In the summer of 2013, the
McMichael Canadian Art Collection partnered with the York Region Arts Council (YRAC) to offer a mentorship program for emerging artists.
The newly created Arts Mentorship Project provides relatively inexperienced artists with a rare opportunity: the chance to collaborate on artwork with an established professional.
For the program's inaugural year, McMichael teamed mentee Ben Barak—a Newmarket resident and recent graduate of Nipissing University's BFA program—with mentor
David McEown, a renowned Canadian landscape painter.
On Sunday January 19th, McMichael is holding an exhibition celebration to showcase the work that emerged from that pairing.
As explained by Anna Stanisz, assistant curator in Education & Programs at the McMicheal, the exhibit manages to highlight both artists' unique style, while also demonstrating the ways in which they've influenced one another.
"When Ben Barak applied he was working in oil and often painting in interior settings," says Stanisz, "But he explained he was always interested in this idea of landscape, of working outside, of working in water colour, which is what David McEown is known for."
Throughout the summer months, McEown and Barak worked on-site at the McMichael and, though it wasn't initially part of the plan, took a weak long hiking trip to do work in Algoma.
"It's really an interesting result," says Stanisz. "After working with Ben, David produced works that, although very much his own style, have bit of studio quality to them. The mentorship challenged him to work in the studio. Ben's work is a mix of oil paintings and watercolours, he even displays some of his work in a three-dimensional way. A lot of it is still studio-based and in oil but he uses techniques he worked on with McEown."
At the January 19 reception, both artists will talk about their work and will share video and pictures of the mentorship process. The exhibit runs until March 2nd, 2014.
McMichael is currently accepting applications for its second session.
Writer: Katia Snukal
Source: Anna Stanisz, Assistant Curator, Education & Programs, The McMichael Canadian Art Collection
Photo courtesy of McMichael Canadian Art Collection.