Karen Blanchet is having a busy week. How busy? How about opening two exhibits, one a major solo show, both within days of each other.
Kindred just opened at the Visual Arts Studio Association (VASA) Gallery on Tuesday while her other show is set to be revealed starting Friday at the Centre d’arts visuels de l’Alberta (CAVA). You might think that she would make this all a little easier on herself by using works from the same series. Not a chance. Blanchet’s brush is as intrepid as it is busy.
Kindred is a mixed-media selection of 21 semi-abstract paintings from her Connections series. The artist said that it’s a call for all to take better care of the planet.
“I’m heavy into social justice,” she began. “I think maybe the work is a little too subtle. I just want people to think about it. The poetry – that goes with those pieces – is more explicit.”
Everything is connected, she continued, hence the title of the series. Blanchet seemed to be quite calm and confident about it while she admitted being in a bit of a panic about the other. It’s a relief to her that the group show also has Louise Piquette, Valerie Solash, Mark Neil, and Dana Rayment.
“I knew it was coming up. I had this month to get something together.”
What started with an en plein air watercolour work of a street corner from this year’s Culture Days festivities turned into a series called Localicious that showed scenes from all around Edmonton.
“I really love quiet corners that you don’t necessarily notice all that much. It’s all about negative space. Beauty can be found anywhere. They look ordinary but they can be extraordinary.”
Kindred runs until Nov. 27. An opening reception will be held tomorrow from 6 to 9 p.m. The artist will be in attendance. VASA is located at 25 Sir Winston Churchill Ave. Call 780-460-5990 or visit www.vasa-art.com for more information.
The exhibit at CAVA runs until Nov. 18. An opening reception will be held on Friday from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Artists will be in attendance. The gallery is located at 9103 95 Ave. in Edmonton. Call 780-461-3427 or visit www.savacava.com for more information.
Andrzej Maciejewski and Juliana Rempel are contributing their respective talents toward a joint exhibit at the Art Gallery of St. Albert.
Posed and Poised is meant to force the viewer to stop and reconsider the stuff that we surround ourselves with. Everything has meaning. Even the still life fruit still bedecked with grocery store stickers.
Ontarian photographer Maciejewski’s series Garden of Eden takes on our modern food industry with its pristine yet flavourless produce. As an added twist, his pictures have the atmosphere of the works of the Old Masters, making the fruit appear even more disjointed from real life. Oranges perfectly posed in a bowl look practically untouchable, much like their decorative plastic cousins.
They simultaneously compare and contrast with Alberta ceramicist Rempel’s contributions of still life sculptures. She works to study commonplace household objects and their “habitats” so to speak.
“They come from different areas or experiences, or day-to-day activities. I think the interesting thing with ceramics is that it really is, as a material, part of our lives on a daily basis. We’re very used to it, very comfortable with it. It’s familiar on so many different levels, whether our bathrooms are tile, our flooring, our toilets, bowls, cups and plates … it’s almost forgotten. It just becomes part of our day.”
To elaborate on her point, her still lifes aren’t necessarily what they look like. She uses a variety of media including rubber and spray paint to force the viewer to question not just the perceived reality of the object but the significance of the object it represents as well.
Posed and Poised opens tomorrow with a reception from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Artists will be in attendance. The exhibit runs until Sat., Nov. 28. The Art Gallery of St. Albert is located at 19 Perron St. Call 780-460-4310 or visit www.artgalleryofstalbert.ca for more information.
Brothers Ben and Grant Kurtz are both autistic yet each celebrates his individuality and expressiveness in different artistic ways. Ben is a photographer while Grant is a painter. Together, they have been creating art for many years and they have exhibited together a number of times already.
They’re back with Autism Artistry to be held tonight from 6 to 9 p.m. The exhibit and panel discussion will be held at the Art Gallery of Alberta, located at 2 Sir Winston Churchill Square in Edmonton. There will be refreshments and Micah Hussell will provide the musical ambiance.
Call 780-422-6223 or visit www.youraga.ca for more details.
The Surfaces Artist Co-operative, comprised of Allison Argy-Burgess, Dawn Campbell-Leblanc, Sharon Moore-Foster, Rhonda Vickers, Leona Olausen, and Teresa M. Halkow, is returning to Jake's Gallery & Framing for their annual show and sale. It’s a celebration of winter so it’s a good thing that snow has already fallen, in keeping with the theme.
Surfaces III opens on Friday with a reception from 7 to 9 p.m. Artists will be in attendance. The exhibit runs until Sat., Nov. 28.
Jake’s Gallery is located at 10441 123 St. in Edmonton. Call 780-426-4649 or visit www.jakesframing.com for more information.
