re:source – making materials matter

re:source – making materials matter

re:source is an exhibition of creative re-imagining, the act of finding and using materials over again or for a purpose not originally intended. We often think of “resources” as the things we have, but re-sourcing in this context implies the active process of discovery and reinvention.

The works on display demonstrate the transformation that is possible when limitations meet possibility. By embracing unconventional materials and finding solutions in unexpected places, Heather and Heather challenge traditional notions of artistic production and offer a powerful model for sustainable practices.

Audiences are invited to consider the intersections between art, sustainability, and resourcefulness. By witnessing what is possible via creative reuse, audiences may discover a deeper appreciation of the materials that surround us, rethink their relationship with the planet’s finite resources and to challenge traditional notions of what makes art.

Exhibition Dates:
January 23-March 6, 2025

Opening Reception:
January 28, 2025
6:00pm-8:30pm
Join us for an evening of light refreshments. Artists in attendance.

Evening Hours:
March 5, 2025
Intermission hours during the Bailey’s Performance Series.

Gallery Hours:
Tuesday-Thursday
12:00pm-4:00pm

Do you have a group looking to attend outside of gallery hours? Contact us at info@visacgallery.com to discuss group visits and field trips.

Heather Good Artist Statement:

Inspired by nature, my abstract works feature elements that evoke a sense of familiarity and recognition. Drawing inspiration from the patterns of fallen leaves, textures of stone and brick, and the vibrant hues and intricate textures of moss and lichen, I translate these natural elements into my artwork with an instinctual approach. By observing and absorbing the world around me, I channel my creativity through marks, lines, shapes, and patterns, forging a profound connection between my surroundings and my artistic expressions.

My recent work on canvas encompasses a variety of techniques, including drawing, painting, collage, and making marks with a diverse range of materials such as watercolour, ink, acrylic, pastel, and graphite, and mixed papers. I am constantly exploring ways to interconnect these mediums to produce intricate and multifaceted outcomes. Working instinctively, my paintings are characterized by spontaneous and swift marks and brushstrokes. My artistic process unfolds in multiple stages, with each canvas undergoing a series of painting and collage. This iterative approach results in a layered surface that retains traces of the layers beneath, akin to my experience of walking through the forest and witnessing the continuous cycle of debris being dispersed and repositioned.

Heather Stewart Artist Statement:

What started as a design research project looking at the abundance of discarded textiles has become an appreciation for overlooked materials and a joy of transforming them. I wanted to understand how something that required so much time, energy and skill to create can be so easily tossed aside. This grew into a curiosity of how we relate to our material world, different influences that affect the way we perceive them and our desires to create more. Through transforming these materials, I learned that my perceived value of them shifted and my creative process expanded. I always felt a heavy burden of contributing to the problem but the ability to see potential in the overlooked materials that surround us opened up space to create again, and this was one of its greatest values. 

Here I have continued to explore post-consumer textiles, combining them with wood offcuts. There is a relationship between wood and textiles I find irresistible. I like to play with how the two interact with each other, having different roles in each piece. Inspired by the interaction between nature and manmade, structure and spontaneity, pattern and irregularities I look to show the value of materials that previously held very little and a chance to interact with them again in a new form. 

I do a lot of deconstructing. Textiles, various types of knits, weaves and material composition all require a slight change in hand when taking them apart. In this process, I find certain qualities that I want to highlight in a new piece. Processing enough material for one project can be both satisfying and tedious at times. Just when I feel I have a handle on a particular method, I run into an item that just doesn’t want to come apart as I think it should. An ongoing learning experience into the construction of textiles. Processing wood offcuts is entirely different, requiring tools and tricks to manipulate the materials as the size and shapes vary. With each project, you are left with smaller bits and pieces that become the source of inspiration for the next project. This material driven process takes me in many directions, some of them back to my beginnings in industrial design and others somewhere new, like showing in a gallery.

Upcoming Exhibitions

Local Trail, Distant Shores – Watercolour Perspectives

Local Trail, Distant Shores – Watercolour Perspectives

A series of watercolour paintings by Dan Ashman. The exhibition takes inspiration from the scenery of the West Kootenays.

Exhibition Dates:
March 27 – April 24, 2025

Opening Event:
March 27, 2025

Evening Hours:
April 15, 2025

Gallery Hours:
Tuesday-Thursday
12pm-4pm

Artist Statement:

If I am asked how long it took to paint a picture, I would reply, “Thirty-five years to learn how, and a few hours to put paint on paper”. It is a long process to master the media of watercolour and even after all this time, something can still go wrong. I’m still learning and developing my style.

About Dan Ashman:

Dan Ashman was born in British Columbia in 1956 and started his foray into art in High School by painting in oils. He moved to Trail to work as a Metallurgical Engineer at Teck and took up watercolours in 1987 during a night school course led by fellow engineer and local watercolour artist, Brian O’Hara. Subsequently, he attended workshops with Les Weisbrich, a watercolour artist from the Slocan valley, and Kiff Holland, a watercolour artist from the lower mainland. Otherwise, he is self taught.

