Upcoming Exhibition
UNTANGLED
Marie Price
October 23 to November 1, 2027
Noon to 5 pm Daily
Opening Reception: Saturday, October 24.
2 to 4 pm.
Bio
Marie Price is a visual artist working in Vancouver, B.C. primarily in the print medium. Born and raised in Winnipeg, she graduated from Nursing in 1968 before completing her BFA at the University of Manitoba in 1977. She was a drawing instructor at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts in Burnaby and currently works at Malaspina Printmakers on Granville Island. A member there since 1992, she served on the board, was a past president, an etching instructor and mentor.
Her imagery, a combination of etching, woodcut and collage primarily, is mainly figurative since it is from the broad arena of human activity that she draws her inspiration. She has a strong interest in politics , health, and the evolution of social structures that form the basis for human interaction. Portions of her older etchings are combined with new imagery through the use of Japanese washi. This thin paper can be printed from an older plate and then glued onto a different substrate, with no discernible line, literally combining older impressions with new ideas, underlining her attitude to life in general.
In an act of respect for Indigenous people, she was the main facilitator behind Malaspina’s mounting of “Net Eth”, an exhibition held at 3 separate venues in Vancouver, in 2013, highlighting the work of First Nations. The exhibition illustrated the tragedy of the Residential Schools and was mounted in conjunction with the conclusion of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, here in Vancouver.
Artist Statement
The idea for the series started in 2016 after the first election of Donald Trump, although it was some time before the series matured. The more dismayed I became about the election of someone so blatantly unfit for office, the more persistent a specific image presented in my mind. That image was of a person skipping... (I don’t skip, although I skipped daily as a child). So not knowing the reason for that recurring image I just gave in and started drawing.
Only after finishing a few of the pieces did the skipping image finally start to make sense.The act of skipping is a joyous serotonin inducing activity that allows the skipper a short escape from the pain induced by the absorption of the nightly news. It has become my metaphorical suggestion to a beleaguered humanity who may realize that there are some disasters that are truly out of our ability to prevent or control. Negativity is natural but will not serve us well in the long run. At this time it is essential that we plumb the depths of our adult anxiety, for the thing that truly makes us feel alive and do it repeatedly as though we were exercising a flaccid muscle that was weakened somewhere between childhood glee and adult fatigue.
We all need something that demands our focus and gives us joy in spite of the uncertainty and threats that surround us. Skipping is simply a metaphor for choosing what joyous distraction will provide balance in a time of great upheaval. Our collective wellbeing may provide the best mindset for a more discerning consciousness that will ultimately make better decisions.
The skipping ropes in these images, you may notice are not real skipping ropes all the time. Sometimes they are tree rings. This is a reference to our ephemeral existence on this planet .The rings are a reminder that without a close and respectful association with nature, our future will definitely be imperilled. When we finally realize how inextricably connected we are to everything and everyone on this planet, we will be more likely to avoid the early extinction of our own and other species.
As the Stoic philosophy stated, “Serenity is not freedom from the storm but peace amid the storm.”