Winnipeg here we come

Hello friends! I am excited to share that my Drawn Together Collective’s group show Stimulus-Response will be exhibiting at the MHC Gallery in Winnipeg from the 10th of November through 9th December 2023. The open reception is at 7:30 on Friday November 10th. I’m looking forward to being there!

“In Stimulus / Response, ten women artists of the Prairies respond to ten published works by women writers of the Prairies. The Result is a complex, thoughtful exhibition that is both personal and testimonial. In painting, drawing, assemblage, sculpture, textile, ceramic and print, themes of isolation, survival, connection and legacy emerge, united by landscape. The Drawn Together Collective is comprised of women artists working in the Westman region and rural Manitoba. For over a decade they have met monthly to support, critique, share and inspire one another as they navigate their own art practices.” ~ Lucie Lederhendler, Curator, AGSM

For my part of this group project, I chose the book “Swarm” by Lauren Carter. Carter takes us on the journey of one woman recounting her life during a period of societal breakdown, her struggle to cope with her involvement in that decay and her realizing the necessity of sacrifice, compassion, collaboration and hope in caring for her natural surroundings, bees and the people around her. This book reflects on the enduring strength of nature, bees and humanity in the face of destructive external forces.

My resulting On The Ground body of work reflects this struggle to endure by my hand-making paper from recyclable trash, learning about bees and edible, herbal and medicinal plants found growing in the wilds of Manitoba.

And speaking of bees, here’s a poem I wrote a few years ago:

HONEY

My lazy summer day drifts by

as I rest among the apple trees

slung in a hammock, shaded and jaded

by leaves and life.

A time-out, a brief respite

reading a book as the bees drone here, buzz there

exploring, collecting, nurturing

their queen and her young.

Were I their queen, I’d give them a day off

from making all that golden honey,

a reward for being so seriously

loyal and focused.

I wonder what my bees would do for fun

with their free day in the sun?

Wild Ginger and Wood Sorrel, 8x10” hand coloured linocut