Mad & Noisy Gallery Welcomes Five New Artist Members

Here’s some interesting art news from a former colleague with Halton-Peel Communications Association, Eleanor Brownridge, herself an accomplished artist:

     The work of five new, local artists, sculptor Paul Vodak, photographer MK Lynde, stained glass artist Paul Corfield, and painters Peter Dillman and Peter Taylor, will be featured during February at the Mad & Noisy Gallery in Creemore. Their stories reflect a growing trend, artists relocating to this area because it provides an environment conducive to their creative processes. 
     “I find inspiration in the natural world along the shores of Georgian Bay,” says Peter Dillman, who moved to Collingwood 18 months ago. Dillman is currently converting a backyard garage into a painting studio. “It is not quite finished; the roof is still covered with a tarp to prevent leaks. I like it when the wind is howling, the tarp bellows and I am cocooned in my space.” Here he creates acrylic landscapes with layer upon layer of saturated colour, using techniques he developed when originally working with oils.
     Paul Corfield built his stained glass studio as a separate building perched 800 feet up the western side of the Niagara Escarpment when he relocated to the Beaver Valley in 2004. “We designed it with much thought and care to fit in with the existing landscape. Visitors to the studio walk in the doors and stop in an attempt to take in, not only all of the glass pieces hung in the windows, but also the design and look of the building itself.” In keeping with his minimalism direction, Corfield uses lots of clear textured glass, with only small areas of colour and few lead lines, in his geometric style. 
     Disenchanted while working as a commercial illustrator, Peter Taylor moved to Dunedin two and a half years ago to be closer to nature. Here the Bruce Trail in his backyard provides constant inspiration for his paintings. “I’m focused on capturing the personality of the landscape I’m working on. If I can bring all my senses together, plus something else I can’t explain, then I’ve got something.”
     Another ex-Torontonian, MK Lynde used to wander, travel and shoot with her camera. But after having children, she focused on shooting in and around her new home in Creemore. “About two years ago I began shooting panoramas and have since become obsessed with Equirectangular Projection Panorama. This is 180 by 360 degree photography mapped onto a rectangle that shows every possible view of a given scene.”  MK takes between 10 and 38 or more images of a scene and then stitches them together digitally. “I love looking at a scene and imagining it unwrapped onto a rectangle.”
     The longest area resident, Paul Vodak has been living in Nottawa for about 18 years where his workspace, “Rainmaker Art Studio” is a school portable which he eventually hopes to expand with a sculpture garden. Although his final sculptures are usually bronze, Paul begins with wax or clay. “I start with a figure and then place it in an environment – a stage, a landscape or a mythological context. I like to incorporate textures from natural objects such as rocks and plants in my sculpture.”
     The feature show of the new artists’ work will open on Sat. February 6 with a reception from 2 to 5 pm and will continue throughout the month. The Mad & Noisy Gallery, at 154 Mill St. in Creemore, is open Monday, Thursday and Friday from 11 am to 5 pm, Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm and Sunday noon to 4 pm. For more information contact the gallery at 705-466-5555 or www.madandnoisy.com.