Thanks for Bringing the Light?

Clinton Work, limited edition print, Thanks?, $100.00 CAD

Raven Bringing Light to the World is a familiar creation myth in many Native cultures and its story is often recaptured in different interpretations. Kwakwaka'wakw artist Clinton Work has chosen to see the story in both a positive and negative light in his first limited edition print titled Thanks?. The fractured image depicts the exact moment that Raven brought light to the world, showing the momentary transition from darkness to lightness. The formline switches from positive to negative, contrasting this change.

This piece shows how this transformation was a balance of positive and negative effects, stimulating thought about light and dark, about vanity and innocence. While light has the obvious advantage of allowing people to see their surroundings, its introduction has also caused differences of opinion on what is beautiful and what is not. Before there was light, in darkness everything was the same therefore there was no need to define things as beautiful or not; with light, now only some things are beautiful while others are not, and they are all exposed to judgment. People were able to see who had more, and who had less. Clinton has cleverly chosen the title, Thanks? to show his interpretation of the creation of light - thanks to Raven.

Teaser #4...Medium: Painting on Canvas

Take a look-see at our last teaser - Abstract by Clint Work before the online preview on Monday, June 11^th. Be sure to check out all the pieces. We are very excited about the show. Please join us at the opening reception Saturday, June 16^th from 5 to 8pm.

Here's a recap if you missed the earlier postings:
Teaser #3
Teaser #2
Teaser #1

Medium: Painting on Canvas is a group exhibition featuring new works by various artists. All the pieces were created for the show as paintings on canvas are not often promoted within the Northwest Coast Native art market which makes this an exciting opportunity for artists to explore and showcase their work in this medium.

A Teaser....Upcoming show, Medium: Painting on Canvas

In the following weeks leading up to our summer show, Medium: Painting on Canvas, we will be featuring snippets of various pieces; some images will even document the early stages of a painting. This will be a great way to catch an insider’s view – a rare glimpse of the artist’s work-in-progress. Please check back with us as we will be updating a new teaser each week. This week’s sneak peek is a piece by Kwakwaka’wakw artist Rande Cook titled Oh My God. 

Medium: Painting on Canvas is a group exhibition featuring new works by various artists. All the pieces were created for the show as paintings on canvas are not often promoted within the Northwest Coast Native art market which makes this an exciting opportunity for artists to explore and showcase their work in this medium. We invite you to attend the opening on the evening of June 16^th from 5 to 8pm to see these exciting new works. An online preview will be available on June 11^th. Show ends July 15^th.

Sonny Assu Nominated for Sobey Art Award

The Sobey Art Award is Canada's principal contemporary art award and was created in 2002 by the Sobey Art Foundation. Since its inception, the award and its accompanying exhibition have been organized and administered by the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia. This year, 2012, marks the Award's 10th Anniversary in recognizing and celebrating young, unique contemporary artists within Canada.

The Sobey Art Award distributes $70,000 annually to the winners; a prize amount of $50,000 is awarded to a young contemporary artist, with an additional $5,000 going to each of the remaining four finalists. Five artists from each Canadian region are nominated and a winner from each region is chosen before the final winner is named in the fall. 

This year, Kwakwaka'wakw artist Sonny Assu has been nominated, among 24 other contemporary artists. Assu's work challenges the perception of Northwest Coast Art and its rigid boundaries by combining traditional materials with Western consumer culture aesthetics. Through his work, he strives to bring to attention both the hidden and the ongoing cultural violence that Canada has toward its Aboriginal people. Assu has been exhibited across Canada in both public and private collections and is included in the National Art Gallery of Canada, Toronto; the Museum of Anthropology,Vancouver; and the Seattle Art Museum, Washington. Most recently, his series of 67 painted elk-hide drums - representing each year of the potlatch ban -  along with 136 copper records - one for each year of the Indian Act - have been featured at the Vancouver Art Gallery in the current exhibit Beat Nation. 

Image: Sonny Assu, Silenced Installation, Cedar blocks and acrylic on elk-hide drums, Dimensions variable, 2011. Photo credit: Equinox Gallery.

New Steve Smith Hand-Painted Wood Jewellery

For everyone who has been wondering what Kwakwaka'wakw artist Steve Smith has been up to lately, we have his new, stylish wood jewellery for you to check out. Steve and his wife, Jenny, have cleverly combined small pieces of red and yellow cedar with fine silver and transformed them into a creative array of pendants, earrings and rings.

Evoking Steve's whimsical style found in his extensive body of work, this new line of jewellery ranges in price from $220.00 - $300.00 CAD and can be found on display here at the gallery.