When Marlise Witschi was in her 30s she experienced an expanded state of awareness where a moment of enlightenment granted her belief and knowledge into the spiritual bond between mind and body.
As an expressive, intuitive artist, her objective is to create works that signify the greatness of "being" - living in the moment. The series of spontaneous acrylics/mixed media is inspired by the inner world: the wordless spaciousness and stillness inside.
"Freedom from constraints, from old ways of being/living, freedom from old perceptions and the past, because then we can live in the present, where life is," says Witschi, who uses juxtapositions of light and darkness in many of her paintings to symbolize "life."
As a young girl, Witschi was an encouraged creator by her sculptor/painter father, but only since 2007 has she been more actively painting after taking some instructional classes in acrylics. She affirms, "All I would like to accomplish is to touch the spectator in the heart, or gut, so they feel their inner spark of aliveness and vibrancy."
Witschi's initial process is intuitive. "I get still for a while to step out of the way and allow what wants to be expressed come through," she says. "Eventually, when the flow stops, I look at what I see and then let some more consciously guided considerations come in: play with contrast, relationships of colors and marks, textures, etc."
Witschi admits that looking back through her work reveals growth in different expressive phases as well as the development of new techniques such as experimenting with mixed media. She loves to work in large formats and her dream is to paint mega-canvases and build large, coloured sculptures to embody the greatness of human beings. Witschi has lots of other passions, which include her work to help people heal themselves.
For more about her work, please visit marlisew@hotmail.
In the cases, Judy McQuinn pushes the limits on "Big and Bold" in her grand presentation of jewelry and multi-spectral stained-glass boxes, lanterns, candle holders and sculptures. As for the jewelry, her kaleidoscopic necklaces, bracelets and earrings are creative culminations of spectacular semi-precious stones, pearls, coins, beads and bobbles.
McQuinn looked to current fashion trends for stimulation when creating the sassy spring series. Her contemporary vogue, styles are large and bold and beautiful - exemplifying fresh optimism.
"I have been working with stained glass for over 30 years and have ventured into making jewelry recently," says McQuinn, who doesn't shy away from daring artistic diversities. "I find the jewelry allows me to express my more whimsical side. Working in one medium encourages inspiration in the other."
Over the years, McQuinn's work has evolved, gravitating towards jewelry and variations of styles. Her broad inspirations are intrepid colour and omnipresent nature. McQuinn uses links between elements and hues to emphasize distinction between materials. She says, "Both the jewelry and the stained glass have a strong visual and emotional reliance on colour and its properties. But the juxtaposition is more in the contrast of textures - smooth with rough, shiny with dull, etc."
McQuinn has big plans for future growth. She is interested in learning more about enamelling and creating her own beads and jewelry components.
McQuinn can be contacted at (604) 898-5902.
Toby Jaxon is the curator of the Library Foyer Gallery. She can be reached at [email protected]
