St. John’s artist invited to be part of prestigious exhibition
St. John’s visual artist Kym Greeley has had a landscape painting chosen for “The Painting Project: A Snapshot of Painting in Canada,” at Galerie de l’UQAM (Universite du Quebec a Montreal).
A total of 60 artists from across the country were selected for this prestigious exhibition, after a twoyear survey.
Greeley was invited to submit by the curators, some of who knew her by reputation, as well as from her shortlisting for the Sobeys Award in 2011.
The works were displayed in two sections, with Greeley’s piece, “Terra Nova II” (acrylic on canvas, 5 x 6 ft, 2012) in the second part. This fall, a virtual exhibition will be available online.
“It was great to be paired with these other artists,” said Greeley. “We’re similar in our art practices, our painting compositions, and painting process.”
They are also a cohort in terms of their career, being young and contemporary artists who have left their fledgling status behind and are moving towards becoming firmly established. As such, they continuously deal with “the history of art through painting, where it came from, and where it’s leading, and how it is talked about now.”
For Greeley and like-minded artists, it means painting is a full genre in itself, one that stands on its own and doesn’t need to include new media.
“That might be called a painting issue.” Greeley said.
She also said her work involves “non-paintings issues,” in “the lack of personal touch.” Her imagery is often about subtraction, and taking away, leaving a spareness of elemental forms and bold, flat colours.
This minimalism can even read as somehow futuristic, like the afterimages of bright, reductive flashes.
Greeley usually begins with a photograph, and draws, or withdraws from that, “taking out as much information as I can.” That is what she projects and paints.
The result is a configuration that “is both abstract as well as representational.” Clearly the forms remain trees, rock, sky. But they are distilled to something fundamental. “There’s a graphic feeling to them. And this allows the viewer to put more of their imagination into them, without worrying exactly what they are looking at, or where the image is from.”
This simplicity, though, is not harsh or austere. It is a de-cluttering that makes for tidy harmonics. The palette is important to this.
“In the past couple of years it has been more representational. I have played with different hues to create different feelings,” she said.
Greeley is largely known for her landscapes; she’s comfortable being called a landscape artist. That said, her latest project involves something very different.
“It’s a series of paintings that have to do with manufacturing objects in Newfoundland, with self portraits. It’s a departure. Self portraiture is something I haven’t done since NASCAD. It’s been really fun.”
So far she has been concentrating on sealskin crafts.
“Basically they show me holding up seal pelts. It’s about the shape of the seal pelts, and their scale and texture.”
She has been working with an artisan on Change Islands, who makes hats and bags from the seals her husband harvests, and whose skins they both cure. Greeley has also been to Vogue Furriers, who does all its sewing at its downtown St. John’s location.
These works are still in progress in Greeley’s studio, but some of her other paintings, including some bigger landscapes, can be seen at Christina Parker Gallery.