News

En Route Artist Talk – JJ Lee

JJ Lee artist talk in Halifax Art Bar + Projects Friday, July 14, 2017 at 6pm Visual Arts Nova Scotia is excited to present an artist talk by visiting artist JJ Lee, in collaboration with Anna Leonowens Art Gallery Art Bar + Projects. Through mixed media paintings and drawings, Lee explores the space between states…

“Celebrate!!!” – Marla Benton

South Shore artist Marla Benton shows a body of work inspired by her young daughter who started celebrating everything and anything, all the time. Benton described these celebrations as “a beautiful ritual to take on as an adult”. She started to look at life with a twist of a little girl’s perspective then began making…

The Initial Show: VANS’ 2016 – 17 Mentorship Program Exhibition

Highlighting the talents of mentees Alexis Vessey, Ben Mosher, Ryan Josey, and Kate Grey, the Visual Arts Nova Scotia 2016-17 Mentorship Program Exhibition The Initial Show also includes work from mentors Sarah Maloney, Craig Leonard, Bryan Maycock and Andrea Dorfman. Emerging artists in this year’s program present new work on view at The Craig Gallery…

Call for Applications: 2017-18 Mentorship Program

Visual Arts Nova Scotia’s Mentorship Program pairs emerging artists with established artists to take part in a ten-month mentorship from September to June. Focusing on supporting the goals and ambitions of emerging artists throughout the province, mentors may be asked to provide support in any one or more of the following areas: proposal development for…

Mentorship Program Info Sessions

Are you an emerging artist who wants some help achieving your goals? Are you an established or mid-career artist who wants to be a mentor?  Come to a free, short info session on the VANS Mentorship Program on Wednesday, June 21st at 6pm at VANS (1113 Marginal Road, Halifax). If you live out of HRM…

“Resonance” – Krista Sheehan

Emerging artist Krista Sheehan uses a combination of oil, acrylic and charcoal to create paintings focusing on emotionally charged landscapes, some of which carry personal meaning and others are from spaces that echo with a collective emotional weight. Her solo exhibition, Resonance, runs from June 2 – 29 in the Corridor Gallery. About the work…

Annual General Meeting and Call for Board Members

Visual Arts Nova Scotia’s Annual General Meeting is Saturday, June 10, 2017 at the Fraser Cultural Centre in Tatamagouche. We have fun activities planned and 40th Anniversary events to discuss so we would love your company. We will have coffee and snacks at 10:30am, the meeting at 11am, catered lunch at 12pm and then afternoon…

Info Sessions – Becoming a PAINTS Artist

We are offering info sessions on Becoming a PAINTS Artist with Andrea Ritchie, PAINTS Coordinator. Join us as Andrea Ritchie answers your questions about the Professional Artists in the Schools program. If you are interested in becoming a PAINTS artist then drop by for a short, free info session at Visual Arts Nova Scotia, 1113…

“The Fine Print” – Nova Scotia Printmakers

The Nova Scotia Printmakers, VANS group members, promote original prints regionally, nationally & internationally through workshops, demonstrations & exhibitions. Their exhibition of small works, The Fine Print, runs from May 2 – 25 in the Corridor Gallery. The Nova Scotia Printmakers is an informal body of professional printmakers and individuals with a more general interest…

Sign up for our Spring Workshop Series

This season’s professional development workshops feature topics such as Pricing, Marketing, Grant Writing, Dos and Don’ts of Exhibition Proposals and Writing for artists. Running May to June in Halifax, Dartmouth, Lunenburg, Shelburne, Antigonish, and Inverness, the series features the expertise of instructors Katie Belcher, Carol Bruneau, Laurie Dalton, and Stacey Cornelius. In addition, Visual Arts…

VANS Expanded Open Grants Program Accepting Applications

Are you part of an artist collective, an arts group, or a gallery who wants to create a new public engagement project or add a great component to an existing one? If so, you should really apply for VANS Open Grants program before the Saturday, April 15 deadline. We are looking to support projects that…

En Route Artist Talk Series

Visual Arts Nova Scotia announces the return of the En Route Artist Talk Series bringing national and international visiting artists to different areas of the province this Spring and Summer. VANS presents artist talks starting with Gráinne McHugh in Wolfville, followed by Jennifer Angus in Yarmouth, then JJ Lee in Halifax. These free presentations are…

Kevin P. Comeau – Artist Profile

Kevin Comeau is a professional sculptor from Meteghan River, Nova Scotia. He’s an Acadian-Métis, using his surroundings and natural material as inspirations for his sculptures. To date his works have been exhibited locally and regionally, and purchased by private collectors. He is self-taught, sculpting for over 20 years in various media (bronze, clay, stone, steel,…

“Postcards from the Island” – Gary Castle

Lantz-based artist Gary Castle exhibits haunting photographs of the historic little peninsula known as Horseshoe Island. Postcards from the Island is at the Corridor Gallery April 4 – 27. Describing the work on view, Castle explains: Horseshoe Island beach, in the late 1940s and early 1950s, was a very popular summer spot on weekends. Photographs…

Take our NEW Workshop Survey

Visual Arts Nova Scotia offers professional development workshops to artists across the province based on feedback from members and artists. These workshops focus on professional development in support of the artist’s creative practice across commercial and public sectors. For our 40th Anniversary we want offer new formats for our workshops and we would value your…

VANS in Residence

VANS is excited to announce the artists who have been chosen for the three VANS In Residence initiatives this spring. We have both rural and urban residencies in HRM this year, involving fantastic partners. Each artist will spend their time split between their own practice (studio work, research and other endeavours), and time actively working…

“Serenity” – Phyllis Adams

Cape Breton artist Phyllis Adams was a photographer who decided, upon her retirement, to re-interpret her photographs in paint. The exhibition displays her recent landscapes and portraits, inspired by her photographs of Cape Breton. Serenity is at the Corridor Gallery March 3 – 30. Describing her process and the work on view, Adams explains: This…

The Public Life of the Imagination: A lecture by Lewis Hyde

To celebrate our 40th anniversary, Visual Arts Nova Scotia (VANS) will present a lecture by the poet, essayist, translator and cultural critic Lewis Hyde. This event will explore questions related to the value and meaning of art in contemporary life as well as alternative ways in which we can measure the importance and value of…

In Memory of Felicity Redgrave

On behalf of Visual Arts Nova Scotia, I want to express our heartfelt condolences to the family of Felicity Redgrave. Felicity was a founding member of Visual Arts Nova Scotia, who will be remembered as a passionate maker and educator of art. She was a prolific painter and had an incredible spirit. I will remember…

“Bird’s Flyin’ High” – Rhonda Barrett

Self-taught artist Rhonda Barrett’s experimentation with different media has brought her to paper collage and the joy that can be found in little bits of paper glued to canvas. Her pieces are created from newspaper as it has been printed; there is no dying or painting of the paper. This method was chosen in an…