PSST... HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT THE EMERGING ARTIST'S PRIZE FINALISTS?

Contemporary Art Society of Vancouver Announces

Finalists for 2014 Emerging Artist’s Prize

The Contemporary Art Society of Vancouver (CASV) has announced five finalists for the 2014 CASV Emerging Artist’s Prize, a competition open to emerging artists in the Lower Mainland. The biennial prize was established in 2011 to encourage and support artists within the first five years of their careers, and is the only one of its kind in Vancouver selected through an open competition.

Chosen from among 89 applicants, the five are:

• Derya Akay
• Byron Peters
• Laura Piasta
• Joseph Staples
• Erdem Tasdelen

The distinguished jury of art professionals who selected the finalists are: 

• Grant Arnold (Audain Curator of British Columbia Art, Vancouver Art Gallery)
• Vanessa Kwan, artist and programmer
• Sarah Macaulay (Macaulay Fine Art)
• Kimberly Phillips (Director/Curator of Access Gallery)
• Reid Shier (Director of Presentation House Gallery)

The selected artists work in a wide range of contemporary art practices, including video, installation, sculpture, painting, sound, collage, printmaking, photography, and ceramics. 

Their work will be exhibited at Access Gallery (accessgallery.ca) in Vancouver from May 17 - 31, with an opening reception on Thursday, May 22 from 7 – 10pm. 

The winner of the $3000 prize will be announced at 7:30 pm on the night of the opening.

“We are pleased that for this second competition so many talented artists applied,” says CASV Emerging Artist’s Prize Chair, Rachel Lafo, “and look forward to the exhibition of their work and the juror’s selection of the prize winner. We hope that the recognition the artists receive is a further validation of their artistic efforts.”

The prize is entirely funded by donations of CASV members and supporters. The CASV is a not-for-profit membership-based organization founded in 1977 that focuses on promoting an appreciation and understanding of Contemporary Art. Members enjoy studio visits, art trips, and lectures by prominent artists, critics, collectors, designers, architects and fine art professionals from North America and abroad. To join CASV visit the website: www.casv.ca.

MEDIA CONTACT: Aderyn Davies, aderynd@gmail.com, 778-836-2334

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www.casv.ca
info@casv.ca

AGM - SAVE THE DATE

CASV - Annual General Meeting

The Annual General Meeting for the Contemporary Art Society of Vancouver will be on Thursday May 29  - please save the date!

We'll send out reminders and info on the location of the AGM shortly.

See you soon. 

BOARD VOLUNTEER POSITIONS - GET INVOLVED!

Interested in volunteering on the CASV Board? 

Currently, we are looking for CASV members to join the working Board to help out in the following positions:

- Secretary:  The Secretary is an officer of the Board.  The role of the Secretary is to ensure notification of Board meetings, and that minutes of Board meetings are taken.  The role of Secretary may be combined with other roles.

- CASV Emerging Artist’s Prize Chair - duties will include working with CASV Administrative Assistant to oversee the administration of the Artist's Prize, including leading the call for submissions, enlisting a jury of art professionals, writing press releases, coordinating the exhibition of finalists' artwork, and organizing the Prize launch at the opening reception.

- Hospitality

- International art trip planning

- CASV archiving
Please contact us for more information on how you can help.

www.casv.ca
info@casv.ca

The Contemporary Art Society of Vancouver is a registered not-for-profit organization entirely reliant on member support.  Thank you for yours!  Please visit the CASV website for event listings and membership information.

Founded in 1977, the CASV creates opportunities for exploring, appreciating and understanding contemporary art.

CASV EVENTS COMING UP IN MAY

May is an incredibly busy month this year for the CASV, with four events happening. The first one is an event in which the CASV and the Richmond Art Gallery has partnered together. 

A Conversation About Collecting Contemporary Art

Saturday, May 3, 2:00 – 3:30pm - Richmond Art Gallery

Hear different perspectives on collecting contemporary art from Wil Aballe, Dealer and Owner of Wil Aballe Art Projects, Kate Bellringer, Director of Contemporary & Canadian Art Auctions at Maynards Fine Art & Antiques, and Donna Partridge, private collector and Manager of Art Rental & Sales at the Vancouver Art Gallery. Moderated by Gallery Director Rachel Rosenfield Lafo.

See the exhibition, Evan Lee: Elders and Roots, guest curated by Bill Jeffries. Take advantage of a special opportunity to build your art collection by purchasing a new limited edition print by Vancouver artist Evan Lee from his ginseng series, created as a fundraiser for the Richmond Art Gallery.

