"Ensemble" at the Maple Ridge ACT

I'll be heading out to Maple Ridge today to attend the opening of the "Ensemble" show at the ACT.  The show features work by local artists including myself and my friend Katherine Nielsen.  The works were selected as series or "ensembles" as they have some unifying feature.  Katherine's small works on cigarette foil feature images of her father and really should be seen in person.  Small works from my Resilience series and my Faro series are on display in the show until December 18.

Edited to add a photo of one of my series right next to my friend's!

White Rock Best of 2011

I went to the White Rock gallery to pick up my painting today as yesterday was the last day of the "Best of 2011" show... and to my utter shock and delight there was a First Prize ribbon hung next to my painting.  With my name on it.

Wave is 20 by 34 inches, encaustic (beeswax) with guitar strings embedded in it.  With regards to the title, think more than just water.  Think about the materials at work here.  As with other work in the "Resilience" series (in progress since last October), the piece speaks to human resiliency through the materials in the piece.  What holds us in place?  Where is our breaking point? How do our actions affect our environment?

The "Best Of" show showcased local artists who placed 1st, 2nd or 3rd in any of the shows in White Rock throughout the past year and was by invitation.

I've got the city surrounded!

It seems I'm busy all of a sudden.

As I was about to depart for my recent vacation, I was contacted by the Semiahmoo Arts Council and invited to show a new piece in their "Best of 2011" show which is on now until November 17 at the White Rock Community Centre. 

Wave is an encaustic piece that was so new i didn't have time to photograph it before running it down to White Rock the morning after i arrived home from my holiday.  It can be seen sitting sideways on the floor in this post.


I will also have work in 2 more upcoming shows:


Seymour Art Gallery, Deep Cove, BC.  "Discovery 2012", January 2012.  I will post the details closer to the show dates.

Maple Ridge ACT Gallery, Maple Ridge, B.C. "Ensemble", November 19 to December 19, 2011.
This show includes "ensembles" of work from various artists in the Lower Mainland.  Works from two of my recent series will be on display.
The "Resilience" series explores the qualities of beeswax encaustic medium and the objects i fuse into the wax, and the relationships formed by the fusion of the materials.

 Collapse, 2011, Encaustic, found objects, dirt, 14 x 14 inches

 Dis/Continuity, 2011, Encaustic, guitar strings, dirt, 14 x 14 inches

  Root, 2011, Encaustic, guitar strings, dirt, 14 x 14 inches

The "Faro" series explores, through a series of small paintings (over 30 were done in total), the destruction and transformation of a large expanse of land in the Yukon that served as the site of several different types of mine from 1969 to the late 1990s.  The series reflects the destruction of the natural area through unnatural colour, using the translucency and fragility of the encaustic wax medium to portray the strangeness of this area.

Clockwise from top left: Dehisce, Elemental, Perception, Fragment.  

All Encaustic, 2010, 3 x 4 inches.

  

 

 

Inspiration and Busy in The Studio.

Whew!  It's been a busy few months in and out of the studio, and I managed to throw in a late but inspiring "Summer Vacation" (yes, at the end of October!) to the Oregon Coast.  Around every corner I found myself utterly astounded by the ever-changing coastal landscapes.  I also have this thing that I do whenever I am near water - I HAVE to take off my shoes and go into the water, no matter how cold it is.  I have been swimming in Alaska in August!  You can imagine that this could slow the driving progress when there was a spectacular beach around every corner...

 

This drive was partially inspiration for a piece I submitted for the Seymour Art Gallery's "water" - themed Discover 2012 show, shown below in progress in the studio.

Solitude was basically me trying to process the feelings associated with being near the water, especially in an environment (i.e. the coastal highway) that changed so suddenly and completely.  I want my work to serve as witness for spaces that i have visited, however that can be a challenge when working non-representationally (or am I?).