"This Neck of the Woods" & "All Dolled Up"
The Smithers Art Gallery presents the March 2011 joint exhibition "This Neck of the Woods" (photography) by Judy McCloskey and “All Dolled Up” (doll-making) by women artists from Smithers led by Shannon Byrnes.
The show runs from March 1 to April 2. Meet the artists at our evening show opening on Friday, March 11, from 7-9pm. Everyone is welcome - admission is free and appetizers are provided.
The Gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday from 12-4pm.
Shannon Byrnes will be holding a doll-making workshop at the Gallery on Friday March 4th, from 6.30pm to 9.30pm, where she will share the doll-making method of wrapping fabric over wire, building a character from the inside out. Materials will be supplied. $20. Sign up at the Gallery, call 847-3898, or email info@smithersart.org.
Artist Bios
Judy McCloskey was born in Alberta and lived between Calgary, Revelstoke, and Ucluelet, until she went ‘down north’ to the Northwest Territories at the age of 23 to take a summer job on break from university. There she worked as a radio operator, librarian, and commercial fisher, operating her own commercial fishing outfit for several years. She also became a mother to daughter, Jesse Leigh. After 11 years in the north, she and Jesse moved to the lower mainland so that Judy could resume her education. She chose what she thought would be the more prudent option of library school over art school because she was caring for her daughter alone. Judy and Jesse moved back up north (well, sort of north) in 1991 when Judy took a position at the Terrace campus of the Northwest Community College. They have been there ever since.
While living out in the northern bush both summer and winter, Judy occupied herself on stormy “can’t go fishing” days with pen and ink, and watercolour renderings of what she saw around her: boats, snowshoes, fish sheds, moody coastline, and mist-shrouded islands.
Judy has worked in pen, coloured pencil, felt pen, acrylic, and water paints. More recently she has discovered collage in fabric, paper, and photos. In Terrace she has participated in three group shows, for which she has also done the promotional posters and materials: “Spirit Journey,” “Mapping the Intimate,” and “Portals.” Her pieces have included a fabric collage self-portrait, papier mache, felt pen on canvas painting, and photos and photo collages.
“All Dolled Up” is a collection of women artists from Smithers. Each participant is creating individual dolls, along with an artist book to tell a story. The stories have emerged from the doll-making process bridging form and narrative. The group is led by Shannon Byrnes who learned this doll-making method from a wise woman in Naramata, BC.
Contact the Gallery for further information: 847-3898.