Articles tagged with: Department of Visual Arts

  • Term to culminate in student art exhibitions at Rodman Hall

    Wednesday, March 20, 2019 | By

    Gianna Aceto, Emma Mary Sked, Amber Williams, Cynthia Richards, Teresa Badgley and Sarah Martin

    Visual Arts students, from left, Gianna Aceto, Emma Mary Sked, Amber Williams, Cynthia Richards, Teresa Badgley and Sarah Martin will have their exhibitions on view in two back-to-back exhibitions beginning Friday, March 22 at Rodman Hall Art Centre.

    (From The Brock News, March 20, 2019 | by Sarah Ackles)

    After spending a semester immersed in studio practice, six Brock Visual Arts students are bringing two unique exhibitions to Rodman Hall Art Centre.

    At the Bottom of Everything runs from Saturday, March 23 to April 7 and features the work of Cynthia Richards, Emma Mary Sked and Amber Lee Williams. There will be an opening reception for the exhibition on Friday, March 22 at 7 p.m.

    The second exhibition, oh, that’s nice, features Gianna Aceto, Teresa Badgley and Sarah Martin. It will be on view from Saturday, April 13 to 28, with the opening reception taking place on Friday, April 12 at 7 p.m.

    The two exhibitions are the culmination of the VISA 4F06 Honours Studio course, where students engage in the entire process of art making, from concept and creation to exhibition.

    The course is a unique experiential learning opportunity that gives artists access to a dedicated studio space with professional mentors. The students learn the value of their individual work in a collaborative event and, upon graduation, become practising artists with practical experience putting on a show in a professional art gallery.

    Students in the course were mentored by Visual Arts Associate Professors Donna Szőke and Shawn Serfas.

    The students were also visited in studio by Acting Director and Curator Marcie Bronson, of Rodman Hall; Associate Professors Derek Knight and Amy Friend; Adjunct Professors Donna Akrey and Candace Couse; professional artists Alejandro Cartagena and Heather Hart; and Brock alumni Bruce Thompson (BA ’11) and Natalie Hunter (BA ’11), who all provided critique and insight to help students fine-tune and focus their work.

    Rodman Hall’s Administrative Assistant Danny Custodio and Installation Assistant Lauren Regier (BA ’14) also offered support and guidance.

    Exhibitions like these are a key part of the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts’ mandate to build connections between the community and the breadth of talent and creativity at Brock University.

    “If collectively their goal is to develop a focused body of work from concept to public exhibition, then these two unique exhibits capture the exceptional vitality and daring of the emerging artist,” Knight said.

    Both exhibitions and opening receptions take place at Rodman Hall Art Centre, 109 St. Paul Cres. in St. Catharines.

    Gallery hours are Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m.

    For more information, visit the Rodman Hall Art Centre website.

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    Categories: Alumni, Current Students, Events, News

  • Figure drawing class visited by professional dancer

    Wednesday, March 13, 2019 | By

    On Thursday, March 7, Visual Arts students in instructor Candace Couse’s Figure Drawing course welcomed Brock instructor and professional dancer Heryka Miranda Pellecer (pictured) into their studio at the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts. While Pellecer danced and moved around the studio, the students focused on capturing her body in motion in paper and engaging in experimental drawing. The course has welcomed a variety of alternative models this semester (including therapy dog Tequilla), to allow students a wide variety of subjects as their honed their skills.

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    Categories: News

  • MIWSFPA host to roughly 60 high school arts teachers

    Wednesday, March 06, 2019 | By

    Visual Arts teachers were led through an Indigenous art workshop led by Brian Kon.

    On Feb. 15, the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts hosted more than 60 Dramatic Arts, Music and Visual Arts teachers from the District School Board of Niagara (DSBN).

    Organized by Recruitment and Liaison Officer, Madison Roca, and NCDSB Arts Consultant, Teri Cristelli, the teachers were led through various workshops as part of their professional development day.

    “Many of the teachers had said it was the best professional development day they’d ever had,” said Cristelli.

