Altona’s Gallery in the Park launched their second season on Aug. 8, displaying the works of four artists with local connections.
Featured in the lower main gallery, April Friesen’s interest in quilting and blanket making grew during the three years she lived in Japan.
Friesen calls her tapestry exhibit Threat Intention to describe the art of making something out of nothing.
Inspired by the multitude of discarded traditional Japanese textiles, she says she found peace in the needle. Under the guidance of her Japanese mother-in-law, the wisdom of her Mennonite grandmothers, and the genetic memory of blanket-making ancestors, both in Japan and in Canada, each of the nine pieces calls the viewer to look within and without.
Created exclusively with upcycled fabrics, each piece tells a story. As you walk through her collection, Friesen invites you to pause and to dream.
“None of the fabric I use is new. All I know about it is either told to me or what I can decipher from the fabric itself. I don’t always know whose it was or where it’s from. Much of it has been repurposed from many uses.”
In terms of method, Friesen says she flies by the seat of her pants and allows the work to create itself.
“I do a lot of appliques. I fold over the fabric, sew the edges and add stitching to add texture, to get the shape I want.”
Many of the pieces have nature themes.
“I’m a strong advocate of Indigenous land stewardship, returning to a more natural way of thinking, that we develop a renewed reverence for the world we live in, the fact that we’re on this floating rock, that’s floating around a star, that is flying infinitely through space. I don’t think we honour that enough.”
She says it feels surreal to have her work on display at Gallery in the Park.
“They are mostly stored in boxes, as I have nowhere to display them right now. I’m very happy they have some time here at the gallery in full view.”
Alongside Friesen’s exhibit, there are also a variety of acrylics, sketches, photography and oil paintings on display from the other three contributors: Josee Voth, Pearl Krahn, and Tim Froese.
Voth was born and raised in Altona. Now residing just outside of town, she has learned to embrace the countryside and the beauty it holds. Showing interest in art at a young age, she dabbles in painting and sketching, as well as photography.
“Beauty is everywhere, you just need to have the eyes to see it,” Voth says.
Tim Froese says he’s excited to have his work at the gallery.
“It’s very exciting. Coming back to my roots, this is the real deal. My colour palette is bold. It’s the principle of 10,000 hours – the more you do something, the more it flows. It’s weird to see how easy the process becomes.”
Froese has 12 paintings and two sculptures on display. One painting called “Sunny” features a joyful moment when his then 10-year-old daughter found a tomato with a nose on it.
“She immediately drew a happy face on it. She’s an artist herself now.”
His work also tells stories, sometimes whimsical, and sometimes dark. His sculptures “Stan” and “Walter” show the challenges of mental illness.
“They’re based on two men I met when I lived in the inner city and my home became a drop-in centre. It’s my tribute to mental calamity.”
Pearl Krahn lived in Plum Coulee area and currently calls Altona home.
“I’ve been drawing and colouring for as long as I could hold a pencil. I took a few years of art training in high school, and my teacher saw a lot of promise.”
Krahn put her art aside for a number of years to pursue a career in nursing and raise her family.
“I returned to it a few years ago, when I took a position that finally allowed me the time.”
After working with a variety of media, she switched to strictly oils a few years ago, and says she’ll never go back.
“It’s very therapeutic.”
The exhibition will be on display until the end of September.
