NEWS
SCAPES at HEADBONES GALLERY – B.C., CANADA
Several paintings included in Scapes in June 2016. Headbones Gallery.
National Weather Center Biennale 2015
Two recent paintings included in this exhibition at the University of Oklahoma’s National Weather Center. Juried by Mel Chin.
Solo exhibition – Johannes Stegmann Gallery, University of the Free State, South Africa.
Recent work on Project Apology is being shown in February 2014 at the Johannes Stegmann Gallery at the University of the Free State. http://arts.ufs.ac.za/templates/arts_diary.aspx?diary=286
Residency Award – Caetani Cultural Center – B.C., Canada
Awarded a residency and honorarium by the Caetani Cultural Center last year, and spent a month there (September, 2013) working on Project Apology.
INVITED TO PERFORM AT STOFF 2013
Project Apology, an ongoing performance project, has been invited to participate in the Stockholm Fringe Festival (STOFF 2013) as part of the Site Specific Program. http://stockholmfringe.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/stoff-2013-programme-site-specific.pdf
Project Apology is an ongoing video documentation of an undertaking to apologize, in person and as a self-appointed member of humanity, to non-human species on the planet that are being adversely affected by human activity. The project’s intent is to use satire as a means to deliver a serious message in an unconventionally and ‘amusingly’ palatable, yet provocative manner – in attempting to come to terms with, morally and spiritually, the human implications of our current scientific reality (evidenced, for example, in the current rate of species extinction documented by the International Union for Conservation of Nature – IUCN). More information on Project Apology can be accessed here. Project Apology was originally inspired through conversation, and begun in partnership, with Katie Osediacz.
INCLUDED IN GROUP EXHIBIT: “RE-ENVISIONING THE ANGLO-BOER [SOUTH AFRICAN] WAR”
A recent painting of mine (from the permanent collection of the South African Anglo Boer War Museum) has been included included in the above exhibition at the Johannes Stegmann Art Gallery at the University of the Free State (South Africa). The exhibition was curated by Janine Allen and Angela De Jesus and was recently opened by Prof Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela – as part of the Vryfees 2013.
Re-envisioning the Anglo-Boer War –
9 July – 8 August 2013
Johannes Stegmann Art Gallery
Sasol Library
University of the Free State
SOUTH AFRICAN ANGLO BOER WAR MUSEUM – PERMANENT COLLECTION
Earlier this year I was asked to produce a work for the permanent collection of the Anglo Boer War Museum (Bloemfontein, South Africa) as part of the centennial anniversary of the National Women’s Monument. At the time of its erection, the monument was one of the first of its kind in the world, in its acknowledgement of the suffering of women and children in war. The piece that I produced is a diptych. The LHS panel is represented above. The LHS panel narrative was derived from an old photo, found online, of a single “English” horse arriving in Cape Town from England during the course of the war. I thought it interesting because it gets to the futility of war in a novel way. Imagine this poor creature traveling half-way around the world in order to most likely meet its needless bloody end in a foreign land as a result of man’s desire for foreign riches. I thought: what if there was a moment when a captured “Boer” horse on its way back to England met such a newly arrived “English” horse in mid-air? Perhaps, longing for the same free ground, they might not see each other as enemies….
INCLUDED IN ‘COLLECT CALIFORNIA ART’
Flattered to be included in Collect California Art – a permanent exhibition launched by Aldis Browne Fine Arts at the beginning of last year and housed in La Jolla, California. http://www.artconsultant.com/CollectCaliforniaArt.html
Benefit Exhibit: ‘Along the Way’ – Leigh Block Gallery – Hospice of Santa Barbara (Suite 100, 2050 ALameda Padre Serra, Santa Barbara, CA).
EXCERPT FROM PRESS RELEASE: Leighton Collier Roux and Paul Roux have come together over the past few years to stand beside one another as friends, artists and partners. Says Leighton: “We love working together…mainly because we have a deep-seated mutual respect and admiration for the work that the other produces.” Though they come from different countries and experiences, they find that their work, when placed together in the same space, engages in interesting dialogue around contemporary humanity and society. ’Along the Way’ is comprised of Paul Roux’s paintings and the photographic documentation of the performance and movement based artwork of Leighton Collier Roux. Leighton Collier Roux will also perform live at the opening reception, inviting members of the audience to take her hand for a moment in a gesture of human solidarity and an acknowledgement of the ongoing urgent need for compassion in the world – as part of a piece entitled Hand Hold (No. 6). The title of the exhibition speaks also to the support that the couple has received through Hospice of Santa Barbara in the wake of tragic life events early in their marriage, and the compassionate nature of Hospice of Santa Barbara. With striking imagery, steeped in allegory, the work speaks of being here, of taking the time to appreciate the endless beauty and wonder of life; to feel gratitude and solidarity with the earth that sustains us while facing up to the challenges and changes of the contemporary historical moment. In this rapidly changing world, these two artists look to engage viewers in an urgent celebration of the beauty that is our natural heritage, a celebration consciously tempered acknowledgement of the consequences of the prevailing separation between humanity and the planet. 40% of proceeds from the exhibition go to hospice of Santa Barbara.
Project Apology @ Earth Play
Project Apology was honored to participate – through Project Apology Advocate and Ojai Green Coalition Board Member, Anca Colbert – in Earth Play 2011. EarthPlay 2011 11:00AM – 4:00PM April 23, 2011. Oak Grove School, 220 West Lomita, Ojai California. In celebration of sustainable living, global awareness, and the joy of nature, four Ojai-based green non-profit organizations – Food for Thought, Oak Grove School, Ojai Valley Green Coalition, and Ojai Valley Land Conservancy – teamed up to host this wonderful annual event.
CURRENT SHOW: ‘Stand Beside’ @ Anderson ART Collective Stand Beside at Anderson ART Collective EXCERPT FROM PRESS RELEASE:
“Leighton Collier Roux and Paul Roux have come together over the past few years to stand beside one another as friends, artists and partners. Though they come from different countries and experiences, they find that their work, when placed together in the same space, engages in interesting dialogue around contemporary humanity and society. Stand Beside is comprised of paintings, sculpture, photography and video. Leighton Collier Roux will also perform live at the opening. With striking imagery, steeped in allegory, the work speaks of being here and of taking the time to appreciate the endless beauty and wonder of life; to feel gratitude and solidarity with the earth that sustains us while facing up to the challenges and changes of the contemporary historical moment. In this rapidly changing world, these two artists look to engage viewers in an urgent celebration of the beauty that is our natural heritage, a celebration consciously tempered by acknowledgement of the consequences of the prevailing separation between humanity and the planet.” Leighton Collier Roux grew up in southern California and received an MFA from Tufts University in 2008. Her interdisciplinary art practice often incorporates soft sculptural objects, custom made to interact with individuals and the world at large and, in a poetic manner, to remind us of our fundamental interconnectedness. She works also in and around the discipline of performance art often incorporating sculptural objects and the surrounding environment and has participated in a number of important international performance events – including Art in Time in Cardiff, Wales in 2006 and Navinki 2007, the International Performance Art Festival in Minsk, Belarus. In 2008 she received an invitation to participate in the Global Warning Performance Festival in Indonesia and in 2009 she was invited to participate in the Open Art Performance Festival, Beijing, China. Paul Roux is a South African native. He graduated in 1998 from the Michaelis School of Fine Art (University of Cape Town, South Africa). After a detour into advertising and marketing, his recommitment to the fine arts over the last six years has seen a number of awards and solo exhibitions, as well as scholarship for further study at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. His work is represented in collections in Europe, South Africa and the US.