October 4th 2016 – February 5th 2017

Reception: October 13th 5-7pm

505 8th Ave SW, Calgary, AB

Light refreshments provided

2016 has been a retrospective year of looking back while also planning for the future of the Calgary Allied Arts Foundation (CAAF). The organization has been a catalyst for supporting artists and the arts community in our city for over 57 years. For this exhibition, we have highlighted a small selection of the artists we have supported and who have in turn shared this generous spirit and become not only internationally recognized artists but also influential community builders.

Connections: Calgary Arts Community Builders showcases prints by Alexandra Haeseker, Harry Kiyooka, and John Snow as well as sculpture and mixed media work by Katie Ohe. Each of the eight pieces is a reflection on relationships or connections. At times haunting, Kiyooka’s etching on paper “Victim,” part of a larger body of work titled “The Victim Series 1968 – 2007”, illustrates the fragility of the body, the pain that some of these connections can evoke. Ohe’s three pieces 4×1, 4×1 and Maquette #1 demonstrate individual forms being separate but harmoniously connected through pattern and repetition while Haeseker and Snow reveal through their etchings and lithographs, how culture, history and pivotal life events can influence who we are.

In celebration of community and artistic excellence, the exhibition Generations: 50 Years of Art at the University and Beyond at the Nickle Galleries has also been a consideration for CAAF as we determined the fall programming. The artists selected for the current Gallery 505 exhibition have connections to the University of Calgary. Each artist has either been a student, an instructor or has an honorary degree from the institution. In every case, these artists influenced or supported students who attended the Visual Art Department as well as the broader art community.

Gallery 505 is Calgary’s newest public art venue curated by the Calgary Allied Arts Foundation (CAAF). This new space “Gallery 505” is a reference to its street address at 505 – 8th Ave SW. This high pedestrian traffic area will now give CAAF a street presence and extend our footprint into the Calgary cultural scene. Here on display you will see artworks on loan from the Civic Art Collection, as well as previous participants from CAAF’s Artist in Residence Program.

The Civic Art Collection contains over 1000 works of art and the collection is the pride and joy of The City of Calgary. For many years, CAAF has provided acquisition funds for the collection, which has allowed the number to grow. The artworks date from 1850 to the present and include the names of some of Calgary’s most recognized historic and contemporary artists.

The footprint for the gallery is not large but it is dynamic. Every aspect has been considered from the design of the interior to the environmental concerns associated with displaying artwork. We are ever so grateful to donor 679 Capital for seeing Gallery 505 come to fruition. By collaborating with CAAF, we hope to enrich the community in the core and further promote Calgary’s vibrant art scene.