    Among the different workshops were two visual arts workshops, the first on Indigenous art led by guest Brian Kon, followed by a session led by Visual Arts Assistant Professor Amy Friend on cyanotypes.

    There was also a Dramatic Arts workshop led by Dramatic Arts Chair Joe Norris and music workshop led by guest Kevin Hamlin from Yamaha Canada, held in the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre.

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    Categories: Events, News

  • Brock alumna returns to speak with VISA students

    Wednesday, March 06, 2019 | By

    Brock alumna, Natalie Hunter, spent the afternoon with VISA 4F06 students as they discussed their upcoming exhibitions. Back row from left: Teresa Badgley, Amber Williams, Shawn Serfas, Sarah Martin
     Front row from left: Gianna Aceto, Emma Hutchison-Hounsell, Cynthia Richards, Natalie Hunter

    On Feb. 7, Brock Visual Arts students in the VISA 4F06 Honours course were visited by Brock alumna Natalie Hunter (BA ’11) to discuss their upcoming exhibitions that begin in March. Hunter and the students discussed the pieces they are working on and how to move forward in order to create a cohesive exhibition. During each student’s session, they received a small piece of translucent film that Hunter used in her exhibition, Staring into the Sun, which is currently on view at Rodman Hall Art Centre.

    During her time at Brock, Hunter was part of the VISA 4F06 Honours course, where students work all year to put together an exhibition in Rodman Hall. Staring into the Sun features photo-based sculptures and installations that explore the relationship between memory and physical space. The exhibition runs until April 28.

    At the Bottom of Everything, the first of two Visual Arts Honours exhibitions, runs from March 23 to April 7, with the opening reception on Friday, March 22 at 7 p.m. at Rodman Hall.

    The second exhibition runs from April 13 to 28, with the opening reception on Friday, April 12 at 7 p.m. at Rodman Hall. More details to come.

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    Categories: Alumni, Current Students, Events, News

  • International art exhibition makes Canadian debut at Brock

    Thursday, February 28, 2019 | By

    Alinka Echeverria’s The Road to Tepeyac consists of hundreds of photographs the artist took of devout Mexican pilgrims carrying their personal image of the Virgin of Guadalupe on an annual journey to commemorate her apparition in 1531.

    (From The Brock News, February 28, 2019 | By: Sarah Ackles)

    An internationally recognized exhibition is making its Canadian debut at Brock’s Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts (MIWSFPA) next week.

    The Road to Tepeyac, from Mexican-British artist Alinka Echeverría, will open in the VISA Gallery and Student Exhibition Space of the downtown arts school on Tuesday, March 5 as part of the Walker Cultural Leaders Series.

    It features visually stunning images documenting an annual journey to Tepeyac, Mexico City, that millions of people undertake to pay tribute to the Virgin of Guadalupe.

    Mexican-British artist Alinka Echeverría will present The Road to Tepeyac at the VISA Gallery and Student Exhibition Space of the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts beginning Tuesday, March 5 as part of the Walker Cultural Leaders Series.

    On their backs, the devout pilgrims tote personalized items of the Virgin — from paintings and life-sized sculptures to brightly coloured clothing and floor-length robes — to be blessed when they reach their final destination.

    Described as an immersive photographic installation, the award-winning work deconstructs the historical, political, philosophical, psychological and anthropological relationship between an invisible presence and its materialized expression.

    Brock Visual Arts Assistant Professor Amy Friend, who curates the exhibitions in the gallery, said she found Echeverría’s work “to be both political and deeply human, which is not an easy feat to accomplish.”

    The Road to Tepeyac has been featured in exhibitions held in more than 20 countries.

    An opening reception for the Brock show will take place Thursday, March 7 in the VISA gallery, and is free and open to the public.

    A public lecture will immediately follow the reception at the Robertson Theatre in the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre, where Echeverría will discuss her acclaimed photography and sound projects.

