The Caetani Cultural Centre and the Allan Brooks Nature Centre have welcomed local Silver Star and Vernon artist Destanne Norris into its Fresh! AiR residency program for June and July.
Norris’ project, Whether from the Centre, comes from her fascination with weather formations and light in the sky. Her paintings depict both the inner and outer experiences of the land – both the in-scape and landscape simultaneously.
During her residency, Norris is creating a multi-paneled six-by-eight-foot painting that explores “weathering” and “whethering,” directly as metaphor for inner and outer life.
Now in its third year of operation, The Fresh! AiR partnership between the Caetani Cultural Centre and the Allan Brooks Nature Centre features both a national and international flavour.
Both organizations have hosted artists from Japan, Australia, South Africa, the U.S., and Canada.
The program combines art and the environment, focusing on bringing awareness to environmental issues by presenting different ways of seeing and using innovative and out-of-the-box approaches.
“The goal of the Fresh! AiR program is to encourage artists to approach creativity, exploration and research on habitat conservation in different ways and present the community with new ways of seeing, experiencing and interpreting art and the environment around us,” said Susan Brandoli, Caetani residency coordinator.
The residency consists of a four-to-six week stay at the Caetani house in Vernon, and the artist can also draw upon the ample resources provided by the Allan Brooks Nature Centre.
“Visiting artists have the opportunity to live and work in the Greater Vernon community, and interact with local artists and residents,” said Brandoli.
Norris will give an artist presentation on her past work and her current project at the Allan Brooks Nature Centre Thursday, July 23 at 7 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
Visit www.caetani.ca for more information on the Caetani Cultural Centre’s artist-in-residence programs.
