The April show at the Ladysmith Waterfront Gallery opens this weekend with the theme The Gods Must Be Crazy.
It is a show that will push the artist’s point of view of a common saying for strange and unexplained events or a comic allegory about a travelling Bushman who encounters modern civilization and its stranger aspects.
It is the artist’s interpretation of the saying, so anything goes, from painting to sculpture.
Dennis Brown, an accomplished and well-known abstract artist, is this month’s guest speaker.
Brown and his wife travelled across Canada last summer. Having always wanted to one day travel from sea to sea across Canada, this was a dream come true.
In the past, they had visited numerous places, always travelling by air and watching the countryside pass below.
It was time to travel every inch of that ground and discover their country — and paint impressions of places along the journey.
In January 2011, they purchased a travel trailer and started preparing for the trip by camping on Vancouver Island. They discovered that they were true trailer virgins but learned quickly.
Their plan was to travel for three months and be back in Ladysmith by the end of July. Little did they know what lay ahead!
Leaving Ladysmith at the end of April, they headed for the mountain passes in B.C., which were still full of snow and potholes.
Together, they managed to get into a routine of travelling for two or three days then resting for two. These breaks gave them time to explore and gave Brown time to paint impressions of what they found.
By May 20, they were camped on the eastern shore of Lake Huron. Then it was on to Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and P.E.I. They camped on the north shore of P.E.I. for four days and explored the island from end to end.
Nova Scotia beckoned and then on to Cape Breton Island, Halifax and Peggy’s Cove before running out of time and starting back home.
Brown intends to fill his talk with fascinating commentary of their journey and plans to show some of the paintings he produced.
The gala opening for The Gods Must Be Crazy is this Saturday (April 7) at 7 p.m. at the Waterfront Gallery at 610 Oyster Bay Dr. For more information, visit www.ladysmithwaterfrontgallery.com.
The show is sponsored by Vancouver Island Insurance Co. in Ladysmith. Be the first to see the show and to purchase any of the art available for sale.
— Submitted