    Trained in social anthropology, Echeverría combines aspects of documentary photography with visual anthropology and conceptual art in her work.

    Alinka Echeverria’s The Road to Tepeyac consists of hundreds of photographs the artist took of devout Mexican pilgrims carrying their personal image of the Virgin of Guadalupe on an annual journey to commemorate her apparition in 1531.

    Friend looks forward to hearing the impact Echeverría’s background has on her investigative process: from how she initiates her projects to the factors determining how she achieves the final, visual form.

    In addition to the The Road to Tepeyac (2010), Echeverría will discuss her projects Deep Blindness (2013 to present), Becoming South Sudan (for which she was named International Photographer of the Year by the Lucie Awards) and Nicephora, a four-year project based on her BMW Art and Culture Residency at the Musée Nicéphore Niépce. In Nicephora, the artist deployed a rigorous, research-based approach to explore the male and colonial gaze from the inception of the photographic medium.

    Tickets to the lecture are free, but registration is required by visiting the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre website.

    Generously funded by Marilyn I. Walker, the Walker Cultural Leader series brings leading artists, performers, practitioners and academics to the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts at Brock University. Engaging, lively and erudite, these sessions celebrate professional achievement.

    The Road to Tepeyac
    Exhibition opening reception: Thursday, March. 7, 5 p.m.
    Where: VISA Art Gallery and Student Exhibition Space, Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts
    Exhibition runs: March 5 to 26.

    Public lecture: An anthropological gaze in contemporary photographic practice
    Thursday, March 7 at 6 p.m. in the Robertson Theatre of the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre.

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    Categories: Events, News, Walker Cultural Leader Series

  • Event to explore bodies and illness through art and literature

    Thursday, February 21, 2019 | By

    Yasmine Kandil, Associate Professor of Dramatic Arts, and six Brock Dramatic Arts students will present “Still Here,” cat the fifth annual Art, Archives and Affinities event. Hosted by the Social Justice Research Institute, the event takes place at the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts on Tuesday, Feb. 26.

    (From The Brock News, February 21, 2019 | By: Alison Innes)

    Art-making and trauma. Non-human organisms in the human body. Early onset Alzheimer’s disease.

    These are some of the ideas and experiences Brock scholars will explore through art and literature at the upcoming Art, Archives and Affinities event hosted by the Social Justice Research Institute.

    Held Tuesday, Feb. 26 from 2 to 5 p.m. at the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts in downtown St. Catharines, this year’s event features scholars from Visual Arts, Dramatic Arts, and English examining ideas about the body, illness and trauma.

    Included among the speakers is Candace Couse, an artist and PhD candidate in the Interdisciplinary Humanities, who will present an art installation and discuss her research on art and illness. Couse’s research examines the role that producing art has on artists who are undergoing illness and body trauma and how addressing trauma and illness through art-making helps artists reclaim their bodies and experiences.

    Also presenting is Adam Dickinson, Associate Professor in the Department of English, who subjected himself to a wide variety of bio-medical tests to measure and identify the precise chemical and microbial diversity of his body. The book of poetry he wrote examining the experience and its results, Anatomic, explores how we rely on nonhuman organisms to make us human and the permeability of our bodies to the environment.

    Yasmine Kandil, Assistant Professor in the Department of Dramatic Arts, and a team of six Dramatic Arts students will present performance piece “Still Here” at the event. Students created the performance based on interviews they did with caregivers of people with early onset Alzheimer’s. The performance explores the disease and the impact it has on caregivers.

    Art, Archives and Affinities is free and open to the public.

    What: Art, Archives and Affinities
    When: Tuesday, Feb. 26 from 2 to 5 p.m.
    Where: Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts Room 151 and Studio D

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    Categories: Events, Faculty & Instructors, News

  • MIWSFPA faculty, alumni nominated for 2019 St. Catharines Arts Awards

    Thursday, January 31, 2019 | By

    Visual Arts alumna Kylie Haveron (BA ’18) is among the nominees selected for the Emerging Artist category for the 2019 City of St. Catharines Arts Awards.

