Finn Toews’ impeccable acrylic work “Delayed enlightenment” is vibrant and poignant, drawing me in first. It captures how seeing a memory through rose-coloured glasses can become a search for progress in his past self, while his second piece “Tethered” calls attention to his relationship with his past and future, making me wonder if memories work as memorabilia we hold close, even if we have regrets about how we once lived.
“This is the second time I’ve been in a gallery so this is exciting. With Lenses, I feel it really is for me about my personal views and everyone here will all have something a little bit different going on with how we hear the world. So it’s really cool to celebrate that people see things differently.”
Zöe Crowley’s painting “The Ballad of Chaotic Digression (From the body of a ‘Weird Fish’)” brings focus to and honours the differences humans have from one another. It visually describes the many eyes of society that can habitually choose to see a person through a mask, only for how they want to see them, not for who they really are. Crowley discussed how she decides what kind of art she wants to create.
“It very much gauges on subjects of social standings [and] political uprisings. There’s various different disciplines to that, but when it comes to my art, I visualize more on body choice, more on trying to visually please the community and the crowds that might find their own kind of space.”
Kay Ber’s mixed media collage “NEWS OF THE WORLD” was impactful and well thought out. The magazine and newspaper cut-outs of images from around the world unite different places in different times into one frame, the entire piece becoming a symbol of humanity — representing the powerful dynamics of life on Earth. From the scene of a small American family Christmas in the 1980s, to striking images of child poverty in India, it’s raw and overwhelming at first but so wonderfully cohesive creating a surprising strength at its centre.
Gray Engler’s work, “The Tree, Spark of Inspiration” is a textual piece that highlights how dreams affect what thoughts come to you consciously. The piece made me think of a trail in the woods, on an uncertain path with an unknown destination. On the outside of the sewn paths were images that reminded me of a fantasy world, or what Engler might consider a dreamscape. It was a very creative way to interpret the transition between what our dreams look like inside our minds versus what they tell us when we reflect on them.
Chandradeep Majumder’s sculptural installation piece “Not Decided Yet” touches home for him and for me. I felt his emotion while looking at it as it reflects his feelings about returning to his home country. Even though I’ve personally never moved out of the country and away from my family, I resonated with the half-completed human body he crafted to express not being ready and healed enough to face past trauma, since he moved to Canada as part of his healing process.
“To me, making art is expressing being a part of the community. [It’s] the most valuable thing I have as a weapon to feel or deal with my emotions.”
Each artists’ pieces were exceptional and I strongly encourage everyone, whether you’re interested in art or not, to take the time to view them because you never know how much it might inform your own perspective on yourself and the world.
Interviews have been edited for length and clarity.
Veronica is a Staff Writer at The Cascade. She loves to travel and explore new places, no matter how big or small. She is in her second year at UFV, pursuing the study of Creative
Writing.