The Point Is

Pierre Coupey || Landon Mackenzie || Bernadette Phan || Martin Pearce || Bryan Ryley

August 20 to October 30, 2011

The Point Is exhibition brings together the work of five contemporary painters, all working in a large scale and in an energized zone that hovers between representation and pure abstraction. Traditionally, abstraction and representation have been seen as opposite poles in the world of art, but in the last ten or twenty years, artists have been blurring the distinctions between the two ways of working. In this show, visitors will be able to contemplate examples of recent work by five very disparate artists: the five are from different generations, have different sources and influences, and live in various parts of Canada.

Martin Pearce is based in Guelph, Ontario, Bryan Ryley in the Okanagan, and Vancouver is home to Landon Mackenzie, Bernadette Phan and Pierre Coupey. They are linked by their interest in creating painting that may appear to be abstract, but is laden with existential content, imagery and meaning. The approaches that each painter takes to his or her work will be detailed in an accompanying catalogue written by the Kelowna Art Gallery’s curator, Liz Wylie.

Audio interviews by each of the artists in The Point Is
Pierre Coupey Interview
Landon Mackenzie Interview
Bernadette Phan Interview
Martin Pearce Interview
Bryan Ryley Interview

Exhibition catalogue: A 72 page exhibition catalogue will be available for purchase at the gallery. $10 members, $12 non-members.