If you are interested in having your art showcased in the library, please contact the Library Manager.
The Alberta Foundation for the Arts (AFA) has supported a provincial travelling exhibition program since 1981. The mandate of the AFA Travelling Exhibition Program is to provide every Albertan with the opportunity to enjoy visual art exhibitions in their community.
Three regional galleries and one arts organization coordinate the program for the AFA: Northwest Region: The Art Gallery of Grande Prairie, Grande Prairie Northeast and North Central Region: The Art Gallery of Alberta, Edmonton Southwest Region: The Alberta Society of Artists, Calgary Southeast Region: The Esplanade Arts and Heritage Centre, Medicine Hat
Each year, more than 300,000 Albertans enjoy many exhibitions in communities ranging from High Level in the north to Milk River in the south and virtually everywhere in between. The AFA Travelling Exhibition Program also offers educational support material to help educators integrate the visual arts into the school curriculum. Exhibitions for the TREX program are curated from a variety of sources, including private and public collections. A major part of the program assists in making the AFA’s extensive art collection available to Albertans. This growing art collection consists of over 8,000 artworks showcasing the creative talents of more than 2000 artists. As the only provincial art collection in Alberta, the AFA collection reflects the development of the vibrant visual arts community in the province and has become an important cultural legacy for all Albertans.
The Rotary Club of Slave Lake Public Library is proud to be a part of the AFA Travelling Exhibition Program and will continue to showcase Alberta. Local artists will be showcased as well throughout the year. There is always something new on the walls, so come down and visit the library!
Figure it Out
June 29, 2023 - July 26, 2023
Curated by Shane Golby, Art Gallery of Alberta (TREX Region 2)
For over 40,000 years the human figure has been a vital subject in humanity’s artistic endeavors. Often focusing on history, mythology, allegory or the imagination, most cultures on earth have recorded depictions of the human figure while in the visual arts produced in Alberta, the human figure has become one of the most prominent expressions among contemporary artists. Figurative painting, referring to a type of representational art based on figure drawing, typically includes depictions of people in informal situations.
The exhibition Figure It Out, however, is about more than just human figures; it is also about story telling. Featuring works by Riki Kuropatwa, Jennie Vegt and Campbell Wallace, the artists featured use the human figure to create stories. The stories they construct, however, may be obscure in meaning. Rather than fabricating narratives that can be ‘read’ in only one way, these artists actively engage viewers, pulling them into the paintings to try to figure out the narratives while inviting them to create their own tales based on the scene. In this encounter the stories presented, rather than being isolated incidents in intangible narratives, become the viewers’ stories and the ‘characters’ presented…perhaps the viewers themselves.
Jennie Vegt
Portrait of Unique constellations of Privelege and Oppression
2021 Acrylic, oil and spray paint on canvas
Collection of the artist
The Rush and the Roar
August 3 - 30, 2023
Curated by Shane Golby, Art Gallery of Alberta (TREX Region 2)
The Travelling Exhibition The Rush and Roar! opens a window on the past in order to comprehend current events and trends. Inspired by the centenary of the 1920s, often described as the Roaring Twenties, this exhibition utilizes the visual arts to explore some of the political, economic, technological and social/cultural changes which occurred in western Euro-North American societies during the 1920s and continue to have ramifications into the twenty-first century.
The 1920s was a decade of economic growth and prosperity driven by recovery from World War I. The prosperity of the post-war years witnessed an explosion in technologies such as the automobile industry, aviation, and telecommunications. Due to this economic prosperity the era also saw the growth or birth of several social and cultural trends. These included increased urbanization, greater rights for women and the development of celebrity culture.
The developments mentioned above were displayed in the visual arts where, since the 1920s, many artists have either ‘documented’ such developments or reflected critically upon them. This exhibition presents art works from the collection of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts which demonstrate the import of societal changes during the Roaring Twenties and provide context for the rush and roar of the present age.
Ingrid Plaudis
Dance Marathon, 1987
Silver gelatin print, hand coloured
Collection of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts
All TREX exhibitions and write-ups have been borrowed from the Art Gallery of Alberta 2022-2023 Booking Catalogue.