The Suite ‘E’ Life Drawing Group may have an unpleasant end to its summer.
But its fall turned out to be pretty good.
After being kicked out of the Port Moody Arts Centre in late August over a dispute about the terms of its agreement under the former executive director, Suite ‘E’ packed up and, within a month, moved into Studio D — a quiet and larger space at the back of the Evergreen Cultural Centre.
The cost of the lease was affordable for its 20 or so members and occasional drop-ins and the place was central and along a public transit route.
The hiccup also didn’t affect the schedule for its professional models, most of whom travel to the Tri-Cities from Vancouver.
And Suite ‘E’ even benefitted from a few anonymous donations to buy new equipment for its new digs.
“Someone said we should send a Christmas card to the Port Moody Arts Centre,” quipped Suite ‘E’ president Myda Schmidt last month, adding, “Everything has worked out very well for us.”
The transition has also coincided with their new group show that opens Friday at Place des Arts in Maillardville.
Thirteen Suite ‘E’ members — Schmidt, Deborah Colvin, Tracey Costescu, Sue Cowan, Reza Doust, Marion Els, Yoshi Kamei, Chika Matsui, Sahar McCullough, Gerry Nicol, Diane Norrie, Adrienne Peacock and Christine Yurchuk — are displaying about 40 acrylic and oil paintings as well as mixed media for the display, titled The Selective Eye.
The name was picked to encompass a wide range of styles by the artists.
As well, “Artists look at things differently and with a very selective eye,” Schmidt said. “We hope that people will see the individuality and the way artists look at their subjects.”
But attached to the regular exhibit is a smaller show that features about 10 sketches of the human figure, made during the weekly Suite ‘E’ sessions on Tuesday nights (it hosts three sessions: short pose, which has appealed to animators; sustained pose, in which the model stays in the same position; and long pose, a hybrid of short and sustained).
Meanwhile, also opening Friday night is Fragments of Life (ink drawings by Anson Aguirre Firth) and Package Deal (mixed media by Diana Durrand, Claire Moore and Jo-Anne Sheen). The three shows end Feb. 6.
• The opening reception is on Jan. 8 at 7 p.m. at Place des Arts (1120 Brunette Ave., Coquitlam). Call 604-664-1636 or visit placedesarts.ca.
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