Show Announcement! Painting the Landscape - Darrell Bell Gallery

I mentioned that I have been painting larger work these days, well, this is one of the reasons!

I am so excited that I was invited to participate in this show! In June Darrell asked me if I wanted to be in a landscape show of work painted over the summer with him and some other artists. Ummmm, yes, yes I do!!! Seriously, it is going to be awesome! You have to come to the reception on Friday, Sept. 15 - it will be f-u-n! Darrell is hanging the show in BOTH gallery spaces, so there will be a hub of activity going from the street level location up to the main gallery on the fourth floor of the Canada Building. And the art! Oh, the art!

Jackie Miller is one of the two other artists I went to Georgian Bay with in 2013 and back when I was doing Sunday Spotlights on this blog, I wrote about her here. I also did a spotlight, which you can see here, on Greg Hargarten who is a member of the Men Who Paint group in Saskatoon and his recent work is making my head spin! Darrell has been working on some fantastic prairie paintings and he paints big! Three or four of my "big" paintings can often fit in one of his! Cheryl Tuck-Tallon is the owner of the Black Spruce Gallery up north where I sell my work and, although I haven't met Lindsay Love or Craig Erickson yet, I really admire their art!

So mark your calendars right now and keep tabs on this page because over the next week I will be posting the pieces I will have available in this show. And I think they are good!

Mann Art Gallery Winter Festival

Walk In The Meadow

30 x 30"

oil on canvas

© Nicki Ault, 2015
available

Well, who knew what would transpire when I went to reception of the 40th annual Mann Art Gallery Winter Festival Juried Art Show and Sale on Friday evening? Not me! In the past I have heard that people who were going to receive an award were given a phone call in the days leading up to the reception. They were never told what they might have won, but it was strongly suggested that they should attend the reception. I have participated in the show two other times and have never received a call, and this year was no different. In other years I have known other artists who have gotten "the call", so it wasn't a myth. It is always fun to see the work and to support friends, but this year, I have to admit, I was not in the right head space to attend. I almost bailed until my husband pointed out that sometimes you have to do things you aren't really feeling up to and that doing so shows character which is what we want to demonstrate to our kids. Zing!!! That hit the right nerve, so I fired up the shower at 3:00 p.m. and pulled myself together.

I drove up with two of my studio colleagues and once we got to Prince Albert I began to feel happy I was there. There was some amazing art of all kinds: paintings, drawings, photography, woodwork, textiles, jewelry, sculptures, pottery and needlework. I saw many artsy friends and had a few great visits with the guest adjudicator and curator of the show... Darrell Bell! 

The evening marched along and suddenly it was time for the program. I was curious who won the awards, nobody I knew had received "the call". A few awards in, next up was The Kyla Memorial Award which went to my friend, Greg Hargarten. He looked totally stunned to have won it. I didn't expect someone I knew to win, so my camera wasn't out and ready. Congratulations to him! The program continued and then the Art Placement Media Award for accomplishment in the medium of oil was presented... to me... for "Walk In The Meadow"! What?! I went up to the front in a bit of shock. I may or may not have tripped and staggered in my heels (which were killing me) as I made my way to the front and back. I may or may not have smiled at the camera when they took the picture of me shaking the presenter's hand. I may or may not have said thank you, but I am pretty sure I did... possibly more than necessary.

So there you go. They didn't make phone calls this year! As well, Darrell explained to me that he curated the show differently than other years- he made sure that everyone who submitted something had at least one piece of artwork displayed in a good location. He used the secondary gallery space almost entirely for the work of the photographers and it was stunning. The third space was, again, a mix of work. The entire show looked really good and I wish I took more photos.

Spring On The Prairies
12 x 12"
oil on cradled panel
© Nicki Ault, 2015

Both of my pieces happened to be in the main gallery which you can see below...

Another great surprise was that one of the colleagues I drove up with ended up winning the Second Place Award for the whole show! Congratulations to Carol Wylie for this recognition of her portrait "Linda".

It was a good night.

My Big Announcement- Lifestyles by Darrell Bell Gallery

Breakwater and Wet Sand, Waskesiu

8 x 8"

oil on cradled panel

© Nicki Ault, 2012

available exclusively at Lifestyles by Darrell Bell Gallery
sold

Well, the time has come! It has been hard to keep a tight lip for the last five months, but I am finally able to announce my big news.

Late last June I was approached by a well known artist and gallery owner, Darrell Bell, and his new store manager in regards to my small paintings. At the meeting I heard about their very exciting plans to open a new art boutique on one of the main shopping streets in Saskatoon (21st Street East, one block from Midtown Plaza). They were in the process of hand-picking the artists and crafts-people that would supply their beautiful, new store with unique home accessories and art pieces. They wanted me! What? I'm still in a bit of shock! 

I will be painting prairie and Saskatchewan related original landscapes in an 8 x 8" format exclusively for their store. They will not be available anywhere else, not even from me. I painted nine pieces over the summer so they could choose their favorite four or five to start out with and guess what? They kept all nine! I'm not sure my feet touched the ground when I left that meeting. I chose the above painting as the first one to show you because it was Darrell Bell's favorite of the nine.

The store opening has been delayed, so therefore the announcement was too, but the doors will be open on Dec.1... just in time for the busy three weeks before Christmas!

Although I still struggle to think of myself as a "real" artist (in fact I just had a bad dream about the very thing!), I am getting there. This new development has provided such validation. I wish I didn't need or desire validation outside of myself, but the fact is, I guess I do. And I don't think I am alone. I am so excited about this new venture and I hope to support the success of their store through my blog and Facebook page. Stay tuned for more 8 x 8" paintings available exclusively at Lifestyles by Darrell Bell Gallery!