MmmPop: local artists respond to the U of L Art Collection
October 31 – December 23, 2014
Helen Christou Gallery | LINC | Level 9


October 31 – December 23, 2014
Reception: November 7 | 7 – 9 pm | Main Gallery
Coffee’s On at the Gallery: November 12 | 9 – 10:30 am | Main Gallery
Curators: Darcy Logan, Josephine Mills & David Smith

Part of the art + people = x series

This exhibition features new work by local artists created in response to the U of L Art Gallery’s holding of Canadian and international Pop Art.

This exhibition is the final phase of MmmPop and is part of art + people = x, an on-going series to connect local artists and audiences with the U of L’s renowned art collection. In June 2014, the U of L Art Gallery invited artists and the public to come behind the scenes at the gallery and view a selection of our outstanding Pop Art works by Canadian, American, and British artists such as, David Hockney, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, and Joyce Weiland. Following the collection tour, artists and interested members of the public could participate in workshops at Casa, the community arts centre in downtown Lethbridge, and make work in response to the Pop Art they saw at the U of L. Artists then submitted their work to a panel of curators (Darcy Logan, David Smith, and myself) who selected the work for this exhibition. We also decided to include a few key works from the U of L collection in this exhibition in order to expand on the imagery and ideas addressed in the new work by local artists.

MmmPop creates a myriad 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 imagery and approaches by previous generations. Some of the artists in the collection are household names and others are frequent favourites for artists although less known by the public. This exhibition, and the previous component which featured a range of Pop Art from the U of L collection, provides a contemporary context for these celebrated works and helps to build connections for new audiences with the art works and the U of L collection.

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

Participating Artists:
Leila Armstrong
Beany Dootjes
Rick Gillis
Claöid Idia
Jeanne Kollée
Karla Mather-Cocks