Works of art by some of Surrey’s most talented teen artists is showcased in a new exhibit at Surrey Art Gallery.
The gallery’s biennial “Art by Surrey Secondary Students” features 57 works by students at 11 secondary schools in the city.
Until May 6, the drawings, paintings, photographs and ceramics are shown throughout Surrey Arts Centre, including in the community rails space (the area adjacent to the concession) and, new this year, ceramics pieces are displayed in the reception area. Admission is free.
The exhibit features “an exceptionally strong cohort of young artists,” according to Rhys Edwards, SAG’s assistant curator.
“Aside from their excellent understanding of craft and technique, I’m astonished by their ability to think through complex ideas and produce elegant responses to them.”
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Every year, Surrey Art Gallery collaborates with Surrey School District and Surrey Art Teachers Association to produce an exhibition of works by students from across the city, alternating between elementary and secondary schools.
This year, the displayed work “demonstrates a maturity and a keen awareness of many of the challenges facing our world,” notes a post on surrey.ca, including the ongoing protests in Iran, violence against women, impossible beauty standards, and climate change.
“Many of the artists express personal struggles with anxiety, depression, memory, and identity. However, there is also a theme of optimism that permeates the exhibition, with artworks reflecting the possibilities of hope, self-healing, and the joy that family and community connections can bring.”
The teen artists attend classes at Clayton Heights, Enver Creek, Frank Hurt, Fleetwood Park, LA Matheson, North Surrey, École Salish, Sullivan Heights, Earl Marriott, Fraser Heights and Grandview Heights.
This winter/spring, other exhibits at Surrey Art Gallery are “Through the Lattice” (group show of artist responses to interior design, architecture and space), Keerat Kaur’s “Panjabi Garden” (a celebration of the Panjabi language and Gurmukhi text) and Cindy Mochizuki’s “Autumn Strawberry” (video installation about the early history of Japanese migration and farming in the Lower Mainland).
The gallery is open Sunday from noon to 5 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Tuesday to Thursday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
During a Family Sunday event March 12, Surrey Art Gallery hosts “a fun-filled afternoon of artmaking and an interactive performance” from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., on the theme “A Place We Call Home.” Admission is free at the drop-in event (children must be with an adult).
On March 2, Surrey Art Gallery Association’s next Thursday Artist Talk will feature Langley’s Rosemary Wallace and her thoughts about “Creating Through Seeing and Feeling,” 7:30 p.m. start at the gallery. Admission is free.
tom.zillich@surreynowleader.com
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