On Nature’s Path || Homer Watson & Gerard Brender à Brandis

On Nature’s Path is an exhibition of paintings by Homer Watson interplayed with the wood engravings of Gerard Brender à Brandis.  The artwork explores the idea that we are connected spiritually to nature. The visual perspective of landscapes and river life shapes our understanding of ourselves and our nation. Watson’s aim to capture the spirit of nature with rich and heavy oils is echoed in the small black and white contemporary works of Brender à Brandis.  “The challenge of discovering a sufficient range of textures to convey the many moods of the river in small, black and white works has been most satisfying, and choosing from the huge variety of scenes, building, objects, plants and animals offered by the river’s environment has deepened my understanding of my own responses to the world around me and has brought me closer to the personality of Homer Watson, for whom I have long felt a great affinity.”

Hope || Dylan Swan

Hope, an exhibition by artist Dylan Swan, takes the viewer on a journey of exploration, connectivity and belonging.  The paintings are playful and intuitive while remaining grounded in a firm understanding of structural composition.  There is a sense of community and familiarity in the work.  “The first journey is a physical one, as I search for my subject through careful observation and connection with my environment”.  Then “it’s time to explore the connection internally”.  Finally, “connections become external”. Vivid colour, movement and life are revealed throughout the paintings and the viewer is engaged the richness and spirit.

Cattle || Karen Cantello

Cattle, an exhibition by Karen Cantello, is a visual look at the cattle.  Cattle, or more specifically, their ancestor, the auroch, were the subject of our earliest art making activities.  Paleolithic cave paintings represent a recognition and celebration of the animals that were vital to our survival.  In the Hindu religion darshan is a ritual of “seeing with reverence and devotion” and is performed with cows (as well as other persons and objects of devotion). The “seeing” is believed to be reciprocal and the human viewer is believed to receive a spiritual gift in the exchange.  Cantello captures a rich field of visual imagery. These [paintings] show compelling individuals that can “bestow great opportunity for projected state of mind; graceful acquiescence, defeated fatalism and more dramatically, have the power to evoke that jolting moment when seer becomes seen and the subsequent occasion for prolonged, contemplative, mutual consideration”.