PAST EXHIBITS

Shelter: How We Live

What do green building and sleeping in your car have in common? Houses made from shipping pallets? All are aspects of shelter, a basic requirement for living and one of the fundamental building blocks of any society. From mainstream to makeshift, green to affordable, this ground breaking exhibit will look at some of the many facets of shelter, through a dynamic and engaging mix of large scale installation, individual stories and interpretation. Highlights will include a small house frame constructed of shipping pallets, as well as a typical homeless “campsite” installation. Also included will be a number of display panels featuring BC green building projects, (on loan from the Surrey Art Gallery’s Building Green exhibit), as well as local green and affordable building projects.

Angelika Werth: Ladies in Tents

Local fibre artist Angelika Werth will exhibit a series of hand-sewn dresses which explore the idea of the dress as a shelter or dwelling. Her use of house wrap in the making of some of the dresses will be derivative of today’s building industry and her use of pioneer canvas tent material in others is evocative of the ethnic nature of temporary or season dwellings. Dress accessories and tent materials come about through Werth’s passion for rummaging in second hand stores, flea markets and auctions for the unexpected. A vital part of her creative process whether she is in Nelson or Paris. The dresses to be exhibited in Ladies in Tents are also inspired by the poetry of 16th century writer Christopher Marlowe. Lines of his poetry are embroidered into the dresses themselves.

“The tent dresses are big enough that you could sleep under them,” says Werth. “I quite often think of the kilt, which used to be a bedroll at night and then was worn as a garment in the day.” Her clothing designs reflect long hours of hand felting, embroidery and beading, and many have a historical genesis.

Kristi Malakoff: The Golden Bell

Kristi Malakoff is an emerging Canadian visual artist who has exhibited widely and rigorously in both group and solo shows throughout Canada and in England, the US, Germany and Mexico. She currently resides in Nelson, BC. Her creative process is such that the work is made complete through a labour intensive installation process with some pieces requiring 9-14 days to install. Of her work art critic Gary Pearson says, Part of the visual appeal of Malakoff’s work rest in the sumptuousness of it craftsmanship and its luxurious presentation, yet in a non-ironic turn, it’s the works appeal to the imagination that makes the most lasting impression.”

The Golden Bell will consist of some of Malakoff’s previous pieces, such favourites as Resting Swarm an installation made of meticulously cut out photos of 20,000 life sized honey bees pinned into one large mass of bees. This work plays with the viewer’s sense of beauty and horror and was shown at the Art Gallery of Peterborough in 2008. This work continues with her interest in paradox specifically with notions of life and death, beauty and the foreboding. Her imagery is inspired by her travels and observation of other cultures as well as her photographic work. Malakoff says the new work in The Golden Bell will explore the notion of transcendence, such as a church with a bell tower made from copies of 100 dollar bills.

The History of Brewing in Nelson

How sustainable is your beer? How is beer made? The History of Brewing in Nelson exhibit will provide visitors the opportunity to ponder these questions and more. From labels and bottles to beer trucks and parade floats, numerous images and artifacts will be on display both from the Touchstones Nelson permanent collection and on loan from private collectors.

Ian Johnson: Refuse Culture

Refuse Culture: Archaeology of Consumption uses multiple installations, and installations of multiples, to consider the remnants and debris of human activity littering the planet’s surface. Each installation revolves around an object, or fragment of an object, taken from daily life. Cell phones, plastic bags, car bumper covers, compact fluorescent light bulbs; these everyday objects are seldom disposed of with the same degree of order, reverence or celebration with which they were created and acquired. By collecting these objects together, the works amplify a contemporary narrative of consumption. Cast in porcelain, the objects mimic the archaeological evidence left to us from preceding generations and ask the viewer to question how the future might interpret our culture through these collections of fragments

Kootenay School of Arts at Selkirk College Graduation Exhibition

This exhibit features the work of graduating students from the Kootenay School of the Arts at Selkirk College. Student work from each of the four studios: Clay, Fibre, Jewellery & Small Object Design and Metal will be displayed. KSA’s programs place emphasis on the skills necessary to become a successful and professional arts practitioner. Hands-on studio work combined with the study of design, drawing, history, and professional practices leads to an in-depth understanding and refined ability to apply the essential elements for success in the industry

Stanley Triggs: Changes Upstream 

Stanley G. Triggs: Changes Upstream: Before and after the Libby Dam, 1969-72, is an exhibition of selected black and white photographs from the Shawn Lamb Archives by Nelson-born photographer Stanley G. Triggs. Stanely is a retired Curator of the McCord Museum of Photography at McGill University. The exhibition documents the dramatic changes in the East Kootenay communities spread along the Kootenay River just north of the International Border between 1969 and 1972.

Arthur Lakes: Geologist, Artist, Minister and Teacher

From the permanent collection of Touchstones Nelson comes an exhibit of watercolour paintings by the multi-talented Arthur Lakes (1844-1917), a notable geologist, artist, writer, teacher and minister. Originally from England, he moved to the West Kootenays in 1912 from Colorado to be with his two sons who were working as mining engineers. Lakes produced a number of paintings during this time, depicting some of what he saw in and around the mines and countryside.

Snow and Ice

In celebration of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Whistler, Snow and Ice: History of Winter Sports in Nelson will highlight notable Nelson sports figures both past and present. The exhibit feature sports artifacts from the permanent collection plus other items on special loan, including Nancy Greene’ s Olympic coat, an Everest Base Camp display from Tim Rippel, snowboarding footage and snowboard from legendary snowboarder Craig Kelly. A playful look at Olympic Mascots will be an interactive display in the exhibition, where viewers can try their luck at matching the mascot with its respective country. Touchstones Nelson will also be serving as a “live site” during this time, providing a public venue where visitors can watch the Olympic coverage. Join us on Torch Relay Day in Nelson to celebrate the opening of Snow and Ice: A History of Winter Sports in Nelson.

In Our Community

Set to coincide with the Nelson and District Credit Union’s 60th anniversary in 2010, this exhibit will feature photos taken by well known local photographer Fred Rosenberg, originally commissioned by the Credit Union and subsequently donated to our collection by the artist. Included in the adjacent display space will also be a selection of diverse and at times humorous artifacts from the Credit Union’s past, as well as interesting information about their history in the community.