Some one here turned 58. I don't know if it is a "thing" when one's age matches the year one was born, but that's what the deal is here. (MCMLVIII is 1958, but you probably guessed that.)
This year's number came with a set of magnets and a pin!
PUBLIC RECEPTION
Saturday, July 30, 7:00PM
remarks by Dr. Jon Gerrard and Ray Dirks
I have known and admired Parvin Shere and
Rhonda Harder Epp for most of the years I
have worked at the MHC Gallery. Parvin and
Rhonda, however, have never met. There is no obvious connection between the two exhibits happening this summer. There is commonality in that
both artists seek and probe, explore issues, with
their art. It isn’t just a pursuit of the aesthetic. I appreciate the fact that Rhonda and Parvin
come from different backgrounds of place, culture
and belief roots, yet both come to our gallery to give their art voice. Our gallery attracts many
different voices and that is a link we are honoured
to hold high.
Long-time Winnipeggers, Parvin and her late
husband, Waris, used to visit me from time to time
at the gallery. It was always a highlight. Without
fail, they were friendly, inquisitive, af rming and
open. We shared conversations on art, justice and
peace. Beyond their chosen fields, what I remember most is two people as one, two people of
peace, justice and community.
I see this exhibit as a journey through the
layers of Parvin’s career as an artist and humanitarian, with Waris looking over her shoulder, smiling
proudly.
From the first time I saw some of Rhonda’s
work I was impressed by the quality and by the
thought put into it. To this day, it seems from my
vantage point, she is ever evolving, ever pushing
herself to work in new ways while creating pieces
that are unfailingly bound in issues and deep
reflection. Ray Dirks, MHC Gallery
Wroclaw (W - like v, c - like ts, l - like w, final w - like f) (does that help?) like Gdansk was reduced to rubble in 1945. It speaks to some kind of perseverance that both these cities look like they have been intact for centuries.