Wall of Art Gets Sweet!
by Katie Wilde
Need a little (Sweet!)ness in your life? The 5th quarterly installment of Wall of Art showcases some of the amazing talent of Guelph Arts Council members.
Wall of Art is a new exhibition program, developed in 2014 as a partnership between Guelph Arts Council, Guelph Civic Museum, and the City of Guelph’s cultural department in order to provide a regular (quarterly) opportunity to showcase some of the amazing talent represented in Guelph Arts Council's wide membership. Artists apply with an image and information about their work, are selected by a jury, and are paid a small artist fee to exhibit the selected work at a public museum (Guelph Civic Museum).
For the upcoming exhibition, we invited artists to explore all things Sweet! From confectionary to colloquialism, we'll look at the tender, the sugary, and the radically awesome. We are excited to introduce you to the artists and offer a sneak preview of the show.
This funky retro collage "Pop Culture" is by Desiree O, and will be the first piece she shows Guelph. Desiree O is a truly multidisciplinary artist, who works as a writer, musician, visual artist and actor. founder as well as writer/editor and community manager of Canada Arts Connect.
“Can You Tell this Story?” is a mixed media acrylic painting by Frances Hahn. Frances is a partner at Necessary Arts Company, an open studio for creatives in downtown Guelph, and is a sophisticated and subtle painter. She also does amazing work as a designer and textile artist.
“Tangled and Sweet” is a photograph by fibre-artist/photographer Heather Nagel. Her ‘ongoing adventure’ involves taking inspiration from nature and connecting to her subject through photography and artwork made from natural fibres -- often using her photography as a source.
What could be sweeter than the bond between brothers? “Brothers” and “Ice Cream” are two stunning works by Aberfoyle portrait artist Cindy Dochstader. Cindy’s keen portraits convey the powerful bonds and poignant moments found in family life.
Digital images of Margot Jenner’s paper doll portraits don't quite do them justice. These unique pieces are drawn by hand on bristol paper, and coloured with copic markers. The dolls themselves are cutouts, placed on a separately drawn background. “Agatha at Work” is a portrait of Agatha from the Wes Anderson film “The Grand Budapest Hotel”, who makes sweets for a shop called Mendl's.
“Sweet Talking” is yet another beautifully composed image from photographer, songwriter, and self-described “grandfogger” Randy Sutherland. You can see more of his work on his blog, where he posts new and striking photographs almost daily.
This awesome image has an unusual twist. “Artichoke” is not simply a gorgeous photograph, but is printed on latex fabric stretched over a wood frame. Artist Katie Hebert is taking her ongoing series “The Beauty of Nourishment” to a new level with her experimentation with how the photographs are printed. We are very excited to see the result of the new latex fabric method of presentation.
We are very proud to present the work of our talented members at the fifth quarterly Wall of Art: “Sweet!”. The exhibition opens January 12, and will run until April 5. Reception to be held the evening of March's Fourth Friday, the 27th. Admission will be free that night (5:00 - 9:00 p.m.), and the artists (who are lovely, friendly people) will be present. Please come and enjoy refreshments, see the art, and meet the artists! If you can't make the reception, don't worry - the exhibition can be viewed during regular museum hours January 12 through April 5.
