Andie Wicherts’ 1992 work ‘The Seated Figure,’ watercolour on Japanese paper.
The human figure is the focus of a new exhibition at Fort Macleod Allied Arts.
Allied Arts held a public reception Friday for the opening of Figured, one of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts’ travelling exhibits.
“The human figure provides a vast window into humanity, allowing us to document culture and ideology,” the curatorial statement reads. “It has been a source of inspiration throughout history . . . and has been depicted in almost every art period and genre.”
The work in Figured is from five decades, beginning in 1966 and ending in 2002.
“Delicate contour lines, voluptuous strokes of watercolour and thoughtfully etched textures express the beauty of the human form through the works in this exhibition,” the curatorial statement reads.
The work of 12 renowned Canadian artists is featured in Figured, including Deanna Boucher, Susan Bolinger, Pat Holland, Kay Angliss, Marion Nicoll, Illingworth Kerr, Andie Wicherts, Yuriko Kitamura, Maureen Harvey, Helen Mackie, Jonathan Knowlton and Blair Brennan.
“The works in this exhibition are rendered in vastly different ways but draw from the same source of inspiration: the body,” the curatorial statement explained.
“In art school, students study figure drawing: five models are observed and rendered. Students visually investigate the curve of a back, the volume of a thigh muscle, the sharpness of a collarbone, and the delicateness of a fingertip.”
“The artists in this exhibition have done the same — they have studied and created expressions of humanity using the human form as their visual vehicle.”
For more than 40 years, the Alberta Foundation for the Arts has supported a travelling exhibition program.
More than 300,000 Albertans — from High Level in the north to Milk River in the south — view exhibitions each year.
