I’m excited to present the Gallery Wall 2022! Work has been progressing behind the scenes for some time and I couldn’t be happier with the result. I’m passionate about making local art available to homeowners, businesses and interior designers.

The visual impact of these pieces is powerful and captivating. By combining mediums it holds your visual interest through colour, texture and size. The style is blended with modern notes of the wood geometric and the classic pointillism of the portrait. The energy of the figure in charcoal contrasts with the whimsy of the landscape and femininity of the botanicals.  Inspiration for the gallery wall was likely sparked by my love for our local arts crawl. If you look back to my previous blog posts, I have enjoyed attending it for several years. The rich diversity of work and discovery of local talent is like a treasure hunt. Throughout this year I’m going to introduce you to each of the artists. To hear the story of their creative journey to this work and provide a personal connection to these pieces. For now, we’ll start with a little description of each work and my process of selection.

*Photography by @intrepidvideographer

Portrait: 16 x 20 – Laura Woermke

First off, our anchor piece “Portrait” by Laura Woermke. Gallery walls often have a statement piece which is connected to the work around it, others do not and are a collection of similar sized and contrasting pieces. For this collection I chose to let the work lead the formulation of the grouping. Based on the pieces that I found over several months, I began to mix and match the sizes, styles and colours available and look for more contrasting pieces to add. Laura is a master of the portrait and this piece showed such quiet confidence and resilience. Although the original is quite small (around 8 x 10), I wanted to give it some size to match it’s power. Some people say she has an Audrey Hepburn flair to her which I would have to agree. The slight tilt back of her head shows her stance as one of strength. She looks at you with curiosity as though she is mulling something. Her beauty is raw and authentic, now showy or opulent. The colours in the face are a beautiful collection of pinks, purples and blues.

Floral: 8 x 10 – Suzanne Faris

As I had chosen the portrait near the beginning, I began looking for pieces that would compliment and contrast. While going through my own work this small watercolour sparked with its similar colours of light pink, purple and blue. It was also very organic and open with lots of white space which contrasted with the other pieces, giving the eye a visual relief. It was perfect in it’s small size and I almost felt like it fell in to place all on it’s own.

Figure: 13 x 19 – Grayden Laing

Grayden Laing’s “Figure” in charcoal is a dramatic visualization of creation and energy. I wanted a raw piece in either charcoal or graphite and I knew Grayden was highly skilled in live figure drawing. He showed me his sketches from over the years and when he pulled out this one, I knew it was the one. Just enough detail to show a fully formed figure but sketched out in a way that shows it still emerging from the paper. Charcoal is one of the most primitive drawing tools and the rawness and contrast is second to none. I love classic black and white. I love the long sweeping strokes and the simple angular face along with the muscle definition. The figure is in mid-movement which keeps your mind seeking the conclusion. What is he doing? Is he making something? Questions circle….

Landscape: 16 x 12.25 – Dennis Kalichuck

This watercolour surprised me. Sitting in Dennis living room with all his amazing art and this piece kept drawing my eye. Was it the unusual colours? The big cow just relaxing there? Or the dreamy clouds hovering? Maybe it was all of it together. With the strong mustards I knew it might be tricky to match with other artwork but I had to give it a try. He found his place here at the base of the grouping. The strong colours giving foundation to the collection. There is a peacefulness about this landscape, the traditional Ontario barn structure and the slow nature of cattle. And simultaneously, a whimsy and curiosity. Cotton candy clouds and etherial yellows.

Fern: 11 x 14 – Suzanne Faris

I knew if I wanted to find a home for Dennis’ landscape I had to find a piece that could compete on the colour front. Ferns had been an obsession in my own watercolour practice for some time. While I hadn’t planned on adding any to the gallery wall, this piece found its way in. The strong greens balanced out the landscape, and one fern right in the centre. Standing there, like a sentry alongside the portrait. It just seemed to click. The wildness of the leaves brought an organic quality. The layering, depth and space.

Wood Geometric: 11 x 14 – Suzanne Faris

As the saying goes, “I didn’t find this artwork, this artwork found me”. I knew combining mediums for the gallery wall needed to stretch farther than just a range of 2D options, but finding this last piece took some time. I looked at metal options, and contacted a few people about wood options. Nothing surfaced. Eventually, I was running out of time so I decided to give it a try. I found myself in the garage with little sticks of wood, experimenting. With the right combination of long and short, angled and straight, the piece started to sing. I decided to leave the back open and allow the wall colour to penetrate the gallery wall collection which got me excited. An uncontrolled element, exclusive to each hanging. I love it, the unexpected ending.

Thanks for joining me in this re-telling of the creation of the gallery wall. Look forward to sharing more throughout the year. Purchase is available though my website or if you have a custom request don’t hesitate to email me at suzannefaris@gmail.com. I’d love to work with you

Suzanne