Winchester Galleries, with a longtime gallery on Oak Bay Avenue, is now open in downtown Victoria.
“The perfect location came up for us in downtown Victoria,” said gallery president Gunter Heinrich. “We’re excited to be able to expand our offerings and serve our urban clients with this additional space.” The second gallery is at 665 Fort Street and opens with new work from Greg Murdock from June 6 to 24.
Everyone is invited to the opening exhibition and reception from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 10, with Murdock in attendance.
The Winchester Oak Bay gallery presents of Edmonton abstract painter Mitchel Smith and his “Variegated Surfaces” from June 6 to 24.
Gage Gallery in Oak Bay features Margo Cooper June 6 to 24. “We All Get There Eventually” is a collection of acrylic and mixed media paintings which reflect the artist’s observation of some of life’s small but significant moments. We are all moving through life in the same direction – from beginning to end. What determines our individual lives – relationships? The opening reception is June 9 from 5 to 8 p.m.
Xchanges Gallery presents Connie Michele Morey, Sarah Cowan and Diana Weymar Buri.
The opening reception is Friday June 9 from 7 to 9 p.m. The exhibition wraps Sunday, June 25 with an artist talk at 3 p.m.
Xchanges Gallery is at 6E-2333 Government St. Visit xchangesgallery.org for details.
Exhibition openings and special events keep Art Gallery of Greater Victoria hopping this month.
June 10 is another all-day public open house for the new exhibition, “Picturing the Giants: The Changing Landscapes of Emily Carr.” It is also the day to celebrate the launch of an exciting new app celebrating Carr, Activating Emily. The launch takes place from 2 to 4 p.m. at the AGGV. The Activating Emily App is a fun and educational way to experience Carr’s work and stories in new ways. It features ethnobotanist Cheryl Bryce and local artist Judith Price, and is available for free download on itunes.
Also celebrating Picturing the Giants: The Changing Landscapes of Emily Carr is this month’s Family Sunday. On June 18, at 2 p.m., the AGGV is hosting an afternoon of hands-on art-making for the whole family. The cost is included with admission.
Mirror with Memory opens with a free public open house on June 17. The exhibition explores the 75th anniversary of the uprooting, dispossession and exile of 22,000 Japanese Canadians from the coast of this province through the creative lens of the Hayashi/Kitamura/Matsubuchi photo studio which operated in Cumberland BC from 1912 to 1942. The photos in this exhibition capture lives, families, working conditions, friends and history, describing a community that was thriving and hard at work and speak to the vital contributions of Japanese Canadians to British Columbia’s social fabric.
The absolute essence of Emily Carr’s work is the artist’s depiction of her surrounding landscape and the work’s evocation of her love of nature. The Art Gallery of Greater Victoria has turned the kaleidoscope on its Carr collection for another view of the artist’s work, this time making Carr’s interest in environmental issues the focus.
Picturing the Giants: The Changing Landscapes of Emily Carr offers a grouping of works that exhalts the majesty of trees as Carr found them, as well as paintings that depict human interference with their verdant vista.
“At the foundation of the exhibition is the question: ‘What would Carr think of today’s treatment of our forests?'” says AGGV chief curator Michelle Jacques.
In her writings, Carr noted “…second-growth trees, lusty and fine, tall-standing … useless trees that nobody cuts, trees ill-shaped and twisty that stood at the foot of those mighty arrow-straight monarchs long since chewed by steel teeth … chewed into utility, nailed into houses, churches, telephone poles…” as she considered the perceived contradiction between the spiritual nature of trees and how they can be used.
The exhibition features work from the AGGV’s Carr collection as well as four paintings borrowed from other galleries: British Columbia Trees, 1938-1939, Metchosin, c.1935, Wasteland (Logged Leavings), 1939, and Above the Gravel Pit, 1937.
This last work was done when she was camping in her caravan above the gravel pit in Metchosin.
Also at the June 10 opening, between 2 and 4 p.m., the AGGV will launch Activating Emily, an innovative app to augment the experience of Carr’s work. Experiment with colour, experience a full-body response to Carr’s paintings, learn more about her family as you investigate your own, and learn about indigenous plants that surrounded her as she worked. The app features ethnobotanist and Lekwungen leader, Cheryl Bryce, and performance artist Judith Price.
