On June 4th, 5th, and 6th the 2nd annual Parkland Regional Artists Development Opportunity (PRADO) weekend took place in Yorkton. PRADO is shared between three communities; Yorkton, Melville, and Esterhazy. This years show took place in Yorkton.
The art show was open to all artists in the Parkland region who were interested in entering. This years show had 24 participants from the area who were all asked to submit five pieces of work. The submitted art work ranged from drawings, paintings, and photography as well as other distinguished artworks.
The weekend began on Friday with a workshop registration, a BBQ, and a welcome. On Saturday morning the artists were welcome to participate in a Silkscreening workshop with Christy Schweiger of the Moose Jaw Museum and Art Gallery. The art supplies were donated by the museum and art gallery; the beginner class was enjoyed by all. The afternoon consisted of a group critique with adjudicators Bruce Anderson and Timothy Long from the MacKenzie Art Gallery in Regina. This allowed the artists to be critiqued on their own work, and provided a further learning experience as they were allowed to listen to the critique of others. This was followed by a panel discussion between the adjudicators and the artists allowing for a transfer of ideas.
On Saturday evening the exhibit at the Godfrey Dean Art Gallery, consisting of all 120 pieces of art, was opened with a public reception. The evening allowed the public to view the artwork, as well as meet the many talented artists. At the reception the winners of the art show were announced; 3rd place went to Shannon Yashcheshen, 2nd to Devin Wilger, with the Parkland Arts Award and 1st place going to Crystal Thorburn. The evening also consisted of a raffle and silent action.
Sunday consisted of a workshop with Grand McConnell from CARFAC (Canadian Artists Representation/Le front des artistes canadiens), who deal with the business side of art. The workshop was followed by individual critiques between the adjudicators and the artists. This concluded the events of the PRADO weekend.
Yashcheshen has been painting seriously for twelve years and first fell in love with it after taking a university art class. Yashcheshen is influenced by other artists and fairy tales in "how they influence your understanding of your interpretation." She stated that her art aims to "depict the female body in a new way," and she wants the world to feel as if they are looking at the world through her eyes.
The idea behind Wilger's photography was to "feature a man made object that is broken in someway," so that, "nature is still vibrant in everything, but the man-made objects aren't." Wilger enjoys the contrast of his photography and its ability to create "visual jokes."
Thorburn's inspiration comes from old photographs, growing up on a farm, and the fact that, "every building had a story." With her artwork she, "wanted to create a space in time where you could look back in time, and imagine what it would be like in that building at that time."
Thorburn's artwork is contained within boxes because she wants her viewer "to look through the crack to look into the picture." Thorburn picks her materials depending on what emotions she wants to create for the viewer, and tries to "depict the outside to match the inside."
Godfrey Dean Art Gallery director Donald Stein stated that this years artists are "working on a bigger scale," and noticed "how bright and bold the colors" were this year. Stein pointed out the energized feeling throughout the gallery, and how you could almost "feel the buzz in the room" at all the excitement.
The artwork from the exhibition will continue to be on display at the Godfrey Dean Art Gallery for the month of June. The Items from the silent action will also be available for viewing and bidding at the Godfrey Dean Art Gallery until the end of June.
