Shelby Lund

Transcending the Surface

September 11th - 22nd, 2023

Gordon Snelgrove Gallery, open Monday to Friday, between 10-4pm

Reception: Friday September 15th, at 7-10pm

Transcending the Surface is comprised of a series of recent paintings by Shelby Lund, an emerging visual artist based in Saskatoon, Canada. With her artistic process mirroring the fluidity of her paint, Lund’s work is a visual record of her own physicality in relationship to the planetary system we live within.

Influenced by Helen Frankenthaler’s “soak-stain” technique, Hilma af Klint’s connection to spirit, and Ana Mendieta’s “earth-body” works, Lund investigates how the substance of water, along with its myriad symbolic associations can transcend certain canons in the Western painting tradition. This wish to move beyond artistic structures reflects not only Lund’s personal desire, but also her active participation to consciously unsubscribe from cultural paradigms that from her lived experience sever connection and cause harm.

Being immersed in the natural world to physically explore in deeply conscientious and perceptive ways is central to Lund’s practice. It is through a collaborative relationship with her environment that Lund becomes increasingly aware of the mysterious, cyclical, and interconnected essence of not just water, but of our universe. By acknowledging the water within her own body, Lund reaffirms that she is of nature and not separate from it. In her work, it is through the integration and embodiment of this wisdom that Lund challenges the disconnection of spirit from matter in the Judeo-Christian narrative. Lund hopes to bring attention to the importance of our relationship to nature in our collective desire to live a more meaningful, connected, and flourishing life.