All in Visual and Media Arts
If you haven’t had a chance to experience an Arts Commons Art Party, this is your invitation to join the artists exhibiting in the Arts Commons Galleries for an evening that’s never the same twice! Starting with a tour of the galleries accompanied by the artists sharing their passion and inspiration for their work, it takes the party to Centre Court with music, drinks, and more! What more do you ask? Read on!
Four gallery spaces in Arts Commons have been energized with 13 individual artists spanning the practices of painting, photography, ceramics, and textiles. Take a peek behind-the-scenes to see how these artists make their work come alive at Arts Commons.
It’s your last chance to check out four exhibitions at Arts Commons featured in the visual art galleries throughout the building including the Truth and Reconciliation Exhibition in the +15 Galleries. Showcasing the work of 12 Indigenous artists, these paintings, beadwork, photography, sculpture, and leatherwork pieces serve to reflect on each individual artists’ relationship with the subject and ongoing conversation of Truth and Reconciliation.
Stampede is over, you've tried all the new, trendy restaurants, and now you're hankering for something different. How about infusing a bit of art into your summer? We've listed some must-see creations, performances, and events in the heart of Calgary. And if your wallet is feeling a little hollow, not to worry - they're all free!
Calgary's RAZA is a multi-medium, high-impact artist collective formed by sisters Valentina and Laura Alejandra. Their recent audiovisual work, Lasers of Sentiment, just completed its exhibition period at Arts Commons in the Ledge gallery. They sat down with Arts Commons to talk about how art can bring attention to social issues and further political discussion.
Brendan James Boyd (He/Him) is a puppeteer, puppet builder and designer from Alberta, Canada. With a lifelong passion for puppetry arts, Brendan has an infectious love of puppetry which he imparts to Arts Commons Education students through creative workshops that include puppet creation and performance.
I’m sure I’m not making a huge controversial statement when I say we’re living in a hyper polarized society today. There’s lack of trust in the media, our elected officials, and one another. It’s increasingly evident that many are just not willing to listen, let alone speak to, those on the “other side”. Similarly, I don’t think it’s too controversial to say we’re all guilty in varying degrees, myself included, of propagating toxic narratives of those who we feel stand across ideological divides than us. The faceless crowd of those who oppose our completely rational beliefs, with their completely irrational beliefs of their own.
Three years ago I embarked on a journey of truth and reconciliation for my own identity and cultural connection, using Blackfoot traditional methods of making, and combining them with my contemporary knowledge into a specific project; Traditional Methods of Making-Imagined through a Contemporary Lens. Though it began as what I thought was a simple concept, the execution was far more complex than I imagined.
