Operated by the Calgary Contemporary Arts Society

June 7 to August 24, 2007

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Summer Sculpture at the Triangle

Six Sculptors from Calgary:
Eric Cameron, Honsun Chu, Lylian Klimek, Ron Kostyniuk,
Katie Ohe, Reinhard Skoracki

Contemporary sculpture in Calgary is a pluralistic phenomenon, identifiable by a rich diversity and a broad spectrum of artistic styles, individual goals and innovative studio practices.

Summer Sculpture at the Triangle is part of the ongoing series of sculpture exhibitions mounted by the Triangle Gallery during the past 19 years. The exhibition offers a quick snapshot of studio trends in this city and celebrates the distinctive vision and artistic direction of each of the exhibiting sculptors. Participating artists include Artists’ Circle members:   Eric Cameron, Ron Kostyniuk, Katie Ohe, Reinhard Skoracki, and invited sculptors: Honsun Chu and Lylian Klimek.

Sir Herbert Read once said: “…The peculiarity of sculpture as an art form is that it creates a three-dimensional object in space. Graphic artists strive to give, in a two-dimensional plane, the illusion of space, but it is space itself as a perceived entity that becomes the particular concern of the sculptor …”.   Although many of Calgary sculptors share to some degree the common bond expressed by Sir Herbert , each artist’s vision, understanding of the present function of the sculpture and mode of expression are uniquely different. However, all are united in the acceptance of change, as a primary force for innovation and creative expression.

Since the second half of the 20th century, the metal casting process, welding techniques, the introduction of synthetic materials such as plastics, and the new technology have radically changed the language of sculpture. Perhaps the most significant change – also observed in contemporary sculpture in Calgary – is sculpture’s forfeiture of volume and mass.  Since that time sculpture witnessed a shift from a solid, monolithic to an open structure, from subtractive (i.e. carved) to additive (i.e. welded or glued) techniques, from tactile to visual emphasis and from mimetic to abstract and later conceptual accentuation.  It is also evident that sculptural concepts today arise more from personal codes of expression, rather than from the dictates of manifestos or stiff corsets of artistic trends.

Summer Sculpture offers a viewer a wide panorama of philosophical, stylistic and formalistic directions with various approaches to material and techniques, as well as the methods to delineate/organize the space inhabited by the sculpture. In this exhibition, one can observe the broad spectrum of sculpture making in Calgary in its many guises: from formalistic concerns (i.e. the achievement of unity in design and composition) to metaphor making – the conception of personal statement and symbolic notation.  The impressive roster of works ranges from the conceptual sculptural projects and installations by Lylian Klimek and Eric Cameron through the post-structuralist  abstract sculpture of Ron Kostyniuk, to the metaphoric surrealist sculpture of Reinhard Skoracki. These stylistic approaches are strategically balanced the elements of Eastern Philosophy and symbology in the sculptural realizations of Katie Ohe and Honsun Chu.

The viewer of this exhibition will be able to examine and analyze each work from several points of view:  the artist’s control of space and form, the action of the artist’s mind on three-dimensional materials, the questions and issues informing the work, and the craftsmanship employed with particular tools and techniques – all of which have had an impact on the physical reality before them.

Summer Sculpture has been organized by the Triangle Gallery of Visual Arts to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Calgary Contemporary Arts Society (CCAS) and the Artists' Circle – an organization comprising of artists who were either the earliest founding members of the CCAS or who were instrumental during the Triangle Gallery’s formative years, and of which the majority of the exhibiting artists belong to.  But most importantly, this exhibition highlights the artistic achievements of the six sculptors, who have explored fresh conceptual and formalistic parameters in their works, and who have dared to challenge traditional understanding and function of sculpture, thus elevating contemporary sculpture of this city and this province to national and international prominence.  

