Perishable Goods

Janet Strayer, a friend and past member of the Art Institute, Printmaking at Capilano College (later University) has a large solo exhibition of her paintings, etchings, and mixed media works on display at the Enigma Restaurant in Vancouver during March-April (and possibly extending until June 15). I was very sorry to miss her opening that she so delightfully called “an art-warming event”, held this past Tuesday evening while we were traveling home from our little holiday.

Janet has kindly allowed me to post a few images of some of the work in her show. (Copyright is hers) Please visit her brand-new website to view more.

Grief & Enigma

She says, My artwork has in the past accompanied my career as a university professor and psychology researcher, writer and consultant — somewhat in the way an incorrigibly curious, energetic, and adventuresome younger child accompanies a grown-up. Now, my artwork and explorations into art have themselves become a vital sustaining force that seeks to be known on its own terms. My workplace, Insights Studio on Saturna Island, is a magical place for inspiration and dedication to a process of artmaking that integrates imagination and observed realities. My artwork is both introspective and expansive. It explores the strange and human, adores color, and plays with form, line, memory and visual poetics. I hope that it also communicates the wonder and range of feeling that comes with being human and alive in a living world.

Checkered Frame

To me, much of Janet’s work has captured the magic, the mystery and that little quiver of something a bit scary that exists in the world of fairy tales. I asked her about this and she replied:

For some of my work, I deliberately roam into “the deepest, darkest, part of the forest” (as is a major motif in fairy tales) and I usually trust in something (strange little creatures: things not being what they seem) to see me safely through. In this sense, much of my work has a fairy-tale/mythic motif. But in only some of the work (Hansel & Gretel, for example) do I actually “think” of fairy-tales in any “whimsical” way. I would hope that the body of the work suggests more than fairytale or mythic themes — I am very interested in psychology and psychological development, as you know, and in being human and what that individually means. But, as you noted, this is certainly one stream that runs through it.

The Enigma Restaurant is at 4397 10th Avenue at Trimble, Vancouver. Open from 11am to 1am. Janet says this is a very cordial restaurant and bar, that serves both good cuisine and drinks at moderate prices, and it is hosted in a very personal manner by a lovely family from South Africa.

Update: Went to see it on March 11th – looking good!

Wayne Eastcott: Generation #3 1983 silkscreen

As I wrote earlier, October is a busy month for art shows here!
The Lookout Gallery, Regent College is presenting “Wayne Eastcott: Selected Works” – a survey of his printworks from 1965 to 2002.

Eastcott uses diverse mediums including riveted aluminum, silkscreening, etching and lithograph to invoke feelings of both calm and chaos as he exemplifies the dialogue between nature, humankind and technology. “I have always been intrigued by the various systems that make up the created universe as well as the relationship between chance, order, structure and randomness”, says Eastcott as he discusses his work. This exhibit covers 40 years of Eastcott’s work in printmaking and provides powerful, innovative examples of why he is recognized as one of Canada’s foremost printmakers.

This exhibition has been travelling for two years, beginning at Seymour Art Gallery, North Vancouver, and touring southern BC galleries, and has now returned to Vancouver. Selections from 50 pieces were made by the curators at each gallery to fit their space, such as at Grand Forks Art Gallery and Kootenay Gallery of Art.

The exhibition opening is on Wed. Oct.13, 2004 4:30-7:30 and runs to November 6th, 2004. The Lookout Gallery in Regent College is on the UBC campus at 5800 University Blvd., Vancouver, B.C. Hours: Monday – Friday: 8:30 am – 5:00 pm Saturday: 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm. Everyone welcome!

In case you missed it, please see my recent article about Wayne’s collaboration with a visiting artist, with some more links to visit.

As part of an occasional series about the printmaking studio that I am happily associated with at Capilano College**, I will be posting about exhibitions that members are involved in.

Robert Jackson is a new artist member this fall. He brings with him an extensive background in digital art work on a variety of media. He is currently participating in a group show, “Writing on the Wall” – a mixed media art exhibition featuring work that incorporates text, symbols, images or a combination of these elements to convey a message.

This is at CityScape Community Art Space, 335 Lonsdale Avenue in North Vancouver, BC, until October 10th, 2004. Hours: Wed-Sat.12-5, Sunday 1-4.

UPDATE: Sept.30.04 Today I was at Opus Framing & Art Supplies on Lonsdale, picking up a frame I’d ordered, so afterwards I walked two blocks up the hill to CityScape to see this show. I was pleased to see Robert’s two digital/mixed media pieces and an acrylic on canvas by Margaret Witzsche, a friend and past Institute member. Other memorable works for me were those by Sharon Christian and Shakun Jhangiani.

** Since this was written, Capilano College has been designated Capilano University.