A Life Collected: The Vernon MacKelvie Gift of Canadian Art

Opening Reception: Thursday, June 16, 2011, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. at The University of Winnipeg Library

A public exhibition highlighting exciting works recently donated to The University of Winnipeg’s permanent art collection by alumnus Vernon MacKelvie (BA ’44) will open Thursday, June 16 at 3:00 pm. The works, all of which are by Canadian artists, will be extended until October 15, 2011 in the Hamilton Galleria and University Archives, both located in The University of Winnipeg Library (4th & 5th floors of Centennial Hall).

Though MacKelvie reveres the arts and has been attending exhibitions and collecting artworks for more than sixty years, he does not count himself as an art expert but, rather, an art appreciator. He comments: “You don’t have to be wealthy to build a fine art collection. You just have to have good taste and educate yourself.”

Vernon MacKelvie’s life and voice as a collector speak to the viewer through the works presented in A Life Collected. Of the selected twenty-four pieces on display, all are by Canadian artists, many of whom practiced on the Prairies and in Ontario and Québec. These were the places between which MacKelvie divided his time, and where he sought out new images by Canadian artists to add to his collection.

Featured artists such as Bertram Brooker, Paraskeva Clark, Betty Dimock, Dorothy Knowles and Philip Surrey represent various styles and movements of the last six decades of Canadian art. MacKelvie’s total gift of fifty pieces is a fine complement to the University’s permanent collection, whose purview is work created by established twentieth-century and contemporary Manitoba and Canadian artists.

A Life Collected is curated by Alexis Kinloch. Both the curator and collector will be in attendance at the opening reception.

The University of Winnipeg Art Curator Department wishes to thank The University of Winnipeg Foundation and the History of Art Programme for their support of this exhibition project. We also gratefully acknowledge the Museums Assistance Program, Department of Canadian Heritage.

Admission to exhibition and opening reception is free and open to everyone.
Exhibition Hours: Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Image: Bertram Brooker, Houses on a Hill, undated, watercolour, 30 x 21.5 cm.

Prairie Excellence Panel Discussion

Thursday, May 26 at 7:00 p.m. Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall (3rd floor of Centennial Hall), University of Winnipeg
ADMISSION IS FREE

To accompany the Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta Craft Councils’ presentation of the group exhibition Prairie Excellence at Gallery 1C03, the Manitoba Craft Council, in partnership with Gallery 1C03, has organized a panel discussion with Prairie Excellence Selection Committee Member Helen Delacretaz and Prairie Excellence artists Tibor Bodi, Grace Nickel and Sue Sutherland.

Prairie Excellence is a juried exhibition representing the very best of contemporary fine craft from the Prairies. Featuring pieces in various media by 35 artists, the show is a unique and balanced blend of work from each of the Prairie Provinces. While some of the featured artists, like Winnipeg’s Grace Nickel, Kathryne Koop and Keith Oliver, are well established, the exhibit also showcases craft artists who are relatively new to the scene. This is a unique opportunity to view the work of emerging, mid-career and established artists in one place.

The panel discussion will focus on the state of contemporary craft practice on the prairies and how the work in Prairie Excellence contributes to this dialogue. The three artist panelists will explore how their work reflects a prairie aesthetic, how it pushes the boundaries of their chosen medium and how they balance questions of form/function with the conceptual aspect of their work. Selection Committee Member Helen Delacretaz will consider trends and shifts in the contemporary craft scene more generally and how these developments might apply to works in Prairie Excellence in particular.

Prairie Excellence has made Winnipeg its third stop in a tour of Western Canada after presentations in both Edmonton and Saskatoon, showing at Gallery 1C03 (1st floor of Centennial Hall at The University of Winnipeg) from April 28 - May 28, 2011.

Admission to gallery and panel discussion is free and open to everyone.
Regular Gallery Hours: Tuesday – Saturday from noon until 5:00 p.m.

Image: Tibor Bodi, Voice of America 1956, 2009, cast glass, forged steel and metal (tin smith), 24" x 11" x 9". Courtesy of the artist.

Review of Prairie Excellence

Check out Alison Gillmor's review of Prairie Excellence in yesterday's Winnipeg Free Press. The show will continue at Gallery 1C03 until May 28 and there will be a free panel discussion related to the exhibition on May 26 at 7 p.m. at Eckhardt-Gramatte Hall.

Prairie Excellence Opening

Manitoba, Saskatchewan & Alberta Crafts Councils present Prairie Excellence

at Gallery 1C03

Opening Reception: Thursday, April 28 from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. at Gallery 1C03

Admission is free and all are welcome!

