Art Exposé exposed to all at Kier Gallery

Karla Landells

Artists, musicians, writers and creators of all kinds will have a new venue to share and display their work this October at the Kier Gallery in Charlottetown.
The gallery will host many new artists and their fresh work through a project designed to promote new Island artists, by providing them with an easily accessible monthly venue during the Island's off-season.
Art Exposé, an artist show-and-tell event, is a helpful exposure tool, says co-ordinator Shayli Vere. It will be available to all ages and artists of every genre.
Vere recently returned to P.E.I. from Vancouver, B.C. She realized more opportunities were needed locally for Island artists. She approached Kier Kenny and Felicity Derry of the Kier Gallery to create a venue for rising artists, using the gallery to open doors and give artists a starting point to get their work off the ground. The community-based gallery was quick to accept the idea and the project began.
"I'd like it personally as an artist. I think it is important for artists to get together and talk and share ideas," said Vere, a photographer, painter, musician, writer, and pulp painter.
"A lot of the young people we meet . . . who sketch and who write music and who write poetry really don't have many venues, in my opinion. This is just one venue. I would like to see numerous venues like this in the city of Charlottetown, because we are an arts community and a lot of what our city is about is culture," said Kenny.
Art Exposé will not only give Island artists local exposure in Charlottetown, but will display the evening's events live throughout the world via Realtime video broadcast, a useful exposure tool which Kenny hopes to have operating before Christmas.
The Realtime computer equipment will be beneficial to the gallery and artists, but will be a pricey purchase. Kenny says he is in the discussion stages with several foundations who may offer their financial support in purchasing the Realtime equipment.
"One of the problems that our arts community has is that we have a small audience, so by using Realtime video and sending out invitations to other galleries and other artists throughout Canada and the world, we will create a greater audience . . . through the World Wide Web," explained Kenny.
"We're a community based, not-for-profit organization who has, as its major goal, the education of our youth in terms of art and culture and promotion of ourselves as a community to the world ," said Kenny.
"Kier's interested in helping to establish Island artists and to help them in a local and a global way," Vere added.
The gallery, which has been in operation about four years, has grown through the cooperative effort of many artists and people donating their time, said Kenny. The gallery is constantly looking for ideas and opportunities to help artists through exhibits, workshops, musical events and art classes of all kinds.
"Activity creates activity. The more we have happening in our community, the more people will come to our community, the more dollars that will be spent within our community," Kenny said. "It just makes sense that at this time when people are so interested in arts and culture we should reach out there and try and take advantage of that."
Art Exposé will be kept casual says Vere, but she would like those interested to contact her as soon as possible at (902) 393-1468. She is also interested in hearing any ideas that may help the project grow.
Interested artists are asked to bring two new pieces each, per show. This includes painters, photographers, sculpturers, musicians, poets, film makers and anyone with something to share in the supportive and vocal environment.
"Let them arrive with their work and put it on the walls and if we run out of walls we'll build walls. If we don't have enough space upstairs, we'll use the downstairs (Brennan's Pub and Eatery)," said Kenny enthusiastically.
There may be a door fee of about $2 charged at each Art Exposé event which would go right back into the project.
There is a selling potential for all artists exhibiting in Art Exposé, but there will be a commission from sales that goes into operating the gallery.
Tremendous opportunities could come out of this for artists, explains Vere, who notes another idea discussed is to put together an end-of-the-year compilation CD, featuring the musicians who displayed their talents at Art Exposé. Also featured at the first show will be a live painting by Kenny.
A Web site has just been registered by the Kier Gallery, www.kiergallery.com, which will have information available on this project and many others featured by the gallery. The page has not been designed yet however, and Kenny and Derry invite those interested in helping with the design of the Web page to contact them at the gallery at 628-8452.
"And if anyone from the visual arts department of Holland College wants to come and help create the Web site they can," said Derry, who explained they are anxious to hear any ideas people have to offer.
Though Art Exposé is just getting started Vere, Derry and Kenny feel optimistic about its success, agreeing the Island's art community has incredible talent and needs more events like this to create exposure for them. The project has received a lot of positive feedback and support, said Kenny.
"Anyone that I've spoken to has been really excited about it and the other artists that I've talked to felt the same thing - that we need something like this," said Vere.