Visual arts & new media

This week’s Work of the Week is the appropriately named Heat by Eva Fuller, as it’s been a hot hot week in Alberta with heat warnings in place for large swaths of the province.

About the Artist: Eva Heller (from the artist’s website)

Back in Poland, Eva Heller received extensive formal education in fine arts first, through a five-year Fine Arts High School, and then six years in an Academy of Fine Arts. She graduated with Masters of Fine Arts with diplomas in both painting and artistic weaving. The variety of her artworks predominantly represent the artist’s deep concern about Nature and her strong interest in animals.
 

Heller has worked with many different painting techniques, painting on paper, board and canvas with ink, pastels and acrylics. Initially, she was committed to artistic weaving, but then switched to painting and drawing. In recent years, Heller has almost exclusively painted in acrylics.

Her art has been shown in a number of galleries and can be found in both public and private collections in Canada and abroad.

In October 2017, Heller moved from Alberta to Hope, BC, where she now lives and works in her studio in the Lake Kawkawa area.

On Monday, October 30, the AFA installed Peter Hide's Squashed Freemason sculpture in its new location outside the Misericordia Hospital's revamped emergency department in Edmonton. Artist Peter Hide was on-site to assist with the installation and made some time for the AFA to ask him few questions about the artwork and his career.
 

The AFA has acquired several of Peter Hide's artworks for its Art Collection, some of which are displayed publicly. View all of Peter Hide's artworks in the AFA Art Collection.

A Q&A with Peter Hide

Q: As an artist you want as many people as possible to engage with your work. How would you describe what it's like to have your artwork available to so many people?

A: You like it because lots of people can see it. Maybe it will stay there for ages and ages. These days things don't always last but the AFA has quite a few of my sculptures all over the place and I'm very grateful for that.

Q: The artwork that was just reinstalled at the Misericordia Hospital was started in 1983. Would you say your artwork has been able to stand the test of time?

A: Yes. That artwork has been in several different places. I think at one point it was in a private collection back in 1986.

Q: How much does the artwork weigh?

A: One ton. Roughly one ton.

Q: Is it difficult for you to part with an artwork after spending so much time working on it?

A: Not really. Do I treat them like children and I don't want to let them go? No, not really. I like it if it goes to someone. So, no I like when they go. I mean, I quite like having them and if they are around I tend to keep working on them, refining them. So, in a way, I'm a bit of a slow worker but I have made quite a few sculptures.

Q: How many would you say you've made?

A: Four or five hundered. My teacher and mentor Anthony Caro was much more famous than I. I think he's made about 8,000. He works in a different way. He works with quite a lot of technicians but he's quite a great sculptor.

Q: Can you describe what it was like the first time one of your sculptures was selected for public display?

A: The first one that was on public display was when I was student at St. Martins in London. It was in an art gallery but it was also a chemist shop I think. It was in Chelsea though and it sold for 33 pounds that was in 1966. It was great. I thought maybe just maybe I might make it.

Q: Are you currently working on anything?

A: I'm working on tons. I have two warehouses and they're both full. You know, art is difficult: it's open to fashion. When I was 25, I was very well known in England and I sold quite a lot of sculptures there but it passed. That's why I came over the pond. Then it all happened all over again.

Q: Your artwork is part of the AFA Art Collection. Can you describe what that means to you as an artist?

A: I'm very pleased about that. They've really looked after the work. I think they've been very good for me.

Q: Do you have any advice for artists when it comes to large scale sculptures?

A: I think people have to find their own way. When I was an art student, I followed Anthony Caro and he made large spreading sculptures, so I tried to make that as a student. My problem was trying to find out how small I could go. Making sculptures as large as a room didn't suit me very well. Caro would stretch things out. He would stretch sculptures and I wanted to compress the sculpture. I was more traditional in a sense, more like I was a wood carver to start. I had a carver's idea about sculpture.

Q: You've been working as an artist for a long time, can you describe one of your favorite moments as an artist living in Alberta?

A: Oh, that's hard. That's a difficult one you know. I think the first public thing I had was in the Edmonton Art Gallery (now the Art Gallery of Alberta) as it was in those days. I had an exhibition there after I had been here for nine months. That was very pleasing and I thought that I might want to stay here. Everything was new. In New York and London things had moved on and in Edmonton it was fresh. There were many good artists and there was quite a range of people creating. Painting and making sculptures.

Q: You did a bit of maintanence on Squashed Freemason before the re-installation, what was it like to work on it again?

A: It was quite interesting. It's changed. It's been outside for many years and I liked that it got more and more rust on it and it looked like a big monument that was made out of stone or granite. It feels like a monolith.

Q: The artwork has been installed at the Misericordia for a number of years. Now it has been moved in front of the new emergency room. So, something old will be part of something new. What are your thoughts on this?

A: It will get a lot of traffic where it is now. Before it was a bit tucked away. A lot of people will get to see it and I like the idea of that.

Q: What was it like to be part of the installation?

A: It was cold! 

