2022-2023 Season

Jenifer Darbellay is an artist and designer living in Vancouver with her family. She grew up in Calgary and for 45 summers she travelled to Northern Saskatchewan with her parents, and now her own family to a cabin at The Lake built by her parents, Connie and Gerry. This series honors that place and the magic it holds, the memories, the light and the peace. Jenifer got back to painting with her first child after many years working as a Costume Designer across Canada. Over the last decade she has been inspired by motifs of weather, angels, women, children, nature, umbrellas, the glow of light and vast space. Lately she has been exploring the deep emotions activated by striking lighting and whimsical spaces caught in a moment of time. Photographs of a quiet space soon to be filled with a birthday crowd, the view from the boat as you come home form a day of adventure, familiar instances of a split second in time that will evoke sweet happiness and a sense of connection. These images are her companions as she continues her conversation with the canvas about fragility and protection, preciousness and stoic strength.  She is forever fascinated with the relationship between mother/child and the relationship of the mother we are to our own inner child. Jenifer particularly loves juxtaposing this relationship against the encroaching outside world represented by dramatic weather. She often works with a palette knife and other mark makers for symbols and layers.  Her studio is in the home, her children’s projects part of her space, part of her inspiration and focus. A Mothers time is broken down to minutes and every minute is precious and an opportunity to work, see, create and paint.;). Jenifer Darbellay has an BFA in Textiles from ACAD and an MFA in Theatre Design from UBC, she has received 3 Betty Mitchell Awards and a Merritt Award for Outstanding Costume Design. Love to Noel, Ford and Darby xoxo.

Contact: jeniferdarbellay@yahoo.com

Connie grew up on a rural Manitoba farm: expansive vistas of big blue skies, infinite horizons and colourful gardens influence her art and her creativity. As a high school educator, Connie’s creativity shone throughout her career; her favourite course to teach was Fashion & Design. In 2006, a serious illness, breast cancer, was diagnosed. However, cancer paradoxically opened new doors for Connie. Her recovery plan included mindful meditation and an opportunity to take her first acrylic workshop. Since her first show with the Federation of Canadian Artists (FCA) in December 2016, Connie has been in 24 FCA juried exhibitions in addition to showing with other arts councils and local galleries. In recent years, her brilliant florals and landscapes morphed into abstracts. Clearly, the influence of her fashion background is evident in her use of textures, patterns and varied colour palettes. Her intuitive style and inspiring meditative titles draw viewers in. Connie hopes viewers experience a peaceful, calm feeling with her art; indeed, Connie considers it an honour when someone loves her work so much it becomes part of their home.

https://www.connieoconnorart.com
INSTAGRAM @connieoconnorart

Canadian artist Tana Lynn started her career working with acrylics and has since added oil and encaustic wax . Her work has been shown in New York & Zurich and has been published in House and Gardens & several art publications.

Using expressive colour, texture and pattern to reveal the sublime in the ordinary. She begins each painting with underlying layers of shapes and colour and expressive brushwork, which gradually become hidden from view as the painting progresses.

These underlying layers are important to the depth of the final work, just as years of spiritual growth are to a well-rounded soul. Tana Lynn seeks to develop a calmness and beauty from the underlying chaos. Tana Lynn believes that through art, one can hear the whisper of a creator. Her intention is that her art may cause you to pause and listen.

Sales and info:
www.tanalynn.com
Instagram @tanalynnartist
Facebook @tanalynnartist

Marta Baricsa, Visual Artist, OCADU www.martabaricsa.com

Marta Baricsa has had a focused art practice for over twenty years. She is involved with Set Decorators, Production Designers and Art Directors providing them with large scale paintings now seen in more than forty feature films and TV series. She was commissioned by Tim Burton and his team to paint eight paintings for Big Eyes, the movie staring Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz. Her recognizable paintings have helped create a visual presence onscreen and beyond since 2001.

Actively involved with Interior Designers and Directors for art procurement in showcase homes, magazine features and hotels, she has become well known in Western Canada for the grand scale of her monochromatic and brightly coloured acrylic work.

Marta is the founder of Directivism, a new art movement based on clean, clear painting with minimal broad brushwork and no corrections. Her artistic style is bold and gestural commanding visual attention with its presence and impact. Her paintings are collected internationally.

Mat Holmstrom is a multidisciplinary artist based in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Born in Banff and raised in Beaumont, Alberta, Holmstroms interest in art and design grew during opportunities to travel and explore art hubs like New York, London, Paris, and Los Angeles. Artists Jack Shadbolt, Gordon Smith, Marc Chagall, David Hockney and many more have inspired Holmstroms creative world.

Between 2007-2012 Holmstrom attended the Alberta College of Art & Design and MacEwan University, where he studied both traditional and contemporary art and design. In 2012 he relocated to Vancouver and currently operates an art studio at The ARC, teaches courses & workshops at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts and sits on the board of directors with the Eastside Arts Society.

Holmstroms work often explores notions of beauty, space, time and growth. These experiences and
reflections inspire the artist’s dynamic shapes, colors, and compositions.