Organized by Nickle Galleries, curated by Michele Hardy with catalogue essay by Amy Gogarty.
John Chalke’s ‘clay paintings’ are conceptual ceramic works that dance
between sculpture and painting. Inspired by the landscape of
southwestern Alberta no less than its local clay, minerals, textures,
and fissures, Chalke’s works are richly textured. Surface Tension draws
on public and private collections from across Canada to explore the
horses and cows, bottles and broken crockery, aerial views and
archaeology of Chalke’s personal iconography.
“My interest has remained inconveniently multi-faceted in most things ceramic – from its misty prehistory, when only clay and gods mattered, to the subsequent historical offerings from many lands. Food and tea presentation, clay and glaze research, the art of throwing, the art of handbuilding, kilns, riverside shards, emissivity, the smell of old clay, on and on. The straight path to the studio from the house is necessarily most serpentine some days. Some months of the year, though, make it much simpler. When the days grow warmer I work much more outside, where pots dry more quickly. I become a potter and become familiar again with muscle and ache. From November on, when things are freezing solid outside, body activity slows down and more cerebral struggle takes its place. A farmer might go curling during this time. I suppose I go handbuilding. This sequence has been part of my making for well over 30 years. The only thing I can see that has changed is more honing, more reflection, more revisiting old and new places in my mind, and less guilt about the now petty.”
The Makings IV continues
our gallery’s annual focus on ceramics. Once again we offer a wide
variety of sculptural and functional ceramic works from a wide range of
artists from across Alberta and other parts. Our website and gallery
exhibition will be updated throughout the month, so visit us anytime.
Some of the participating artists are: Ed Bamiling, Lisa McGrath, Mindy
Andrews, Bradley Keys, Sarah Pike, Robin Dupont, Les Manning, John
Chalke, Barbara Tipton, Emily Schroeder Willis, Ruth Chambers, Sean
Kunz, Do-Hee Sung, Fran Cuyler, Katrina Chaytor, Reed Weir.
Out and About – the mountain tops are white, we have
brilliant blue skies, and everything is just gorgeous. The clear crisp
air means we hear the Mountain Chickadees, Nuthatches, Blue Jays,
Clark’s Nutcrackers and Ravens more often.
Image: Lisa McGrath, Branching Out, stoneware, decal, hand painted
What if the cyberworld of video games entered the frame of
19th century western landscape painting? Or if Ming Dynasty-style
ceramic vessels fused with the cartoon pop of contemporary
anime? Artists Alex McLeod and Brendan Tang deploy an arsenal of Asian
and Western historical styles, science fiction, popular culture, and new
technologies as they combine ceramics, photography, and projected video
to create mesmerizing fantasy worlds that probe the boundaries between
the real and the virtual.
The heart of this exhibition is a collaborative mixed-media
installation by Tang and McLeod that blends digital projection with
ceramic sculpture. Each artist is also represented by a selection of
independent work. Inspired by video games, Romantic landscape paintings,
and dioramas, McLeod’s surreal environments depicted in large panoramic
photographs exist in their own indeterminate time and space. Brendan
Tang’s colourful and wildly incongruous Manga Ormolu ceramic vessels
fuse Asian and Western historical decorative styles with pop art forms
derived from Japanese anime and manga. Guest curated by Rachel Lafo.
Everyday forms – from furniture and fruit to car engines and
confections – are transformed into poignant allegories of desire,
labour, and leisure by these two virtuoso ceramic sculptors.
Beyond the Vessel’s Edge: Ceramics from the Permanent Collection
The functional gives way to the sculptural in this collection
of ceramics by artists John Chalke, Tam Irving, Ian Johnston, Sally
Michener, Alwyn O’Brien, Linda Stanbridge, and Diana Lynn Thompson.
Surrey Art Gallery is located in the Surrey Arts Centre
13750 – 88 Avenue
Surrey, BC Canada V3W 3L1
1 block east of King George Blvd, in Bear Creek Park
NovemberJoin us on Saturday November 5 Reception for Barbara Tipton and The Makings II, 2-5 pm Andrew Nikiforuk book signing 6-7:30 pm Barbara Tipton, Thunderhead Blue, ceramic sculptureA Departure of Cups with Barbara Tipton Tapping our memories, Barbara Tipton returns to familiar themes to investigate fundamental forms and expressions on and of cups and saucers The Makings II – group exhibition The gallery is hosting its second annual group exhibition of contemporary and historic ceramic works by established senior gallery artists, a selection of innovative mid-career, and a number of emerging ceramicists. Ceramic artists included are John Chalke RCA, Bradley Keys, Les Manning, Robin, Dupont, Emily Schroeder Willis, Ed Bamiling, Neil Liske, Sean Kunz, Fran Cuyler, Do-Hee Sung, Priscilla Janes, and more. In addition, historic works by past Royal Canadian Academy artist Luke Lindoe rounds out the exhibition.
Willock & Sax Gallery Open 10 – 6 daily closed for 12-1 for lunch on weekdays 403-762-2214 866-859-2220 [email protected]
110 Bison Courtyard, 211 Bear St. P.O. Box 2469 Banff, AB T1L 1C2
