Unexpected Guests at the Prairie Star Gallery

Last Friday, Debora Senger, a neighbor  few doors west of me, and I took in the new exhibit at the Prairie Star Gallery on the 8th Street East , in Saskatoon.  By the end of the visit (an hour and half later) we agreed to become collaborators on this blog. Welcome Debora!

Kim Ennis-Curator/owner

Prairie Star Gallery ( website under construction) is owned and curated by Kim Ennis. Kim has a MA in Art History from the University of Saskatchewan. Kim's thesis titled, The Numinous Land  demonstrates that paintings have a spiritual aspect based on the structure of land. This finding is reflected in both of his pieces in the current exhibit.
Work by several established  Saskatoon painters, who used to be on the rolls of a prominent downtown gallery, are now on the Prairie Star Roll.
The current exhibit showcases work by several  including Anne McElroy, Kim Ennis and Edward Epp.

Kim Ennis- Acrylic on canvas

 Kim tells me that his painting practice is centered around a deliberate, and conscious effort to seek both answers and meanings about big and small questions of life and spirit. The spiny, muted forms and indefinite background of the piece above, gives the impression of  an organic architecture.  Debora and I both agree, "the piece is fun and captivating creating wonder through simple placement of shape and color".

Guest Artists

Works by Pat Doit , Caragana Ennis, Greg Pyra, Mei Sun, Carol Wylie  are exhibited in the current show. It is a fine show with quality, variety and elements of surprise. The drawings ( set of three) by Caragana Ennis are beautiful in detail and gesture.

Carol Wylie-oil on canvas

Carol Wylie 's "Mom Turning Away" has a bold color palette that carries conviction and lends depth to the emotion.The shoulders,chin and the far away glance lend the work a statuesque and authentic quality.
Debora notes that the painting is a " a skillful, dramatic, and poignant work"

Greg Pyra-oil on canvas

Greg Pyra's bold confident brush work lends a hyper-realism to the "Spring Melt" an oil on canvas painting. Debora says, " Gorgeous! love the use of color to create romantic light."

Gallery Artists

The Gallery has several accomplished and established artists on its roll and current exhibit draws from them. 

Anne McElroy-mixed media on paper

Anne McElroys " Bits and Pieces" reminds me of drawings of Chagall and mobiles of Alexander Calder. The playfulness is hardly constructed. It seems to leap from imagination to paper. 

Debora, " attractive, interesting and nice use of color"

Yulbin Moon's "Boy at piano" is delightful in its composition. I found myself  wondering about the melody being played. The blues accentuate the solitary mood. Looking forward to more from Yulbin Moon.

Edward Epp's "Sailing-Cross Currents" is a delightful and skillful piece.

Debora," Loves the organised chaos, use of color, texture from layered collage and the newspaper insert"

As mentioned before the show has variety in both subject matter  and media. If you have not yet visited the gallery, Debora and I highly recommend a visit. The gallery hours are Friday, Saturday, Sunday from 10 am-6 pm.

Bobbi Clackson-Walker Under the Influence

My first visit to Bobbi 's show at the St. Thomas more gallery, was with an artist friend, who although not active in the field currently, enjoys and talks incessantly about art. We took in the exhibit, me taking photos and notes, and Tatwa, enjoying the show. As we looked at the various pieces we talked about composition, color use and other design elements as well and "how does she do that? "comments. 
My second visit ,  shorter and quieter and gave me pause and reflection of the our planet's messiness. 

Bobbi's show" Under the Influence" is about environment, both Geological and Spiritual. It is the sum of her fears about the human condition. When so much of the environmental thinking is looking to future, Clackson's show reminds us that looking to the past is critical and through this show she encapsulates the many issues that we must study, understand and hopefully solve.

Technical and marketing Savvy

Clackson's marketing and advertising background has allowed her freedom  to play with various media to get her point across. In an age where Image has practically taken over the language, she used the complexity of mixed media and simplicity of visual message to make her statement.
" This is unlike anything I've done before. I wanted to manipulate the mediums to give breadth to the ideas and not just relate a factual news item."

Layered Visual vignette
I have painted with Bobbi  and watched  her experiments with. many materials and technique to bring about the desired effects.  The piece below, part of a twosome at the show is visually stunning in their sophisticated detail and has many layers, and diptych of photographs. My friend Tatwa really liked this.

A Change in weather
Bobbi Clackson -Walker
Mixed Media Mounted On Board

A change in Weather -detail above

The Nostalgia and Sadness in  multiple layers of landscape. I would have liked to see these in larger proportions/ canvas size.

The Bold intentionality of the exhibit did have an impact on me. It is this" in your face depiction of what ails us as a society, contrasting with almost restrained sobriety about the world around her.
Bobbi is a Jazz musician/singer, part -time art instructor, a new grandmother. She is married to an Anthropology/Architectural  professor and keen to make a contribution through her art. In this exhibit she has the seeds of many future exhibits. Go get 'em Bobbi. For my part I would like to write another piece on your art and next time it shall be at the beginning of the show.
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Naughty Bits at the Francis Morisson

The event came to my attention on the 14th, Valentines day, although it took place on the 15th , day after the love day is celebrated.  I was amused and sure enough joined the audience at 7 pm sharp with  my camera ready. The line up for the readings included Leonard Cohen, Yann Martel, Yeats, Margaret Atwood and others whom I did not remember or know.