    (From The Brock News, January 31, 2019 | By: Sarah Ackles)

    Congratulations are in order for the numerous faculty members and alumni of Brock’s Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts (MIWSFPA) nominated for the 2019 City of St. Catharines Arts Awards.

    The awards recognize and celebrate excellence in all areas of artistic creation and seek to increase the visibility of St. Catharines’ artists and cultural industries, honour cultural leaders and their achievements and cultivate financial and volunteer support for the arts sector.

    Visual Arts alumna Kylie Haveron (BA ’18) is among the nominees selected for the Emerging Artist category, while Dramatic Arts Chair Joe Norris and Assistant Theatre Professor Danielle Wilson were both nominated for the Arts in Education award.

    Nominated in the Established Artist category are Wayne Corlis (BA ’05, MA ’12), who majored in Visual Arts and earned a master’s in Studies in Comparative Literatures and Arts, and Colin Anthes (BA ’14, MA ’16), who completed a combined Psychology/Dramatic Arts degree with a minor in Philosophy and a master’s degree in Philosophy. Anthes currently works as a part-time instructor in Brock’s Department of Dramatic Arts.

    Nominated in the Making a Difference category is alumna Emma German (BA ’14), who majored in Visual Arts and worked as a curator at the City of St. Catharines and Brock’s Rodman Hall Art Centre.

    Also nominated in the same category is the Willow Arts Community, a non-profit arts organization based at Rodman Hall that provides free artistic training and exhibition opportunities to community members with lived experience of mental health and addiction.

    The recipients of the City of St. Catharines Arts Awards will be recognized at a reception on Friday, May 3 at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre. Tickets will be available in March.

    A full list of nominees is available online.

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    Categories: Alumni, Faculty & Instructors, News

  • Artistic alumni to host vacation-themed exhibition downtown

    Tuesday, January 29, 2019 | By

    Brock grads Katie Mazi (BA ’16), Jenn Judson (BA ’16), Matt Caldwell (BA ’16), Ben Mosher (BA ’15) and Alex Muresan (BA ’16) make up the art collective Permanent Vacation. The artists will be exhibiting new work in All Expenses Paid, opening on Thursday, Jan. 31.

    (From The Brock News, January 29, 2019 | By: Sarah Ackles)

    The Permanent Vacation art collective is inviting the public to experience the sights and sounds of a tropical getaway – without spending a cent.

    The group, made up of Brock alumni, is presenting its second exhibition, All Expenses Paid, at the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts (MIWSFPA) beginning Thursday, Jan. 31. An opening reception for the showcase will be held Thursday, Feb. 7 from 5 to 8 p.m.

    All Expenses Paid is a multimedia exhibition featuring photographs, videos, an installation and a zine. The artists will also create a studio space inside the exhibition, where emerging local artists can work if they cannot access their own studio space due to economic barriers.

    The collective, which includes artists Katie Mazi (BA ’16), Jenn Judson (BA ’16), Matt Caldwell (BA ’16), Ben Mosher (BA ’15) and Alex Muresan (BA ’16), were all Studio Art majors at Brock who first worked together to restructure the Brock Art Club into the current Brock Art Collective.

    The name Permanent Vacation stems from the idea that you don’t need to ‘vacate’ an area to find work and fulfilment. The collective’s goal is to create working space for emerging Niagara-based makers in a way that promotes seeing home anew.

    “The exciting part about this exhibition is that it is fully collaborative within our collective and interactive with local artists and community members,” said Mazi.

    The artists encourage visitors to embrace the theme and wear their best vacation attire to the opening, where they can expect to find themselves surrounded by inner tubes and piña coladas.

    “It’s practically a vacation,” said Judson.

    Permanent Vacation’s All Expenses Paid is on from Jan. 31 to Feb. 28 at the VISA Gallery and Student Exhibition Space within the MIWSFPA. The opening reception, also at the gallery, takes place Feb. 7 from 5 to 8 p.m. The gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday from 1 to 5 p.m.

