T. 867-633-6677 contact@coppermoongallery.com www.coppermoongallery.com Just off the beaten path in a setting high on the banks of the Yukon River, Copper Moon Gallery boosts over 3500 sq ft of original Northern art -paintings to pottery, jewellery, carvings and beading. Monthly exhibitions in the solo show room. In winter there are regular music events. Check website for details. Only ten min south of town on the Alaska Hwy. Daily (summer only) noon - 7 pm.
To advertise, call 403-234-7097 or 1-866-697-2002
VIRGINIA BOULAY - STUDIO Calgary, AB T. 403-242-4628 vbstudio@telusplanet.net www.vboulayart.com Noted for her spirited desire to connect with the land and the resulting strong and vibrant landscapes, Boulay says the start of every painting finds her deeply engaged with nature. Detailed graphite sketches are developed which later
www.gallerieswest.ca
The Work of Jack Sures September 24, 2011 - January 2, 2012 www.mackenzieartgallery.ca | Regina, SK
������������������������������ ��������������������������������������� �������������������������������
WHITEHORSE
Of Art-related Products and Services
ARTISTSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; STUDIOS
��������������
NORTHERN TERRITORIES GALLERIES
DIRECTORY ARTIST STUDIOS/ EVENTS
Organized by the MacKenzie Art Gallery and the Tom Thomson Art Gallery. This project has been made possible in ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� Image: ����������, The Answer�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������
ky, Anna Wiechec, Philip Craig and Carol Stewart. Mon to Fri 9 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 9 am - 5 pm.
evolve into finished works (primarily acrylic on canvas), in her Calgary home/studio. Originals and giclĂ&#x2C6;e reproductions are available and commissions welcome. MISA NIKOLIC Edmonton, AB burnia@shaw.ca www.members.shaw.ca/burnia Misa Nikolic is an artist and writer based in Edmonton. Misaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s painting and photography address the historied nature of architecture. First known for his hard-edge style, he began to pursue realism in his post-graduate work. In recent years, he has also made the switch to oils from acrylics. View his work online.
Mind the Gap! September 02 - October 29
In the Reeds with the Bolex from Scenes From a Secret World, Amalie Atkins, 16mm film transferred to DVD, 2009. Photo: Trevor Hopkin
Mind the Gap! is co-curated by Amanda Cachia and Jeff Nye, and is toured by the $UNLOP !RT 'ALLERY 2EGINA 3+ #ULTURE ON THE GO IS MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH FUNDING PROVIDED TO THE 3ASKATCHEWAN !RTS "OARD BY THE 'OVERNMENT OF 3ASKATCHEWAN THROUGH THE -INISTRY OF 4OURISM 0ARKS #ULTURE AND 3PORT
118 - 4th Street, Estevan, SK S4A 0T4 0HONE s WWW EAGM CA Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 79
Handling Art with Care
Local, National & International Services: Packing & Crating Transportation & Logistics Collection Management Asset Management Storage Climate Controlled Facility Armstrong Fine Art Services Ltd. Supporting the art world.
IRMA SOLTONOVICH URBANART STUDIO Victoria, BC T. 250-812-2705 irmasoltonovich@hotmail.com www.soltonovich.com This Victoria artist specializes in abstract landscapes and seascapes. Her acrylic works may be seen at Grey Area Gallery, Chilliwack; Greater Victoria Art Gallery and Gallery at Mattick’s Farm, Victoria. She welcomes commissions and also offers art classes for both teens and adults at Art School Victoria (website of same name). For more information contact her directly and arrange to visit her home studio. KAMILA & NEL ART GALLERY 768 Menawood Pl, Victoria, BC V8Y 2Z6 T. 250-294-5711 NelKwiatkowska@Picture2Portrait.net www.Picture2Portrait.net Interested in commissioning an experienced and internationally-recognized artist to create an ageless fine art gift? Portraits, architecture, animals, landscapes and any other subject of interest to you could be captured and transformed in a creative way. Paintings can be done from photos or a session arranged at the studio. LORRAINE THORARINSON BETTS Victoria, BC T. 250-391-9590 lorrainebetts@shaw.ca www.lorrainebetts.com Lorraine works as an abstract artist in mixed media, painting and monotype on paper and canvas from her Saladpatch Studio, on the west shore of Victoria, BC. Whether figurative or abstract, her unique images carry a sense of story through texture, line and a celebration of colour. Visit her Saladpatch Studio online.