To acknowledge both Indigenous Veterans Day (November 8) and Remembrance Day (November 11), the AFA has selected Thomas Wong’s Poppy #1 for the Work of the Week.

Please note that our offices are closed on November 13.

^{click the arrow icons ( < or > ) above to scroll through images}
 

Women's History Month
 

October is Women's History Month: a time to celebrate the achievements of the women and girls from our past and present. We encourage Albertans to celebrate women in the arts by engaging with local organizations and artists.

To celebrate this month, we are pleased to highlight three current Alberta-based exhibitions curated by women, and featuring a few artworks from the AFA's very own collection. 

Red Deer Museum + Art Gallery - Shirley Rimer: A Chronicle in Clay 
Curated by Mary-Beth Laviolette
On now until December 2, 2023

^{Installation view of Shirley Rimer: A Chronicle in Clay.
Images provided by Red Deer Museum + Art Gallery.}

About the exhibition

A longtime Red Deer resident, Rimer is one reason why the city shines as a centre for ceramic art. A Red Deer College (Polytechnic) graduate, as an instructor, curator and cultural community builder, Rimer’s own artistic accomplishments are the highlight of this special exhibition of ceramic sculpture.

Featuring over 30 artworks made in the past 40 years, a chronicle about their making and Rimer’s personal discovery of clay traditions in other countries: Greece, Turkey, Mexico, India, France, Italy, China and America. They are about handbuilding in clay, reinterpreting the vessel, communicating with colour and reflecting on subjects like family, culture and heritage here in Alberta and abroad.

This exhibition features four Shirley Rimer artworks from the AFA Art Collection:

• Body Language
• Village Life
• Red Fish
• Purple Flowers

Calgary - Nickle Galleries - The Art of Faye HeavyShield
Curated by Felicia Gay
On now until December 9, 2023

^{Photo credit: Andy Nichols, LCR PhotoServices., courtesy of the MacKenzie Art Gallery.}

^{Red Dress, 2008, nylon, cotton, metal and paper tags, glass beads.
Collection of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts
The Art of Faye HeavyShield, organized and circulated by the MacKenzie Art Gallery.
Financed by the Government of Canada. Curated by Felicia Gay.}

About the exhibition

The Art of Faye HeavyShield will present work that spans forty years of her practice. The exhibition situates HeavyShield as a major contributor to contemporary Indigenous art through her creation of a new aesthetic vocabulary. While bearing a resemblance to conceptual installation, her work is rooted in the deep art history of the Canadian prairies and in personal/communal experience.

This exhibition features Faye HeavyShield's artwork Red Dress, which is from the AFA Art Collection. 

Edmonton - Art Gallery of Alberta - Second Skin 
Curated by Lindsey Sharman and Danielle Siemens
On now until December 31, 2023 

^{Photography by Charles Cousins, courtesy of the Art Gallery of Alberta}

^{Left: Caitlin Thompson, Rhizome (Hot Gossip), 2017, Fabric, thread, fake nails, decoy eyes, rhinestones, tassels, cording, buttons, plastic, paint, Velcro. Collection of Alberta Foundation for the Arts. Installation view of Second Skin, Art Gallery of Alberta, 2023.
Right: Pamela Norrish, Outfit for the Afterlife, 2015. Glass beads, nylon thread. Collection of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts. Installation view of Second Skin, Art Gallery of Alberta, 2023}

About the exhibition

The works in this exhibition trace the boundaries of the body and reference garments and adornment in many forms. These literal and symbolic objects of attire allow their ‘wearer’ to explore a myriad of issues including identity and representation, objectification and empowerment, mythology and history, imagined futures and the afterlife. 

This exhibition features two artworks from the AFA Art Collection: 

• Outfit for the Afterlife - Pamela Noorish
• Rhizome (Hot Gossip) - Caitlin Thompson

Pendulum intends to show a personal story about healing by using intuitive and symbolic language, which can be interpreted in many different ways by different viewers, depending on how they relate to it.

Oksana Movchan's goal is to create an environment that resonates with viewers in ways that help them to open up and look deeper inside. Her aim for the artwork is to be a guide and facilitator for the process of healing. Art has a way of inspiring people to explore their real but perhaps unknown ability to build or change their own future. 

Did you know? Alberta is home to more than 345,000 people of Ukrainian descent. Ukrainian Albertans have contributed immensely to our province’s communities and culture.
 

Hundreds of thousands of Albertans of Ukrainian origin help build and enrich our province. Ukrainian art can be one thing to help bring us together and lift our spirits during this challenging time.
 

About the artist

Oksana Movchan studied in Kyiv, Ukraine and obtained a bachelors, masters and doctorate. Throughout her career, she has been working in various fields and medias including printmaking, painting, public art and as a glass artist.

Her artwork investigates personal memory, metaphor, cultural iconography and history through poetic narrative and abstract storytelling. Her artwork has exhibited nationally and internationally in various public and private collections, including the AFA Art Collection.

