Articles

Watercolour exhibition at the 401 Gallery runs Apr. 24-26

An Exploration of Light and Colour

The 401 Gallery will play host to the delicate, inspiring artistry of Michael Zarowsky by way of a three-day opening night exhibit, Apr. 24 to 26.

Billed as an exploration of harmony between light and dark, the exhibition will focus on new work from Venice, Paris and Ontario.

Looking at the paintings makes immediately clear the emphasis on lighting. A photographer will spend an aching amount of time trying to get the lighting for a photo just right, just as it seems Zarowsky must lie in wait, sketchpad in hand, anticipating patiently to capture some facet of light associated with the scene he is immersed in
at any given time.

Whether the painting is of a docked sailboat, half-covered with tarp, oars still lying akimbo, or a lake awash with swans sunning themselves, light seems to always play the starring role. Looking at these paintings is like looking out of a window on a sunny day, or coming out onto the street after being in a darkened building. You almost want to shield your eyes from the glare, or fish around in your bag for sunscreen. Light here is used as a colour in and of itself, amidst the seemingly infinite palate already utilized by the artist.

Zarowsky says his primary interest is light, atmosphere, and transparency of water, adding, "I find light irresistible. My spirits soar on a sunny day. I can sit by the water's edge for days and not feel the need to move."

The paintings themselves depict tangible, everyday objects and scenes, but there is a dream-like quality to them, bathed in light and overflowing with colour as if the pictures themselves have been lifted from that state between dreaming and wakefulness, when everything is at its brightest and most beautiful.

Choosing his paint is not as important as the process by which it will be created, he remarks. "The emphasis is on the process of discovery, of the creative interpretation of some aspect of the world."

This would explain the sub-reality in which his paintings seem to exist. For instance, he goes much further than to simply paint that which he feels is inspiring. Zarowsky seemingly takes it in, and what appears on the canvas is his own version of what he has seen and decided to depict. He refers to this as the process of inventiveness, adding, "In this sense painting is a spiritual process connecting me to the world."

He speaks of the process of painting itself as likened to walking a tightrope. Each painting, for him is a new challenge. He may know what he wants to paint but that is where the routine of it ceases.

"It [painting] is an open-ended process in so far that each new work presents new problems," he says of his technique - perhaps an insight into why his paintings look like what they are supposed to in the realist sense, but posses a much more awe-inspiring and complex quality upon closer inspection.

Zarowsky places a strong emphasis on "losing himself" as part of the artistic process. In effect, the more he gives himself over to the actual process of painting, the more satisfied he will be with the final product.

"Being able to let go comes through in the painting and is what gives it it's intensity, aliveness, and energy," he says.

Alive, intense, and energized are fitting adjectives for Zarowsky's work, and come through immediately upon viewing it.

By Jessica Padykula