THE BATTLEFORDS — “If your portrait could speak, what would it say?” reads framed writing on the wall inside the Chapel Gallery, inviting viewers to take in Madhu Kumar’s The Stories of Immigrant Women.
Each of the life-sized portraits detailing the lives and stories of immigrant women is being celebrated at the Chapel Gallery for a few more weeks as the VR-centric storytelling portraits in the Windows Gallery prepares to continue their journey across Saskatchewan March 19, or March 26 if the exhibition is extended.
Leah Garven, gallery manager for the Chapel Gallery, says the exhibit has been popular, she believes due to its visual strength and the stories it tells.
“It’s been very popular, and I thought that it would be a great story to bring to our community as it’s very diverse,” Garven said to the News-Optimist.
Garven says she believes “attractive” large-scale portraits are appealing and that virtual reality just adds another deep layer that allows viewers to delve deeper if they want.
“People have been very participatory with it, more so than I’ve expected … this has been simple enough that most of our visitors have taken the time to listen to the individual personal stories.”
Although the exhibition is set to finish on March 19, Garven believes the exhibition will be extended until March 26, a week after the gallery is closed due to a show change in the main space.
After Immigrant Women leaves the Windows Gallery, local artists Joanne Rivers Wing and Chris Hodge will bring a joint watercolour minimalist landscape exhibition into the space.
“It’s a lovely exhibition that’s a different medium for those artists and a very modern, less traditional view of a landscape,” Garven said.
Then, on April 1, the Chapel Gallery is hosting a reception for Marjorie Fisher’s incoming exhibition, Off on A Tangent, exploring what brings her joy through whimsical, colourful images from her home, garden, and pastures.
For more information about upcoming shows at the Chapel Gallery, visit their website at: https://www.chapelgallery.ca/
