Eva baldi
Portage du Fort June 23, 2021
On Friday June 12th, Art Pontiac’s Stone School opened a new exhibit created by Pontiac artists entitled “InterconneXion”.
This exhibit is showcasing the results of a process that was started in Autumn 2019. After successfully receiving funding from the Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Quebec, seven artists and one videographer officially began. . .
the creative process.
The general concept of this project was for artists to tackle the theme of connection through the medium of printmaking. Though printmaking is a traditional art form, this project was revolutionary because of the sheer size of the wood carving, and the fact that the printing was being done with a steamroller.
After the initial steps of mapping out their designs, the artists got to work carving large-scale wood blocks. By August 2020, nearly a year after the project began, the wooden blocks were brought to Main Street, Shawville to be used for printing. Following all Covid-19 health guidelines, crowds gathered around to watch the art be made.
“It was quite an experience for the artists, and for the public also to see something like that,” said local artist, and former president of Art Pontiac, Louise Guay.
The day began with an experienced operator driving the steamroller, but by the end of the day the artists had the opportunity to be hands on with every part of their art being made by driving the steamroller themselves. This experience was described by Guay as “the cherry on top of the Sunday”.
The art is now on display at the Stone School art gallery in Portage du Fort. All seven artists, Dale Shutt, Laurence Finet, Louise Guay, Rob Hinchley, Susan Cartwright, Tina Petrovicz, and Valerie Bridgeman have their art displayed showing their personal representations of what interconnection means to them. A video documentary by Glen Hartle which captures the complete process from beginning to end, is on view at the exhibit.
The exhibit will be on display at the Stone School until July 11, 2021 when it will be moving on to be featured in galleries across Quebec.
Current president of Art Pontiac, Claire Taillefer, expressed her excitement about the exhibit, “the gallery is a beautiful place, it is not used enough”.
More information on exhibits, classes, and local artists can be found at artpontiac.com.
