Western Canada's art magazine since 2002
27 February 2018 Vol 3 No 5 ISSN 2561-3316 © 2018
From the Editor
I was intrigued to hear about a show at the Surrey Art Gallery that features work by Indigenous artists in India. The images sent by the Greater Vancouver gallery were fascinating. One in particular, Woodpecker and the Ironsmith, by Ram Singh Urveti, a Gond artist from central India, caught my eye. It features a tree filled with green birds, their striped wings spread like cloaks. Around the base of the tree are a variety of anthropomorphic creatures. Curious, I tracked down the exhibition catalogue to learn more.
The image, posted above Beverly Cramp’s account, is based on a Gond tale about a woodpecker and an ironsmith who quarrel after drinking mahua, a home-brewed liquor used in rituals. The birds, as it turns out, are actually yamadoots, or hell’s messengers. Despite the catalogue’s explanation, I’m not sure I can point out the other players – including the Hindu deity Shiva and his consort Parvati. But that doesn’t stop me enjoying the work, which reminds me, somehow, of work by Winnipeg’s Royal Art Lodge.
Other stories in this issue include Sarah Swan’s poetic piece about Margaret Nazon’s beaded auroras and nebulas, Cliff Eyland’s intriguing interview with Winnipeg-based artist Ufuk Gueray, and my impressions of Trans Hirstory in 99 Objects, here in Victoria. We also write about two shows at commercial galleries – Linda Craddock’s Levitas at Edmonton’s Bugera Matheson Gallery, and Bear, a group show at the Canada House Gallery in Banff.
Meanwhile, publisher Tom Tait and I are busy working on our revamped website, which we expect to launch next month. This is likely the last issue of Galleries West Digital you will see. We’ll continue to send out emails when we post a new issue, but the stories will be published only once, at full length, on the main Galleries West website. The site has a fresh look and offers more stories to read with a single click. We’ve also made it easier to locate galleries, exhibitions and art services like framing and shipping on our popular Find It pages. It's been a lot of work, but we're both excited about the new possibilities it offers.
And, of course, we’re also hard at work on the next issue. Expect a lead story about magnificent mountain photography on view at the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies in Banff. We’re also eagerly awaiting a review of a group show at Winnipeg’s Urban Shaman that responds to the crisis over missing and murdered Indigenous women.
Until next time,
CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE: Beverly Cramp, Cliff Eyland, Sarah Swan