ARTISTS REPRESENTATIVE 630 Secretariat Court, Mississauga, ON, L5S 2A5 T: 905.670.3600 F: 905.670.0764 art@shipfineart.com l www.shipfineart.com
EMOTESART Winnipeg, MB T. 204-294-6324 jacqueline@emotesart.com www.emotesart.com Representing select contemporary Canadian artists including Shirley Elias and Victoria Block.
ART SHOWS
Calgary’s Premier Art Supply Store
SIDNEY FINE ART SHOW OCTOBER 15-17, 2010 Mary Winspear Centre, Sidney, BC T. 250-656-7412 info@sidneyfineartshow.com www.sidneyfineartshow.com The 8th annual Sidney Fine Art Show takes place October 14-16, 2011 in beautiful Sidney by the Sea. This juried show offers an exhibition that is always fresh, exciting and diverse. Since work is available for sale, this is a must for collectors. Visit website for details.
ART TOURS
www.kensingtonartsupply.com NEW LOCATION (right next door) more space, more products, some great customer service 130 - 10 Street NW Calgary, AB T2N 1V3 403-283-2288
New Hours: Mon - Thurs 10-8 Fri - Sat 10-6 Sun & Hol 11-5
CALGARY ARTWALK Multiple public and Commercial Galleries, Calgary, AB www.calgaryartwalk.com THIRD WEEKEND IN SEPTEMBER Visit Calgary galleries and artist studios to discover the quality and variety of artists’ work available in Calgary in a friendly and casual atmosphere. The event is free. Many venues provide refreshments and host special events. Great for art students, collectors and for the novice to meet artists and watch creativity happen before their eyes. Maps and participating galleries on website. GALLERY WALK OF EDMONTON October 15 and 16, 2011; April 14 and 15, 2012, Edmonton, AB art@westendgalleryltd.com www.gallery-walk.com The first gallery walk of its kind in Canada was formed in 1981 to promote both art and artists of merit within the community, focusing especially on work by Canadian artists. The eight member galleries are easily accessible within a nine block walking distance. There are two self-guided events presented per year. Unique exhibitions are planned for gallery walks. Details on website.
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES ART AUCTIONS
HODGINS ART AUCTIONS LTD 5240 1A St SE, Calgary, AB T2H 1J1 T. 403-252-4362 F. 403-259-3682
80 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
kevin.king@hodginsauction.com www.hodginsauction.com Hodgins is one of western Canada’s largest and longest running auction companies dedicated to quality fine art. They hold catalogued auctions of Canadian and international fine art every May and November. In addition, appraisal services are offered for estate settlement, insurance, matrimonial division and other purposes. Individual and corporate consignments of artworks for sale are always welcome. LANDO ART AUCTIONS 11130 105 Ave NW, Edmonton, AB T5H 0L5 T. 780-990-1161 F. 780-990-1153 mail@landoartauctions.com www.landoartauctions.com They hold a minimum of three catalogued auctions a year of Canadian and international fine art. Individual and corporate consignments welcome. Appraisals for insurance, donation, estate settlement, family division and other purposes. Call or email for a confidential appointment. Mon to Fri 10 am 5:30 pm, Sat 10 am - 4:30 pm, or by appt.
ART BOOKS
UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY PRESS 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4 T. 403-220-3979 ucpmail@ucalgary.ca www.uofcpress.com The University of Calgary Press publishes peerreviewed books that explore a sense of place in western Canada and its impact on the world. Their “Art in Profile” series showcases the contributions of Canadian artists and architects whose innovative and creative imaginations make a difference ñ and make us think.
ART CRATING
VEVEX CORPORATION 955 East Hastings St, Vancouver, BC V6A 1R9 T. 604-254-1002 F. 604-677-5709 info@vevex.com www.vevex.com Vevex produces made-to-order crates for shipping and storing fine art. Computer-generated estimates and engineered manufacturing ensure fast quotes and prompt delivery. A range of designs offers choice for commercial, collector and institutional needs. Certified for worldwide export. Supplier of museum-quality crates to the Vancouver Art Gallery.