Dan joined the Trail Art Club in 1988 and helped to establish the VISAC gallery. He was a member of the “Thursday Night Painters” when it was led by Bob Ross. His work has been shown in Art Club exhibitions, the VISAC invitational show, showings of the Thursday Night Painters both in Trail and Spokane as well as juried art shows. He has sold a number of paintings including one to St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver.

As an avid outdoorsman, Dan was inspired by the captivating scenery of the West Kootenays and began to capture local scenes in watercolour either painting “en plein air” or in his studio. He is also an amateur photographer and uses photos from his travels as subject matter. Now retired, his recent works include landscapes from the West Kootenays, the Canadian Rockies, Hawaii, and Atlantic Canada.

Past Exhibitions

Reflections on Belonging

Welcome to a journey of reflection, exploration, and discovery.

Throughout this exhibition, you will engage with themes that challenge how we understand identity, community, and the possibility of social change. Each section encourages you to reflect on your own experiences and think about how we can, both individually and collectively, contribute to a more inclusive world.

As you explore the exhibits, you will encounter thought-provoking questions and moments of introspection that invite you to connect the themes to your own life and to the broader world around you. Take the time to reflect and imagine how the stories and ideas presented here can shift your perspective. Consider how you can play a role in challenging norms and driving change.

Let this experience encourage you to look deeper, question assumptions, and take meaningful steps toward creating a society where everyone is valued and supported.

Your journey toward justice begins here.

Presented in collaboration with the Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy (CBAL) and West Kootenay Local Immigration Partnership (WKLIP)

Exhibition Dates:
December 3 – 18, 2024

Gallery Hours:
Tuesday-Thursday
12pm-4pm

VISAC Member’s Salon Show & Sale

September 26 – November 14, 2024

About the VISAC Member’s Salon:

Welcome to the First Annual VISAC Member’s Salon: Show and Sale. The Salon is a celebration of the immense talent of local visual artists. We are so inspired by the skill and variety of the artists who call the West Kootenay region home and are excited to share this work with the public and folks who might not otherwise be able to experience art in this way. Featuring 25+ artists in a variety of mediums such as painting, photography, printmaking, ceramics and more!

As a community-based gallery, we play an essential role in supporting and promoting emerging and established artists in the West Kootenay region.  We foster emerging talent, assist in providing greater recognition for more established artists, and offer viewers a new way of experiencing art.

Important Dates:

Exhibition Opening Date: September 26, 2024

Evening Opening Reception: September 26 @ 5pm-7:30pm
Visit the Gallery for a reception of light refreshments and artist talks. 

Evening Hours during the Bailey Performance Series: October 30 @ 5pm-7:30pm
Make it a double date with VISAC and the Bailey!

Exhibition Closing Date: November 7, 2024

The Art of Adornment

The Art of Adornment

July 15 – August 15, 2024

The Human Body as a Canvas

Experience the artistry up close and personal in this exhibition that explores themes of environment, technology and self-expression. Participants of The Art of Adornment designed wearable art for this juried fashion show. Presented in collaboration with the Rossland Council for Arts and Culture (RCAC).

Important Dates

Exhibition Opening Date: July 15, 2024

Columbia Basin Culture Tour: August 10th and 11th from 10am-5pm

Exhibition Closing Date: August 15, 2024

Energy Futures

Eveline Kolijn

 

Jacqueline Huskisson

 

Heather Urness

 

Jill Ho-You

 

About Energy Futures:

In this unique fine art print portfolio, 20 Alberta printmakers and 20 Alberta writers created their vision on sustainable energy transition and climate change in Alberta. The portfolio contains twenty hand-made fine art prints, and twenty texts (poem, short story, essay) printed on 13 x 19” sheets of archival letterpress quality, forming a tangible vision of Alberta’s Energy Future. The portfolio edition is 25. It has also been published with expanded text as a book: Reimagining Fire. The Future of Energy.

The desire to curate this project originated from the necessity in our society to combat climate change and preserve biodiversity. My practice operates in the transdisciplinary space of art, science, and social activism. This path has led to a Fellowship with the Energy Futures Lab (EFL) in 2018. The non-profit Lab is based in Alberta and consists of 40 to 60 Fellows and support staff. They are a network of innovators and influencers with diverse views and come from government and communities, the energy sector, First Nations, non-profits, academia, and the arts. The EFL supports change-makers as they collaboratively explore the following question: How can we leverage Canada’s assets and innovation capacity to accelerate an inclusive and equitable transition to a prosperous net-zero future?

Exhibition Opening Date: March 25, 2024

Guest Workshop for Visual Exploration Club: April 11 @ 3:30-4:30pm

Artist Talk during Business After Business: April 11 @ 5:30-7:30pm

Artist Talk and Workshop @ VISAC: April 12 @ 3:30-5:30pm

Tidalectics Workshop: Developed by Eveline Kolijn, this workshop pairs with Energy Futures. Please reach out to info@visacgallery.com to organize a workshop for your school group.

