Vibrant Transitions

'Spring Fling'

Sue Bayley

'In Bloom'

Melissa Burgher

'MFB: 2nd Rendering'

Golya Mirderikvand

As we move through the many transitions in life we have the choice to embrace change & move forward or not. The three painters on display use art to navigate change & explore their mental, physical & spiritual journeys; employing the transformative qualities of nature to express their ever-changing paths.

Sue Bayley is a West Vancouver artist who creates colourful, energetic nature based abstractions in acrylics. She paints how it feels to be in the natural environment, both it’s strength & softness, through raw expressive brush-work that echos the organic forms & colours of nature. Through these abstractions Bayley explores the fragility of nature as she works through her journey with Stage 4 Lymphoma cancer & Myalgic Encephalomyelitis. Capturing the essence of when flowers or plants are full of vibrant life, no matter how fleeting that may be, allows Bayley to find the positivity & resilience to move beyond the scars & the pain, to find joy of the moment.   

Melissa Burgher is a Port Coquitlam based multidisciplinary artist working to disseminate knowledge and bring awareness to issues around the arts, mental health & the environment. She is currently investigating the application of paint in a playful & random way, finding the joy and beauty in spontaneous play when painting. These artworks feel fresh & vibrant, with bold colours & gestural impasto brushstrokes. Burgher’s work takes the form of lively growths of flowers, typically seen as delicate, but through her expressive style they become symbols of strength in the face of our changing relationship with the environment.

Golya Mirderikvand is a contemporary painter who grew up on the North Shore, currently based in Vancouver. Her recent works explore the internal perceptions of the observer & the manifestations that arise as a direct result of observing & interacting with the external world. Mirderikvand examines this notion of how we choose to perceive the world through a series of paintings all based on the same photograph of a camellia. Creating different renderings of the same image - playing with colour, line, shape & levels of representation – She aims to re-iterate that in our many interactions with our surroundings we may only be seeing part of the truth. 

Artists Talk

Watch an engaging conversation with these talented artists as they share insights into their inspirations, creative processes & take a tour of the exhibition