UPDATE: Come by to see the show Sundays through August, 9:30-2pm
Curator and artist Natasha Henderson has this to say about the work in 40 Days et 40 Soirs:
In Trees – Oil on wood – Natasha Henderson
“I paint robins, trees, the sky. Layers and glazes of oil create a sometimes foggy effect; and time is captured within the weeks it takes to create these works. Patterns emerge and help form sense out of the chaos. My creative process is represented within these works. Fluttering time and space together, the robins are really something more than birds… though I really do love birds for just being birds!”
Hope to see you!
Fleurbain is located at 460 St Catherine West, Montreal. Our unit # is 917. We are directly across the street from St James United Church. Showtimes Sundays 9:30-2, or by appointment.
Upcoming fun this autumn… We are very excited to announce that we will be part of the official programming for Culture Days / Journées de la culture, September 27-29, 2013.
Photography, painting, and mixed media artists are collaborating to reflect upon the unique 9th storey, Fleurbain view of downtown Montreal. The work in this group exhibition reflects the experience of looking out… as we look out, we look in.
List of artists to be announced mid-September… Stay tuned!
Hours for the exhibition during Culture Days:
Friday Sept 27 12-5pm
Saturday Sept 28 10-5pm, and a vernissage/celebration 6-9pm
Sunday Sept 29 12-6pm
While visiting during daytime hours, as a part of Culture Days, we are offering a chance for you to make your own piece of artwork that is inspired by our view.
The following Saturday (October 5) we will be hosting a poetry reading in collaboration with this exhibition. Stay tuned for that, too!
Fleurbain is located at 460 St Catherine West, unit 917.
At Fleurbain, we are excited to offer a two-evening workshop, in which participants will create a formed puppet out of wet felt.
The workshop takes place over two Tuesday eves in April. The puppet will be a simple “mitten” style, formed seamlessly over a form.
The first night students will learn the feltmaking basics, and create this formed puppet. The next week students will make round felt eyes, needle-felt decorations, and decorate/finish details on the puppet to take home. Choices can be made about “what” or “who” this puppet is… it can be a portrait, a fantasy creature, an alien… a favourite pet.
This class is excellent for those who have made a flat felt object (such as a scarf) before, but is also appropriate for those who have not yet made felt. Rest assured, you will be guided through all the stages to ensure your puppet will pup!
The workshop is taught by Natasha Henderson, a painter, fibre artist, arts educator, and Fleurbain’s gallery curator. Her work is exhibited across Canada, and she also offers custom workshops.
TIMES: Tuesday April 16 and Tuesday April 23, 7-8:30pm each night.
COST: $60, all inclusive
REGISTER by responding via email to fleurbain@gmail.com
Workshop is held in Fleurbain, located at 460 Ste-Catherine West, H3B 1A7, Montreal. Suite # 917.
On now at Fleurbain until November 30 is a selection of works by painter Natasha Henderson.
You might know me (Natasha) from Fleurbain. Perhaps you know me from this blog, where I write about art, life, gardening, crafts, DIY, and more. Maybe you have taken a felt-making workshop with me, or joined in a drop-in-painting session in Fleurbain. What you might not know is that I have been a professionally exhibiting painter since 1998.
Changes. Oil on wood
I moved to Montreal from British Columbia in 2007. Since then, I have had a few studio spaces, from home-based ones, to massive industrial ones, to small corners in shared spaces. All the time, I have been painting. Now, I am opting to exhibit a few of my absolute favourite pieces that are still in my collection. Granted there are others that I would have loved to include, but you can pick out your faves from my website, if you would like.
Here is a spin around the exhibition. If you can make it in person, we are open Tuesdays to Thursdays, 3-6pm, and Saturday and Sunday from noon to 6pm. Hope to see you!
Fleurbain is located at 460 St Catherine West, unit 917 in downtown Montreal. Very close to Place des Arts and McGill metros. Open Tuesday-Thursday 3-6, and Saturday-Sunday 12-6.
Alice Zilberberg, Lauren Trimble, and Elissa Baltzer
At Fleurbain, we are proud to present our current exhibition Fairytales In The City. Seven artists have responded to this theme and idea: Where myth and fact interact, we form our fairytales within the city.
A successful opening night last night launched this exhibit of works by Elissa Baltzer, Anna Grigorian, Natasha Henderson, Françoise Issaly, David Merk, Lauren Trimble, and Alice Zilberberg. Fleurbain Treats were happily nibbled, a wonderful herbal iced tea was sipped, as were the requisite wine and cheese. An intelligent and lively crowd enjoyed the art, conversation, and chance to meet new people and see old friends.
vernissage fun
As for the art, several themes have surfaced in the show. What is an urban fairytale? Are these the fairytales of our youth, reimaginings of the Brothers Grimm, or newly crafted events in a contemporary setting? What are the subjects of fairytales in the city: memory, childhood, nature, transient moments, or a persistent visual luck that could only be described as “magic”? How specific are we with what defines a fairytale?
As the show progresses, I will be sharing a few essays with you about these subjects (and more.) We will soon announce artist talks and presentations over the next month. In the meantime, come see Fairytales In The City at Fleurbain until October 13.
Fairytales In The City at Fleurbain
460 St Catherine West, Unit 917. Montreal
Tues-Thurs 3-6pm and Sat-Sun 12-6pm until October 13, 2012
This March 15 marked the exhibition opening of Toronto-based Abbas Akhavan’s work Beacon at the Darling Foundry. There was also an open studio opportunity for the public to see work in progress by international artists in residence.
We were first struck by the enormity of the open space that Akhavan’s work was in. Over time, though, a great deal of this space was filled by a slowly inflating (and then deflating) hot air balloon.
