Lure – Travelling Exhibition (TREX)

As all good fishermen know, to catch the biggest fish one needs to use the right lure: something bright, flashy or tasty to dazzle the quarry and entice it to strike. Artists work much the same way. Whether concentrating on composition, various elements and principles of design, size or content, an artist aims to ‘hook’ the viewer and engage their attention, even for the briefest of moments.

The three artists featured in the exhibition Lure – Carmen Gonzalez, Kathy Hildebrandt and Lori Lukasewich – are like good fishermen. Operating within the art style of Contemporary Realism, these artists share a desire to work in more traditional forms of representational art and utilize line, shape, colour and pattern, combined with a heightened sense of reality, to entice viewers into actually looking at their works.

While accurate recording is important, however, their works are more than documentation. Engaging all the senses, each artist imbues their works with emotional, social and cultural elements to transport them beyond, or deeper, than what is rendered on the surface. Whether asking the viewer to recognize and appreciate beauty itself, or stirring memories and associations related to the subject matter depicted, these artists endeavor to create experiences that, as expressed by Lori Lukasewich, are positive, meaningful and uplifting.

Curated by Shane Golby, Art Gallery of Alberta, TREX Region 2

The TREX NW program is generously sponsored by KMSC Law.