New Paintings

At 796 Humboldt Street

July 10 – 24, 2010

Opening:
Saturday, July 10, 2010
2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Marney Ward in attendance
Allison Ward, soprano (performing at approx. 3pm)

Marney Ward AFCA

Flowers have always been a source of joy and wonder for Marney, who studied floral watercolours with artists Caren Heine, Ann Hunter, Elizabeth Kincaid and others.  She went on to develop her own unique style: large, vibrant, back-lit close-ups that reveal the spiritual essence of the flowers she paints and beyond them, her own spiritual interconnectedness with the natural world.  For Marney, watercolour is the perfect medium, with its spontaneous flowing quality and its clear, transparent colour that allows the light of the paper to glow through, a light from deep within.  In her recent work, she plays with the unique edges and textures that are available only in watercolour.  But the predominant feature of Marney’s work remains the tangible presence of light.

Marney has been interested in perception, consciousness and creativity for most of her life.  In the seventies, she earned a Ph.D. from UBC on the art and poetry of William Blake.  Her Blake-inspired interest in consciousness led her to study with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Europe, and then to devote a decade to teaching Transcendental Meditation.  In the early nineties, she decided to revisit her first passion, art. From classes in Chinese Brush Painting, she learned practical techniques of brushwork and how to take advantage of the peculiar challenges and magical properties of water.  From her lifelong mentor Emily Carr, she was inspired to express the living spirit within everything she paints.  Marney is a signature member of the Federation of Canadian Artists and Past President of their Victoria Chapter, of which Emily Carr was a founding member.