I entered a contest! (but it went south)

Last year, I alluded to a piece of art I was making for a contest (being held in Halifax), and the subject was “Protest Art” about the Viola Desmond story. I decided to enter a painting using a “word cloud” (embellished with jewellery, of course).

At first they were going to have judges and the top ten winners would receive several thousand dollars and their work would be displayed on a building in New Glasgow, NS… then they decided that they would allow the public to vote for their favourites instead… then they decided that they would show the work at a gallery… then they found they were not allowed to… (some issue about appropriation)… oh well… I have yet to receive my painting back.

Above you can see that I’m almost finished laying out my letters. I already had in my studio 3 variations and sizes of letters. But one thing that really astounded me was that despite my limited number of large letters, I still had ALL the letters I needed for Viola Desmond's name!!! That was a fun sign to me that I was on the right track. A few smaller letters had to be made by my husband on his 3D printer, to complete my word cloud.

So, I'm hoping that by looking at my painting, you'll get a quick overview of the affect this woman's life had on Nova Scotia and beyond. Here's a documentary video about the story of Viola Desmond if you’d like more info.

I think a small collection of words can make a powerful statement, don't you? Here’s a little video clip - of part of the creation of this painting. And here’s another one. A full time lapse video is yet to come.

WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING FOR AN UNUSUAL ART GIFT, AND CONSIDERING MY ARTWORK, PLEASE EMAIL ME or MAKE AN APPOINTMENT TO SEE MY HOME STUDIO IN HALIFAX:
Email: dorothealeblanc@me.com