Co.Lab Gallery presents

Leslie Shaw’s

FROM THE GARDEN

FRIDAY DECEMBER 2ND, 2022 6-10PM

EXHIBTION CLOSES DECEMBER 22ND

Leslie Shaw was raised in Saskatchewan and attended the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, attaining a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in fine arts. After years of teaching, she attended the Ontario College of Art for two years, leaving to move to Thunder Bay. In the late 1990's she began attending Lakehead University part time, and after eight years, graduated in 2003 with an Honours Bachelor of Fine Arts.

Since 2002, Shaw has established a studio and embarked on a career as a professional artist, showing in many juried shows, group shows, members shows, and some solo shows for which she received grants from the Ontario government. She works in acrylics from her photos of the natural world in North Western Ontario in a style which might be called abstracted realism, translating a 4x6'' photo into large format paintings. Her work can be found in homes and businesses across Canada.

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“My painting discipline over the last twenty years has been to work from my photographs taken in the region, my garden and my neighbourhood. I'm always looking for the moment when light transform the mundane into something extraordinary. I paint from the 4x6" photo translating it to the larger canvas , creating a disparity which encourages abstraction, while retaining a recognizable image. The painting is the result of a series of realities; the object itself, how it appears to my eyes, how it translates to a photo, and finally how it appears in my painting.

Between 2020 and 2022 many of us sought refuge in solitary places, often finding comfort in nature, seeking a place of safety and renewal.. I also sought refuge in my studio, working on a series featuring the common Coneflower, exploring the shadows cast by wintering plants, looking around my home with a fresh eye. I hope the work I did during the "Covid years" will prove to be a source of comfort to the viewer and a reminder that beauty, serenity and calm are always available to us.”