Helen Christou Gallery
Works from the Drawing Bar
February 25 – April 29, 2016

Reception: Thursday, February 25, 7 – 9 pm, Main Gallery (W600) (reception to take place during “The Drawing Bar”)

This exhibition features new work by local artists created in response to the U of L Art Gallery’s drawing series including the evening Drawing Bar events, exhibitions, and the diverse holdings of drawings in the U of L Art Collection.

This exhibition is the final phase of the U of L Art Gallery’s series of exhibitions focused on drawing and is part of art + people = x, an on-going project to connect local artists and audiences with the U of L’s renowned art collection. Artists from the Lethbridge area had the opportunity to view a selection of the U of L Art Gallery’s holdings of drawings as well as to participate in our Thursday evening public program, the Drawing Bar. The drawing events and collection tours were open to everyone and drew a mix of artists with formal training, current art students, community artists, and some of the kids who usually participate in our family event, Culture Vulture Saturdays. All those who participated were invited to submit works to be curated for this exhibition.

Over the past several years, the art + people = x series has built a network of connections for artists and audiences: it supports the professional development of local artists and supports the strong community in Lethbridge, but it also gives members of the public a window into what artists engage with when they view works in public collections and how they build on techniques developed by previous generations. Drawing is a fundamental skill for artists and is often part of the process towards creating other finished works such as paintings, sculpture, and installations. Yet, the drawing themselves can also be an intriguing art form in themselves – whether a quick sketch or an image that took hours of careful labour. This exhibition includes a strong range of approaches to drawing and also includes work by current U of L students, and one “emerging” artist from the family programming, along with a range of local artists. Although the exhibition series concludes with this component, the regular Thursday evening Drawing Bars will continue and I hope that people are inspired by these exhibitions to drop by the U of L Art Gallery and do some drawing.

– Josephine Mills, Director/Curator U of L Art Gallery