The new exhibit in the Estevan Art Gallery and Museum’s (EAGM) Gallery No. 2 pays tribute to the contributions of women to the community.
Estevan Women: The Dynamics features black and white photos of 15 women that were taken by Shaun Harrison back in 1998. The exhibit was plucked from the EAGM’s vault and put on display as a tribute to Evelyn Johnson, who died earlier this year.
Johnson is among the women that Harrison photographed. The exhibit is appearing at the EAGM at the same time that the Ev Johnson Memorial Adjudicated Art Show is hanging in the EAGM’s Gallery No. 1.
“If you look at the photo of Evelyn in the … gallery, you will see Evelyn in all her glory,” said EAGM director Amber Andersen. “She is sitting there, she’s promoting the arts, and she’s just ecstatic, because she was just that much of an advocate for culture.”
The photo of Johnson used to hang in Andersen’s office. Andersen recalls one instance in which Johnson came into the office to talk about the adjudicated show, and Andersen pointed out the picture.
“You have to realize, in this photo, she’s probably in her seventies, and she looks at it, and she exclaims ‘Look how young I was!’” And that was exactly who Evelyn Johnson was. She had an irrepressible spirit, and she will be missed,” Andersen said.
A few of the women in The Dynamics have died, but many of them are still alive and remain active in the community, 18 years after the photos were taken.
The women contributed to the community through municipal and school board politics, the business world, agriculture, health-care, the workplace, culture, sports and other avenues, while supporting their families.
In his statement for the exhibit from 18 years ago, Harrison wrote that the 15 women featured symbolize the contributions, skills and abilities of women everywhere.
“As in most typical gatherings of women, diverse spiritual and cultural backgrounds are represented. Their collective experiences span eight decades,” Harrison wrote.
Some of them were born in Estevan, but others came from elsewhere in Canada or even the world. Many left the city, only to return years later.
“Like most women, daily life is a struggle to balance their many roles,” Harrison wrote.
Andersen noted that as Canada’s 150th anniversary approaches next year, there will be a 2017 version of the Women in Estevan project. The EAGM is encouraging people to nominate others in their guest book or by contacting the office.
“Selected nominees will have their photograph taken for an exhibition that will take place in Gallery No. 2 in the summer of 2017,” Andersen said.
Estevan Women: The Dynamics will remain at Gallery No. 2 until mid-December.
