Multimedia Coast Salish spindle whorl anchors q̓ʷɑ:n̓ƛ̓ən̓ / Kwantlen artist’s new solo exhibition
Surrey Art Gallery presents q̓ʷɑti̓cɑ: k̓ʷam̓k̓ʷəm̓ tə šxʷhəliʔ / Phyllis Atkins: Divine Connection this fall
q̓ʷɑticɑ / Phyllis Atkins, ̓ ƛa t ̓ ə qələms tə ci̓cəɬ̓ səye̓ m̓ / The Creator’s Eye (detail), 2020, acrylic on wood panel with inner cedar bark, 122-cm diameter. Collection of Surrey Art Gallery SAG 2020.02.01.
Surrey Art Gallery is proud to present the solo exhibition q̓ʷɑti̓cɑ: k̓ʷam̓k̓ʷəm̓ tə šxʷhəliʔ / Phyllis Atkins: Divine Connection from September 18 to December 11.
A member of the q̓ʷɑ:n̓ƛ̓ən̓ / Kwantlen First Nation, q̓ʷɑti̓cɑ /Phyllis Atkins works in painting, carving, jewellery-making, and weaving. Her hereditary name (pronounced K-why-deet-za) means “I wear the clouds like a blanket.”
In her newest exhibition—her first solo show at Surrey Art Gallery— q̓ʷɑti̓cɑ / Phyllis Atkins makes paintings and sculptures that draw from Coast Salish tradition and her own personal journey to connect with the world around her.
With three new life-and spirit-affirming artworks, the exhibition foregrounds the importance of circular form and symbolism. While each work alludes to icons such as the moon or weaving technologies, the repeating circular shapes also evoke a handheld drum and its critical importance to Coast Salish culture and revitalization.
The focal point of the exhibition is ƛ̓a tə qələms tə c̓ic̓əɬ səy̓em̓ / The Creator’s Eye, a multimedia sculpture that combines a circular painted panel elevated two metres off the ground with long strands of woven cedar tumbling from its bottom edge. This artwork is partly based on a Coast Salish spindle-whorl design. A spindle whorl is a traditional tool, using a disc and shaft, for spinning wool. The eye in the middle of Atkins’s artwork is enclosed between two faces.
When Atkins began creating this piece, she was thinking about the yin and yang concept in ancient Chinese philosophy of opposing forces that complement each other, such as light and darkness. On the other side of the painting, a video projection of the same motif plays. This circular video projection turns like a spindle whorl to reflect the sequence of binary themes. The sound of drums and song wrap visitors in an immersive space.
q̓ʷɑticɑ / Phyllis Atkins next to her public artwork A Bear’s Feast (sƛə̓ nəqs kʷə speʔəθ) in the civic collection of City of Maple Ridge. Photo by Oliver Rathonyi-Reusz
The circularity of ƛ̓a tə qələms tə c̓ic̓əɬ səy̓em̓ / The Creator’s Eye is mirrored in adjacent artworks such as sil̕ə θə ɬqelc̓ / Grandmother Moon, a lunar portrait encircled by phases of the moon in silver leaf.
A drop-in launch of fall exhibitions at Surrey Art Gallery takes place September 18 from 7 to 9 pm PDT.
Surrey Art Gallery (13750 88 Avenue) is located on the unceded territories of the Salish Peoples, including the q̓ic̓əy̓ (Katzie), q̓ʷɑ:n̓ƛ̓ən̓ (Kwantlen), and Semiahma (Semiahmoo) nations and is the second largest public art museum in Metro Vancouver.
For more information, see Surrey Art Gallery.
Post sponsored by Surrey Art Gallery.