Local Artist Presenting First Solo Exhibition | Capitol Centre

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Local Artist Presenting First Solo Exhibition

By | June 05, 2019

To kick off the end of spring and start of summer, the WKP Kennedy Gallery is excited to announce one of our two current shows on display: Jaymie Lathem’s solo exhibition Refractions.

An emerging local artist, Lathem studied drawing and painting at both the Ontario College of Art and Design, and the Alberta College of Art and Design. In 2011, she graduated from Nipissing University’s bachelor of fine arts program. She is currently executive director of Creative Industries North Bay, which is an organization that focuses on nurturing the creative sector of North Bay.

In addition, Lathem also is an award-winning artist, having received the Emerging Artist Award from the Ontario Arts Council in 2017.

She has been active in the arts community for more than a decade, having displayed her exhibitions in places such as Toronto, Quebec, Thunder Bay and, of course, North Bay.

“I am very excited to be exhibiting my work locally at the WKP Kennedy Gallery,” Lathem says. “While I have exhibited pieces in North Bay in the past, they have always been part of group or juried shows – so to have the opportunity to put together an entire exhibition is really special.”

She goes on to state the importance of exhibiting her work in North Bay.

“I have worked in the arts community in North Bay for the past decade in arts education, programming and administration, so it’s exciting to be on the other side and have a chance to share my personal art with the community I’ve worked for and with for so long.”

Lathem describes her exhibition as a “series of drawings and installation-based works that act as mirages. They are all images that change as they pass through one medium into another, creating distorted, dismantled, reassembled renditions of the originals. Each work is a memory of a moment that never happened.”

“Refraction is my first solo exhibition, so that holds significance, as well – working through an entire series of works is very different than submitting one or two pieces to a juried show. The WKP is a very large space, and has pushed me outside of my comfort zone, leading into experimentation and installation-based works.

“It allowed me to pull in one of my best friends, Allison Roberts, who works with projections and light, and spearheaded the amazing installation pieces. I wouldn’t have done [this] in a space other than the WKP Kennedy Gallery and I really feel that this opportunity will help inform and grow my artistic practice moving forward.”

The opening reception will take place Friday from 7-9 pm. The show will be displayed until July 27. Refractions is one of two exhibitions that will call the WKP Kennedy Gallery home for the better part of the summer.

 

Previously Published by The North Bay Nugget, June 5, 2019

Written by Dana Westerberg, gallery assistant at the WKP Kennedy Gallery