The Four Actors were Yvette Nolan, currently the Writer in Residence at the Francis Morrison, Rob Roy, Arron Naytowhow and Sharon Bakker. All Four made this a memorable evening for me.

All Four read from the Play "The Real Thing" by Tom Stoppard. The scene involved two lovers married to other's spouse, playing a word game of sexual tension. Annie played by Yvette Nolan was enchanting ..depicting, energy,intellect and open pursuit of her desire.

Rob Roy in a voice, that carries, is intimate and groans with sexual angst, read from  Leonard Cohen's Spice Box. I was transported back...way back when I listened to and read  Cohen with and without friends or lovers.One of my favorites of Cohen:

"I perceived the outline of your breasts
through your Hallowe'en costume
I knew you were falling in love with me
because no other man could perceive
the advance of your bosom into his imagination
It was a rupture of your unusual modesty
for me and me alone
through which you impressed upon my shapeless hunger
the incomparable and final outline of your breasts
like two deep fossil shells"

Leonard Cohen from the  Energy of slaves

Rob and Arron read from Bent by Martin Sherman, a play about Nazi persecution. The reading scene involved a charged dialogue between two lovers in a concentration camp, when Horst and Max share their love through words." death comes alive and passes on when we love"




The Specially Naughty bits were:

Yvette Nolan
Leda and the Swan by W B Yeats read by Yvette Nolan:

Sharon Bakker
My last Erotic poem by lorna Crozier...read by Sharon Bakker

AND Rob Roy with knitted brows, hand gestures and a vocal variety reading Yann Martel's  descriptive anatomical monologue from "Self" as no Kama Sutra could. 
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Jan Norris Seated on the Earth at STM Saskatoon

 So it was at the Thomas More Gallery on 8th January on an unusually warm  and sunny day that I learned about the depth of Jan Norris's art and its connection to Zen Buddhism. Now the title of the show made a huge sense.

Right after graduating with a Philosophy degree, Jan Norris, at age 25 became a Zen Buddhist and moved to Los Angeles Zen Centre. At the New york zen Community centre she met her husband, reared two children, became active in environmental issues facing the globe, ran a bake shop, publishing place, earned a degree in fine arts and learned to paint.

 She still spends time in the Zen ashrams.  In 2009 she went to live at the Buddhist Monastery in France. Later part of that stay, she spent four days  in Paris at Musée d'Orsay

The Zen Influence

The Exhibit is curated by Linda Stark, of the STM gallery.




Gazing at the flowers
of the morning glory
I eat my breakfast. --Basho

Zen is coming face to face with oneself in a direct way though the practice of zen zen (Meditation)

It abandons true to life perspective, and works with artificial space relations which make one think beyond reality into the essence of reality. This concept of essence as opposed to illusion is basic to Zen art in all phases

She has also been an active environmentalist for decades, working with the Saskatchewan Environmental Society and the Sierra Club of Canada. Jan Norris' car free blog is a very interesting read.

Seated on the Earth by Jan Norris  will be on show at the STM until March 3rd, 2012.

Bevin Bradley one on one

I think that writing about art for an audience is risky, unless one takes the view that everything that one says in an article like this, has to be relevant, truthful and honest.  So, the issue for me is ,- for my reaction to the art to be honestly related to an audience, that I constantly remember the rule: do not impress just reveal.
So with that out of the way, First thing I can unreservedly say about Bevin Bradley 's paintings is that they engage you directly and honestly. As such it is easier for me to write about Bevin's stuff.  Oh I still need to spend time in thinking, researching, learning... but it is easier because  I am impacted at the visceral level.
The very first time I looked at Bevin's paintings was in 2007, at the Francis Morrison Gallery, I bought/ acquired a piece. Not my first choice, but most of the other paintings had been spoken for.

 Painting Balloons upside down

Question:  What does art mean to you?

Bevin: "Creating something out of nothing, something, taking risks, looking for a different perspective."
after a pause...".I enjoy the process...of building contrasts and compliments to life."

Question: Being a mother...has it changed the way you look at or do art?

Bevin:," Can't just paint, have to schedule time for it...I am fascinated the way my daughter(Riel) paints and draws. She recently drew balloons upside down. I was amazed. Children's creativity is ....the other day she described the snow falling"...
"Mummy look at the feather on my shoe"

Question: Who is your Favourite artist?

Bevin:, " Gustav Klimt... no no it is Louise Nevelson"

Quote

"Now that's true, I have called my shots on Earth. I have had a blueprint on my life and that's why I am positive about it. Now you can see that I'm a bit shy and I can get hurt by dropping a handkerchief - I can croak or something - but where my creation is, I am totally one piece."
Louise Nevelson

Outback

Acrylic and Varnish on Canvas

Bevin Bradley-2011

The collage of hand writings and other items is not left as is..it is transformed into two dimensional painting. Everything is evolving before your eyes. It is in the present. The architectural shapes move and meld intuitively into each other and draw the viewer to look behind. The process of art making becomes the composition. It is authentic.

More of Bevin's work is on exhibit at the Stall gallery , which she owns and operaqtes with  Roberta Ross (Parner and Artist)