Re-scheduled from its original January 7 date due to inclement weather, the 2017 Fraser Valley Biennale, a “dynamic, collective representation of exceptional artwork produced by artists in the Fraser Valley region over the past two years” (according to their press release) held its opening reception at the Kariton Art Gallery on Saturday, January 14.
The exhibit, which will be on display until February 7, features the work of 11 regional artists, work which ranges from realist acrylic paintings, to pencil sketches, and even sculpture.
Under graying skies, the Kariton Gallery slowly but surely welcomed a stream of guests who mingled with each other and the artists in attendance. If there was any doubt about the diversity of the Fraser Valley’s quietly vibrant community of visual artists, this year’s Biennale ought to put those doubts to bed.
If pressed to name the one quality shared by the works which, in my opinion, were the most striking among the collection, I would point out their focus on themes of our interaction or juxtaposition with nature and the natural landscapes which surround the more urban communities of the Valley.
One of the various artists in attendance, Tracie Stewart spoke to me about her piece ***A Romance With Technology, which she said uses overlays of BC Hydro substation maps, many of which she found ran through what remains of the Kennedy Trail in Surrey. Her piece incorporates flowers indigenous to this part of B.C., as well as a railroad, superimposed on top of the maps and in front of two trees, effectively presenting us with the signs of technology and progress (the railroad) among nature and the more brown-coloured abstractions of civilization.
Another artist’s work which drew the eyes of walkers-by was Paula Funk’s Woods, which she explained was inspired by a family road trip. Funk’s colourful half-forest, the trees clearly in focus among the lighter and more abstract background hinting at snow and summer skies, was contrasted divinely by several paintings by Jenn Williamson which were much darker and much more abstract than Funk’s work, but equally as effective in evoking a clear and vivid vision.
Williamson’s A Day to Remember, as well as her other paintings, stood out as some of the more abstract uses of colour and texture in the exhibit. Williamson, who using acrylic manages to capture such details as the vague reflection cast by a mountain on a foggy lake, is adept at painting scenes which, although obviously abstract, draw the eye in and across the canvas, moving up and down with the rugged texture left behind by her brush.
UFV students and members of the community have just over two weeks to visit the exhibit before its end on February 7.
