West End Gallery on Broad Street brings West Coast to the walls with a group exhibition this month.
Participating artists look to their own backyard for a plethora of inspiration. Paintings featuring the diversity of the landscape hang alongside whimsical still life paintings offering bright and cheerful colours to freshen up your walls. Participating artists include Steven Armstrong, Cameron Bird, Naomi Cairns, Rod Charlesworth, Ken Faulks, David Graff, Greta Guzek, Madison Hart, Dana Irving, Patricia Johnston, Paul Jorgensen, Mary Ann Laing, Joel Mara, Maria Medina, Elka Nowicka, John Ogilvy, Paul Paquette, Ron Parker, Peter Shostak, Jeannette Sirois, Blu Smith and Peter Wyse.
Visit westendgalleryltd.com for more.
The Avenue Gallery highlights paint, glasswork and jewelry in Oak Bay this month.
Becky Holuk is a Calgary-based artist, who works primarily in acrylic paint on canvas. Holuk studied at the Alberta College of Art and Design, earning an Illingworth Kerr Award for proficiency in drawing and design. After working full-time in the field of graphic design and illustration for 10 years, she changed direction to focus solely on her passion for fine art painting.
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Holuk considers it a blessing to be part of the connection which artwork provides between artist and viewer and has discovered that hikes and walks in the natural, majestic beauty of the Alberta Foothills, Canadian Rockies and the West Coast are favourite times to “observe, record and reflect” for later artistic pursuits in the studio. She sees each painting as an opportunity to form a joyful and grateful response in colour and motion to what she has had the privilege to experience in the natural world.
Naoko Takenouchi creates hand-blown glass vessels with ethereal colours and intricate, engraved designs depicting a visual metaphor or allegory. Working as a glass artist for almost 40 years, Takenouchi began her studies at the Tama Art University, Tokyo, and subsequently attended the highly regarded New York Experimental Glass Workshop. In 1993, and again in 1998, she was honoured with scholarships to attend the world-renowned Pilchuck Glass School in Washington state.
Born in Serbia, Aleksandra Kalinic holds a degree from Belgrade Arts University, Faculty of Applied Arts. Her artistic career continued when she immigrated to Canada and settled in Vancouver in 2001.
At that time, she was focused on ceramics and making porcelain lamps and stoneware sculptures. Curiosity and creativity led her to express ideas using different media and in 2009 she took a jewelry techniques course at what was then called Vancouver Community College. Since then, she has been passionately handcrafting silver jewelry.
“Inspired by ancient jewelry and archeological artifacts, I strive to create unique jewelry that looks ancient yet modern, raw yet sophisticated, bold and delicate,” Kalinic said.
Kalinic has exhibited her work in many juried international and national exhibitions in Canada, Serbia, Japan, Australia, Czech Republic, Argentina. She has won various awards for her artistic accomplishments, both in Canada and abroad.
Visit theavenuegallery.com for more.
Madrona Gallery winds down spring and introduces summer with an award-winning artist and storyteller.
With her incredible storytelling ability, Diana Thorneycroft invites viewers into the surreal and complex narratives of her highly detailed drawings. Included in the June 10 to 24 exhibition is a series of 24 drawings created in response to recent world events. Titled 24 Drawings of Heartache, the images encourage viewers to reflect upon how shared tragedy and personal interactions impact their own day-to-day life.
Thorneycroft, who received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Manitoba and a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Wisconsin, has received international recognition and her work is included in numerous public collections such as the National Gallery of Canada, the Vancouver Art Gallery, and the Winnipeg Art Gallery.
The exhibit runs June 10 to 24 with an opening reception with Thorneycroft on June 10 from 1 to 3 p.m.
Seasons officially shift with the 14th annual Colours of Summer exhibition July 1 to Aug. 8 at Madrona.
The group exhibition features new work and staff favourites, from the gallery’s stable of artists and changes throughout the summer season.
This year’s exhibition includes work by Joe Coffey, Meghan Hildebrand, Susannah Montague, Hashim Hannoon, Caitlin McDonagh, Rick Bond, Shuvinai Ashoona, Qavavau Manumie and Kupapik Ningeocheak.
Colours of Summer XIV runs July 1 to Aug. 8 with an opening reception on July 1, from 1 to 3 p.m.
Visit madronagallery.com for more.
The Street examines urban life as it is experienced in Canada and across the globe, bringing different perspectives of the world around us.
On loan from the Vancouver Art Gallery, The Street lands at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria this month with free admission June 10, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Grant Arnold, exhibition curator and Audain Curator of B.C. Art at Vancouver Art Gallery will visit the AGGV to speak on the curatorial premise behind The Street and answer questions about the exhibition during an open house June 10 at 11 a.m. (registration is required).
The exhibition includes work from the 18th century to the present and will feature work by Canadian and international artists, including Roy Arden, Kati Campbell, Robert Capa, Allyson Clay, Robert Frank, Fred Herzog and Ian Wallace.
“We are excited to bring the exhibition, The Street, to the AGGV this summer. Drawn from the Vancouver Art Gallery collections, and enhanced with some treasures from the AGGV permanent collection, this exhibition will focus on a subject that has long been an important source of inspiration for artists: the urban street,” said Steven McNeil, AGGV curator of Historical and Canadian Art. “It will include more than 50 works, including photographs, paintings, prints and videos, with a special emphasis on the Vancouver Art Gallery’s unique strengths in contemporary Canadian photography.”
The Street runs through Sept. 3.
Visit aggv.ca for more.