ART FRAMING
ART EFFECTS CREATIVE FRAMING 1-938 Centre St SE, High River, AB T1V 1E7 T. 403-652-4550 arteffects@telus.net www.arteffects.ca Established in 1998, Art Effects offers a combined 30+ years of experience in custom framing and art consultations. Owners MJ Getkate and Barry Deines take pride in their creative design, craftsmanship and attention to detail. In addition to state-of-theart equipment and over 1000 mouldings to choose from, they now offer a ‘virtual’ preview of framing options on a large screen TV monitor. Wed to Fri 9 am - 5 pm, Sat 9 am - 3 pm or by appointment. JARVIS HALL FINE FRAMES 617 11 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2R 0E1 T. 403-206-9942 jhff@shaw.ca Jarvis Hall Fine Frames is a full service frame shop offering all levels of custom framing from conservation to museum grade. Frames can be chosen from a wide variety of manufacturers or can be designed, carved and gilded by hand. They also offer a variety of gallery frames for artists. Tues to Sat 10 am - 5 pm and by appointment.
ART GALLERY SOFTWARE
GALLERYSOFT INC 10 Oak Ridge Drive, Georgetown, ON L7G 5G6 T. 905-877-8713 F. 905-877-4811 info@gallerysoft.com www.gallerysoft.com GallerySoft is a complete fine art gallery management system that provides galleries with a quick and easy way to manage clients, mailing labels, artists, artist payments, invoicing, inventory details and much more. GallerySoft runs on a Mac, PC or iPad. Adding a GallerySoft Supported Website allows all gallery art to be added to the gallery website directly from GallerySoft.
ART GALLERY WEBSITES
ART IN CANADA T. 403-336-1313 lynda@artincanada.com www.artincanada.com
www.gallerieswest.ca
For artists who know they need a website, but don’t know where to start, Art In Canada -- a professional web consulting and design company -- has been marketing artists and art galleries online since 1999. Websites are designed for easy self-administration by artists themselves. Call Lynda Baxter to learn more and get started.
ART INSTALLATION
ON THE LEVEL ART INSTALLATIONS T. 403-263-7226 info@onthelevelart.ca www.onthelevelart.ca A fully insured, full service fine arts handling company with 24 years experience providing consulting, design and installation service throughout western Canada.
ART RENTAL
TRIANGLE GALLERY ART RENTAL SERVICES T. 403-874-9685 info@artrentals.ca www.artrentals.ca Rent and/or purchase artwork by more than 35 emerging and established professional artists from Calgary and region. Art ranges from realist to abstract style with a wide selection of sizes and media. View and choose directly on the Art Rental Services website. Artists are encouraged to apply. Organized by Friends of Triangle Gallery in support of the gallery’s exhibition and education programs.
ART REPRODUCTION
ART-MASTERS.NET 1608 29 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T2T 1M5 T. 403-229-2953 info@art-masters.net www.art-masters.net Specializing in professional, archival, custom giclÈe printing for more than 14 years with complete inhouse service, they cater to over 300 discriminating artists, galleries, and art publishers locally and around the world. Expertise in colour correction creates the rich colours, textures and high definition of original artwork, and printing is done with special UV inhibiting inks and varnishes.
ART SHIPPING
ARMSTRONG FINE ART SERVICES LTD. 630 Secretariat Court, Mississauga, ON L5S 2A5 T. 905-670-3600 F. 905-670-0764 Toll Free: 1-866-670-3600 art@shipfineart.com www.shipfineart.com Armstrong Fine Art Services Ltd. is part of the Armstrong Group of Companies, with over 40 years of professional experience in packing, crating, storing and shipping fine art, antiques and antiquities across Canada and around the world. They have the people, services and facilities to assure the handling of a single piece of art, or an entire collection. Email for details about their cross-country and inter-USA shuttles.
