Dozens of artists — most of them teenagers — will be at Coquitlam’s Place des Arts tonight, Jan. 19, to launch their new shows.
Grade 12 students in School District 43 (SD43) who took part in the annual Emerging Talent 26 exhibition will be at the Maillardville venue for the opening reception.
That display, which is being showcased in the Atrium gallery, features multi-media works from graduating students, most of whom will pursue post-secondary courses in art and design this September.
Fraser Valley artist Amy J. Dyck will also unveil her new collection, All the Parts of Me, in the Mezzanine gallery.
It’s her first exhibit to highlight several previously unseen works that were made during a turning point for Dyck as she shifted her practice from realism to collage.
Dyck, who lives with complex chronic illness and disability, has about 20 pieces in her body of work that explores “the tension between control and loss of control, between the complicated aspects of the self that push and struggle and pull apart when faced with hard things, and what it means to live inside the tension,” she said in her artist’s statement.
“This exhibit invites viewers to sit with the complexity inherent in ourselves and others, and invites us to see more of people than just what can be observed with the eye.”
Meanwhile, Rick Herdman is out with his encaustic painted carved feathers show called Fragile Stories: Encaustic Portraits, in the Leonore Peyton Salon, while Azadeh Mehryar’s Diaspora explores the juxtaposition of Persian art and architecture with contemporary style through a collection of ceramic vessels and 80 arranged tiles.
The opening reception is from 7 to 9 p.m. at Place des Arts (1120 Brunette Ave.). There is no cost to attend and registration is not required. The four shows are up until March 14; they can also be viewed online from Jan. 26 to March 14.
