Survival / Balance
Bonnieman, Hargrave, Stanbridge
April 6 - May 14, 2005
The exhibition Survival / Balance, brings together three artists whose works explore issues in the realms of environmental evolution, and societal change. This exhibition is comprised of large-scale acrylic paintings, assemblages, and sculptural constructions.
Terra Bonnieman produces exquisitely made objects utilizing common materials, (plywood, sheet metal, plaster) generally available from hardware and building material outlets. Bonnieman’s subjects include human population growth, cultural survival and the resultant impact on the global environment. In his work the artist also considers animal species that have survived through evolutionary means or have failed to survive due to outside forces. A sense of foreboding is apparent in the work adding a cautionary note that evokes an awareness of urgency.
Laura Hargrave’s mixed media constructions and collages echo these concerns for a balance in nature. Land use practices, water conservation, and housing development in modern suburbia are key issues in Hargrave’s work. The artist has spent the last several years researching how natural resources (earth, water, vegetation) are managed with awareness for the need to provide adequate housing while maintaining an environment compatible with a specific quality of living. Her attention has been attracted by engineered communities built through a practice which has the forests removed and terrain reshaped, followed by the construction of housing and infrastructure. Selected veteran trees are left standing, and indigenous plants are replaced upon the reconstituted landscape wherever possible. Streams and watercourses, migration routes and nesting habitat are protected, or enhanced by the developer in communities that require such standards be adhered to. Amenities are put into place, which include walking trails, recreational opportunities, and man-made habitat. The new inhabitants (homeowners) replant and reshape their parcel with a personal selection of landscaping which strives to create an “acceptable” place to live.
Harry Stanbridge is an artist whose large-scale paintings in acrylic depict abstract shapes. Our exhibition includes a selection of paintings from a series entitled Abundance. These paintings are abstract images constructed by employing formal devices common in the practice of modern painting. Once engaged by these paintings the observer will detect large schools of fish…salmon. Stanbridge says about his paintings, “The intent of this work is to give an equivalent reading of colour field ground, with the ecological ground that the salmon represent in the real natural world.”
The exhibit Survival/Balance, focuses on common themes. The themes explored in the exhibit give rise to questions that extend to concerns for the environment and the impact our actions may have on future generations – good and bad. These concerns extend beyond land and water use to how we interact with animal species, cultural groups, and societal values. Each of the three artists exhibits a clarity of insight while articulate in creating sophisticated objects to illustrate their concerns. Additionally all demonstrate a highly accomplished level of skill with their choice of materials. Whether with paint, collage, sheet metal, or wood an unmistakable level of craftsmanship is prevalent in each of the works on exhibit. This high level of accomplishment engages the viewer and brings greater attention to the importance of the concepts the artists wish to depict.
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