info@classicgalleryframing.com www.classicgalleryframing.com High quality mouldings, liners and liner profiles are produced by utilizing the most efficient manufacturing processes combined with the care and detail that comes with creating handcrafted products. All steps of production are done inside their factory. The full range of products may be previewed online and are available through most fine art dealers and framers. INGLEWOOD ART SUPPLIES 1006 9 Ave SE, Calgary, AB T2G 0S7 T. 403-265-8961 inglart@telusplanet.net www.inglewoodart.com Store claims best selection and prices in Calgary on pre-stretched canvas and canvas on the roll. Golden Acrylics and Mediums with everyday prices below retail. Volume discounts on the complete selection of Stevenson Oils, Acrylics and Mediums. Other name-brand materials, brushes, drawing supplies, easels, an extensive selection of paper and more. Mon to Fri 9 am - 6 pm, Sat 10 am - 5 pm, Sun noon - 5 pm. KENSINGTON ART SUPPLY 130 10 St NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1V3 T. 403-283-2288 info@kensingtonartsupply.com www.kensingtonartsupply.com Now in a new, bigger space featuring an expanded selection of quality fine art supplies including more paints, brushes, easels, paper and canvas. Also carry over 500 titles of art instruction books, encaustic paints, and an enhanced airbrush section. Friendly, knowledgeable staff. Art classes next door. Discounts available. Mon to Thurs 10 am - 8 pm, Fri, Sat 10 am - 6 pm, Sun & Hol 11 am - 5 pm. MONA LISA ARTISTS’ MATERIALS 1518 7 St SW, Calgary, AB T2R 1A7 T. 403-228-3618 monalisa@nucleus.com www.monalisa-artmat.com Welcome to one of Western Canada’s largest fine art supply retailers. Established in 1959, Mona Lisa provides excellent customer service combined with a broad spectrum of products and technical knowledge. Clients from beginner to professional, find everything they need to achieve their artistic goals. Volume discounts and full-time student and senior discounts available. Mon - Fri 8 am - 5:30 pm, Sat 9 am - 5 pm.
ART STORAGE AND APPRAISALS
OPUS FRAMING & ART SUPPLIES T. 604-435-9991 F. 604-435-9941 Toll Free: 1-800-663-6953 info@opusframing.com www.opusframing.com Opus has stores in Vancouver, Victoria, Kelowna, North Vancouver, and Langley, plus online shopping and mail order service. They offer an extensive selection of fine art materials and quality framing supplies. Check them out online, or drop by for some inspiration. They also produce an e-newsletter full of sales, art news and articles, and provide ëhow to’ handouts and artist demos. Western Canada’s favourite artists’ resource.
ART SUPPLIES
SKETCH ARTIST SUPPLIES (FORMERLY STUDIO TODOROVIC) 1713 - 2 St NW, Calgary, AB T2M 2W4 T. 403-450-1917 sales@sketchcalgary.ca www.sketchcalgary.ca Sketch offers framing and carries Copic sketch markers (full selection), sketchbooks, J. Herbin calligraphy inks, Brause nibs, Faber-Castell products, Moleskine, Rhodia, Golden acrylics & mediums, M. Graham oils & watercolours, Gotrick canvas and more. Student and senior discounts. Just north of TransCanada in Mount Pleasant opposite Balmoral School. Free parking. Mon to Fri 10 am - 6 pm, Sat 11 am - 6 pm.
LEVIS FINE ART AUCTIONS, APPRAISALS & ART STORAGE 1739 10 Ave SW, Calgary, AB T3C 0K1 T. 403-541-9099 mail@levisauctions.com www.levisauctions.com From a single item to a complete collection, Levis can safely store artwork. The company offers professional and knowledgeable staff, a safe and confidential environment, a thorough security system, controlled temperature and constant on-site presence. Costs are based on a rate of $10.00 per cubic foot per month. For larger collections volume rates are available. ARTISTS EMPORIUM 1610 St James St, Winnipeg, MB R3H 0L2 T. 204-772-2421 artists@artistsemporium.net www.artistsemporium.net A Canadian based company supplying highest quality products since 1977 with over 100,000 items offered in a 12,000 square feet retail space. The fun-friendly atmosphere extends from the free Saturday morning art classes, through the extensive art library and spinning the roulette wheel at their annual Artists Open House. They are committed to maintaining a high level of inventory at competitive prices while continually expanding product lines. Mon to Thur 9 am - 6 pm, Fri til 9 pm, Sat 9 am - 6 pm, Sun noon - 4 pm. CLASSIC GALLERY FRAMING INC 3376 Sexsmith Road, Kelowna, BC V1X 7S5 T. 250-765-6116 F. 250-765-6117 Toll Free: 1-800-892-8855
www.gallerieswest.ca
THE GALLERY/ART PLACEMENT INC. 228 3 Ave S (back lane entrance), Saskatoon, SK S7K 1L9 T. 306-664-3931 supplies@artplacement.com www.artplacement.com Professional artists, University art students, art educators and weekend artists rely on The Gallery/Art Placement’s art supply store for fine quality materials and equipment at reasonable prices. A constantly expanding range of materials from acrylics, oils and watercolours, to canvas, brushes, specialty paper, soapstone and accessories. Mon to Sat 9 am - 5:30 pm.