In the video, you will also see a very short glimpse of the second main element in “Beacon”. This is a lion-like form, made out of mortar. The form was made in reference to an Iranian sculpture, the “Stone Lion” of Hamedan. Even if the viewer did not understand this, it made the impression of replicating a relic (even though it was, obviously, crafted for the exhibition.)
The balloon felt like respiration. It noted the expanse of the available room. It was quite striking, and everyone kept a respectful distance from it.
Overall the work gave an impression of temporality, air, place, erosion, and impermanence.
In the working studio area of the Darling Foundry we had the fortune to meet, chat with, and see the work of Dineo Bopape. She is in the midst of a six month international residency hosted by the Darling Foundry and the Canada Council for the Arts. She is from South Africa. Her work is video-based, and also includes installation, sculpture, and painting.
Bopape’s video work (what I spent the most time with, outside of almost drooling on some of her painted sketches of patterns using mostly orange paint) uses pattern, narrative, and a keen and sometimes quirky sort of observation. The piece about green grass and blue sky was both simple and mesmerizing, and reminded me of the one time I fainted. Everything was crisp, simplified, out of breath, and hyper-real. The patterns in the overlapping grasses were overwhelming.
Other of her works used theatrical elements such as dance, storytelling, and singing. Forms of life and the natural word made their appearances, too… ducks, humans, patterns of sparkly water, and what looked like tulips.
When her work delves into the use of natural patterns, objects, and animals it still seems to reference the human body. It is the human take on these other things that comes across in the video. The feeling that I had of fainting, as well as the empathy within her other videos, that is maturity and sureness being expressed. I am excited to see what Bopape will present upon her finishing the residency in June.
We will announce her exhibition in our newsletter, so there is no time like the present to sign up.
Akhavan’s Beacon runs until May 27. The Darling Foundry is located at 745 Ottawa, in that funky neighourhood between the Old Port and Griffintown.
Parc Lafontaine. an oasis in one of the hearts of Montreal
I sat at this scene the other day, painting. It happened to be on a crest, and I felt the loveliest breeze lifting off the water. There were some rogue, illegal bathers splashing away down below, but no-one seemed to mind. Their laughter and belly flops filled the air with the sound of children, even though they were well into their forties.
In the comments I’m going to try to write some Haiku about this. I am serious. Please join in the fun if you will…
I'm pretty sure Einstein was both a genius and polite
It’s a rocky road, trying to get your art out there. Personally, I’ve submitted hundreds of packets to several types of galleries over the years. A few I’ve found success with, and the rest said “no” or “not at this time”.
One must be persistent in their practice. Persistent and focused… while recognising there are certain bounds that define professionalism and politeness.
I know that many people have a romantic fantasy about artists and “genius”. They feel that a genius should be allowed a certain amount of insanity in their daily behaviour. OK, there are genius artists (and other types of geniuses) out there who are eccentric, who behave differently than many people, and who walk their own path. However, in general, most professionals in the arts are just that… professional. They work. They work hard. They maintain their contacts, their networks, and make sure to not harass nor neglect galleries, writers, curators, other artists, suppliers… they are on time, they follow through with promises, they are polite yet say what they mean (and mean what they say!)
I am not claiming to be perfect. No, I have some work to do, but life is always like that: a work in progress.
some art
I am pushing myself forward to increase my own professionalism, especially as I will soon be curating the art for a new gallery space. Yes, the artist will become curator. I have many artist friends, and I know that I cannot show everyone’s work. I am crafting the artistic vision for the space, and to express a clear vision, one must be able to edit. I will show my own work there from time to time, but I really want to put on fantastic shows of other’s work. The work shown will fit into themes (any artists reading this right now, I’ll announce themes and calls to entry all over the place, you won’t miss out!) and sometimes there will be solo exhibits too.
It’s an exciting venture; and I want to get off on the right foot with this. I am stretching my boundaries, building new comfort-zones, and will soon be meeting new people and responding promptly and professionally to them. I know that I won’t always be met with a similar response… but I’ll be prepared.
Fleurbain is proud to announce that we will feature a different artist in our online space every month. Our first artist is one of the women behind Fleurbain, Natasha Henderson. Artists who are interested in being featured are welcome to email:
– three to five jpegs of their work (no larger than 1200 pixels on their longest side, at least 300 pixels on their shortest side)
– short descriptions of each piece (Title, Medium, Size, Date)
– a link to their personal website
– and an artistic statement/short biography (about 200-500 words) to: fleurbain@gmail.com.
We can’t guarantee that everyone will be featured, but why not give it a shot!
cat bun. i can not get enough of that little face!
A couple weeks ago, an acquaintance pulled out a glossy long landscape photo of exquisite mushrooms. While looking at these giant puffballs, I realized that these photos are now a very rare thing. The world has gone digital; we are able to see images on screens more often than images on paper. Sometimes I wonder if I am doing things right, storing all of my favourite photos on my computer. It may save on space, but is it going to be accessible in the future? And as my brother stated this week, it is simply more satisfying to flip through a photo album than to click through one. I agree.
Don’t get me wrong, digital photography has made it easy for everyone to be a better photographer. We can now take as many photos as we like, and experiment a lot more. There is not so much waste, as you don’t have to develop an entire roll of film in order to see if one photo turned out.
My DIY idea of the day is to consider good old fashioned photo development. Yes, I can still keep a digital archive, but it is not so difficult to select photos that I like, edit them and take them to a photo developer. I can even do all of this online and pick them up within an hour! It is rare that I actually do this final step, but I am going to make a greater effort to do just this.
fleurbain 