The MacKenzie Art Gallery was pleased to host, as part of the weekend opening events for Victor Cicansky: The Gardener’s Universe, a panel discussion on Regina artist Victor Cicansky. Cicansky’s artistic universe is firmly rooted in place and in his garden. For over fifty years, ideas for sculptures in ceramics and bronze have grown out of his intimate relationship with gardens, plants and trees. His approach embraces both the immigrant knowledge of his Romanian-Canadian family and more contemporary concerns around urban ecology and environmental sustainability. Rooted in local realities, his work speaks to the wider world of the joys and trials of supporting life in an urban prairie space. Each panelist was invited to present a 15 minute version of their essay to be included in the forthcoming exhibition catalogue. The presentations cover Cicansky’s early days as a student of Jack Sures (University of Saskatchewan, Regina Campus) and Robert Arneson (University of California, Davis), his Funk and Nut-inspired sculptural ceramics, his monumental ceramic murals, his later bronze furniture and his garden. The panel presentations are now available on the gallery’s YouTube channel. Below is the order of the presentations.
VICTOR CICANSKY AND THE GARDENER’S UNIVERSE: A PANEL DISCUSSION
Saturday, June 8, 2019 – 1:00–3:30 pm
Shumiatcher Theatre, MacKenzie Art Gallery, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada
Welcome – John Hampton, Director of Programs, MacKenzie Art Gallery
Introduction – Timothy Long and Julia Krueger
PART 1 – “Entering the Garden Universe”
An exploration of how Victor Cicansky’s garden imagery engages art, history, community, and environment.
Trevor Herriot – Writer, Regina
“This Garden Universe”
Timothy Long – Head Curator, MacKenzie Art Gallery
“The Whole Earth Romanian Icon”
RESPONSE – a conversation with Victor Cicansky, Trevor Herriot and Timothy Long + questions from the audience
PART 2 – “Troubling Paradise”
An appraisal of how Victor Cicansky has challenged and expanded the definitions of “folk,” “craft,” and “prairie” through his murals, furniture and sculpture.
Susan Surette – Art Historian, Concordia University, Montreal
“Victor Cicansky’s Fine Folk”
Julia Krueger – Craft Historian, University of Western Ontario, London
“Radioactive Fossils and Virtual Gardens: Victor Cicansky’s Craft Redux”
Alison Calder – Poet and Professor, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg
“Victor Cicansky’s Post-Prairie Imaginings”
RESPONSE – a conversation with Victor Cicansky, Susan Surette, Julia Krueger and Alison Calder + questions from the audience
The artistic universe of Regina artist Victor Cicansky is firmly rooted in his garden. For over fifty years, ideas for sculptures in ceramics and bronze have grown out of his intimate relationship with the plants and trees of his back yard. His approach embraces both the immigrant knowledge of his Romanian-Canadian family and more contemporary concerns around urban ecology and environmental sustainability. Rooted in local realities, his work speaks to the wider world of the joys and trials of supporting life in an urban prairie space.
This retrospective exhibition brings together over 100 ceramic and bronze works that present a richly layered picture of Cicansky’s career. Drawn from 39 public and private collections in Canada and the United States, the selections embody the energy of Cicansky’s varied production. Challenging craft expectations of pottery and furniture, Cicansky engages the language of making to celebrate “hand smarts,” as his blacksmith father called them. From the iconoclastic experimentation of his student days in California, to the recognition of his prairie immigrant roots, to his celebration of shovel to plate gardening — Cicansky has unearthed a politics of place using humour, play, and provocation.
The work of Victor Cicansky asserts that history and locality are vital sources for healthy creative expression, just as gardens are essential for the health of our bodies and the planet. This exhibition celebrates a “garden universe” — as Regina writer Trevor Herriot calls it — and marks Cicansky’s lasting contributions to Canadian art and craft history.
Timothy Long, Head Curator, MacKenzie Art Gallery
Julia Krueger, Curator and Craft Historian, Calgary
Victor Cicansky, C.M. Regina, Saskatchewan Member of the Order of Canada
Known for his familiar imagery and often humorous sculptures in clay and bronze, Victor Cicansky is one of Western Canada’s most celebrated artists. His distinctive work, which pays homage to Saskatchewan’s agricultural heritage and daily life, has been exhibited in art galleries across Canada and abroad. He has been an ardent defender and promoter of his fellow artists, and has lent his support and expertise to various arts boards and galleries, notably the Mackenzie Art Gallery and the Susan Whitney Gallery in Regina. A teacher and mentor, he has helped to perpetuate his craft by inspiring generations of young artists.
Take my Illustrative Pottery Workshop with the Ceramics School
