After getting my bachelor of arts (Psychology, English, & Physics), I took a year of Fine Arts.
I learned a lot from Thaddeus Holownia, Tom Henderson, Dan Steeves, Rebecca Burke, Virgil Hammock, John Asimakos, and David Silverberg at Mount Allison University.
That foundation year provided an introduction to drawing, photography, printmaking, sculpture, art history, and theory. It was a year where making art was my job. The best learning happened — as it so often does— around the edges of the curriculum: the wry, winking, comments from Henderson; the understanding of the power of images from Holownia; context from Burke and Hammock.
I’ve always loved to draw (but I forgot)
Working as a digital content producer and graphic designer scratched my creative itch just enough; making art seemed less important. Despite being early to digital imaging — from HyperCard, an Apple QuickTake 100 (640 × 480 px photos!), and Photoshop (before it had layers) — my artwork resisted making the leap from paper to pixels.
But what does it mean?
I rarely have any theme or goal or message in mind. I give in to my whims, which I’ve learned not to question. It can be a shape, a colour, a memory, or an idea — it doesn’t matter to me.
For me, thinking is the opposite of doing and over-thinking is a trap. I’ll figure out what a piece means (if anything) after I’ve done it. Maybe it will only have meaning as part of a body of work. Maybe it won’t mean anything.
I’m happy to leave deciding what things mean to someone smarter.
Design and art
My work as a web designer for artists and the broader art community has been rewarding. I have designed, built, and hosted websites for
- Alex Colville, painter and printmaker, former Mount Allison University Fine Arts faculty member, and fellow Mount Allison graduate
- Stephen Scott, painter
- Thaddeus Holownia, photographer
- France Van Stone, artist and teacher
- Dan Steeves, printmaker
- Rebecca Burke, painter
- The Owens Art Gallery at Mount Allison University
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