See a lovely video of the Exhibit opening ... https://youtu.be/HM615TaGoXU
Artist’s Statement
"Connecting with the Land" is a series of new paintings inspired by our beautiful BC rainforests and rugged coast. I paint to communicate the spirit of these strong yet quiet lands.
My process is mainly to observe. To work on site is important; however, to me, it is also overwhelming. Only nature can put it all together. So while being on site, in nature, is important, it is in the studio where the painting emerges. I paint until the remembered spirit is found. The painting leads me through this process. When we look at the trees, it is our natural tendency to look between the branches to see what lies beyond and this gives my forest scenes a stained-glass feeling. At the same time, the weight and stability of the rocks ground my coastal works.
I was born in Trinidad but raised in Metchosin where the BC forests and coastlines have always been my inspiration as well as my grounding. Throughout all of my time at Emily Carr University, the University of Manitoba, and the Ottawa School of Art, I remained focused on this connection to the land. Today “Connecting with the Land” confirms and shares my continued love for our forests and our coast.
“We are part of the land: we are influenced by, dependent on, and now, today, responsible for the land. This responsibility rests heavily on us all.” Christine Gollner
Artist’s Biography
Christine was born in Trinidad and raised in Metchosin near Victoria; after graduating from St. Ann’s Academy; Christine studied nursing at St. Joseph’s School of Nursing and then as a RN worked at St Joseph’s Hospital. She met and married Larry, an officer in the PPCLI, had three children, and together they undertook many postings in Germany, England, and across Canada. One of those Canadian postings was in Yellowknife from which Christine was able to travel across the north. Christine painted this extraordinary land and enjoyed three solo shows at the Arctic Art Gallery in Yellowknife and in Banff Alberta.
Christine worked a five-year stint with the Law Society of Upper Canada Legal Aid office in Ottawa and then returned to her art studies at the University of Manitoba (Art History) in Winnipeg, at Emily Carr University in Vancouver, and finally the Ottawa School of Art. These learning experiences were made all the more rich by being so diverse.
Today, after 28 moves, formal art studies, and a wealth of life experiences, Christine has settled down to paint full time in her Oak Bay studio. The artist has shown works at the Sidney and Sooke Shows and the Moss Street Paint-In. For the past 27 years Christine has enjoyed being a member of the Victoria Sketch Club.