Roberts Creek Arts Festival

On the May long weekend, 2012, Gordon Halloran studio was open to the public as part of the Inaugural Roberts Creek Arts Festival. Hundreds of visitors to the garden studio were greeted by an installation of Lotus in Motion in the garden pond.


Once inside, Hung Jury surrounded the viewer-as-accused. These mixed media paintings (charcoal, oil, pastel, oil & acrylic glazes on gesso on panel) were created by the artist as a study in judgement, stereotype and human emotion. Halloran's realism in Hung Jury is lifelike, in the vein of Chuck Close and yet interpretive, like Francis Bacon.


The Bride Trio was created in the same vein. A larger piece against the studio bank of windows is one of a series of three wildly dark paintings with charcoal, used by the artist in a film he directed and edited called Singing the Bones. The film, which premiered at the Montreal World Film Festival, was created with his partner, Caitlin Hicks, a playwright and performer, from a play of the same name which toured internationally for five years prior. (www.fatsalmon.ca)

Here the artist introduces a short clip of the film which he re-mastered for this event, called Maman!.

On display were the brilliantly coloured ice shard images from The Torino Collection.


These mixed media images (pigment inks on acid-free archival papers, transmounted to Sintra/acrylic lamination) of the artist's installation as Canada's only representative to the 2006 Olympic Winter Games are close up studies of the movement of the crystal structure of the ice, a quality that fascinates the artist with its beauty and unexpected nature. A history of the 2006 installation was available as a full colour coffee table book. Other paintings in a variety of media chronicled the artist's exploration of ice as a luminous medium for painting.

Lotus in Motion wall paintings were also displayed variously. These lotus shaped pieces (pigment inks, beeswax on panel) share the design images of the floating paintings in the water.

Guests were treated to a special afternoon performance in the brilliant sunshine by Jacquie Allan, jazz vocalist and Ken Dalgleish, pianist.


Ken is a seasoned and innovative performer who has delighted hundreds locally over the years; Jacquie's performances are full of love for the music and for the listener. "Stupendous, awesome, and magical" describe her refined and sensational approach to her music. "She digs down deep" and is one of the gems of the Sunshine Coast.




Gordon Halloran studio was linked by a back path through the forest from Goldmoss Gallery, and many hiked between the venues.

For more info on the festival: http://www.robertscreekartsfestival.com/

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