July 7th, 2017
Going for a stroll down Whyte Avenue during the summer months is usually a fun experience on any given day, but the weekend of July 7-9th, 2017, It was the annual Art-Walk festival. This year the Whyte Ave Art-Walk featured over 450 artists who displayed their works of creativity along Whyte Avenue (82 Ave.) from 101St. to 108 St. There were also artists located in the green spaces of parks or parking lots and some streets were closed to accommodate them.
The Whyte Ave. Art-Walk is a time and place where artists can share their work with a large audience.There are established artists and those who are budding new artists. There was classical art, pop art, impressionism, graffiti, and surreal art, just to name a few. The three-day festival gives these artists exposure to sell their work, but also the experience and opportunity to network with people and get their names out there.
The Festival is also a wonderful opportunity for people to meet artists. It is one thing to go into a store or online and pick out a picture that you like, but it is an entirely different experience to meet the artist who has created the artwork that you would be putting up onto the walls of your personal space. Sometimes it isn’t just the piece of art that a person can gravitate towards, but rather the artist who created the piece.
There really were so many wonderful artists to engage with at this festival. During my time there, I narrowed my attention to only those who had tattoos. And it was really cool to bump into some tattooist who were selling their artwork along the street.
My first stop along the art-walk was at the Boardwalk Sand On Whyte beside the CP Rail. I was able to get a photo of twin sisters who both had tattoos. To see more about these works of sand art, please visit the website http://www.sandonwhyte.ca/
Once along the street, I was pleased to see the tattoo shop Tear Creations Tattoo had an artist sitting outside with some of their awesome artwork. Brandon, who is one of the tattooists at this shop had been sitting outside working on one of his designs. I thought it was a good opportunity to show people who do not have tattoos or do not have much exposure to tattoos that tattooists are serious and respectable artists. To see Brandon’s work, please visit the shop’s website at https://www.tearcreations.com/
As I walked down the sweltering sidewalk, I came across a woman named Natalia who had a really great collection of colourful feminine artwork. Some of her pieces have that “we are all goddesses” feel to them, making the ordinary extraordinary. Natalia is also known as ZPS mixed media art. And a huge thank you to Natalia for the Rosewater spray down … took the edge off that hot muggy day. To check out her work or just to say hi, you can find Natalia at Facebook https://www.facebook.com/zpsart/ or on Instagram @spinel.morningstar.
Continuing along Whyte Ave, I met Kaitlin Matthews. Kaitlin displayed her artwork of women and animals along with lovely paintings of flowers. I also discovered that Kaitlin is a tattooist working out of the Studio Eight Tattoo Company. Another interesting thing about Kaitlin is that she loves baking. You will find the influence of her passion for cupcakes, cakes, and sweets in some of her artwork as well as her personal tattoos. Go check out Kaitlin's work at https://www.twistedbanana.ca/studio-eight-tattoo-company and on her Instagram @cakelintattoos.
Turning the corner and onto 104th, and into the bus lane, I entered the tent zone. The first tattooed artist I met was Alix. Alixx is an incredibly sweet young woman who is very passionate about life. She loves to travel, create art and is beaming with joy on having become engaged recently. You will find that Alix artwork has a very earthy feel and nature inspired. This is most likely because Alixx has majored in plant studies in horticulture. But the other reason is that she uses wood for her canvas. This is Alix’s second year at the Whyte Ave. Art-WalkTo see more of Alix work, you can find her at https://www.facebook.com/BlackenedDoveDesigns/?ref=nf&hc_ref=NEWSFEED or https://www.etsy.com/shop/blackeneddovedesign
And let's not forget on Instagram @blackeneddovedesign
And let's not forget on Instagram @blackeneddovedesign
Working under the same large tent with Alixx was Brin Steeves. Brin is also a very sweet young woman with a real wholesome vibe to her. Her paintings are inspired by scenic mountains, cloud formations, and trees, and are cast in soft yet rich colours creating a dreamy scenic atmosphere. Brin was also generous with her time and gave me an interview which I will be sharing in a separate upcoming post. When Brin is not busy with her creative endeavors she is a registered social worker. This is the second Whyte Ave. Art-Walk for Brin. You can visit her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/oilandbirch/ or visit her at Instagram @oilandbirch. Did I mention … Brin’s brother is engaged to Alixx. I bet their family gatherings are awesome!
Meandering up the road a little bit, I came to the old Strathcona McIntyre Park by the Knox Church and Strathcona EPL. This is where you would normally find the Fringe to be taking place. It was filled with tents hosting artists with their artwork. Being it was such a hot day, getting under a tent was a welcomed relief.
In this hamlet of tents, I discovered the work of Denise Lefebvre. Denise had a very eclectic collection of paintings ranging from Volkswagen vans, still life and country scenic work. Denise also has a love for classical work as shown by the tattoo on her leg. She has the tattoo of “Madonna of the Rocks” which is a piece by Leonardo Da Vinci. She is a busy full-time artist and has a personal business of painting parties called Red Pepper Painting Parties.
To see more of Denise go to Instagram @redpepperpaintingparties or her website http://deniselefebvre.com
After visiting Denise, I popped over to Kim Reirson’s tent. I loved Kim’s enthusiasm and sincere delight to be displaying her artwork. Some of her work was what I would consider being soft collage abstract and she likes to work with lots of patterns and had nice tones to them. She also had lots of prints for sale. I really liked her crab tattoo. You can find Kim’s work at kimreirsondesign.com or visit her on Instagram @Kimbotronic.
From there, I met Artist, designer, and painter Jody Wedman. Jody is a professional artist and energy intuitive. Jody’s paintings reflect her love for nature and spirit. They emulate her awesome vibe and creativity. She specializes in animal portraits for those of you looking to have a picture of your fur baby done. She also does private art lessons! Did I mention jewelry, she also creates beautiful jewelry! Please visit her website at www.jodyscaru.com.
Right beside Jody was another wonderful artist named Jayna Berry. Walking into Jayna’s tent made me immediately slip into my Zen mode. Her strong feminine energy radiated within some of her paintings. Birds, lions, trees and tranquil meditation paintings filled her collection. She specializes in canvas painting, murals and custom portraits. I found Jayna to be a beautiful spirited artist who was kind and very humble. To see more of Jayna’s work just visit her website at www.paintedplanet.org
The last artist I visited on this day was truly an amazing woman. Her artwork captivated me with its beauty, darkness, and depth. Lisa Jones is a name to remember. She is a visual artist who has been influenced by her consciousness of animal rights and combines that with having spent much of her teen years with her father, a circus performer. I loved hearing about her explanations for her paintings/prints, so I asked if it would be ok for me to do a separate interview. Being the awesome person that she is, Lisa allowed me to record her story so that I can share it in an upcoming blog. In the meantime, please visit her website at www.lisajones.info
Also on Instagram @jonesiest. I also want to mention that she had super nice tattoos that connect with her artwork. The monkey on the bike was really special. Looking forward to showing those pictures in the interview.
In my next blog post, I will present the artists that I met on the second day of the Whyte Avenue Art-Walk.
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