visit Shelley Beach's website here
This collaborative exhibition marks a milestone in the evolution of my artistic practice. Working with poet, Lea Harper, a kindred spirit, is an exciting leap of faith. The synergy between our creative forces propels each of us to new heights. My paintings coupled with Lea’s magical lyrics represent a strong connection to this very special place, Kennisis Lake. Working with fluid, water-based materials provides a means of expressing the magic that I feel here. Living on the lake is a gift, a peaceful sanctuary that lights my spirit. Sharing and expressing the experience is truly a joy.
I continue to be fascinated in finding new ways to capture the complete sense of harmony I feel when close to nature. There is magic for me in working with fluid, water-based mediums, intuitively finding a balance of line, shape and colour. Making and finding connections is a central force of life. This work represents a search for connections as well as an acknowledgement of mystery. Shelley Beach, 2010
Mark Prier, The Lines, hemlock and spruce, 2010
Mark Prier
The Lines
August 7 to September 18, 2010
Rails End Gallery & Arts Centre is located in Haliburton Village’s historic railway station – literally at the end of the line, the terminus of the Victoria Railway. It was built in the heyday of the logging industry and was a lifeline for those who chose to build their lives in the Haliburton Highlands. A number of lines meet or met in Haliburton: the railway, rivers and roads have all contributed to the local industry – from bygone lumber days to the present day tourism industry.
The Lines, a sculpture made from hemlock and spruce 4 x 4s was “partly envisioned as a poetic analogue to the lumber spilling down the lines in Haliburton, logs floating down the rivers to be corralled by booms in the lakes, lumber milled and shipped out, spilling down rail and roadway,” says Peterborough artist Mark Prier. For Prier, working with wood is like drawing, the grain not unlike a line drawn by hand, with a natural wobble and waver to it. With this thought in mind Mark Prier has created a sculpture (The Lines, hemlock and spruce, 2010) that will fill the main gallery, literally with wood, and more than that, with thoughts, memories and mental landmarks for the thousands of visitors that frequent the Rails End.
Rails End Gallery & Arts Centre is a year round public art gallery located in an 1878 railway station that was built to service the logging industry. Sawmills once lined the shores of Head Lake, Haliburton Village being located at the confluence of river and rail. Today Head Lake Park is a popular venue for arts and cultural events including the Haliburton Art & Craft Festival on the fourth weekend of July and Dusk Dances Haliburton. 14,000 gallery-goers visited the Rails End in 2009.
Mark Prier’s work takes the vernacular of survival as its starting point for abstraction, teasing form from sources as diverse as lean-tos, hunting blinds, camping shelters and farm maintenance. Prier’s multi-media work deals with themes of wilderness, mapping and survival. He has exhibited in Canada, Mexico, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Prier is a graduate of the Visual Studies program at the University of Toronto. As half of the electronica duo hellothisisalex, Prier has played the MUTEK Festival in Montreal, done commissions for CBC Radio, and taken part in the National Film Board of Canda’s Minus 40 Project. Prier lives in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada.
This exhibition is presented with support from Parker Pad and Printing Ltd. visit Mark Prier's website
Carl Stewart
warehouse
October 2 to November 20, 2010
Opening Reception Saturday October 2 2-4 pm. Join us as part of your Studio Tour weekend. Also opening on the same day - Tactile Memories. Carl Stewart gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the Ontario Arts Council.<\i>
Tactile Memories
October 2 to October 30, 2010
Opening reception Saturday October 2 2-4 pm.
Textiles from personal collections and their tales. Conceived by local environmental artist and textile educator Wendy E. Bateman and organized by Laurie Jones. Also opening the same day, Carl Stewart: warehouse.
