G A L L E R Y
A R C T U R U S
Not a simple story
Between black and white
darkness and light
unimpeded movement
and despair
Visiting our Sister Gallery
Visiting Carolee Custus at Northern Expressions,the gallery she curates.
This collage is an impressionistic portrait of her in the gallery space.
Welcoming two new gallery members
Wool Felt Dolls by Peggy Mersereau
Looking Up We See The Sky
The same sky that has always been
and always will be,
amazing!
THe ArchiTecture oF thE boDy
...a place to occupy
THe NeXt cHaPteR
The question was:- "What work wants to talk with Floyd?"
and the answer came; "Daniel"
Everyday we find yet another way that these two artists communicate through their work.
Daniel Hanequand's drawings are permanently on exhibition in the Drawing Room Gallery
on the third floor.
Rock Steady
Rock Painting by Aveline Beauchamp
Practising Intent
placings things intentionally for our ease of use and accessibility
being surprised by what we find
and the sensation of order
and beauty
Daniel meets Floyd
These drawings are by the late Daniel Hanequand and were donated to the gallery by his wife, who has also passed. They seem to have a natural affinity for this piece by Floyd Kuptana. It is always exciting to introduce different artists through their work, each one making something in the other more visible.
An Invention of Order
Ordering the space is an ongoing necessity
in 'keeping' the space spacious,
allowing visitors to experience something other.
It is our greatest offering
here at the gallery.
A Play of Light
...they are watching
To all of you who have subscribed to our blog:-
The feed burner that we were using
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d and s
The planets converging in the black hole...
...or somebody spilled their smarties
From our youngest artist
by Oto Kaneko-Jeans Almost 3
Our Cave Beneath the Stairs...
...has music played by wind
Taking the Inside Out
We thought if we can show some of what is inside the gallery
outside of the gallery
it may inspire more of those walking by to come in.
or
they can simply enjoy it in the moment of passing.
Intersections
Intersect:- To cut into or between; to pass across; to divide into parts by crossing or passing through,- To meet and cross each other
This is where we got to
This idea has been percolating for some time and today we collected all the materials and constructed.
It is strong without screws or nails and provides shade and atmosphere in a busy part of the city.
All are welcome to come and sit.
The Guest Revealed
The Guest House
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.
by Rumi
This was our guest this week, Bear the dog. All of our habits and routines had to alter to accommodate
him.
He influenced how we used our space, how we saw our space I feel he taught us an appreciation for many things
that we had overlooked. The poem above seems to touch upon all of this.
Which Way Is Up
This space has a very clear purpose but when you turn it around it becomes confused.
How easy is it to loose sight of purpose?
A Line Runs Through Them
...the title of the new exhibition of works in the collage gallery,
trying to find the line that connects all of the different pieces
by Eron Boyd, Sae Kimura, deborah harris
unwinding a spool of thread and circling the room
gives the sensation of unity
Eating Green
Today's secret get-away treat!
'From Another World', the work of Floyd Kuptana...
...moves from upstairs, down into the main gallery.
All the better to be seen.
The Changing of the Guard
The hoodies come down
from the exhibition
'Sameness or Diversity'
the next is a surprise to discover tomorrow
Making Lists
Italian crystal alabaster,
Brazilian steatite,
Black African Pearl,
Spanish alabaster,
Pipestone,
Harvest gold alabaster,
Quebec slate...
Many different kinds of stones which can be sculpted and were by Floyd Kuptana.
A Bird in the Hand is Worth Two in the Bush
Today we received the third in the series of books we have published of Floyd's work.
This book is his paintings. All Three books will be available at the reception either to look at or to purchase. This prices for the books are just our cost with no mark up. In fact our cost is less than if you buy a single copy on blurb because we get a discount when we order more than twenty. The books are a good way to remember and continue to enjoy Floyd's work.
Click on the link below to see in full.
https://www.blurb.ca/books/11158938-carved-with-a-brush
The Black Box
Today we assembled four black boxes (pedestals)
The first one took us a very long time
and seemed impossible.
The second was a little faster
And the third a little more
And the fourth was in five minutes.
We felt very proud.
Unpacking Treasures
A few of our blog viewers were confused by the last entry which was the invitation for Floyd Kuptana who passed away on May 27 last year. We are hosting a reception on the anniversary of his passing, in honour of him and his work. We will also be showing many sculptures brought to the gallery by his long time friend JP Albert. They are packed in the boxes show in these photos. Today we began unpacking and finding places for them, mostly in what is usually the collage gallery and also the library but they will be found through out. The title of the exhibition 'Still With Us' refers to the way that Floyd's presence
stays with us in his work.
