ABOUT THE EXHIBITION

Dublin, Galway, Inishmor and Doolin are the places we explored on our 16 day back-backing trip in Ireland. For two weeks this spring we took the time to connect with a culture we hold dear and hopefully bring a little of its magic back with us through our art. Our experiences throughout the trip will serve as raw material from which we will build our collection, which will include finished paintings, illustrations and photography. We do not expect to only create realistic work; we are also excited to look at our experiences and to experiment in more abstract ways. One thing that proved difficult on this trip was finding our own space to create. We sketched, took photos and wrote about our travels but when it came to the end of the day it turned out that a hostel just wasn’t the best place to sit and reflect since people were constantly coming and going. We made many friends and enjoyed their company greatly but finding a little comfort and privacy was a real challenge. This is why we have decided to present our work a little differently. We decided to dress the space keeping in mind the concept of traveling. We will present our collection of work to you just as much as we will share with you the details of the trip. We like to think of it as a kind of life sized travel log. The space will reflect our personalities and we aim to make it as welcoming and comforting as possible because we realized that the space in which you experience art can sometimes make a world of difference.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Kristy Boisvert
I am trained as a commercial artist, having completed both the Professional Photography and the Illustration and Design programs at Dawson College. However, I find that exploring myself and the world around me through personal work much more rewarding than creating work commercially. I am very lucky to have been born and raised here in Montreal where access to art is so available and has undoubtedly influenced my decision to pursue art as a career. The work that I do is inspired by the emotions that are evoked by the people, places and events in my life. Simply put, anything that produces an emotion in me is likely to be used as a jumping off point for a painting or drawing. Truth is important to me and so is the ability to be vulnerable.

Samantha Scafidi
With A DEC in Visual Arts and a nearly completed Bachelor at Concordia University in the program of Theatre Design, I have always applied my experience as an artist to my designs for the stage. I have a great interest in doing the opposite for this exhibit. Creating an environment that reflects and supports the body of work it is holding is an idea that I wish to push for years to come. After years of using another’s script, story or life lesson as inspiration it’s about time I get to use my own. It really was a great trip.

Exhibition Dates:
July 31 - August 6, 2008