Art Beat

Snap Crackle and Pop at the U of L art gallery

Thursday, 14 January 2010 10:40 Richard Amery

The University of Lethbridge Art Gallery will Snap Crackle and Pop for the next month with their new exhibit .
“The exhibit explores images found in pop art, mostly found in TV or print, and explores the ways they look at politics,” said University of Lethbridge art gallery’s Jane Christopher Moore is past of Snap Crackle and Pop. Photo By Richard Amery

Christopher Moore is past of Snap Crackle and Pop. Photo By Richard Amery

Edmundson. The exhibit features several artists with southern Alberta roots including Christopher Moore, Lisa Brawn, Dave and Jenn, Jason Mathis, Len Komanac plus Shanell Papp in the main gallery, runs Jan. 15- Feb. 26.
Leading up to the event is the opening reception, Jan. 15 from 4 p.m.-6 p.m.
“A lot of the pieces are based on images of war and disaster in the media. i these images are pretty pervasive so a lot of the artists are examining that,” she said .
“Pop art examines these issues,” she said.
A variety of mediums have been used by the individual artists. There are woodcut prints, sculptures, paintings, crochet and fabric art as well as multi-media art.
The opening reception for the exhibit is from 4-6 p.m., Friday, Jan. 15

— By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat editor

New exhibits open at Bowman this week

Tuesday, 12 January 2010 11:09 Richard Amery

The Bowman Art Gallery has a couple new exhibits opening this week, in addition to the second edition of their Collectives, Concepts and Culture film series.
But first, there are two opening receptions, Jan. 16. A Focus on the Centre features art quilts of textile artists who participated in “Mandalas: Working in Circles” workshop with Martha Cole last May. The reception is Jan. 16 from 7-9 p.m. The exhibit runs Jan. 16-Feb. 27.
The Lethbridge Photography Club is also opening an exhibit called “Trespassing the Past” in the Bowman Arts Centre and the Yates Theatre Galleries. The works of Glenn Christianson, Van Christou. Carmen Cook, Grant Forsythe, Ian McGillivray, Barbara Gullickson, Lorelei Hoffarth, Kathleen Klemen, Donna Kroeger, Ted Nicholson, Trevor Page, Bill Ramage, Leonard Simpson, Branislav Smec, David Tanaka, Ian Thompson, Thane Vanderaegen, Scott Vandt Land, Kathy Villeneuve and Dorrit Zaroba.
The reception is 7-9 p.m., Jan. 16. Call 403-327-2813 for more information.
On Monday, Jan. 18, the featured film is “This is Berlin Not New York” which is a documentary about the Antagonist Art Movement — a group of New York artists who traveled to berlin in 2007 for 10 days of cross cultural exchanges.
The show begins at 7 p.m. there is no charge to attend.

— By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor

Cuddle Commandos exhibit satirizes military bureaucracy

Tuesday, 12 January 2010 10:42 Richard Amery

The instruments of war don’t seem so ominous when covered in soft pink felt. That’s the idea behind former University of Lethbridge New Media professor/ artist Christopher Moore’s Cuddle Commando exhibit opening this week in the Helen Christou Gallery next to the University of Lethbridge library. Christopher Moore gets ready to snap, crackle and pop. Photo by Richard Amery

Christopher Moore gets ready to snap, crackle and pop. Photo by Richard Amery

Using a medium called flocking, Moore covered an array of toy guns, grenades, tanks, aircraft and military apparel with soft pink felt.
“I’ll also be enlisting recruits to the cuddle commandos,” laughed Moore, clad in a self designed puppy print camouflage uniform and pink officer’s cap standing next to a display case of his work and a number of mock bureaucratic forms and recruitment posters. The Concordia University professor taught at the University of Lethbridge from 2004-2008. The exhibit, which is part of Snap Crackle and Pop exhibit featuring several Southern Alberta artists, Lisa Brawn, Dave and Jenn, Jason Mathis, Len Komanac plus Shanell Papp in the main gallery, runs Jan. 15- Feb. 26.
Leading up to the opening reception, Jan. 15 from 4 p.m,.-6 p.m., Moore will be “recruiting” all week long from 11 a.m.- 12 p.m. and 1-2 p.m. in the Helen Christou Gallery. His exhibit in the Helen Christou Gallery is up until March 5.
“It has a lot of fun with all of the systems which come with government. There’s giant stamps and embossed seals,” he said.

Documentaries on contemporary art starts Jan. 11

Tuesday, 05 January 2010 21:05 Richard Amery

Bowman Arts Centre gallery program curator Darcy Logan is excited about the second installment of Documentaries on Contemporary Art, which begins Monday, Jan. 11. This year’s theme and title is ‘ Collectives, concepts and culture. Artist Antony Gormleysits among the 180,000 figurines that make up Asian Field, part of the Sydney Biennale. Photo by Ben Rushton

Artist Antony Gormleysits among the 180,000 figurines that make up Asian Field, part of the Sydney Biennale. Photo by Ben Rushton

“ The intent of the program is to expose artists in the community to broaden their knowledge of trends in art,” said Logan who spends a good part of the year researching and obtaining the rights to numerous films about art techniques, mediums, concepts, styles and trends. The films will be shown in the Bowman Art Gallery music room every Monday until March 29 at 7 p.m. each night.
This year’s series begins Jan 11 with two films — ‘The Eye: Antony Gormley’ about the internationally acclaimed sculptor who is known for ‘Angel of the North’ and the ‘Eye: Chris Ofli’ which is about the artist “Within Reach’ for the British Pavilion at the Venice Biennale which combines a cycle of paintings depicting lovers in a Paradise like garden in a shimmering glass dome.)
“ Most of them are about contemporary art. Some of them are movements which set the stage for contemporary art,” Logan continued.