An intriguing new exhibition on Vancouver’s North Shore is inviting you to rediscover the world around you and reconnect with simple materials, like glass, plaster, and wool.
?What Matters! brings together 32 artworks by three local artists—Catherine Tableau, Aurélia Bizouard, and Chantal Cardinal—at the Cityscape Community ArtSpace.
Tableau breaks and rebuilds with plaster to evoke resilience, Bizouard creates altermodern glass works that reflect society, and Cardinal sculpts wool into delicate hand felted art. Each artist endevours to showcase the different ways in which they explore and challenge each medium, and help visitors understand the tactile nature of each material.
We spoke to Tableau, Bizouard, and Cardinal to find out more about the artworks on exhibition, the meaning behind them, and what to expect when you walk in the door.
How did this exhibition come about?
It all started with our French connection: three Francophone artists in Vancouver with artworks that have a fragmented look.
We discovered that we all shared a passion for materials, albeit each totally different: glass, plaster, and wool. We all share the same love for the process, the same interest in the medium, and a need to connect with others.
We loved exploring our similarities, but also our differences.
What are your favorite artworks in the exhibition?
Catherine Tableau:
My most striking piece obviously is Time Lines #29, a large, blue monochrome. However, I have a special bond with Time Lines #33, a black, square monochrome I did as an homage to Pierre Soulages, the master of “Outrenoir.” That piece resonates and vibrates like a spell. I’m always caught by its magic.
Time Lines #33 by Catherine Tableau
Aurélia Bizouard:
I’m fond of the Rose painting. It was inspired by a quote from Antoine de Saint-Éxupéry’s book The Little Prince: “It’s the time you spend with your rose that makes your rose so important.” The glass emphasizes the fragility of the rose.
Also, my Disconnection series is a new work, that marks our time where technology is part of our everyday life. It questions how the new technologies impact our relationships with others.
Chantal Cardinal:
Standing Tall was a challenge in scale, but through the meditative labour-intensive process, I found myself reflecting on the birch tree that my father planted in the yard, and felt it became an homage to the memory of my father.
Rockie Wool No.1 was a joy to have created. The process reveals itself in the most wonderful way.
Textures by Chantal Cardinal | felted local Romney wool with a touch of silk
What message do you want this exhibition to convey?
Catherine Tableau:
Be open to the fleeting effects of light, to the work of time on things, to happy accidents, and to the fragility that envelops everything.
Aurélia Bizouard:
The Roman emperor Marcus-Aurelius said, “The objects acquire grace and beauty by the accidents that occur to them.” My Kintsugi series (Beauty in the flaw and Disconnection) reflects on the fragility of life, the beauty in the flaw, as it reveals an experience that happened in life.
Kintsugi Series by Aurélia Bizouard | reverse painting on broken glass with acrylic gold leaves and resin
Chantal Cardinal:
I invite the viewer to rediscover the world through their hands and through touch. Please DO touch!
?What Matters! is showing until March 21 at the Cityscape Community ArtSpace at 335 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver, V7M 2G3.
Opening hours are Monday to Friday, 9 am to 5 pm (Thursday, until 8 pm), Saturday, noon to 5 pm, closed on Sunday. Admission is free.
Written for West Coast Curated by Jenni Sheppard