    If you would like to book studio time during the exhibition, please email the artists to make advance arrangements at [email protected]

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    Categories: Alumni, Events, News

  • Join us for an Artist Talk with Phil Irish Jan. 30

    Friday, January 25, 2019 | By

    Artist Phil Irish

    The Department of Visual Arts is pleased to welcome Phil Irish to the MIWSFPA for an artist talk on Jan. 30.

    Irish, from Elora, Ontario, makes paintings that are both fierce and beautiful. He is known for cutting paintings into fragments, and installing those pieces to make architecturally scaled collages that engage your senses and your mind.  His new work is influenced by his time on an icebreaker in the Canadian arctic, with Canada C3, a 150-day expedition from Toronto to Victoria via the Northwest Passage that took place from June 1 to Oct. 28, 2017.

    He has shown in commercial galleries, artist-run centres, and public galleries, including the National Gallery of Canada, Art Gallery of Guelph, Tom Thomson Memorial Art Gallery, Whyte Museum, Lonsdale Gallery and Angell Gallery, and was twice shortlisted for the Kingston Portrait Prize.

    He holds degrees from Guelph (BA) and York (MFA) and teaches studio at Redeemer University College.

    Irish will present at 1 p.m. on Jan. 30 in room 416 of the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts.

    The talk is free and open to the public.

    Registration is not required, but space is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis.

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    Categories: Announcements, Current Students, Department/Centre News, Events, News

  • Visual Arts prof named new Associate Dean of Humanities

    Thursday, January 24, 2019 | By

    Keri Cronin, Associate Professor in the Department of Visual Arts, will take on the role of Associate Dean, Research and Graduate Studies for the Faculty of Humanities starting July 1. (Photo credit Jo-Anne McArthur/We Animals.)

    (From The Brock News, January 24, 2019 | By: Alison Innes)

    Keri Cronin has always been invested in sharing the research of Brock’s Faculty of Humanities in far-reaching ways. And in her new role as Associate Dean, Research and Graduate Studies, she intends to continue down that path.

    “There is so much great work being done here in the Humanities,” says Cronin, Associate Professor with the Department of Visual Arts.

    “A lot of people hold misperceptions about what it is we do and the value and relevance of this work to the ‘real world.’ Using public platforms to highlight our stories and the excellent research being done here is, I believe, more important than ever.”

    Cronin, whose position as Associate Dean in the Faculty of Humanities begins July 1, values making academic research accessible to a wide and diverse audience.

    “I look forward to supporting faculty and graduate students in developing knowledge mobilization plans that make sense for their areas of expertise,” she says.

    Cronin’s own research trajectory has been a blend of the traditional and the non-traditional. In addition to her academic publications, including the 2018 publication of Art for Animals, Cronin has embraced online opportunities to share her research.

    The Unbound Project, a multimedia initiative Cronin co-created with Jo-Anne McArthur of We Animals, uses video, photography, interviews and social media to tell the stories of women who are working in animal advocacy.

    “The Unbound Project has a very large and international reach,” Cronin says. “Using our website and social media channels, we are able to share these women’s stories widely.”

    Cronin has also curated an online exhibition for the National Museum of Animals & Society. Be Kind: A Visual History of Humane Education was launched in 2012 and is used by teachers and professors in classrooms around the world.

    Social justice and transdisciplinary work are key for Cronin. She is a faculty member in the Social Justice and Equity Studies graduate program and was a founding member of Brock’s Social Justice Research Institute, where she worked to showcase Humanities-based approaches to social justice work.

    “Dr. Cronin is an accomplished scholar and teacher, with an excellent record of service to the University and the Faculty already,” says Dean of Humanities Carol Merriam.

    “I’m very pleased that she will now put her skills and talents available to her colleagues in this new role. She is a fitting successor to Dr. Michael Carter, who has done very good work in the role since 2016.

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    Categories: Announcements, Faculty & Instructors, News

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