(For more information, click on artist’s name)
Gail Brown (pastels) Artist’s Statement: The interplay of colour, light and shadow has always fascinated me. I attempt to capture the wonder that a visual experience inspires in me whether it be in my garden, the woods, a rural landscape or familiar faces. Through my painting I can express gratitude for the beauty and vitality that surround us.
Nancy Farrell (acrylics) Artist’s Statement: Nature is the impetus for my creative process. For me, the process of art-making has at its core a contemplative, spiritual understanding of the natural world. My response is to select, distill, convert and arrange textures, shapes, marks and colours that emerge from distilled memories of landscape.
Judy French (oils) Artist’s Statement: I have always been an outdoor person so most of my paintings start in the landscape. There, time stands still as I try to paint the colour of the wind, the feel of the hot sun and the scent of the grass, soil and leaves. These small plein air studies are then carried like treasure to my studio where they are finished if necessary and some are worked up into larger paintings.
Carol Hughes (watercolour) Artist’s Statement: In my art, I try to capture the wonder and beauty I see in the natural world. The changing light and seasons, the marks of time and weathering, wild and garden flowers and fruit, and the powerful landscapes of the Niagara Escarpment are my inspirations.
Kim Johnston (oils, watercolours, pastels, graphite and other media) Artist’s Statement: The play of light and shadow can make an ordinary thing unexpectedly extraordinary. I strive to capture those ethereal moments of beauty in my art, so that it will grace my life and the lives of others.
Dianne Kennedy Cruttenden (woven tapestry) Artist’s Statement: As an artist I have chosen the art of weaving or rather, it chose me. In 1970 I went to study pottery at Sheridan College. Curiosity sent me to the weaving studio and it was love at first sight. The wool, the looms and all the gorgeous colours and textures, ended up becoming my life’s work and vehicle for my artistic expression.
Leslie Miles (pastel) Artist’s Statement: Much has changed since A.J. Casson painted in Rockwood. In the park, trees have overgrown the views that he was drawn to. All that remains of the mill workers’ cottages on the Valley Road are remnants of foundations. For this show, I painted ‘en plein air’ in dry pastel in winter, spring and summer, and chose subjects that I liked and that I thought would have appealed to Casson. I find that the experience of starting the piece ‘en plein air’ is essential.
Gail Root (oils and chalk pastel) Artist’s Statement: My artistic journey is deeply motivated by my excitement of the visual world around me, – especially those subjects that have meaning and are a source of joy in the realm of my daily experiences. Such subjects for me are found in the human countenance, and in the various venues offered by my recent travelling experiences. Closer to home, my inspiration comes from the peaceful rural environment in which we reside.
Anne Smith (textile art) Artist’s Statement: Anne enjoys exploring new techniques, tools and materials in her work as a textile and fibre artist. Her work is at times experimental as she works with recycled fabrics and embellishments which have evolved to become major influences in the development of her floral and abstract pieces.