Exhibition Closing Date: May 2, 2024

Rewired: Transform from Within by Sab Curtis

Exhibition Opening Date: January 29, 2024

Artist Live Painting Demo @ The Josie Hotel: February 2, 2024 at 4PM

Artist Talk @ VISAC: February 10, 2024 at 3 PM.  Registration required – sign up here. Light refreshments to be provided.  

Exhibition Closing Date: March 7, 2024

Artist Statement

“My adventures mold me and each canvas becomes my journal to translate what I discover through my wanders. My art practice began as a way to feel nurtured by nature’s magnificence when I was experiencing physical and cognitive limits due to injury, and it continues to immerse me in what I love most. 

“Rewired” is a collection expressing the transformation I experienced through my brain injury recovery and discovery of my creative self. Observing nature’s paths and patterns helps me better understand myself and my creative process has helped me comprehend the unplanned pivot in my life. Each piece replays real scenes that I have experienced throughout my recovery and represents milestones that influenced my metamorphosis. 

This journey has been confusing and chaotic, emulated by the varied mood of this series. From the calm to the complex, the seemingly ordinary to the surreal, by patiently reflecting nature’s diverse palette onto canvas I have gained conviction that the ability to adapt through any type of adversity is within us.”

About Sab

Sab Curtis is a self-taught acrylic landscape artist and a self-powered adventure enthusiast. Her affinity for the outdoors and deep respect for the natural world stems from a life of exploring mountainous terrain around the world, including her own backyard in the Kootenays where she has found inspiration for the past 20 years. Her lifelong hobby of photographing the vistas she encounters provides ongoing reference material for her more recent passion for painting.

Art became the unexpected silver lining for Sab while recovering from a traumatic brain injury. In 2020, she put brush to canvas for the first time in her life as a therapeutic outlet and she has not stopped since. An engineer by profession, she has converted her problem-solving skills to her creative practice through cognitive “rewiring”. Her neural pathways have transformed from analysing data to construing the mixing of hues and tapestry of brushstrokes. 

Mother Nature is Sab’s greatest muse, and she continually motivates her practice through extensive adventures by foot, bike or skis, acquiring inspiration for her next body of work. 

Visit Sab’s website to see more of her work. 

Everything Became Beautiful by Erica Konrad

Exhibition Opening Date: September 14, 2023

Youth Class led by Erica: October 12, 2023

Evening Reception: Friday, October 13, 2023 6 – 8 PM at VISAC

Exhibition Closing Date: October 26, 2023

Artist Statement

My current body of work is based on my interpretation of animal and plant cells. The work is inspired by my recent journey through breast cancer and healing, with the core of my work being a contradiction between fragility and strength. The direction I took marks a paradigm shift in my work, with a focus on installation, colour, forms and patterns linking the micro and macro worlds.

After facing my own mortality, all things around me became beautiful, the natural world and its beauty was amplified. I went into nature to heal, hiking mountains and visiting the ocean, taking photographs of plants, shapes and colours. Because plants have rigid cell walls and do not die from cancer, I felt particularly drawn to studying them. This paired with research on microscopic images of cells, led to the inspiration for this body of work. Exploring the connections between science and art, I focussed on merging the rational with the abstract. As everything happens at the cellular level, I was acutely aware of the profound effects these tiny cells have on human consciousness and how one cell gone wrong can alter someone’s life. Dissecting the cell structure and reassembling the elements into something beautiful is my attempt to document the journey.  

Pairing natural material (paper and wax) with plastic (plexiglass and mylar) was deliberate to contrast healing to the disease. Rigid forms that morph into a flowing mass signifies the tension between order and chaos and the feeling of being out of control, and the importance of letting go. These cells could belong to anyone and everyone. “Everything Became Beautiful” is a love letter to healthy cells, and a personal testament to courageously moving forward into new territory.  

Funding for this work was generously provided by:  Columbia Kootenay Cultural Alliance and the Columbia Basin Trust

About Erica

Erica Konrad is a visual artist, living, working and creating on the traditional unceded territory of the Ktunaxa, Sinixt (Lakes), and Syilx (Okanagan) Nations, in Nelson, British Columbia, Canada.  Her background is a formal University education in Environmental Studies, which has laid the foundation for her intense inspiration from the natural world.

Konrad is mostly self taught, working in oil, acrylic and encaustic, having attended international workshops on encaustic and local and provincial courses on painting. She has taught children earth art, teenagers painting and adults encaustic. 

When not painting, she is engaged in supporting other artists. Konrad founded and runs The Narrows Art Retreat – an Artist Residency centre, focussing on artist residencies, workshops and gatherings to promote and encourage artistic innovation.

She maintains an active studio practice creating artwork for public and private collections.

Visit Erica’s website for more information and to see her other work!

Exhibitions

VISAC offers 6 to 8 exhibitions each year.

The exhibitions are carefully planned to support and promote emerging and established artists from the Boundary/Kootenay region.

The gallery and studios have grown had many different renovations happen over the years. Have you seen it recently? Come check it out we are very proud of our upgraded facilities. 

The Gallery and workspace is available for meetings and events!

To inquire about rental space please email:  info@visacgallery.com

 Contact us with any questions or interest you have in exhibiting: info@visacgallery.com

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