Colin Brezicki
Special to Niagara Now/The Lake Report
Spring is upon us and RiverBrink Art Museum in Queenston has much going on for art lovers and those who would like to expand their knowledge and explore their own creativity.
As a volunteer I miss spending time in Samuel Weir’s former residence, with its extensive collection of paintings, books and artefacts generously bequeathed to the community on his death in 1981.
I look forward to when I can return in person. Director/curator Debra Antoncic and programming and curatorial assistant Sonya de Lazzer are also looking forward to welcoming visitors to the gallery.
A date and details for the spring opening reception will be announced soon. They are excited to host the exhibition “Power,” a video and audio installation by artist Elizabeth Chitty, opening April 22.
In the meantime, programming continues via Zoom. Art historian Penny-Lynn Cookson’s lecture series, “Art and Revolution – From Cave Art to the Future,” follows the evolutionary path of artistic creativity from hunter/gatherers to the rise and fall of empires to the robots of the future.
Having attended her fascinating presentations on Caravaggio and Leonardo in the past I can personally attest to her knowledge, clarity and compelling visuals. The series runs on Thursdays from now through April 29.
Another online event is “Coffee with the Curator,” held on the second Friday of each month. In this month’s session, director/curator Debra Antoncic guided Zoom guests on a tour of the current exhibition “Oh, the places you’ll go,” featuring water colours of an array of destinations from Georgian Bay to Jamaica to the port cities of Liverpool and Marseilles. Previous sessions of “Coffee with the Curator” are available on YouTube. Just follow the link on the RiverBrink website.
Information about past and future exhibitions, including “Centre and Periphery: Group of Seven, Canadian Impressionism” and “Botanicals” can also be found on the website.
The site also provides details of “RiverBrink Reads,” virtual discussions of art-related books, and “Film Screenings,” a four-week series celebrating Canadian women who made a difference in the arts, politics and medicine.
And hopefully before long de Lazzer will be conducting her yoga classes in the beautiful gardens overlooking the river.
There’s lots going on at RiverBrink during COVID and much more will happen when restrictions are eased. Stay tuned for further announcements and visit www.riverbrink.org for information about membership and details of our events.
Colin Brezicki is a member and volunteer at RiverBrink Art Museum in Queenston.