A travelling exhibition of works by celebrated Musqueam artist Susan Point will be showcased at Surrey Art Gallery starting Jan. 25.
Located at Bear Creek Park, the facility’s next feature exhibit is Spindle Whorl, a Vancouver Art Gallery-loaned collection of 40 silkscreen prints and spindle whorls.
Point is among Canada’s leading innovators in the fields of contemporary and Indigenous art.
“She has pioneered the revitalization of Coast Salish art through her works in jewellery, sculpture, printmaking, public art, and more,” says an event advisory from the gallery. “Her artmaking celebrates the vibrancy of traditional Coast Salish culture, while firmly situating it within the present moment.”
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Spindle Whorl features screenprints developed by the artist over the past four decades. Each one uses the motif of the spindle whorl, a small, round (usually wooden) disk traditionally used by Coast Salish women to prepare wool that would be woven into garments and ceremonial blankets. “In her art, Point beautifully adapts the whorl as a vehicle for symbolic meaning, reinventing and adorning it with animals, the forces of nature, mythological creatures, and other, more abstract design elements,” explains the event release.
The Jan. 25 event includes a tour of the exhibit led by Vancouver Art Gallery curator Grant Arnold, starting at 6:30 p.m. and followed by a reception at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free.
Later, Point will visit Surrey Art Gallery for a talk on Feb. 19 at 6:30 p.m.
Also opening at the gallery on Jan. 25 is Counting the Steps to the Sun, a showcase of works by the late Don Li-Leger, a South Surrey-based artist and Surrey Civic Treasure award winner who died last May. The exhibit will offer patrons a chance to view some of Li-Leger’s paintings and video.
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tom.zillich@surreynowleader.com
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