Ideas of place and texture the driving force behind latest gallery exhibitions
About 100 people filled the Mann Art Gallery Friday night to get a window into a pair of exhibitions opening up.
The official count was 99 people, and several came from out of town to take in the show and learn about the two artists, Paige Mortensen and George Glenn.
For gallery director/curator Jesse Campbell, this is a positive sign about the popularity of work by local artists.
“We’re really grateful whenever someone (comes from out of town), that takes a lot of time and energy,” she said.
“It’s also an indication that there’s an interest in art made in Saskatchewan, and specifically in Prince Albert.”
Campbell was also the curator for this specific show. She used the themes of location and texture to tie the two together.
Mortensen’s show focuses on her unique use of water colour batik to display texture. The technique is similar to that used when painting eggs. Wax is used to prevent paint from adhering to parts of the image, creating layers of colour.
Her show, Portals, examines the exteriors of doors and buildings, and the mystery as to what lies inside.
Glenn’s work also plays with texture, with reused paint, paper, wood and plastic creating three dimensional elements in conjunction with two-dimensional paintings. His works are still life, moments in time captured from within his studio and his home.
When someone walks into the gallery, they come face to face with Portals, Mortensen’s work, a collection of textured doors. Then, as they pass through the doors into the inner gallery, they face Glenn’s introspection, passing through one show into the other. This is the link Campbell set out to achieve.
“The idea of place – whether that’s somewhere that’s a little more intimate or personal to an artist, vs. this outside location that’s a bit broader, there’s definitely a connection there,” she said.
“The other link between the two shows I wanted to draw out is the idea of materiality and texture and of being drawn in by that. I think it’s definitely present in both artists work, but the way it takes shape is so different.”
In much the same way, Mortensen’s artist talk opened to Glenn’s.
For more on this story, please see the May 30 print or e-edition of the Daily Herald.