Rita Letendre TAKLIESH; 1974 60 x 40 in. Estimate $6,000 / 8,000 May 2011 Sold at $14,950
KIOWA BEADED CLOTH CRADLEBOARD; c. 1880 Estimate $2,000 / 3,000 February 2011 Sold at $51,750
Quality Consignments Always Welcome Ongoing Auctions, Live and Online. Enquire about our gallery referral program.
hodginsauction.com ℡
5240 1A St. SE Calgary AB T2H 1J1 403 252 4362 art@hodginsauction.com Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011 81
BACK ROOM
RETA COWLEY (1910 – 2004)
Reta Cowley, “Untitled (Cows in Field)”, 1971, watercolour on paper, 22 1/2" x 30 5/8".
F
rom her early 20s and on into her 40s, Reta Cowley was absorbing the advice, influence, and inspiration of several generations of great western Canadian painters. Beginning with study with Augustus Kenderdine at Saskatchewan’s Emma Lake summer school in the 1930s, she travelled to the Banff School of Fine Arts in the 1940s to meet and study with the watercolourist Walter J. Phillips, moving on to classes with structuralist painter Eli Bornstein at the University of Saskatchewan. At every stop, her own work evolved, until the late 1960s, when it reached a fine balance of light, almost abstract watercolour, the result of decades of study and practice. Born Reta Summers in Moose Jaw and growing up in the Yorkton area in Saskatchewan, Cowley graduated from Normal School and began teaching in rural public schools (she would teach off and on throughout most of her life). An avid amateur painter, she was first encouraged by Kenderdine at Emma Lake, and would return to that retreat through the early 1930s, always centring her work on the light and landscape of the prairies. Cowley would spend another four summers in Banff in the early 1940s under the influence of Phillips, a fine watercolourist who had a similar affinity for the natural world and plein air painting. Her style maturing, Cowley began night classes with Bornstein, absorbing his notes on colour, form, and structure. Her mid-century work began to take on stronger subjects, populated by people and prairie buildings. A few years later, after graduating with a BA from the University of Saskatchewan and taking on her own, unencumbered identity as a painter, Cowley’s style evolved into an almost abstract form. She was also showing
82 Galleries West Fall/Winter 2011
her work by then, in more then 20 solo shows from the 1950s forward. Robert Christie at Art Placement in Saskatoon, which represents Cowley’s estate, notes that Cowley’s later habits as a painter revealed much about her process. She would almost exclusively paint from life, returning often to favourite landscapes, most often in the summer (it was difficult to sit outside and paint in the Saskatchewan winter). “A fascinating consequence to Reta’s repetitive painting practice is that when we view a large number of her watercolours from the 1970’s and through the 1980’s, we can see the natural evolutionary changes that the passing of the seasons and the course of time brings to a specific site,” Christie wrote in a 2009 catalogue. “Colours are altered from spring to fall and the density of foliage changes. We can even witness the development of trees and shrubs as they grow to maturity and then decline and die off as the years progressed. In the hands of a lesser painter, the oft-visited subject may have become somewhat clone-like but Reta seemed to thrive with the comfort that comes from familiarity and each new work was as fresh as the previous.” This painting, Untitled (Cows in Field) from 1971, is representative of the work Cowley did throughout that decade — small incremental movements and changes between light-handed watercolours. Christie writes that by this mature period, beginning in the late 1960s, Cowley’s subjects had shifted from architectural elements to pure landscape. “She no longer needed the obvious structural shapes of buildings to guide her. Instead she found more freedom, and perhaps even more substance, in what might appear to the untrained eye as somewhat standard farm scenery. As her literal subject was reduced, the abstract elements were allowed to emerge.” — Jill Sawyer www.gallerieswest.ca
LEONARD BROOKS
Mixed Bouquet c.1994, collage & mixed media, 26.5” x 17.75”
RCA, OSA, CGP, CPE, CSGA (1911 - )
November 5th – November 26th, 2011 In celebration of his 100th birthday
THE COLLECTORS’ GALLERY OF ART DEALERS OF FINE CANADIAN PAINTINGS AND SCULPTURE 1332 – 9 AVENUE SE, CALGARY, AB T2G 0T3 (Inglewood District) • T 403 245 8300 • F 403 245 8315 mail@cgoart.com • www.cgoart.com
A.Y Jackson (1882-1974) St. Urbain, Quebec, oil on panel, 8.5" x 10.5", c.1924
ALEXANDER YOUNG JACKSON R.C.A www.lochgallery.com