AND THE WINNER IS ... ME

While you were all watching the Golden Globes, I was stroking my own trophy. Jokes aside, I had a good time building Fleeced for the Thaw Hut Design Challenge last weekend — with lots of help from the two most important men in my life. First place was just a bonus! Thanks to MADE in Edmonton and the Deep Freeze Festival on Alberta Avenue for holding a very interesting event. It was great to see so many different responses to the idea of shelter on a small scale. It also gave the attendees pause to think about architecture in an accessible, relatable way.

 

FULL DISCLOSURE

I will be down on 118 Avenue this weekend setting up a sculpture for the MADE Thaw Hut Competition, as part of the Deep Freeze Festival happening this weekend in Alberta Avenue, as previously noted. For this temporary outdoor show, I've decided to rework an earlier sculpture I did for Latitude 53. This, I'm guessing, is probably against all the rules and ethical codes of artists. But hey, we're in a park not a museum. I'm just happy to bring it out of my garage so it will see the light of day once again. Then again, I'm a keener, so I wrote this very academic Artist's Statement to go with it. Enjoy!

The concept for Fleeced was inspired by one of the most common forms in architecture – the dome. Its very shape suggests solidity and privacy. By providing the participant with a place to feel safe and protected from the elements, this hut not only gives physical protection from the cold and wind, but it encourages the viewer to take psychological comfort under its roof. The blanket of felted wool material covering the shelter further imbues it with connotations of coziness and warmth.
However, this experience is troubled by its the tent-like construction which is ultimately temporary and transient. The hut resides in the liminal zone between the boundaries of private and public, for its lack of walls deprives the occupants of their privacy and leaves the participant with the feeling of being watched. Fleeced is evocative of the psycho-analytic concept unheimlich or uncanny — described as exposing something to public view that was or should have been concealed.

 

SCHMANCY

Well, Schmoozy did not dissappoint! It was a packed house on Saturday, and I got to catch up with lots of people I haven't seen for ages. Nights like these always remind me of all the amazing artists and creative people that make life in Edmonton worth it, while bringing a bit of glamour to gloomy winters. Here are some of my favourite faces.

Rob Batke, an awesome musician (who happens to also be my oldest friend since kindergarten!)

Kirsta Franke (left) is one half of the lady-team that makes the 124 Street Grand Market happen. Mackenzy Albright (center) and Rachelle Bowen (right) are two ultra-cool artists who sometimes collaborate and also happen to be romantically involved.

The adorable Janis Galloway, fashion blogger and Marketing Coordinator at the AGA

The super-talented artist/designers Jeff Klassen and Sergio Serrano pictured here with a lovely lady who's name is Aimee.

Partners in life and art, Josh Holinaty and Genevieve Simms, pictured here with rapper and writer Omar Mouallam. Too much awesomeness!

TONIGHT!

I am pretty excited to be shooting photos for Latitude 53 tonight at their fundraiser event The Fine Art of Schmoozy. Some fabulous artwork up for auction if you want to drop by and support the gallery. If you can't make it, consider buying a membership or giving one as a gift. This place is one of the raddest — and oldest — artist run centres in western Canada, and are preparing for their big move to a larger space on the main floor of the building next door. Exciting!

Don your gay apparel and come celebrate with live music and fancy cocktails while you peruse neat artworks like this one and I snap your best serious-art-collector expression.

This work by Adriean Koleric is just one of the pieces we’re hanging in the gallery for the Schmoozy silent auction this week—we’ll be posting more photos over the next few days.

Donated artwork by Adriean Koleric

CRAFFITI ART

Flanking 106 street north of Jasper Avenue, you'll find a handful of printed fabric panels featuring the poetry and art of Holly Newman that defy the classifications of art, graffiti or craft.

Her trademark attention to detail and impressive work of the hand adds visual interest and gives the passerby an opportunity to stop and engage with an artwork in a seemingly unexpected place. However, I have to wonder if the location Newman chose to display her work wasn't influenced by what could be considered Edmonton's unofficial Arts District made up of the Alberta Craft Council, ArtsHab, and Latitude 53.

According to Holly, her motivation is to "invite the viewer to reconsider the city landscape. Unique relationships are formed in the city. Natural elements can be elevated or ignored depending on the viewer's level of distraction and inclinations. Our changing relationship with nature has evolved so rapidly that at times it seems to have disappeared. Finding remnants of the personal within the city labyrinth is my motivation in constructing projects that challenge the role of the viewer within the city landscape."