The featured exhibit runs June 1 – 30, 2023 in Metro Gallery in the Garneau Theatre lobby.
Artist Reception: June 1 at 5:30PM.
Artist: Craig Talbot
Artist Statement:
Instinct, raw emotion, honesty and courage are some of the themes that weave their way through my work. My paintings are always a reflection of my life. I believe it is the duty of an artist to tell the truth. I do this in a flurry of paint and washes left to drip down the canvas, combined with bold solid brushstrokes and elaborate patterns. I wish to express myself by using bright colours, text, collage and both realistic and sculptural elements in my work. More recently I have been inspired in my life and in my work by the fact that I suffer from chronic pain. I find inspiration in the strength and courage it takes to go on with another day of pain. I also developed a sense of spirituality from the experience. These occurrences brought a true purpose to my work. Like a quest or a mission, I vowed I would not let pain and other ailments affect me negatively any longer.
My work is often a reflection of the past as well. Good and bad. Art helps me keep a balance when I get lost in negative feelings from the past. It keeps me grounded. But many of the things from the past are things that make me happy. These things are music, album covers, skateboard graphics and comic books. Currently I am influenced by the neo-surrealist artwork happening in Los Angeles and the pop art of Tokyo.
Although an abstract painter, I am heavily influenced by hyper-realistic art. I often use realistic elements in my paintings, usually still life. Presently I am making realistic drawings and abstract paintings I try to push the boundaries between the limits of a canvas and the walls of the gallery itself. There are 3 themes that are present in my work: pain, happiness, and spirituality. I use scissors and patterns and trees as vehicles of my expression. Scissors symbolize a spiritual world. Essentially when the blades are open, the world is revealed. When they are closed only reality is present. Trees are a theme that started in art school. I used to make huge sculptures of trees. They have appeared in many drawings and paintings. Working with trees is a redemption for me, and this new work brings things back full circle. I also create paintings that are based on repetitive shapes, often dots or circles. They represent the presence of pain. The shapes and textures are a symbol of the rigid order of pain in its many forms. Finally, I like to create narratives about the work as a serious but lighthearted expression of life as it occurs. Ultimately my work is a self portrait of sorts.
Art reveals to me what I need to know about myself, and that is how I find my truth.
Craig Talbot was born in 1974. He has lived in many places in Canada and the US. Even above the old and contemporary masters, Talbot is most influenced by comic book art, album covers and skateboard graphics. He currently resides in Cardston AB where he thrives in the peaceful beauty of southern Alberta. His work is part of many private collections, and he has shown his work locally in Alberta, and nationally at the True Patriot Love Fundraiser in Toronto and internationally at Modart Gallery in Miami. He was also the curator for the exhibition: “Mechanical vs. Organic” at Untitled Art Society in Calgary.
