The Leigh Square Community Arts Village is showcasing the work of a multimedia artist this month.
The retrospective exhibition of work by Donna Polos displays the development of her unique style over the past 20 years.
Polos paints watercolours on cotton, paper and canvas, creating interesting surfaces that are textured and layered with paint, embroidery, yarn, beads and thread.
Polos, a retired elementary school teacher and self-taught artist, describes the creative process as a harmonious and calming experience.
She prepares her fabric by painting wet-on-wet and glazing up to six layers to achieve dark values, often using glue as a resist and, during the summer, Polos also uses heliographic paint (sun paint).
Some of Polos' pieces incorporate chalk pastel and fabric paint, with hand embroidery and quilting adding texture.
The retrospective show at Leigh Square will feature works on canvas, paper and cotton to reflect her process of working in all three mediums side by side.
Polos has exhibited in solo and group shows throughout Metro Vancouver and the U.S.; she has also been an artist-in-residence with the Stanley Park Ecology Centre.
Flourishing Fibres: Donna Polos Retrospective is at the Leigh Square Community Arts Village (1100-2253 Leigh Square, Port Coquitlam) April 5 to May 7. An opening reception with the artist in attendance is on April 14 at 2 p.m.
Polos will be a guest instructor for a series of workshops for students and adults May 1 to 3, and a Mother's Day afternoon tea and fabric painting workshop is on May 13 from 1 to 3 p.m.
Register for the workshops online at www.experienceit.ca or by calling 604-927-8441.