Co-sponsored by the Contemporary Art Society of Vancouver

Directions to the Richmond Art Gallery, easily accessible on the Canada Line, can be found here: http://richmondartgallery.org/.

Evan Lee, Ginseng Root Study, 2004/2014 , 7.75 x 6 in., archival pigment print

The Second event is a members only studio visit with Dyan Achjadi. This event has limited numbers as Dyan's studio is a smaller space, so be sure to RSVP as soon as the invitation comes out. For those of you who cannot join us as it is on Mothers Day, we wish you a beautiful Mothers Day.

Dyan Achjadi, Mine, 2008

Event number three in May, a private collection tour visit. The details for this event will be emailed to members a week or so prior. Be sure to sign up for the collection visit, and be prepared for inspiring conversations on collecting.

Event number four in May, the CASV is pleased to present to you the Second Iteration of the Contemporary Art Society of Vancouver's Emerging Artist's Prize. By early May a jury will have meticulously reviewed over 120 submissions of work and selected a group of finalists for the exhibition and prize. The exhibition of the artwork will be held at Access Gallery in Vancouver, and will run from May 17 - 31. We would like to invite all of our members to the May 22 Opening reception for the exhibition. Come out and support emerging Vancouver contemporary art, and meet the shortlisted artists. 

The winner of the prize is also announced on the 22nd.

HOPPING INTO APRIL!

We have two events scheduled this April, we hope you will join us for both!

We've partnered once again with Canadian Art on the Vancouver Art Hop. The hop is taking place this year on the 12th of April. It is a full day of free art talks, tours and a Magazine issue launch. This event is open to the membership and the general public. For more information on the talks and tours coming up on the 12th, visit the Van Hop Microsite: http://www.canadianart.ca/microsites/vancouverhop/ 
See you at the hop!

Following the hop, we also have planned an artist studio visit with Vancouver based artist Dan Starling. Dates and more information on Starling will follow in the next couple of weeks. His visit will occur later on in the month. Hope to see you there!

Dan Starling is an interdisciplinary artist from Vancouver whose work has been exhibited internationally. He has attended Emily Carr University (BFA 2005) and Städelschule, Frankfurt am Main (Meisterschuler 2011).  www.danstarling.com

HOPPING OUT OF MARCH...

With the winter months now behind us we are looking forward to hopping into spring with some fantastic events in April and May. More on these soon, but first a quick thank you to the folks who made our two events in March a great success.

Thanks to the Rosewood Hotel Georgia and Todd Towers from Farmboy Fine Arts for the tour of the Hotel Georgia's Art Collection.

Hotel Georgia Development Limited worked with Farmboy Fine Arts to create a modern art collection as a way to reassert the hotel’s present-day splendor in the context of the reverence for the hotel’s iconic past. Farmboy Fine Art’s president Todd Towers stayed true to the Rosewood Hotel Georgia’s mantra to create “A sense of place.” In order to do that, Towers selected and commissioned works by modern Canadian artists, focusing on West Coast artists in particular. Because the building interior is sombre in its sophistication, Towers chose pieces that would boldly stand out, placing pieces of art throughout the hotel from lobby, to spa, and  upper levels. (http://www.insidevancouver.ca/2011/10/06/rosewood-hotel-georgia-debuts-collection-of-modern-canadian-art/)

CASV Members got an insider perspective on how the collection was selected and created. The Rosewood Hotel Georgia is one of a small selection of hotels that have a unique contemporary Canadian art collection. The other hotel that springs to mind instantly would be the Gladstone in Toronto, they have 37 hotel rooms designed by different Canadian artists. Next time you are in Toronto, you should check it out.

The Gladstone Hotel is not only the oldest continuously operating hotel in Toronto, it's also one of Canada’s favourite Boutique Art Hotels. Blending historical Victorian architecture with contemporary luxury, downtown culture and whole lot of art, the Gladstone Hotel is a hub for locals and international travellers alike. 37 hotel rooms each designed by different Canadian artists, 2 restaurants, 4 event venue spaces and 3 art exhibition spaces. 

We also would like to thanks Emily Carr University of Art + Design and Kim Dorland for helping us to host a fascinating artist talk. The talk was open to the public as well as the membership and it was incredibly well attended. It was hosted on campus at Emily Carr.  Kim Dorland gave an extensive and insightful talk on the history and evolution of his artistic practice. Thanks Kim!

