Ailah Carpenter
Shifting Into Place
Monday, March 24 - Friday, March 28, 2025
Gordon Snelgrove Gallery
Reception: Friday, March 28, from 6 - 9pm
Shifting Into Place is an exhibition that illustrates the internal struggle and eventual shift in perspective regarding living with a dysfunctional working memory and cognitive processing challenges.
Growing up, these factors contributed to a distrust of myself and an inability to express my feelings. Because the feedback in my body was delayed, my memories often went missing, and I struggled to fully grasp time and space. The works throughout my exhibition capture small pieces of this experience and convey what these sensations feel like to me. Sometimes, they express a state of being fully engulfed in grief, while others suggest feelings of overwhelm, misdirection, exploration, and self-soothing. This resulted in an intangible scene whenever I dream and recall memories. The ground isn’t firm and expansive; it exists in between dimensions, layered in a mishmash of textures, barely connected by whirling pathways that lead into the sky—and this otherworldly quality has seeped into my art.
Due to their laborious and intimate nature, I opted for printmaking and collage. This felt appropriate since collaborating closely with the materials required considerable space and time. I feel grounded in visual storytelling through art, whether by connecting with others through art-making or conveying my perspectives in otherworldly constructions.
There’s catharsis in acceptance; I invite you to find comfort in the uncomfortable.
About the Artist
Ailah Carpenter lives in the same world as everyone else, yet they feel their awareness of space and time is cloudier than it is for others. Their experiences as mixed Indigenous/Scottish, 2Spirited individual living in Saskatchewan further amplify common motifs in their art—feeling caught between phases or out-of-the-loop. Despite this, they find grounding in visual storytelling by connecting with others and conveying personal perspectives through otherworldly constructions. Although Ailah has struggled with their place in the world, they have grown to know some things for sure: as their practice develops in drawing, printmaking, painting, and so on, they promise to keep refining their skills to bridge complex cognitive and social experiences to a broader audience; and to hold space for sharing their story, wholly—as an Artist.
Aljo Villanueva
Edward T Capybara: Ancestors & Contemporaries
Monday, March 24 - Friday, March 28, 2025
Gordon Snelgrove Gallery
Reception: Friday, March 28, from 6 - 9pm
In our reality where thoughts are ever flowing, it’s hard to conceive a perfectly unthought piece. Which is due to many reasons, importantly, because art is undoubtedly tied to the collective human experience. I have always been inspired by others, many of my images reference other artists’ works. I am a printmaker, yet before that, I am an illustrator. Illustration grants me the ability to build worlds and characters within it. To me, without having characters and legends to call my own, I would miss out on the core feature of illustrating. My show aims to showcase my work's development as I navigate through originality and my identifying features as an artist. Edward T. Capybara is the very first character I created and named through my art making. Though he was created through the spur of the moment, Edward became a very significant part of my artistry. The creation of Edward was a catalyst to my creation of many worlds and beings in them, that I can call mine. With each illustration, I find that my character’s personality aligns with me, it represents a part of me. Through my process of CMYK screen-printing, I was able to share my creations with many. CMYK’s efficient printing process allows me totransfer my digital drawings onto paper, allowing for multitudes of work. This process is the backbone of my artmaking, it serves as a base to branch out to other disciplines of multimedia work.
About the Artist
Since coming to Canada in 2010, I have always been closely tied to artmaking. Back then, all the imagery I created was always copies of characters of the shows I have watched online. I wanted to create something that was unique to me, something that is closely tied to me, following me throughout my artistic journey. I wanted to create something that I could confidently call mine. It was only three years ago that I started creating characters and visual stories that are original to me. I have named and given them life. They are now a part of me and my journey. My art reflects my personal journey of my progress as an individual who creates fantastical characters and stories while constantly developing my own vision of illustrating. Ultimately, I wish to be an established artist in the future, creating works that are enjoyed, and recognized by others.
Jessica Lewis
Until We Meet Again
Monday, March 24 - Friday, March 28, 2025
Gordon Snelgrove Gallery
Reception: Friday, March 28, from 6 - 9pm
The places we live can have an impact on us and our mental states whether it’s obvious or not. In Canada, winter takes up over half of the year with the sun continually setting earlier throughout that time. With the winter season, there is less sunlight which can cause a seasonal-based depression to manifest in many people. There are many ways to combat depression but when we feel alone, it seems easier to push remedies to the side and just try to ride it out.
This work is focused on the inevitable despair felt knowing winter (accompanied with the downshift in happiness and energy) is near as well as the use of light-therapy as a treatment for that seasonal depression. By putting a spotlight on this commonly undiagnosed depression, it allows the viewer a safe space to question this common yet unknown disorder. Allowing them to learn they are not alone and that in order to counteract these dark days, the best thing to do is find your light until the sunshine returns.
About the Artist
Jessica Lewis is a fine arts honours graduate from the U of S. Her degree in Fine Art and minor in psychology allow her to create a space where emotions can be explored and understood in a variety of materials and methods.
Programming and Events
Closing Reception: Friday, March 28, from 6 - 9pm
