Sylvia Trotter Ewens' exhibit, “Seeking, Wandering”, is an explorative ensemble of works from her two most recent series. The first series consisted of vibrant, lively outdoor pieces on paths formed in relation to the walker in a shifting urban environment.
The second series is focused on enclosed interior spaces-- both literally or atmospherically– with a more subdued colour palette. The outside peeking beyond, contrasted by the vibrancy of its colours, are reminiscent of the attention-seeking quality of urban spaces.
Trotter Ewens explores the idea of spaces receding into the quiet and areas to sit/recline to invite a sense of isolation in the viewing experience of the work. The paths to these sanctuaries encourage the viewer into a pause and a sense of peace from the demands of their lives.
The complementary duality of this series of artworks presents the artist’s ability to dive deeper into the subject of space, its variability in energy, meaning and utility byways of carefully using colour, technique and composition. All paintings are worked from assembled collages developed primarily from images the artist gathers in and around Montreal and Laval. In regards to the newest series, the artist drew from photographs taken in Montreal’s Botanical Gardens.
Through this exhibit, the artist invites the viewer on a path towards “imagined sanctuaries within the visual constraints of the constructed nature of our urbanized spaces…in the hope to find, within these secret gardens of peacefulness, a moment to recede into the quiet before returning to the exterior once again”.
