EASTSIDE CULTURE CRAWL: A Few Minutes With Local Painter Kerensa Haynes

The Eastside Culture Crawl (November 18, 19, 20) is hands-down one of the best things about Vancouver during November. It’s the time of year when painters, sculpters, jewellery designers, carvers, photographers, potters, furniture designers, glass blowers and printmakers open their eastside studios to the public. The resulting nightly vibe of the already cool-as-hell neighbourhood rises to awesome levels. The Crawl covers the area between Terminal Avenue to Burrard Inlet between Main Street and Victoria Drive (handy map). This year there will be over 300 artists participating. That’s a lot of ground to cover, and a lot of artists to meet, so we figure it’s a good idea to meet a few of them in advance so as to better familiarise ourselves (and yourselves) with what to expect. Meet Kerensa Haynes.

“I explore expressionism, impressionism, realism and abstraction in my art.  When painting I let my intuitive mind reveal itself, the layers of oil represent my different emotions.  I am interested in perception, how we all perceive life from our own personal experience.  The subject matter in the painting is somewhat secondary.  My work challenges the way everyday images are perceived, so, for example, a pear is not simply just a pear but it becomes the state of mind of the audience.”

Three things about Mount Pleasant that make you want to live there: Biltmore Cabaret, The Lee Building (c1912), and the fact that most of my good friends live nearby.

How many years have you participated in the Eastside Culture Crawl? This will be my third year in the Crawl. I’m at 1000 Parker Street, Studio 350.

Three words you would use to describe the ECC to someone who had never attended: Explosive. Intimate. Original.

A one sentence artist’s statement to describe your work: The possibilities of an everyday object are explored visually and psychologically . You can see this here. Read more

ART THUG: “PennySmash” Currently Impressing At The Vancouver Art Gallery

If more people put their money where there mouths were, we wouldn’t have to listen to wankers whining about cuts to public arts funding. Scott Hawthorn and Todd Falkowsky have put together something that might help to drown the din: PennySmash. For $2.01, you can can produce a squished penny with your choice of four motifs. I like the design by Natalie Purschwitz. Essentially a button kit, with instructions clearly defining where you need to drill the holes. You can also get “The East Van Cross”, which is sure to be a crowd pleaser. PennySmash is currently on display in the Vancouver Art Gallery, generating funds to help foster creative projects in Vancouver (a capital notion, indeed).

EASTSIDE CULTURE CRAWL: A Few Minutes With First Time Participant Kari Kristensen

The Eastside Culture Crawl (November 18, 19, 20) is hands down one of the best things about Vancouver during November. It’s the time of year when Eastside painters, sculpters, jewellery designers, carvers, photographers, potters, furniture designers, glass blowers and printmakers open their studios to the public an the vibe of the already cool-as-hell neighbourhood rises to unprecedented levels of awesomeness. The Crawl covers Terminal Avenue to Burrard Inlet between Main Street and Victoria Drive. That’s a lot of ground to cover and a lot of artists to meet. This year there will be over 300 participating, so we figure it’s a good idea to meet a few in advance in order to better familiarise ourselves (and perhaps you) with what to expect. Meet Kari Kristensen. This is her first year as a participant. We caught up with her while she was taking a breather in Paris and asked her about what she had planned for her inaugural Crawl weekend.

Three things about your neighbourhood that make you want to live there: I’ve lived in East Van since I moved here 9 years ago. I love East Van. I am walking distance to the drive and all of its great restaurants and food shops. There’s also an expanding restaurant scene happening on Hastings Street, which is fantastic. I am close enough to my studio that I can walk or bike there. And lastly, I live across the street from Trout Lake which is great for exercise for me and my little dog.

How many years have you participated in the Eastside Culture Crawl? I’m excited about this year being my first as an artist. My previous studio was on Granville Island, a terrific little shop for printmakers called Dundarave. I moved into 1000 Parker Street almost a year ago for a change of venue and to specifically be part of the Crawl. of course, I’ve gone to the Crawl almost every year.

