STRIKING SIMPLICITY
MICHEL SAINT HILAIRE
BY JOELLE KIDD
ACTS OF RECLAMATION
JAN-FEB
Two major exhibits at the Winnipeg Art Gallery explore the concept of land ownership through the intersection between Indigenous identity and sport. Boarder X features contemporary Indigenous artists from across Canada, drawing parallels between areas prohibiting snowboarding, or the surfer’ s search for uncrowded waves, and the contested spaces of politics, identity, and land. Presented alongside this exhibit, Vernon Ah Kee: cantchant engages with territorial disputes centred around Australia’ s beaches. Traditional Aboriginal designs and colours turn surfboards into works of cultural meaning. 300 Memorial Blvd, 204‐786‐6641, Map 1: P‐3
STRIKING SIMPLICITY
TO FEB 1 The Through Her Eyes Photography Collective presents an exhibit of black and white minimalist photography at the Wayne Arthur Gallery. Dramatically reduced design elements create imagery that is striking and thoughtprovoking, imbuing everyday items with unfamiliar beauty. 186 Provencher Blvd, 204‐477‐5249, Map 1: P‐6
Artist Spotlight
MICHEL SAINT HILAIRE
If you’ ve wandered the streets of Winnipeg, you’ ve likely seen some of Michel Saint Hilaire’ s work. An accomplished muralist, the Winnipeg artist also creates arresting contemporary pieces that blend seemingly disparate media, inspiration, style, and emotion into an incredible whole.
Michel found his calling in grade school and spent years honing his ability, drawing floor plans of houses and classic cars, a precursor to the architecturally influenced style of his later work. After two years of University training in Fine Arts, where he was taught by renowned Winnipeg artist Ivan Eyre, he began selling his art and painting murals full time.
Though he originally worked solely in pencil, Michel now blends media, usually pencil and acrylic, to create a layered effect punched with contemporary flourishes of line and colour.
His latest work was inspired by a 3 week residency in Moncton, NB, during which time he painted roughly 20 portraits of community members. He became enthralled with the unique qualities and complexity of faces, and set out to recreate the experiment with Winnipeg muses. The resulting exhibit, which begins in January, originally featured members of the city’ s French speaking arts community, but has evolved to include portraits of famous figures, a mannequin, and the likeness of reclusive photographer Vivian Meier, whose work was recently discovered posthumously.“ I started from a place of nurturing my home and community,” says Michel,“ Then expanded to painting people that I don’ t know, then to pieces that touch on global and environmental issues.”
Michel’ s collection of portraits will be exhibited at La Galerie inside the Centre Culturel Franco- Manitobain from January 26. 340 Provencher Blvd, 204‐233‐8972, monmichel. com, Map 1: P-6
PHOTOGRAPHY; VERNON AH KEE: CANTCHANT COURTESY WINNIPEG ART GALLERY; NANCY KERR- DROP SHADOW, COURTESY WAYNE ARTHUR GALLERY; PHOTO COURTESY MICHEL SAINT HILAIRE
8 where. ca JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2017