Livication
September 7 – 18
OPENING RECEPTION: September 8: 6-8 PM
Join us IN-PERSON for the Opening Reception at the Leslie Grove Gallery. COVID-19 Protocols: following provincial and city guidelines
SOLO SHOW: Michaela Nessim
ABOUT LIVICATION:
Artist Statement
I work with colour and form to create soft renditions of landscapes and nature inspired scenes from places I have been. I combine memory with imagination and select colour combinations that evoke feeling through subtle, elegant hues. My style leans towards the ethereal or magical realism. My goal with this work is for the viewer to look into the paintings and feel a sense of belonging, making of scenes harmonious places we want to live in.
‘Livication’ the word is inspired from the Jamaican Rastafarian belief in changing words to more uplifting versions of themselves, this is aligned with the themes I have painted. ‘Livication’ is ‘dedication’ transformed, just like this collection of artworks is the world transformed into a more harmonious space which is inclusive of all people who share this energy. The artworks reflect respect for the goodness of the world making a place for others from all backgrounds, focussing on their gifts and allowing roots to grow vs solitude and isolation. This series depicts the stages of belonging from states of inner harmony expressed visually as floating florals which bridge over to the essential concept of being part of the landscape. There are some artworks with figures and others non-figurative leaving the option for the viewer to place themselves into the landscape through their imagination.
Born between cultures with a Jamaican mother and Swedish father I grew a deep appreciation of both, and with an appearance and references that traditionally placed me in neither world, I floated somewhere in between, thus creating a new version of reality. The reason for ‘Livication’ is to contemplate new spaces in which belonging is the central theme. Once you allow yourself to take up space you naturally create connections. There are many challenges with the concept of belonging, but taking time to grow roots allows inner harmony to blossom. ‘Livication’ brings you into a world without prejudice and focusses on the light within you and the way in which you nourish the world and it nourishes you.