For More info on Kim Visit Here: http://www.canadianart.ca/features/2013/05/10/kim-dorland-beautiful-stuff/

UPCOMING STUDIO VISIT WITH ANDY DIXON

We are pleased to announce a second studio visit with Vancouver based painter Andy Dixon. The visit is scheduled for Wednesday February 26th in the evening (6:30pm). We hope you will join us! The event invitation will be sent out to all members very shortly.

Tennis Players #2, 2013, Andy Dixon, acrylic and oil pastels on framed canvas

The CASV invites its members to a studio visit with Andy Dixon.

Currently working out of Vancouver, Canada, Andy Dixon's work contrasts refined subject matter with a coarse application of his materials. Although his subjects are often romantic, Dixon's approach and use of colour remove their idealism, accenting the humanity of both the subject and the artist simultaneously.

He is self-taught with no formal academic training. Dixon's work is represented by Rebecca Hossack Gallery in London & New York as well as Wally Workman Gallery in Austin. Recent exhibition of Dixon's work include: Pleasure Studies at the Back Gallery Project in Vancouver and The Luxury of Observing Luxury at No Remorse Studio in Vancouver. Dixon also participated in the Vancouver Art Gallery's Fuse in 2012. He has a forthcoming exhibition at the Wally Workman Gallery in Austin. 

Young Dancer Wearing a Lace Mantilla (After Cassatt), 2013, Andy Dixon

38" X 34", Acrylic & oil pastel on framed canvas

Fox, 2013, Andy Dixon, 27" X 32", Acrylic, oil pastel, pencil, and crayon on framed canvas.

FIONA ACKERMAN STUDIO VISIT

Thanks to everyone who came to Fiona's studio, and to Fiona for opening up her studio to the CASV. It was great to hear Fiona discuss her work and the two streams of painting that she is currently creating. We wish her luck in her two upcoming exhibitions this spring. Below are some images of the visit.  We hope to see you on the 2nd of February for the Roselina Hung studio visit happening in two weeks time.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

TWO UPCOMING STUDIO VISITS FOR CASV MEMBERS...

We hope you have all had a great break over December and January, we have several exciting events in the works for CASV members. Keep your eyes on the blog and website for more announcements.  To start us off in the new year we are pleased to announce two planned painting studio visits, the first one in January on Sunday the 19th with Fiona Ackerman, the second one on Sunday February 2nd with Roselina Hung. 

Invites will be mailed to member inboxes, you should see these soon! 

Bearing the Burden of Doubt, 2013 Fiona Ackerman

(studio visit: Shawn Hunt / Graeme Burglund), Oil on canvas, 78.7” x 55.1”

Originally from Montreal, Fiona Ackerman is a painter living and working in Vancouver, BC. Since completing her BFA through Concordia and ECIAD, Fiona has exhibited across Canada and in Europe (Germany & France). She received an honorable mention for the Kingston Prize for Canadian Portraiture in 2009, and was included in Carte Blanche 2: Painting, a survey and showcase painting in Canada (published by The Magenta Foundation, fall 2008). In 2012, she Ackerman spent 6 months working from a studio in Berlin. The Berlin paintings, and the work produced for the exhibition titled 'Heterotopia' at Winsor Gallery were published in a full colour Catalogue available through Winsor Gallery and Galerie Steinrötter.

Currently, Fiona has a solo exhibition running at White Brush Gallery in Düsseldorf Germany until February 9, 2014. At home in Vancouver, she will open her second solo exhibition with Winsor Gallery in February 2014. This exhibition titled It's Not You, It's Me' is a series of new explorations into the studio's of Canadian artists from Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver. It will be followed by 'Amplifier'  an exhibition of her new abstract paintings at Herringer Kiss Gallery in Calgary, opening April 12 2014. 

The Seduction of Samson, 2012   Roselina Hung

oil on wood panel, 20 x 24 in, 2012 

Roselina Hung (b. 1980) is a visual artist with a MA Fine Art from Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design, London, UK, and a BFA from the University of British Columbia. She also spent one year on exchange at L’Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France. Her work has been exhibited internationally and can be found in private collections around the world.  She has taught at Central Saint Martins and attended residencies at The Banff Centre, Ox-Bow School of Arts and SÍM Reykjavik.  Roselina lives and works in Vancouver, BC, Canada.

STUIO VISIT WITH BEAU DICK

A couple of weeks ago we visited Beau Dick's Studio. This was quite a magical visit; in addition to his fine carving skills and his critical artistic vision, Dick is also an entrancing storyteller and historian. He took us all on a journey that explored the history of his practice and his people, all the while illuminating how the two elements are deeply intertwined. It was a great visit that many members will remember for quite some time.