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Archived Exhibitions
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Mixed Blessings Don Pentz Louise Pentz January 23 to February 27, 2009 Opening Reception: Thursday, January 22, 2009, 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Artist Talk: February 5, 2009 at 6:30 p.m. (Snow Date February 12)
Curatorial Statement In Genesis 32 we read that Jacob wrestles through the night with an angel who wounds him. But Jacob persists in the struggle despite his injury and, in the morning, refuses to let the angel go unless he receives from him a blessing. Jacob receives his blessing: his name is changed to Israel (one who struggles with God) and his sons become the patriarchs of the twelve tribes of Israel. But although Jacob prevailed in his conflict, it was not without cost. He was left scarred, his damaged hip a constant reminder of the struggle. And so it is with the most profound blessings; they are often earned through struggle. It is this tension between blessing and struggle we may feel when viewing the works by Don and Louise Pentz in Mixed Blessings.
Don's ancient landscape images document the struggle of their creation. They are developed intuitively, layer upon layer, colour upon colour, until the artist feels a sense of completion. The record of pushing and pulling the textured medium is visible on the painted surface of each finished work. Don's deep connection to the land, nurtured by years of wilderness hiking and canoeing (taking him to places unseen by most) provides the inspiration for his work. But Don does not seek merely to illustrate these sacred places in his paintings. Rather, it is the sense of the holy in the landscape, earned through struggle (the earth's and his own) that he records in his works through the process of painting them. While we may be attracted initially by the surface beauty of his paintings,
Louise also addresses struggle in her works. Her figurative sculptures represent women who have been beaten down by culture and religion, but remain "strong and nurturing in spite of their difficult experiences." She attributes this tenacity to "the strength of spirit." Potter turned sculptor, Louise shapes and sculpts with the earth itself. After an initial firing, her figures are tinted with natural ochres (dug from earth and ground into pigment by her archaeologist son) and buried in sawdust and leaves. A fire is lit and the pieces are left to simmer. When the figures finally emerge from their sooty grave they bear the marks and stains of pit-firing, aptly representing the scars from a life hard lived. But there is also beauty in this sooty mixture. Swirls of soft grey tones and subtle earthy Don and Louise Pentz have been working and living together for more than three decades. That their works influence each other is to be expected. However, it is a gentle influence, one which respects and nurtures the creativity of the other. Mixed Blessings records the celebrations and struggles of these artists' lives and works. There is a spiritual quality in the works, but it is a spirituality which is not detached from the physical reality of daily living. These works remind us that, despite our struggles, there is beauty to be found by those who look for it. -Regina Coupar
Ecumenical Vessel
Artist Talk--A Study in Conflict Photos and talk by Dr. Zalman Amit Friday, November 27 12:15 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. (Talk begins at 12:30, followed by Q&A) AST Library Light lunch available Presentation Description (from the artist) The photographs forming the basis of this presentation were taken over a period of two years in the Palestinian occupied territories. The period under study was the latter part of the Second Intifada (2003-2005). The project was a two fold affair. On one hand I intended to document life under a military occupation with all its cruelty and adversity. However, while concentrating on the job I began to realize that there is a great deal of beauty even in adversity and I became committed to the idea of documenting and recording it as well. My observations revealed that as time progresses people involved in the conflict undergo changes driven by the role they play in the conflict. On one hand, the soldiers enforcing the occupation become less and less compassionate. On the other hand, as a great surprise to me, the people who are the subjects of the occupation seem to become more empathic and humane -- while at the same time becoming more angry. Not only the people undergo changes in this conflict; the land itself changes. The occupation inflicts significant wounds on the land and in the latter part of the project I tried to document this phenomenon as well. Thus, this presentation is dedicated to these aspects of a very difficult confrontation between two peoples. Dr. Zalman Amit is an artist, retired scientist (Concordia University) and avid peace activist. He lives in Kingsburg, Nova Scotia.
Curatorial Statement A functional object common to all ancient human civilizations, the vessel is also a ubiquitous symbol for the religions--from the 'singing bowls' of Buddhism to the 'chalice' of Christianity. It can embody great beauty, and it may be intellectually suggestive as well. While the original purpose of the vessel was undoubtedly utilitarian, it is such other layers of meaning that concern us in this exhibition of works by painter Lynn Rotin and wood-turner Zalman Amit. Lynn Rotin began painting vessels eleven years ago. Attracted by the significance of the bowl for ancient peoples, Lynn understands it as "a metaphor for the body and a receptacle for emotion." But often her emphasis is just an "exercise in colour" or "the simple pleasure of putting brush to canvas and pushing paint around." And, indeed, her explorations in media - thick combinations of wax and paint, layered and incised - contribute to an experience of sheer aesthetic pleasure. Zalman Amit, a former Professor of Psychology at Concordia University, began his wood-turning career in 1999. His bowls are unequivocally beautiful; his deep sensitivity to and respect for his materials are evident in the visual and tactile properties of his work. Delicate, and often intricately designed, these vessels are, for him, manifestations of possibilities dictated by the material itself. However, Amit admits that it is often difficult for him to appreciate beauty in his own work. He is swift to point out tiny defects or irregularities which--so he remarks--he might celebrate in the works of others! Both artists deny any explicit or intended relationship between their art and their Jewish backgrounds. Rather, each confesses to being interested primarily in the formal aspects of his/her art and to working with the media intuitively. Metaphors arising from their art are secondary and have little or nothing to do with their religious backgrounds. But for the viewer, all these things can enter into the process of meaning-making. Meaning for us is shaped in an interplay between the artist, his/her creation, and our response to it. These three together are necessary and sufficient conditions for an informed reception of art. Gone are the days of the artist-genius delivering a divine or didactic message, and happily more limited than they once were are interpretations grounded in the 'whatever it means to me' attitude. No, art is neither a case of the genius offering crumbs to lesser minds nor a free-for-all beyond 'culturally-imposed' standards. Art, like the products of many other disciplines, rewards wide-ranging experience and reflection with knowledge. For this exhibition, therefore, the spectator is not asked to focus on the art of 'Jewish' artists with differing political views, or the relationship between 'Jewish' and 'Christian' art (topics which would both provide excellent fodder for academic study!). Nor is beauty or metaphor the only key to meaning. Rather, an exhibition such as this is best viewed as holding a rich and multi-faceted offering, which takes receptive viewers through a deep conversation born of aesthetic experience and brought to fullness in reflection. -Regina Coupar, Exhibitions Director Atlantic School of Theology Art Gallery |
