Sunday, February 12, 2006

“Out of Purgatory” Art Show

I had the chance to go to the opening of the "Out of Purgatory" art show last night at my friend Donnalee's place. This was the second year for this concept and I think it's a terribly neat idea. From the announcement:

[M]embers of the Peake Street Studios Collective completed unfinished and emotionally abandoned pieces by fellow artists. Pieces were selected based on a random draw and so there are a number of interesting collaborations which are unlikely to happen again. Twelve artists participated in the show and the results are quite remarkable. It has been a challenging and emotionally charged endeavour for all artists involved so there is bound to be wonderful discussion on opening night.

Participating Artists:
P. John Burden
Katherine Dagg
Donnalee Downe
Karen Gallant
Ahmon Katz
Cloe Kork
Tyler Landry
Rilla Marshall
Laura O’Brien
Heidi Waterman
Joey Weale
Damien Worth

It was astonishing that, for the most part, you couldn't see where one artist's work ended and the other began. There were little photos next to the pieces to show their half-completed state and it further proved that the skills of each artist were such that they didn't intrude on the original work. It wasn't just paintings, either, there was sculpture and one who had a doll that, when it was given to Donnalee to complete, didn't have any arms or legs and had half-completed little hat. So some pretty serious craftsmanship had to go into finishing everything, but the end result was something that, last I looked, was among the highest-fetching items in the silent auction.

It's funny, the more I learn about the detail that artists put into their work and the amount of personal energy and frustration that goes into creating something the more I am just overwhelmed by what individuals are capable of.

I was visiting Donnalee's place a couple of weeks ago, when the project was ongoing, and she was talking about the panicked phone calls she was getting from people receiving works that they didn't feel worthy of touching, and how it was simultaneously uplifting and nerve-racking to see your own abandoned project be made into something complete while also having the creator of your piece be scrutinizing what you did to it. Luckily I didn't hear of any fistfights, so I think in the end it all went really well.
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By al - 4:22 p.m. |

Comments:
i wish i had heard of this earlier. it sounds absolutely fascinating.

to give your work of art to another artist.. it takes an insane amount of trust. did the artists know the people who they were partnering with?

next year call me. i want to come too!
 
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