The back room gallery of the Bookstore on Perron is a busy but beautiful place these days. There are three artists from the St. Albert Painters’ Guild who have brought some of their favourite scenes from nature for your viewing pleasure.
Liz Meetsma, Betty Tessier and Sandy Mitchell have joined forces for this wonderful little show featuring landscapes and flowery still lifes. Tessier explained that the St. Albert Place Visual Arts Council has prompted all of its five member guilds to think outside or at least outdoors for their artistic inspirations.
“Nature is SAPVAC’s theme this year,” she said, adding that the suggestion was not at all unwelcome. “Nature, I guess, would be what we’re going for all the time.”
Her own collection of textural and layered works includes a view of seals on a beach, a sight that is unlikely around Alberta. It’s actually from California, she clarified.
“My son lives in Huntington Beach and I go down there every year. We go to Crystal Cove. When I was there, we saw that seal and I swear to God he was posing for us.”
Sandy Mitchell prefers an abstracted representational style in her work as opposed to Realism. After all, there’s a simpler way to obtain Realism if that’s what you are really after.
“Realism is not anything. If I want that, I’ll take a picture,” she stated.
Her collection here shows some perky and picture perfect florals that demonstrate her simple tastes in art. “I love bright colours and I love flowers,” she admitted.
Mitchell’s artistic temperament also allows her the individuality to create whatever it is that tickles her fancy in the moment.
“I don’t care what anybody else would like. They make me very happy and that’s all that counts for me. I’m out to please myself.”
That sentiment is echoed somewhat with Meetsma, who paints with the intention of seeking tranquility. The frequent traveler takes photographs of beautiful landscape scenes from Alberta and Oregon and other scenic spots. When she returns to the studio, she sets about to using her brushes as instruments of serenity.
“I love to paint landscapes. The reason I paint them the way I do is because I find them really peaceful. When I paint, I’m really at peace.”
That intent comes through with some delightfully calm images of rivers and forests. Meetsma, who last exhibited in this gallery space last spring, hails from Edmonton but appreciates the St. Albert Painters’ Guild for how her work develops through its influence. She said that it’s the camaraderie of the collective that really makes the difference.
“They’re just a really great group of people, really lovely to work with.”
The show is on until Tuesday, September 2. The Bookstore on Perron is located at 7 Perron Street.