Three words you would use to describe the ECC to someone who had never attended: Fun, inspirational, eye-opening. Of course, I’ll have to get back to you after the 20th to see if my opinion has changed.

Why is Vancouver a good city for art? Vancouver, and BC in general, has a rich art historical foundation that’s endlessly impressive. This is the the city of Jack Shadbolt, Arthur Erickson, Emily Carr, Toni Onley, Bill Reid, Robert Davidson…you can’t help but be inspired when you see their work around. Read more

Smoke Break #891: Documentary Short On The Work Of Artist/Metalsmith Gary Schott

Charming as all get out:

The attention to detail in each piece is astounding, from the early detailed sketches and balsa wood models, to the selection of materials, and even the color of fabric—all to create a tiny device, the sole purpose of which is to gently evoke a smile, to express, in the words of the artist, an action of love.

via Colossal.

TAKE ANOTHER SMOKE BREAK

The Scout List: A Curated Agenda For Discerning Vancouverites

The main objective of this website is to scout out and promote the things that make Vancouver such a sweet place to be. We do this with an emphasis on the city’s independent spirit to foster a sense of connectedness within and between our communities, and to introduce our readers to the people who grow and cook our food, play the raddest tunes in our better venues, create our most interesting art, and design everything from what we wear to the spaces we inhabit.

The Scout List is our carefully considered, first rate agenda of super awesome things that we’re either doing, wishing that we could do, or conspiring to do this week. From our calendar to yours… Read more

#VANCOUVER WOULD BE COOLER IF #171: The MOV Hooked Up With Our Tattoo Artists

Hey, Museum of Vancouver! In Portland, your colleagues have partnered up with local artists to provide the public with free tattoos. Maybe get in on that is all we’re trying to say. Thanks.

MORE WAYS TO IMPROVE VANCOUVER

EASTSIDE CULTURE CRAWL: A Few Minutes With “Astrosatchel” Designer Janna Hurtzig

The Eastside Culture Crawl (November 18, 19, 20) is hands-down one of the best things about Vancouver during November. During The Crawl, painters, sculpters, jewellery designers, carvers, photographers, potters, furniture designers, glass blowers and printmakers on the eastside open their their studios to the public and the nightly vibe of the already cool-as-hell neighbourhood rises to freakin’ awesome levels. The Crawl covers the area between Terminal Avenue to Burrard Inlet between Main Street and Victoria Drive (handy map). This year there will be over 300 artists participating. That’s a lot of ground to cover, and a lot of artists to meet, so we figure it’s a good idea to meet a few of them in advance so as to better familiarise ourselves (and yourselves) with what to expect. First up:  Janna Hurtzig of Astrosatchel.

“Inspired by nature, the Astrosatchel label combines Scandinavian design, Asian pop culture influences and a Canadian cottage feel”. Janna is the driving force behind the iconic eastside tote bags, wallets, diaper bags made from vegan friendly Naugahyde vinyl.

This year, Janna is has thrown a little bit of cashmere into the mix with her Winterluxe line of scarves, mittens, arm warmers, pillows and rugs made using recycled cashmere. Scout was familiar with the Astrosatchel totes and purses (there are more than a few of Janna’s designs floating around the Scout office), but cashmere? It didn’t take much more than a mention of the word paired with Janna’s reputation as a stylin’ seamstress to send us snooping through her eastside studio.  Here’s what we found out…

Three things about Railtown that makes it so awesome: “It seems everyone down here is creative in some manner, so there’s lots of people to draw on for their talents and input. It seems everyone feels a high level of community, which always makes things better. I enjoy working here, and find the semi-industrialness of the area inspiring.”

How many years have you participated in the Eastside Culture Crawl? This is my 7th Eastside Culture Crawl, and it gets better every year.

Three words you would use to describe the ECC to someone who had never attended: Eclectic. Creative. Voyeurism.

