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Home | Current Events | Past Events | C.Crowe | D. Markewitz | B. Roy | L. Travis | B. Wolf | What is Celtic? |
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Home | Current Events | Past Events | C.Crowe | D. Markewitz | B. Roy | L. Travis | B. Wolf | What is Celtic? |
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From the Exhibit Curator.... |
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| My working
relationship with the Woodstock Museum goes back to the
last presentation of J.R. Dugan's Bayeux Tapestry in 1998.
It was back then that I mentioned to Curator Sheila
Johnsonan an idea of accompanying a presentation of artifacts with a related exhibit of contemporary artists
who worked with historic themes. I didn't realize then
that an off hand comment to Sheila was as good as
committing to a project! 'Reflections of the Conquest' is
the result. Personally, I stand with a foot in two worlds. My past work developing both living history presentations and educational programming related to the Viking Age has placed me solidly in the world of Museums. On the other side, my participation in An Droichead and as a relatively (?) well known artisan blacksmith on the Ontario craft circuit over the last decade has created associations in that realm as well. I had several objectives in mind when I conceived of 'Reflections': First, I wanted to show "How ancient object inspires contemporary artisans." In this, the exhibit has been an astounding success. Unlike most juried exhibits, the participating artisans were assessed on the quality of their past work - rather that specificity on the objects they were submitting. Over half the objects on display were specifically created for this exhibition alone. Some of the most elaborate works were contributed by artists who do not normally work with historic themes, or at least had never considered the specific historic period of the Conquest. Second, I wanted to encourage the work of a number of talented artisans who up till now would have never considered themselves 'artists' in the classic sense. Here I am speaking of those contributors who are primarily historic re-enactors. I think you will find the quality of their work speaks for itself. Lastly, I wanted to bring to the attention of the public this collection of both new and often under appreciated artists and craftspeople. Many contributors seen in 'Reflections' are people with long experience (or is that 'endurance'?) as 'artisan - makers', here in Ontario. These individuals are normally never considered as 'significant' or 'fine artists' - the winners of high awards and recipients of grants. Over the years, however, I have seen the quality of their skills, and the scope of their visions, steadily increase. Although their work may not grace national galleries, it has found what is perhaps a more important place in the homes of everyday individuals. Like the original Tapestry itself, perhaps the greatest value of an object lays in the way it enriches the life of us all - day to day.................... by Darrell Markewitz The artists were (in alphabetical order): |
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| Caz Bentley - wood
engravings Marcus Burnham - leatherwork Dave Cox - historic reproductions Elizabeth Creith - ceramics Catherine Crowe - enamels Anne Crown - historic textiles Raymond Dugan - drawing & painting Josephine Duke - historic clothing John Hughes - goldsmith Lydia Ilarion & Marin Marino - goldsmiths Kevin Jarbeau - historic bonework |
Darrell Markewitz -
blacksmith Rosemary Molesworth - ceramics Karen Murphy - embroidery David Robertson - blacksmith Brenda Roy - goldsmith A. G. Smith - illustrator Lorina Stephens - embroidery Steve Strang - drawing & painting Laura Travis - sculpture Brigitte Wolf - stained glass |
| The following sheets are set up to guide you through the exhibit - much as you will see it at the Woodstock Museum. At the top of each sheet will be an overview of a section of the exhibit to give you a feel of the overall flow. Individual artist biographies and their own descriptions of their contributed objects are presented in the same order as they occur in the exhibit. Each is accompanied by a small image of one of these pieces. These images hardly do the quality of the objects justice - you'll have to visit the exhibit in person to truly see the high quality of each artist's work! | |
Continue
ON for the virtual tour of the exhibit
Artist descriptions have been provided by the individual artists. Each individual retains all copyrights to both these and their individual orginal art works as shown. General text and images ©, 2002 Darrell Markewitz.