Harry M. Kiyooka, RCA and Jacek Malec
Exhibition Curators

List of Images (left to right, top to bottom):

1. Installation view – Front Gallery (clockwise): Honsun Chu (Yin and Yan), Ron Kostyniuk (The Kiss; After the Kiss), Lylian Klimek (Kapow; Bar Cod), Reinhard Skoracki (He Could Not Completely Rise To The Occasion), Ron Kostyniuk (Ode to Mondrian; Ode to Cezanne). Photo by Jacek Malec
2. Installation view – South Gallery (clockwise): Ron Kostyniuk (Relief Structure), Eric Cameron (Alice’s Rose –is-a-rose-is-a-rose-is-a-rose), Katie Ohe (Brother Pear; Mother’s Dream #2), Honsun Chu (Ripple #2; Seat; New Moon). Photo by Jacek Malec
3. Installation view – Upper Gallery (from left to right): Reinhard Skoracki (I Did Not Know If I Should Sit… ; Marriage), Ron Kostyniuk (Prairie Sentinel). Photo by Jacek Malec.
4. Installation view – Upper Gallery; in the foreground: Beelines by Lylian Klimek; in the background: two sculptures by Reinhard Skoracki (left) and Ron Kostyniuk (right). Photo by Jacek Malec
5. Reinhard Skoracki – Marriage (Taking & Giving), 2007; bronze, marble. Collection of the artist. Image courtesy of the Herringer Kiss Gallery, Calgary.
6. Reinhard Skoracki – Tamed Aggression, 2007; bronze. Collection of the artist. Image courtesy of the Herringer Kiss Gallery, Calgary.
7. Reinhard Skoracki – Voyeurism, 2007; bronze, marble. Collection of the artist. Image courtesy of the Herringer Kiss Gallery, Calgary.
8. Lylian Klimek – Kapow, 1999; painted wood, hardboard. Collection of the artist . Image courtesy of the artist.
9. Lylian Klimek – Bar Code, 2000; lacquered wood, veneer. Collection of the artist. Image courtesy of the artist.
10. Lylian Klimek – Beelines, 2006; mortars and multi-coloured beads. Collection of the artist.  Image courtesy of the artist.
11. Katie Ohe, RCA – Brother Pear, 1997; steel.  Collection of the artist. Image courtesy of the artist.
12. Katie Ohe, RCA – Pantheon, 2002; steel. Collection of the artist.  Image courtesy of the artist.
13. Katie Ohe, RCA – Mother’s Dream #2, 2007; steel. Collection of the artist.  Image courtesy of the artist.
14. Ron Kostyniuk, RCA – Relief Structure, 1968; enamel on PVC. Collection of the artist. Image courtesy of the artist.
15. Ron Kostyniuk, RCA – The Kiss (Dedication to Brancusi), 2005; enamel on cast aluminum. Collection of the artist. Image courtesy of the artist.
16. Ron Kostyniuk, RCA – Prairie Sentinel, 2006; enamel on MDF. Collection of the artist.  Image courtesy of the artist.
17. Honsun Chu – New Moon, 1995; white marble. Collection of the artist. Image courtesy of the artist.
18. Honsun Chu – Ripple #2, 1999; granite, marble. Collection of the artist. Image courtesy of the artist.
19. Honsun Chu – Seat, 2002; yellow marble. Collection of the artist. Image courtesy of the artist.
20. Eric_Cameron, RCA – Exposed/Concealed: Laura Baird V (596), 1994 (work in progress); acrylic gesso and acrylic on canister of undeveloped film. Collection of the artist.  Image courtesy of the artist.
21. Eric Cameron, RCA – Exposed/Concealed: Laura Baird 1 (660), 1994 (work in progress); acrylic gesso and acrylic on canister of undeveloped film. Collection of the artist.  Image courtesy of the artist.
22. Eric Cameron, RCA – Alice’s Rose-is-a-rose-is-a-rose-is-a-rose, 1996-2000; gesso and acrylic on gesso, rose. Collection: The Nickle Arts Museum, University of Calgary. Image courtesy of the artist.