Exhibitions

Exhibitions Current

Cross Country CoolLaboration 
An exchange between Cool Arts Society and Camelot Centre of Burlington, Ontario under the direction of Bonnie Sylvia.

Exhibit opening July 31, 2014 5-8 p.m. Rotary Centre for the Arts Mezzanine and upper corridor

Exhibitions Past

-->

• We Art Artists exhibition- in collaboration with the Kelowna Art Gallery and curated by Sara Lige (November 2009 - March 2010)
• We Art Artists exhibition – Unitarian Church 2010
• We Art Artists exhibition – French Cultural Centre 2010
• We Art Artists exhibition- National Canadian Association for Community Living Conference in October 2010. Whistler
• Sand Spiral Ephemeral Art Project  (eco-art installation) – City of Kelowna - Public Art – Aug 2010
• Sand Spiral movie via http://www.youtube.com/user/karlacave#p/a/u/2/lL-uRnorXTc
• Waking Warhol Exhibition (linocuts) – Okanagan College Centre for Learning/ Artscape - Jan 2011
• Waking Warhol Exhibition– UBCO- Disability Resource Centre exhibit at the French Cultural Centre – April 2011
• Life Drawing at the Ballet (mixed media) – Kelowna Community Theatre/ Artscape - July 2011
• Beebox Project Exhibition – (installation, photography and film) B.C. Orchard Industry Museum (current) 2011
• Beebox Project movie via http://www.youtube.com/user/CoolArtsSociety
• Papergirl Exhibit (mixed media) - Rotary Centre for the Arts – annually Oct 2010 and 2011
• Lake Country Artwalk Exhibit (acrylic paint on canvas) – Lake Country annually (2005 - 2012)
• Diversabilities, exhibition - Streaming Café, (mixed media) Kelowna, B.C.  April 2012
• Eco-Art with Annabel Stanley, (eco-art installation) CONDUIT Fertility Festival, Summerhill Winery, Kelowna, B.C. May 2012
• Yarnbombing Installation, Parkinson Recreation Centre, Kelowna, B.C. May 2012
• Yarnbombing Installation, Culture Days, Kelowna, B.C. Sept 2012
• Beyond the Spectrum – Autism Program, (mixed media) Streaming Café, Kelowna, B.C.
• Rotary Centre for the Arts – Shane Cook Exhibition, June 2012 and

Cool-laboration, January 2013

• Superheroes Claymation Screening, (film) Alternator Centre Gallery, Kelowna, B.C.  (February 2013)
• Superheroes Exhibition (film stills) Kelowna Community Theatre/ Artscape, April 2013
• International Association Of Special Education (IASE) 13th Biennial Conference, Vancouver, B.C. July 2013

WE ARE ARTISTS

We Are Artists was an exhibition that opened in November 2009 at the Kelowna Art Gallery. It was a collaboration between the Kelowna Art Gallery and Cool Arts Society.  This exhibition celebrates artists with disabilities and works to raise awareness about the arts and disability.

Since the end of the exhibition (March 2010), the artwork has been shown at several different venues including the Unitarian Church and the French Cultural Centre in Kelowna.

Historically, people with developmental disabilities have not enjoyed the same access to the arts as non-disabled people. The We Are Artists exhibition is important because it promotes diversity, accessibility and equality in the arts. The intent of the exhibition was to be as accessible as possible; part of the project  included an  exhibition catalogue with plain language text.

The theme of this work is identity. People with disabilities are often seen first (and sometimes only) as disabled people instead of being seen as individuals. The artists in this show are claiming an identity when they say, "I am an artist".

The exhibition included twelve self-portrait installations. There are three parts to each self-portrait - a canvas, a chair and a pair of shoes. The art workshops to create the work for these installations were led by local artist and art teacher Dawn Emerson. 

Although many people think of a self-portrait as being an image of a person’s face, a self-portrait can also be a work of art that is about the artist in other ways.  There are examples of both kinds of self-portraits in this exhibition. The mural shows the twelve artists who created the self-portraits. Also included in the show are drawings by a thirteenth artist – Pat Easley.

All the artists in this exhibition have a unique style and way of working. They have all chosen to represent themselves in the self-portraits in an individual manner. It is important to remind ourselves that artwork by all artists  (including artists with disabilities) reveals their "voice", or what they have to say about themselves and the world around them.

Curated by Sara Lige