‘Wild and Woolly’ up next for gallery

On the heels of the successful “Shades of Yellow” art show at the Fine Art Gallery, the co-op of artists there already have their sets on a big show for next spring.
“The theme is ‘Wild and Woolly.’ I have no idea what that show is going to bring,” said Linda Lovisa, who thought up the idea behind “Shades of Yellow.”
“But after this show, people have said they’re interested in participating,” Lovisa added. “I think this sort of thing is only going to expand.”
The “Shades of Yellow” exhibit wrapped up May 3 with an open house featuring the music of the Northern Lights Ensemble (Stephanie Hawkins and Katherine Williams)—and it was a blooming success.
“Through the show [which opened April 12], we had 265 people sign the guest book, but we know there’s some people who didn’t. So I’d say we really had just under 300 people come through,” said Lovisa.
“Things have been really great. People that usually haven’t come in [to the gallery] came through,” she added.
The “Shades of Yellow” exhibit featured 38 pieces—some of which were sold during the show—ranging from watercolour and oil paintings, a knitted afghan, and a quilt to stained-glass, beadwork, and pottery.
These were submitted by artists from across the district, as well as Thunder Bay, Winnipeg, and Vancouver.
Lovisa said she came up with the idea for “Shades of Yellow” after talking with an artist from Brandon, Man. whom she had met at the gallery.
“They had a show called ‘Shades of Purple.’ And I thought, we’ve never had anything like this in the area so I figured we’d put a twist on it,” she explained.
While Lovisa previously had said some artists initially complained about the choice of colour for the theme, that’s all changed. “They all say that they look at the colour in a different way now,” Lovisa chuckled.
But the May 3 open house was the piece de resistance of the exhibit, added Lovisa.
“We had a terrific response. We had about 30 people from all over come see it—International Falls, Emo, Rainy River,” she noted.
“The Northern Lights Ensemble, who played for us before about a year ago, added a little twist to it this time with the lyrics sheets with no song titles,” continued Lovisa.
“So we had a good time guessing what the songs were.”
The duet played a selection of songs to do with the colour yellow, including “Yellow Polka Dot Bikini,” “Yellow Submarine,” and “Tie A Yellow Ribbon ’Round the Old Oak Tree.”
The show also featured a little poetry to kick things off, including yours truly reciting William Wordsworth’s “The Daffodils.”
“I think it was wonderful,” said Delsie Cumming, who was among those attending the open house. “I think everyone there appreciated the work they put into it.”
Further down the road, another colour-themed show—the shade of which yet has to be determined—is slated for 2004.
In the meantime, the gallery is working to get people interested in expressing themselves via visual art.
“We have all kinds of workshops going throughout the summer, which is new for us. All you have to do is drop by and ask about them,” said Lovisa, adding one of particular interest is a children’s program aimed at acquainting 10 to 12-year-olds with watercolour techniques.
Other workshops, led by local artists such as Jean Richards, include birchbark and feather painting.
For more information about any of these workshops, drop by 529 Mowat Ave. or call 274-1269.