Greater than the sum of the parts…

Migration with Day Tripper and Night Dance in the background

 The
SHIFT exhibition opening was a wonderful night! The show was very well
attended by an enthusiastic audience.  To open the show, only Barbra Edwards’s dramatic paintings were in the exhibition space.

Beautiful World and Form Speaks to Form both 54 x 48″ oil / wax on panel

Grey Rhythm 48 x 72″ oil on canvas with  Confluence in foreground

 
My pieces came out individually on models, bringing each piece to life
with movement…living sculpture. After each model walked though the
gathered crowd, she took her position in the exhibition, as the pieces
would be displayed for the duration of the show.  Then everyone had the
opportunity to move into the exhibition space to interact with and view
in detail the paintings and felt pieces.  It was a fantastic evening!

 
Barbra and I worked separately on our pieces through the spring/early
summer and only shared hints of our directions in our work. We had never
met before being paired for this exhibition and only met twice
throughout the process, each working in our separate studios, on our
separate islands. In our occasional conversations though, the most
amazing relationships in our work began to become apparent, as well as 
commonalities in life experiences.  Barbra’s palette is bold, but always
has an earthy base. My use of plant dyes is the same. This guaranteed
some cohesion in our exhibition. But the degree of cohesion could not
have been foretold or expected to be as amazing as it is here.

L to R SHIFT #3 with Rift Creature Love (48 x 60″ oil on canvas) with Stratum in foreground Day Tripper 60 x 43″ mixed media with oil

Rift with SHIFT #1 (diptych)16 x 32″  oil/with wax

 
What was the most remarkable surprise and continues to give me such
great pleasure is just how strong and beautiful the relationships our
pieces have with one another.  Each of Barbra’s pieces has a unique
connection with one of mine, through form, line and colour. 

Beautiful World 54 x 48″ oil /wax on panel with Hegira (right)

 Great
and insightful reviews in the newspaper today, and two of my pieces
sold!  I feel very fortunate to have had this opportunity to get to know
Barbra and her work. And to the Salt Spring Arts Council for pairing us
in this exhibition.  I’ll be etching out some quiet moments at the
gallery over the next week to soak up the relationship of these pieces. Together, greater than the sum of the parts…

You can read our artists statements here.

And see more of Barbra’s work here.

Warm wishes,
Fiona