Preview of the Visual Arts | April-May 2010

www.fosterwhite.com
Alden Mason: Endless Flirting on Paper
FOSTER/WHITE GALLERY, SEATTLE WA – Apr 4-27, 2010 Alden Mason has participated in the Northwest
art scene for over half a century. At age 90, the prolific artist continues to create works of art in
an ever-evolving style that reflects his active imagination. Mason, who grew up surrounded by the
fertile landscape of the Skagit Valley, still paints with a fresh childlike wonder reminiscent of such
youthful experiences as bird-watching.
Over the years, Mason has created a world of lyrical inventions. His soft-focus paintings move
between abstraction and an iconic language of mark-making where primitive style figures and birds
populate energetic picture planes. His imagery is distinct and unique, with playful and humorous
gestures found in the current paintings.
Dedicated to change, improvisation and
spontaneity in his mature years, Mason has
incorporated the element of chance into several
of his new pieces by drawing with his
eyes closed. His latest paintings, created with
watercolour and oil stick, move away from
the fluid oil paintings from the 1970s which
had brought him national attention. Mason
was forced to abandon oil painting when the
medium affected his health, but has recently
revisited the technique using acrylics and
varnishes. Burpee Revisited captures all the
fluidity of his linear works without a firm
distinction.
Mason received his BFA and MFA from
narratives facilitated by a distinctive tension
between human figures, and the
atmosphere in which they dwell; Apr 15-
May 15 Tanya Slingsby, “ARCANA”,
spirited and ethereal abstract paintings;
May 20-Jun 19 Barry Weiss, paintings
reminiscent of stormy Saskatchewan
prairie landscape and European sublime
and romantic legacy are shown alongside
surreal dreamlike canvases alluding
to the French artist’s childlike inventiveness
and a Tom Waits-esque edge by
Jean-François Gromaire.
DRUMHELLER
Badlands Gallery
50C 3rd Ave W ✆403-823-8680
www.badlandsgallery.ca
mon-sun 12-5pm and by appt. Admission
is free. Apr-May Original works by
members of the Canadian Badlands
Artist Association in a variety of media;
Ongoing Artist-in-residence Robert
Haines mon-fri 12-5pm.
14 PREVIEW ■ APR/MAY 2010
EDMONTON
Alden Mason, John's Wrecking Yard (2009), acrylic on paper
[Foster/White Gallery, Seattle WA, Apr 4-27].
the University of Washington and continued to teach at the University for 32 years. He is to be
admired for his artistic dedication, willingness to reinvent himself, and his commitment to an
authentic vision. Allyn Cantor
Agnes Bugera Gallery
12310 Jasper Ave NW ✆780-482-2854
www.agnesbugeragallery.com
tues-sat 10am-5pm. Thru Apr 9 David
Luksha, “Advert, Convert, Subvert”,
abstract works in layers of oil and wax;
Apr 10-23 Mel Heath, landscapes, oil
on canvas; Apr 24-May 7 David Wilson
and Ian Rawlinson, “Dusk Night”,
paintings of after dark; May 15-28, Barbara
Amos, acrylics on canvas depicting
the urban landscape.
Alberta Craft Council Gallery
10186 106 St NW ✆780-488-6611
www.albertacraft.ab.ca
mon-sat 10am-5pm. LOWER GALLERY
Thru Apr 3 THIRTY, looking back and to
the future of the Council and Alberta’s
fine craft culture; Apr 10-Jul 3 CLAY
2010, an exhibition and acquisition of
contemporary ceramics by the Alberta
Foundation for the Arts; DISCOVERY
GALLERY Thru Apr 10 Mariko McCrae
and Duncan Gare, “An Affair to
Remember”, Calgary ceramic artist
McCrae explores the lofty topic of mass
production, consumerism and recycling;
Apr 17-May 29 Brenda Danbrook,
“The Geese Came Back”, new
work by Opal ceramic artist; Natali
Rodrigues, “Proximity and Touch”,
Calgary glass artist explores the contrast
between surfaces and colour of
glass and the forms of the objects.
★ Art Gallery of Alberta
2 Sir Winston Churchill Square
✆780-392-2500 www.youraga.ca
tues-fri 11am-7pm sat & sun 10am-
5pm. Admission: members free, adults
$12, seniors (65+)/students $8, children
under 6 free, children 7-17 $8, family (up
to 2 adults + 4 children) $26. Thru May
9 Janet Cardiff and George Bures
Miller, “The Murder of Crows”, their
largest sound installation to date has
been shown in Sydney, Berlin and Brazil,
but comes to Canadian audiences for the