Art Acquisitions by Application

Pendulum was acquired by the AFA through the Art Acquisitions by Application program.

The next deadline is April 1! Check out the guidelines if you’re interested in submitting your artwork to have it be considered for acquisition to the AFA Art Collection.

Image description

The abstract artwork displays numerous hair-like coils woven in different geometric shapes around a black and grey pendulum in the centre of the image with a grey ball swinging side to side. The coils are twisted together on either side of the pendulum in different shades of grey, silver, brown and gold.

Today is International Beer Day, and so this week's Work of the Week is Beer Parlour by Marion Nicoll!

Beer is one of the oldest and most widely consumed alcoholic beverages in the world and the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea! 
 

About the Artist: Marion Nicoll (1909-1985)

Marion Nicoll was born in Calgary, Alberta, on April 11, 1909.

Nicoll initially studied at the Ontario College of Art; however, she returned to Calgary after two years of studies and graduated from the Provincial Institute of Technology and Art (now the Alberta University of the Arts). At the Institute, Nicoll flourished under the tutelage of A. C. Leighton, who taught her to trust her intuition about tone and colour. In 1931, A. C. Leighton insisted Nicoll should become an instructor at the Alberta College of Art. Nicoll taught at the College, from 1931 to 1965, with occasional sabbaticals. Nicoll was also involved in teaching summer classes in Seebe, Alberta, which was the catalyst for the Banff School of Fine Arts (today The Banff Centre).

Nicoll married engineer and artist, Jim Nicoll in 1940. During WWII, as an engineer for the Royal Canadian Air Force, Jim travelled around Western Canada to supervise the building of air bases, and Marion moved around with him. From the 1930’s through the 1950’s, she produced a plethora of watercolour and oil paintings.

In 1946, Jock MacDonald encouraged her to start producing automatic drawings, which ultimately lead her to start creating abstract work. Later in her career, Nicoll also experimented with many different printmaking techniques, such as woodblock and clay prints. A Canadian Council grant allowed Marion, and her husband, to study at the Art Students Leaque, in New York, under the coaching of Will Barnet.

Nicoll was highly influential in the creation of the art scene in Alberta, and the Alberta College of Art named a gallery, the Marion Nicoll Gallery, in her honour. Nicoll was a member of the Alberta Society of Artists, the Canadian Society of Drawing and Printmaking, and the Royal Canadian Academy of the Arts.

See more of Marion Nicoll's artwork in the AFA collection. 

This week's Work of the Week is Crowsnest Mountain and the Seven Sisters by Joane Cardinal-Schubert.
 

Crowsnest Mountain and the Seven Sisters are iconic peaks in the southern Rocky Mountains. Crowsnest Mountain can be seen from Highway 3 west of the town of Coleman, with the Seven Sisters to its north. Together they form an isolated klippe, a geological feature that is formed through erosion. Other examples of klippes are Chief Mountain in Montana (which can be easily seen from southern Alberta); Mount Yamnuska in Kananaskis Country; and the Rock of Gibraltor, located off the coast of Spain.  

About the Artist: Joane Cardinal-Schubert (1942-2009)

Through her art and life, Joane Cardinal-Schubert honoured her identity as Kainai (Blackfoot), demonstrating her values of representing the Indigenous experience and history. She was a multi-media, visual, and installation artist, a writer, lecturer, free-lance curator and director of film and theatre. Her writing has been published nationally and internationally in art magazines, catalogues and books and she has also served as an editor of Fuse magazine.

Cardinal-Schubert completed her Bachelor of Fine Arts with a double major in painting and printmaking in 1977 at the University of Calgary. She also earned a certificate from the Alberta College of Art and Design in Calgary, and in 1983, received her certificate in Management Development for Arts Administration from the Banff Centre. Cardinal-Schubert served as Assistant Curator at the Nickle Arts Museum at the University of Calgary for six years.

Joane Cardinal-Schubert received many awards, scholarships, and Canada Council grants for her work. In 1985, she became the fourth Albertan woman to be inducted into the Royal Canadian Academy. She was also awarded the Commemorative Medal of Canada in 1993 for her contribution to the Arts, and in 2007 was awarded a National Aboriginal Achievement Award. She was an advocate for Native artists and inspired and enabled Native artists to challenge and reclaim their creative identities. Her work explores themes of identity and spirituality, and critically examines Euro-American religious and governmental systems.

In 2018, the AFA established the Dr. Joane Cardinal-Schubert Fellowship for Indigenous Curators. This one-time fellowship was designed to support the growth and development of curatorial talent and enhance representation of Indigenous artists in the AFA collection by providing up to $30,000 to contract an individual or an ensemble of individuals to develop a curatorial research project. Becca Taylor was the recipient of the fellowship.  She provided recommendations for acquisitions, which supported the acquisition of 23 artworks in 2019-20 by four Indigenous emerging artists: Kablusiak, Jessie Ray Short, Jewel Shaw and Lauren Crazybull. 

See all Indigenous artworks in the AFA Collection.