For more information please visit: http://www.prairie-excellence.ca/

Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta Crafts Councils to exhibit Prairie Excellence at Gallery 1C03, April 28 – May 28, 2011

Prairie Excellence is the very best of contemporary fine craft from the Prairies distilled into one exhibition. Featuring work by 35 artists (selected from 163 submissions) the show is a unique and balanced blend of work from each of the Prairie Provinces. While some of the featured artists, like Winnipeg’s Grace Nickel, Kathryne Koop, and Keith Oliver, are well established, the exhibit also showcases craft artists who are relatively new to the scene. This is a unique opportunity to view the work of emerging, mid-career and established artists under one roof.

The “call for entry” for Prairie Excellence was widely distributed throughout Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta in late 2009. The response was both exciting and daunting—276 pieces were submitted by 163 artists. A selection committee consisting of one curator from each province was assembled. In their first round of review based on submitted photos, resumes, and print material, the committee selected 50 pieces. An in-person selection stage was held at the Alberta Craft Council Gallery in Edmonton and 35 pieces were eventually chosen for the exhibition. The committee was challenged to look at work in all craft media, ranging from jewellery to large sculptural pieces. They discussed and sometimes argued about issues of conceptual, creative and technical excellence. They were further challenged to choose recipients for best of province awards, and recipients for best emerging, mid-career and established artist awards. To reflect the breadth of the submissions, the committee members also opted for an honourable mention in each of the emerging, mid-career, and established artist categories.

The show marks an exciting new collaboration between the Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta Craft Councils. These organizations exist to promote the work of craft artists from their own province by developing the careers of new and veteran artists and by increasing public awareness about great art being created in our midst. By working together, the prairie Craft Councils can take this mission even further.

Manitoba artists in this exhibition include Grace Nickel, Kathryne Koop, Robert Wilson, Sue Sutherland, Teresa Burrows, Dave Wasylyshen, Jordan van Sewell, Crystal Nykoluk, Keith Oliver, Nancy Hall, and Tibor Bodi.

Prairie Excellence will make Winnipeg its third stop in a tour of Western Canada, showing at Gallery 1C03 (University of Winnipeg) from April 28-May 28, 2011. An opening reception is planned for Thursday, April 28, 5:00 - 7:00 pm, with many of the Manitoba artists in attendance. A panel discussion will take place on Thursday, May 26 at 7:00 p.m. in Eckhardt-Gramatte Hall.

Image: Robert Wilson, Sliced Antler Vessel, Antler, pine form, casting resin, dark roast coffee, 2009

Minutia reviews

Check out 3 reviews on Gallery 1C03's current exhibition Minutia: Alison Gillmor in the Winnipeg Free Press, Sandee Moore in Uptown Magazine, and Emily Hurtado in The Manitoban.

Stop by the show to have a look for yourself. Exhibition is on until April 2 and there is still space on the walls to contribute to the dialogue!

Cinema Politica: Reel Bad Arabs

Together as part of the international documentary screening network Cinema Politica, Gallery 1C03 and The University of Winnipeg Students’ Association (UWSA) are pleased to present the film Reel Bad Arabs at

Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall (Third Floor, University of Winnipeg) on Thursday, March 17 at 7 p.m.

Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People

Sut Jhally / USA / 2006 / 60 min

This groundbreaking documentary dissects a slanderous aspect of cinematic history that has run virtually unchallenged form the earliest days of silent film to today's biggest Hollywood blockbusters. Featuring acclaimed author Dr. Jack Shaheen, the film explores a long line of degrading images of Arabs--from Bedouin bandits and submissive maidens to sinister sheikhs and gun-wielding "terrorists"--along the way offering devastating insights into the origin of these stereotypic images, their development at key points in US history, and why they matter so much today.

Shaheen shows how the persistence of these images over time has served to naturalize prejudicial attitudes toward Arabs and Arab culture, in the process reinforcing a narrow view of individual Arabs and the effects of specific US domestic and international policies on their lives. By inspiring critical thinking about the social, political, and basic human consequences of leaving these Hollywood caricatures unexamined, the film challenges viewers to recognize the urgent need for counter-narratives that do justice to the diversity and humanity of Arab people and the reality and richness of Arab history and culture.

Reel Bad Arabs was selected for screening by The University of Winnipeg Muslim Students Association. Discussion following the film will be facilitated by Shahina Siddiqui, Executive Director of Islamic Social Services.

For more information about Reel Bad Arabs please visit: http://www.cinemapolitica.org/node/2094 For more information about the Cinema Politica Network please visit: www.cinemapolitica.org.

All are welcome to this free event! Donations will be accepted in order to facilitate future Cinema Politica events at The University of Winnipeg.

Gallery 1C03 and the UWSA wish to thank Cinema Politica for making it possible for us to participate in this network. We are always grateful to the Canada Council for the Arts for generously supporting this initiative.