HAIDA GWAII
JUDY COTTYN
PAT WAHLSTROM
ELIZABETH WALDORF
JOAN RAMSEY HARKER
Quesnel Art Gallery
May 2015 Opening Friday May 8 at 7pm
Sponsors
Richbar Nursery & Golf Course
Forsythia Holdings Inc.
Pat Wahlstrom really inspired the rest of the group to visit Haida Gwaii – and did in fact share different journeys with Judy and Joan. Elizabeth’s journey was solo, but she too was inspired by Pat’s obvious love for the islands. Pat is deeply moved by the spiritual quality of the land and people, and has developed strong emotional ties to Haida Gwaii.
Pat began playing with clay in 1983, and 32 years later, she is still playing. Best things learned come from clay, good pottery books, fellow potters, and the world around us. Pat is pleased to be a part of this show, in hopes of inspiring more people to visit Haida Gwaii. Her memories after several visits include….beautiful Haida people….stunning native art….monumental totem poles….beach art….beachcombing….balance rock….crabbing….fishing….Haida fries….northern lights….eagles….more eagles….taking family….taking friends….very few stop signs, but so much to stop and see!!
Elizabeth Waldorf has always loved anything creative. Her distinguished education includes: Ontario College of Art & Design University; taking Fine Art and studying a fifth year in Florence, Italy in the school’s off campus studio program; a B.A. in Art History from University of Toronto, followed with a post graduate co-op certificate in Arts Management from Humber College Toronto; and several jobs in the field. Six years ago Elizabeth moved to Quesnel from Toronto, and started going on hiking and kayaking trips on the weekend taking photos with her digital camera. From these photos she began a new type of art process, abstracting the photo into a larger composition on canvas. This group show was a way to give herself a deadline to produce a number of paintings on a theme of Haida Gwaii. Elizabeth took a summer vacation there two years ago, and was overwhelmed by the beauty and gentle pace of life on the island. She plans to make Haida Gwaii a destination she returns to again and again. Currently Elizabeth works as the City of Quesnel Art Program Coordinator.
Joan Ramsey Harker has painted most of her life. After obtaining a degree in Interior Design, she worked in architects offices before joining a large public corporation for 26 years. She retired and moved to the Cariboo 15 years ago and has painted more and more since then. The Haida Gwaii trip inspired this new series of paintings. Joan became fascinated by the edges she observed while walking on the beaches: the edge of the forest so vulnerable to the sea; the edge of the sea advancing and retreating on the land; the beaches of rock and sand and driftwood at the mercy of the relentless tides and violent storms, the ravens and eagles everywhere. She too has prepared large acrylic canvases to illustrate the scale and beauty of the sea encroaching relentlessly on the land.
Judy Cottyn is self- taught and has always loved to create things in different media. She also enjoyed her time on the islands, and stored up many impressions that have been working away in her imagination for years. As a mixed media artist with many skills and talents, Judy has explored her own world of altered books, assemblages, textiles and more to develop a different view of the islands with her usual sensitivity and humor. She is happy to be part of the show and her enjoyment of Haida Gwaii is reflected in the work.