What are you most excited to be working on right now? I’m excited to be working on my Winterluxe recycled cashmere line. Sourcing the sweaters is always fun because I never know what I’m going to find, and I love that I can turn something that was once really nice back into something wearable again. In trying to use ‘all the good bits’, I developed my shag technique, which I’ve turned into cushions and rugs.

What inspires you? Seeing poorly designed things inspires me to make things that are better. I draw a lot of inspiration from Canadiana, retro-modern aesthetics, and vintage accessories. At the end of the day, I design for myself and my own needs, which have become more practical, yet decadent over time: my cashmere shag rug is probably my favourite thing I’ve made in ages.

What sort of music do you listen to when you work? I listen to tons of music, mostly indie bands. Sometimes I wish I could listen to two things at once. There’s so much more great music to listen to online through sites like Spinner, Bandcamp and Grooveshark.

Why is Vancouver a good city for art? I think the sheer number of artists working in the city makes Vancouver an excellent place. Art is definitely part of our culture here.

Is there a local designer or artist that you admire above all others? I love the work that Melissa Wong (aka Mel King) is doing. I’m lucky to have some of her geometry based drawings and paintings, but whenever I see her new work, I start thinking “where could that go…” I love abstraction, so her work is something I never get tired of, which is good. I wake up looking at a large piece of hers every morning and it helps me get excited about coming to the studio and being creative.

Three places you like to take out of town guests to show off the art scene in Vancouver: My building (339 Railway) because I know all the artists here personally. This always gives a deeper level to me when I see their art. I like to take people to various arts markets, and events like Eastside Culture Crawl, or Shiny Fuzzy Muddy. Hot One Inch Action (the button trading show) is a riot. There are always lots of openings and events in Gastown, so I think hitting a couple of those is a fun way to spend an evening, and the variety keeps it interesting. I really like Catalog gallery, I always fall in love with whatever they’re showing.

OTHER INTERESTING VANCOUVERITES

DTES Community Art Shop “The Window” Opening Soon With Your Handmade Wares

The Window Community Art Shop is set to open some time over the next month or so. It’s a unique retail and studio space where people can make, create and sell hand-crafted items (think of it as Etsy or Cargoh in 3-D). Right now, they’re in the planning stages and are looking for unique and cool handmade items to be sold on consignment in their non-profit gift shop. So, if you make cards and stationary, jewellery, apothecary, beauty products, clothing, woven, felted and knit items or ceramics (you get the drift), then you should scoot down to the new storefront on October 27 to hook up.

Thursday, October 27 | 2pm-8pm | The Window Community Art Shop (9 West Hastings) | Free

Johnny Taylor “New Pages” Show At Save On Meats This Friday, September 30th

Local artist Johnny Taylor is doing an open studio exhibit of recent work done over the course of the last 9 months on the 4th floor of the Save On Meats building on Friday, September 30th (ie. tomorrow):

This is a unique studio. In it, I feel part of a community, involved in the buzz all around, the creative energies and emerging identity of this neighbourhood. That external presence had a direct influence on the energy of the work.

This work is a showcase of small scale pieces on vellum and paper.

The physical use of paint is immediate and loose, full of gesture – washes of thinned down paint, scratches and dents into the paper then filled in with wax, wax is layered up and scraped away, then more wax over top – finger swipes of thick paint, smudges of oil sticks knifed away rubbed out and done again.

Compositionally, the pieces are focused and restrained with a sketch-like quality, fusing elements of architechture and written language. Parts of the surface are left untouched and empty, drawing you in with sharp perspective lines towards deeper hushed activity.

Check the flyer for details after the jump… Read more

VANCOUVER WOULD BE COOLER IF #168: It Was Beautifully Carved Out Of White Marble

We’re digging this meticulously carved “Little Manhattan” marble sculpture by Japanese artist Yutaka Sone. The eight foot long piece weighs 2.5 tonnes and can be seen at the David Zwirner gallery in New York City from now until the end of October (hat tip).

MORE VANCOUVER WOULD BE COOLER IF’S

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