Several South Cariboo artisans are returning to Parkside Gallery this month with Water, A Reflection.
The show is being curated by Trish Chung, a longtime South Cariboo felt artist. Chung said the artists she’s recruited for the show are a mix of current and past Cariboo residents who still draw artistic inspiration from their time here.
“The idea was about how water flows from a source. There are people from the area who have moved away but are still connected here,” Chung said. “We’re all connected, just like how streams and rivers are all connected to a headwater.”
Collaborating with the other artists to ensure their pieces complement each other is a key part of this show, Chung said. The art on display will include paintings, hand-blown glass, woven baskets and more.
Chung first got into felt art 12 years ago when she was shearing sheep for CEEDS and began wondering what she could do with the wool. Wool, she found, was an underused material in art and she began to develop a passion for creating her own felt.
“I love the slow, methodical process to create felt. It’s a non-woven textile that you create by using the raw wool that’s just fibre and lay it in different directions. Then you wet it with some soap just to change the PH and then agitate it gently and it becomes a textile,” Chung said. “It can take hours and hours. I usually do it over days.”
While waiting so long might be seen as a negative for some, Chung she said to her it’s beneficial. The long process gives her time to contemplate each piece she creates as well as see the project evolve and change.
Chung said before she makes her felt, she dyes it so that the colours mix in unique ways. She’ll also add different textures to her work by including strands of silk or yarn and other fibres, as her felt takes shape.
“I’ve got some pieces for this show that are super fine. Very thin layers using silk and I’ve also done some very thick and more rugged pieces. I’ve got both ends of the spectrum there.”
For the show, Chung has created several pieces that focus on the themes of water being one of nature’s most gentle but also strongest elements.
Many of the other artists involved have personal connections to Chung, including her niece Jemma Van Osch and daughter Ada Chung, who both live in Vancouver. Van Osch is a professional glassblower for Bocci Glassblowing Studio and in her spare time, is always looking for new designs and innovations to her craft.
“We’ll get to see some of her new pieces which are reflective of the Canim Lake area,” Chung said. “They’re like stones and the glass really adds to the feeling of water and reflection.”
More direct forms of collaboration came from Christina Mary, a Horsefly-based artist, and Cathy Mouat. Mary has woven some of Chung’s felt into her willow baskets while Mouat and Chung have created a felt coat together, with Mouat weaving the sleeves from some of Chung’s wool. Greeting people when they enter Parkside Gallery, meanwhile, will be a large paper mache figure that Chung is in the midst of completing.
Water, A Reflection is on at Parkside Gallery from March 4 to April 16.
patrick.davies@100milefreepress.net
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