There is no There
'There is no There' was the title of this work and exhibition by Jeremy Gordaneer, that was held at Gallery Arcturus in 2011.
It was an extraordinary mural that he painted in his studio in Montreal and finished in the gallery just before the opening.
Yesterday would have been his fiftieth birthday. On that day we received the news that he had passed away in August of last year 2021. It is a terrible shock to learn of someone that you have spent time with and have a strong sense of, to imagine them not being here...Life is so fragile. We are remembering him and his family now.
So Close and yet So Far
Field in Flower in Odawara Japan. Photograph taken by Noriko Kimura
Remembering that the world is not flat as we once thought it was.
Things are not often what we assume them to be.
There are many mysteries unknown.
Singing and Dancing in the Courtyard
The surprise of a blue bag dancing in the wind
and Avey in her pink shoes dancing on the wall.
A Swan Sunning Day
Photograph by Barbara Kellam
Revisiting the gallery through the eyes of our visitors
This collage, by Sara MacHin, was done as part of the 14th online collage workshop using a photocopied image of Picasso's 'Circus', a cutout from our latest invitation and the postage stamp from the mail out.
All have been placed in a room painted for their occupancy.
It seems to best represent our title for the day.
The Purging Continues
I remembered the other day that the best thing about creating art is the process of creating art. The space that one creates in must be conducive to that process. Materials need to be visible and accessible otherwise you forget that you have them.The problem is that the more one creates the more the space becomes a storage space, crowded with unknowable and therefore unusable materials. The space
and the materials need to be seen as resources in order to support a creative process. For this reason we have weeded out the space, looked at everything in it and attempted to organize it so it can be a resource to all who enter. A very daunting but satisfying challenge.
Sunny Skies, Underwrap and Stacked
Still, no way in.
Social Distancing
West meets East
The dog park at Allan Gardens
A Meeting of the Guardians
from above and below
Facing one way or the other
Looking From Both Sides
Not Quite There
This extraordinary painting by Luke Gilliam is framed under glass
and reflects the the room it occupies.
The added layer seems to amplify the feeling of today... observing from the outside
'not quite there'
In Through the Back Door
Today we sat on a bench in small alley which surprisingly faces exactly onto the back wall of the gallery.
This back wall has many windows. In one of them we had the idea to put a painting facing out
so that those people living in the surrounding condos or, as we did, decide to sit on a bench to have their coffee,
can discover and perhaps even be inspired to visit us.
The Moment Lives On
And what is the moment?
It is a unity, a circle of beings,
content in that moment.
Not reflected
We see our selves most clearly, most truly, in the eyes of those we communicate with.
We reflect each other.
Waking Up
Sorry we were late.
Moved by Wind
This is a gift of spacious
Castillon writes:-
« Listening to Hania's music over and over, I began to dream of a single sequence shot that would follow her music floating in the wind of an unreal Icelandic landscape. I asked each dancer to give a personal interpretation of Hania's song. We were very lucky to succeed in this insane artistic performance despite the great cold (minus 7 celsius), it was such a moment of truth. Shot in Iceland on February 23, 2020. »
Directed by Neels Castillon
Music by Hania Rani
Dancers — Mellina Boubetra, Janina Sarantšina, Fanny Sage
"Caught in a web of contending forces..."
If Only We Were Pigeons...
"I guess a lot of people are feeling that" says Sae.
"Yes, a lot of people are wishing they were pigeons!!!" says I.
For the new blue flowers
Tis is the season for raking leaves and some of us are very enthusiastic about this task.
Unfortunately, the city has suspended the pick up of yard waste and so....
This morning we made a platform for the bags to sit on so that the grass and small flowers
will not be crushed while waiting, wrapping them with canvas in case of rain and tying them
'round with rope so that they will not fall and spill all over everywhere. Practical creativity.
Not particularly beautiful but somehow satisfying.
In the Twilight Zone
...trying to find the light
For Our Dear Friend Eron...
...in memory of his beloved mother Georgia Boyd - December 1939 - March 27 2020
Reconnecting 'Round the Table
It seems that what can be expressed through art cannot be translated into words.
None of us spoke while we were working today
even though we have not seen each other together for many days.
But the work speaks for us in inexplicable ways.
It is a mystery.
cOFFEE IS eSSENTIAL
Today we made this flyer for Stuart, the proprietor of our neighborhood cafe in hopes that he can stay open and solvent through this shutdown.
If you want to pick up a truly great coffee drop by B U L L D O G.
Don't Be Scared It's Just Us
It seems we are all a bit confused and shy to follow the directions for COVID 19 but it is our duty to be responsible
not only for our self but for those who share the world with us, those we love and care for and those who are unknown.
Many lives depend upon our correct action, this situation may be the shock needed to shift our awareness.
