Atomic Doodles 
Inspiration can come from many unexpected places and I have often looked to patterns on a wall for source ideas. My love for wallpapers began before I could form complete sentences. I would point to wallpapers in the homes of various relatives and say "pretty". It is of no surprise that a short article in the New New York Times' Art and Design section caught my eye. Bradbury and Bradbury Art Wallpapers who commissioned the wallpaper to the right have an entire section on their website devoted to the designs of the Atomic Age. Any of these designs could easily be read as an example of contemporary drawing. It is somewhat ironic that one of the darkest times in 20th century history, the Atomic Age, also produced some of the most wonderful and innovative designs. The Atomic Age design refers patterns from the 1950s that use forms that reference scientific notations. The handmade quality of these designs creates a beautiful organic geometry. The Museum of Domestic Design & Architecture arranges their collections and has some fine examples of 1950s wallpaper designs. Spoonflower is a site that offers a range of Atomic Age patterns by contemporary indie designers. It is interesting to reflect on some of the artists doing allover paintings in the 1950s and wonder if they influenced the designs of the Atomic age, or if the designs might have inspired the artists. The work of Gordon Onslow-Ford (below), Adolf Gottlieb and Mark Tobey all come to mind with their all-over paintings that contain drawing marks that could be easily interpreted as scientific diagrams. The main difference between the wallpaper designs and the all-over pattern paintings is perhaps not one of aesthetic form, but rather intent and purpose. There was an innovative exhibition in 2001-02 at the Brooklyn Museum called Vital Forms: Art & Design in the Atomic Age so I am not the first person to make this connection. I like to see when boundaries blur and art, design and life merge into a similar aesthetic. |
Vancouver Island School of Art
2549 Quadra Street
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Looking for a great Christmas gift?
You can purchase a $65 gift certificate for any three-hour workshop with all supplies included.
Gift certificates come in a beautiful handmade Christmas card.
For a full list of our 2015: Winter Workshops
To order a gift certificate via email: gift certificate request
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Additional gift ideas
Consider one of our lovely VISA merchandise items
Available for purchase online: visaturns10 (scroll down to bottom of page)
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The VISA Turns 10 Art for Sale
Artwork #007 Title: Twilight Fliers
This intricate painting of bats, moths and dragonflies is made with a special glow-in-the-dark paint, so as the lights dim, the painting can still be seen. The work features delicate painting strokes that create a shimmering surface full of frenetic movement. To purchase this work: #007 ($310)
To see which pieces are still available for purchase: Artwork Sales (all work can be bought online) We also have two beautiful pieces by Rick Leong and Sara Robichaud which are available on our Premium Art Work Sales page. 35% of the proceeds of your purchase goes back to the artist and the rest to programming at VISA. |
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Looking to be part of a great community arts organization?
 We are looking for new board members that are well-connected in the Victoria community and are committed to the arts. Board members introduce VISA to new people and create new networks of supporters. If you would like to foster the arts in Victoria and you are willing to help us build our presence in the community, please email me for more information.
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Update on VISA Turns 10 Fundraising Campaigns
10th Anniversary Gala Event 
Our deepest gratitude to all who came out to our 10th Anniversary Gala celebration at the Canoe Brewpub. We would like to thank especially Canoe VP John Reese for making the event possible and Scott Renton, catering manager and Faye Friesen and Laura Breenan for their help organizing the event. And also a special thank you to Merle and Michael at Islandblue for coming to the event and for Islandblue's generous donation of the printing and the art supplies that people used for drawing throughout the evening. We are very appreciative of all their support. And a thank you to Alison Ross of Kilshaws who did a great job at the live auction. Other people who helped make the event a success were the emcee Adam Sawatsky of CTV, The Great Giffoni, Sidecar, Benji Duke, Cascadia Bakery, the VISA board members and staff and many volunteers. A great time was had by all and the school raised $10,000.
Beautification Campaign
The Indiegogo Beautification Campaign to paint the school and implement landscaping closed on October 19 and raised $7,000 (this includes money donated outside Indiegogo). We are still accepting donations to fund the VISA letter panels to be put on the front of the building. Thank you to Ian George and his team of painters for doing such a fabulous job painting Xane St Phillip's design on the front and side of the building. If you would like to make a tax deductible donation toward completing the project: Canada Helps Beautification Campaign.
The VISA Turns 10 Exhibition & Sale
We would like to thank the 80 artists who generously created 85 works for this fundraiser. About 150 people attended the reception and to date, we have sold 32 works at $310 each and raised $9,920. Thank you to Islandblue for donating the 10 x 10" panels, Pure Vanilla for the delicious desserts, Charelli's Cheese for the cheese platter, Canoe Brewpub for the beer and Artisan Wines for the wine. We still have many more 10" x 10" artworks for sale. To view artworks still for sale: Art for Sale.
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Exhibition at Polychrome continues to December 24
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For more information contact Melissa in the office |
