Dirt Stains and Other Works
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- Apr 19, 2022
- 1 min read
Updated: May 25, 2022
Dirt Stains and Other Works
Reilly Knowles
April 20 – 30, 2022
Closing Reception April 30, 1-3PM
The Annual Juried Exhibition (AJE) is one of the most highly anticipated undergraduate exhibitions in the Department of Visual Arts at Western University and for many years Forest City Gallery has supported the AJE through the contribution of the FCG Feature Award. The FCG Feature offers a presentation opportunity to one student each year, selected by a professional jury. From AJE 18, FCG is pleased to present Reilly Knowles.
Dirt Stains and Other Works is a transformation of materials growing within and littered across Knowles’ neighbourhood ecosystem. Subtle shades are coaxed from foraged edibles, kitchen scraps and scavenged gems of rubbish, then combined with repurposed and handwoven textiles to express the process of creation and decay that is inherent to living organisms and the artworks they construct. Knowles explores ephemerality and the decomposing body as ways to begin to engage more deeply, sustainably and reciprocally with the land, and to reckon with the difficulties of loss and mortality. The delicacy of textiles, decorative patterns and their associations with the feminine are employed as ways to approach the land “softly,” and as an alternative to the masculinist landscape tradition.
Reilly Knowles is a settler and an interdisciplinary artist engaging with the lands commonly called London, Ontario. A graduate of Western University’s Bachelor of Fine Arts program, he is a recipient of the Mackie Cryderman Award for Excellence in Visual Arts, the Tony and Betsy Little Gold Medal in Visual Arts, and the Canadian Embroiderers’ Guild London Memorial Prize. This exhibition is presented thanks to the 2020 Forest City Gallery Feature Award.
