Jennifer Love and Kathleen Ainscough were two of the founding members of Foxglove Fibre Arts Studio/Gallery/Workshop, which operated at Artisan Square on Bowen Island from 2000-2005. A passion for creating in the rich and many-layered language of textile arts was ignited by their studies at the now (controversially) discontinued Textile Arts Program at Capilano University. But that is another story. While both have continued to create and exhibit work since closing Foxglove Studio, they are thrilled at this opportunity to reunite on Bowen Island in a two-person exhibition, which will run from May 28 to June 22 at the Gallery at Artisan Square. Learn more about their journey and join the artists at the opening reception on May 31, from 2 to 4 pm.
Inspiration comes to both artists from a rich variety of sources, among them: architectural and decorative design; reflection of colour and light on water; traces left by earlier civilizations; old maps; and the many colours and textures to be found in nature. It is the latter – colour, texture and particularly pattern found in the natural world – that provides the foundation for the work of both artists, and inspires this exhibition.
Jennifer’s medium is usually fabric – fabric that has been dyed, printed with a myriad of different techniques, and then layered and fused, or stitched and cut away and stitched again. Layering – of colours, of patterns and textures, of fibres and stitches, of images and cultural references – this is at the core of Jennifer’s art practice. She is particularly interested in intersections, disruptions and reversals where positive and negative space, natural and man-made patterns, order and randomness have an opportunity to coexist and interact.
Kathy works with a variety of different media, including the technique of stencil casting, finishing with natural oxides, oil and acrylic paints. She also works with textiles and handmade papers, creating mixed media works using digital image transfer, mono printing and stenciling with dyes and paints.
Rivers and tributaries, branches of trees, the nervous system of humans all have patterns in common as do the planets in the solar system and cellular structures of plants and animals. Nature’s worlds – from microscopic to cosmologic – contain infinite inspirations and play a vital role in this creative expression.