A new AGGV series brings performance art to the streets of Victoria. Making the Invisible Visible: Embodied Explorations of Site and Situation is the title of three works – Tweed Curtain: Making the Invisible Visible is a performance choreographed by Margaret Dragu whichs take place along Oak Bay Avenue and Mitchell Street, June 21, at 5 p.m. (meet in the park behind Oak Bay municipal hall); Macaulay Point: Guns and Glutes is a performance choreographed by Judith Price June 24, at 12:00 p.m. (taking place at the pop-up gun emplacement) and Swan Lake: An Avian Symposium is for the early birds on June 25 at 6 a.m., and is a performance choreographed by Johanna Householder (taking place at the teaching shelter). All events are free and no registration is required.
On June 29, the ‘Behind the Scenes’ Communities and Collections series wraps up with AGGV Curators Michelle Jacques, Haema Sivanesan, and Nicole Stanbridge hosting The Gallery as Authority? a community conversation, admission-by-donation.
June also has a host of exhibition tours with admission, including:
June 4, 2:00 p.m., Moving Forward by Looking Back
June 6, 2:00 p.m., Close to Home with Michelle Jacques
June 11, 2:00 p.m., Picturing the Giants: The Changing Landscapes of Emily Carr
June 18, 2:00 p.m., Picturing the Giants: The Changing Landscapes of Emily Carr
June 24, 2:00 p.m., Karen Tam: With wings like clouds hung from the sky
June 25, 2:00 p.m., Picturing the Giants: The Changing Landscapes of Emily Carr
The Fernwood Art Stroll starts Sunday with artists and artisans to inviting the public into their studios to view their work.
Fernwood embraces a neighborhood of diverse cultures, distinctive architecture and rich history. It is a chance to visit with artists in their homes/studios and check out original paintings, prints, cards, photographs, fashion, pottery and woodworking. The leisurely stroll through the tree lined streets of Fernwood includes the opportunity to enjoy refreshments at our many local coffee shops, bistros and our pub.
Fernwood Art Stroll starts June 11. Free 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Many of the participating studios are open year round by appointment. Find the map at Fernwoodartstroll.ca.
The Robert Bateman Centre hosts the Garry Oak Ecosystems Recovery Team and their exhibit Rooted in History: celebrating the Garry Oak ecosystem to June 25.
The unique beauty of the Garry oak has inspired the imagination of many creative souls; but there is more to this story that needs a stage. In Canada, Garry oak ecosystems exist only on southern Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, and two areas along the Fraser River. Less than five per cent of these ecosystems remain in a near-natural condition; they are in decline, mainly due to habitat loss as a result of land development. The Garry oak ecosystem supports over 100 species of plants and animals all at risk.
The exhibit highlights the beauty and the plight of this endangered environment as seen through the eyes of various artists. Selected artists have created a two-dimensional works inspired by the Garry oak ecosystem. Their art will be displayed at the Robert Bateman Centre Gallery to June 25. All works will be available for purchase and a percentage of the proceeds will be donated to the Garry Oak Ecosystems Recover Team to support their environmental work. Visit batemancentre.org for details.
Goward House presents Maureen Ness’s Vancouver Island Nature. The show runs June 30 to Aug. 30 at the The Goward House Society, 2495 Arbutus Rd. Viewing is Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For a preview of the event, visit gowardhouse.com/artshow.
West End Gallery presents Joel Mara June 17 to 29 with A Solo Exhibition of New Paintings.
Mara developed a special appreciation for nature during his childhood growing up in Campbell River on Vancouver Island. His appreciation and fascination for the West Coast has never left him and he now expresses these experiences on canvas.
Upon viewing one of Joel’s paintings it’s apparent that individual brush strokes are as important as the brushes he uses. Joel creates depth in each painting by varying the size of each and laying down the paint as an individual mark, rarely re-touching it once it’s applied.
Colour is another important factor in Joel’s work and by only using 5 or 6 tubes of colour but mixing 20-30 variations, the result is a balanced colour palette that is pleasing to the eye.
The opening reception is June 17 from 1 to 4 p.m. with artist in attendance at 1203 Broad St. The showcase runs to June 29.
Visit www.westendgalleryltd.com for details.
Madrona Gallery presents international artist and designer Luke Ramsey to June 22. The range of his talent can be seen in the variety amongst his clients, who include the New York Times and Patagonia. In addition to exhibiting in Canada and abroad, he leaves a permanent imprint on cities with his murals. These large scale masterpieces have garnered praise for Ramsey’s ability to use the details of the buildings as part of his canvas, earning him an award from the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada and a commission from The Drake Hotel.
Ramsey’s ability to juxtapose finesse and ambiguity lend to his intrigue. Acclaimed for his ink on paper, he continues to showcase his nuanced understanding of colour and movement with the addition of acrylic works to this exhibition. Madrona is at 606 View St. Visit madronagallery.com for details.
