While spending time in the desert country of Dubai, artist Carol Whittaker came to appreciate that essential element of life - water."In the Middle East, water is so precious," she said.
On her most recent stint in Dubai accompanying her consultant husband, she painted new work, held a show and noticed that all the green landscapes - remembered from B.C. - sold easily to those who wanted a change from a desert scene. Back at home on Gambier Island, her window gives a view across Howe Sound of magnificent mountains etched with cascading streams. She thought about how we complain every time it rains and yet how important is our wealth of water. And she became deeply aware of the impact of the watershed - that reference point in a mountain range where developmental and recreational interests vie with the protection of drinking water quality. The natural images that surrounded her were bound to show up in her paintings.
On Jan. 15, Whittaker opens a one woman show of her work, Watershed, at the Gibsons Public Art Gallery (GPAG). The paintings reveal yet another evolution in Whittaker's style as an artist who has advanced rapidly through several stages of development over the past five years, moving from realistic landscapes through impressionism into abstract. She cites many influences - from Monet for his many variations on the same theme to Jackson Pollock for his energy and spontaneity.
"It's a searching process," she said. "I wanted to introduce texture to my work; it makes it so much more interesting."
Watershed could be called a collection of abstracts, but she notes that she keeps coming back to a little bit of subject matter in each one to keep herself grounded. The keynote image is easily recognizable as a mountain ridge, the craggy backbone covered in snowpack ready to shed its runoff at the first sign of spring.
Other mountain depictions shimmer in gorgeous mixed media colour display such as Autumn Twilight. An icy blue explosion of crystals could be a purely abstract piece or it could be Glacial Beginnings, as it is titled.
A waterfall is the most obvious physical feature of a watershed, and Whittaker's depictions of waterfalls capture their frothy power rather than their pastoral charms. In keeping with this hydro power theme, the show's sponsors will be Sunshine Coast Eco-Energy Solutions; they are planning a public talk on geo-thermal power on Saturday, Jan. 31, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the gallery. Whittaker earned a degree in interior design at the University of Manitoba and spent a 20-year career heading up her own firm before shutting up shop. She began painting for her own enjoyment and has since taken courses with the Federation of Canadian Artists and through Gibsons School of the Arts. Though her outpouring of new work is prolific, as evidenced by the 24 new pieces in the show, she said she doesn't paint all the time. When she does paint, it is in intense bursts of creation, followed by much thought about her subject matter.
Watershed's opening reception will be held Saturday, Jan. 17, from 2 to 4 p.m. at GPAG, located at 287 Gower Point Rd. The show runs until Feb. 16. The gallery is open Thursdays through Mondays from noon to 4 p.m.
