Tony Grove and Gordon Wilson are getting ready for September at the McMillan Arts Centre in Parksville.
The pair are showcasing their work as of Sept. 5 and both have something different to offer. Grove, a shipwright by trade, uses his paintings to explore classic boats and their shapes while incorporating bright and punchy colours. As a shipwright, Grove has restored numerous vessels in his Gabriola Island shop and found artistic inspiration while doing so. A combination of technical knowledge and an artist’s curiosity guides his work.
“As a boat-builder and as a career, I have chosen to preserve old wooden boats. I’m fascinated by their historic value, an intrigue that draws me into a careful study of their build and design. Many of the boat images I create come from the inspiration of working on the vessels themselves, or of the historic role they played in the past,” he said in his artist statement. “Intrigued by the myriad of hull shapes, styles and construction I find true beauty and then joy of artistic license by using light and colour to capture the essence of the boat in my painting.”
Painter Wilson, on the other hand, is inspired by interesting shapes and colours he stumbles upon. He often focuses on landscapes and said he was initially inspired by more muted and mundane scenes, rather than spectacular ones artists often favour. Now retired, he worked as an art teacher and as a commercial artist throughout his life.
“Our own surroundings are filled with interesting subject matter for painting if one chooses to see them. I look for interesting shapes that have been affected by shades of light, atmospheric mood, and of course, colour. Focusing on landscapes, most of my initial inspiration comes from the mundane rather than postcard-like views. It is how I choose to interpret my subjects that makes them unique,” he said in an artist statement. “Colour, or rather the relation between various colours, has always stimulated my artistic reflex. Working in acrylic on canvas allows me to freely experiment with colour combinations, texture, and form, to create artwork that stimulates the senses and charges the subject with a new energy.”
They’ll both be present at the exhibit opening and meet the artist day on Saturday, Sept. 5 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 133 McMillan St.
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Also underway come September at the MAC is the Fall Art Bites Program. The course is designed to give people a taste of a variety of mediums, rather than sticking to just one. The $30 classes are two hours long and introduce you to the medium and the basic techniques associated with it. Supplies are provided and you go home with your work.
Art Bites is a course designed to give you a taste of a variety of art mediums. Each two-hour class introduces you to a new medium and show you the basic techniques using a small array of supplies. Everything is provided; you don’t have to bring a thing. Go home each week with a piece of your own and a sense of how this art medium works. The first class is on drawing with Clare Turcott on Sept. 13, followed by mosaics with Debra Hagen.
You can see the full list, which runs until Dec. 6, at mcmillanartscentre.com as well as registration and how to plan your visit during COVID-19. The MAC is open on Thursday to Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
— NEWS staff