Artists from Coastal Carvings Gallery, located in Coombs B.C., will hold a mixed-media exhibit The Gathering at the Canmore Art Guild Gallery, Sept. 10-13.
The Coastal gallery specializes in award-winning fine art and custom home design and provides work from a variety of artists in both traditional and contemporary forms.
As an Aboriginal art gallery, Coastal Carvings has both northwest coast native art and art from across Canada from other First Nations, including Haida, Tismshian, Salish, Ojibway, Cree, Nuu-Chah-Nulth, Metis and Inuit; as well as other selected west coast artists.
Visiting artists include Ice Bear, Dorothy Jarvis, Jeremy and Jerett Humpherville, as well as Douglas Fisher.
“We have created a group of original pieces in all different mediums that we will be displaying and we thought it was important for the artists to accompany their works so they can explain their craft and technique,” Jeremy Humpherville said.
Humpherville grew up in Haida Gwaii, where he learned the mastercraft wood carving techniques the Haida people are known internationally for.
“It’s probably 90 per cent of what we do,” he said. “We have our gallery full of art and we’re bringing a lot of art out, but what we specialize in is that if people have a space, and not all spaces are the same, we’ll design and work to that specific space.”
Humpherville spent three and a half years on a house, which ended up winning an award as the best custom house in all of British Columbia.
The artist first came to this area in 2010, holding an exhibit in Calgary, and now, five years later, he wanted to showcase a group of artists.
“Good art is universal, it doesn’t matter where you are – it will be appreciated,” Humpherville said. “With this trip, we didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes, so I talked to the local galleries and we got an outstanding response, and the Canmore Art Guild got involved and rented us the space and are supporting us and we did it as a donation since they’re non-profit and hopefully it goes well.”
Humpherville believes the exhibit will interest not just those who enjoy fine art, but also interior design and furniture enthusiasts. All five artists will be on hand with their work, to be able to talk with patrons to ask about their individual vision on the pieces, and see what they were thinking when they made the work.
“You have all of these different styles, Dorothy for sure is a very impressionistic painter from the coast, she’s 70 years old and born and raised on a reserve,” Humpherville said. “Ice Bear is Ojibwa from back east, and has been in the art scene for over 40 years, so we have some very established artists and they were all interested and thought it would be a great idea.
“My father is First Nations, my mother is European and my whole family are artists, so I was very fortunate to be immersed, but never told to go be an artist. It was just because we all enjoyed doing it,” said Humpherville.
“When I was 20, I decided this is something I might want to do for a living. I took a piece of wood home and I carved it for myself, so no longer was I helping my uncle or helping my brother. I did it just for myself and I enjoyed it so much I knew I should be doing this the whole time. When you’re helping someone else it’s work, but when you do it for yourself, it’s because you love to do it.”