It gets easier if we are all in this together. (that's why Sae and I are practicing and trying to get you onboard)
Preparing
...it's not all bad
Remember to Step Outside
Today we walked and walked and remembered how good it is to breathe the air outside.
We are being asked by the conditions at hand to stay close to home and avoid crowds and travel.
A moment or two of this is advisable.
Today was a difficult day
...confusing and messy
ragged and sharp edged
There is a lot happening that we have not encountered before
inside and outside
we are challenged to be balanced
to use our common sense
to remain calm and disciplined
Today we were not quite there yet.
How Differently We Each Interpret The World!
Often we think that it is important that someone share our opinions but not so with art.
In art we can appreciate our differences, in fact we celebrate them.
Maybe it is not so vital that we all think and say the same thing.
Maybe we can look and listen and learn.
A Different Blue A Different Circus
The objects and subjects of the gallery basement.
The World is a Blue Circus
Marc Chagall
Blue Circus
1950
Pacino di Bonaguida
The Creation of the World
1309 - 1347
How the Body Remembers
After using collage with this Medieval set we went out on the street and photographed an old building in the state of demolition and salvation
and found that we had somehow created almost exactly the same construction as in the painting, (seen in our Feb 27th blog).
This was unconscious and therefore surprising, the way we take in impressions and remember them in our bodies.
Becoming Animated
... thanks to Eron Boyd
Picasso Steps Upon the Medieval Stage
St Francis Renouncing Worldly Goods 1295
The Mountebanks by Picasso 1905
The First Star I See Tonight...
Today Sae 'n' I worked on designing a new web page.
We will let you know when it's up and running, should be in two to three weeks.
Fishing for Mary
Night Fishing at Antibes by Picasso 1939 The Disembarkation of Mary Magdalene
possibly by Pietro Lorenzetti 1310
Collage by Sae Kimura
Collage by deborah harris
The Near and Distant Past
Vivian Felsen
Le Duo The Presentation in the Temple
Georges Braque Giotto di Bondone
1937 1267 - 1337
deborah harris Sae Kimura
For these collages we each had a copy of the two paintings shown above which we combined.
All in all we were able to finish thirteen collages using the same material.
These are the first three.
Not sure where the forest ends and I begin
and home is a thought I can't quite touch
Illuminated
Illuminate: To enlighten; to throw light upon; to light up with festal lamps
Cardboard is our new canvas
This strange coming together of elements to make what could be called a sculpture,
is a playful and spontaneous response to the objects and materials present in the space
but also to the inquiry itself. Irrefutable alteration provides a framework to
explore and to perceive variations on a theme.
Looking at the different images on the blog will give you a hint of those possibilities.
Alteration #8
This show that is currently evolving began as P R I M A L J O U R N E Y
with a solitary boat figure in a tumultuous sea.The figure descended and turned,
M E E T I N G W H A L E.
"And then what? we asked. How does this story continue?
Even whales must come up for air. Gravity below our feet keeps us standing or pulls us over.
As you probably saw in earlier blogs we cut the boat and stood it on its end.
A ladder of sorts leaning on the ramparts, an effort to climb away from earth's concerns.
The truth is, after meeting whale one is irrefutably altered and that is the new title;-
I R R E F U T A B L Y A L T E R E D.
The Space Where We Work... Lit by the Sun
This is where your blogs are born.
The Story Must Continue
One cannot stay forever underwater with the whale. One must come up for air.
What was once a vehicle becomes a shelter, perhaps a home, albeit somewhat quirky.
Still Life with Black Jug
For this exercise we decided to interpret the George Braque painting 'La Table de Toilette', using collage, working from a black and white reproduction and each choosing our own pallet. We did not look at the original colour painting til we were finished.
A Meeting Place
Today we all met back at the gallery again, Sae, deborah and Floyd, after a few days apart.
The gallery is a rare and special place, a place where creativity is allowed to live.
This was our second drawing based on 'The Ice House' by Lawren Harris 1923.
The house seems to represent a unique and solitary place, surrounded by the elements.
A mystery which invites one to enter.
We hope the gallery does the same.
...continuing LESSONS WITH THE MASTERS
Becoming Like Children
Today Sae n I spent the whole day with our very favorite 3 year old friend.
This is what we looked like when she left to go home.
Body So Full Head So Empty
collage ensemble by Vivian Felsen
Year Ending and Beginning
We seem to organize our lives into years.
Time lines, running parallel until they don't
a sudden turn in direction sometimes takes us
where we can't imagine going
and every new year we commit to being better
a noble resolution we hope to live up to
falling down,
standing up again
some semblance of structure that we can measure ourselves against,
a path to follow.