Kris Walker’s Women Of The Sea
Kris Walker’s Women Of The Sea
Title: " The Herald"
Kris Walker, a Vancouver Island mixed media artist living in Nanoose Bay, has a creativity that is constantly nourished by her strong connection to family. Her loved ones are not only a source of inspiration for her artwork, but also at times part of the artistic process. Through her handcrafted mermaid sculptures, Kris depicts family scenes, motherhood and children at play. She shares a deeply personal yet universal subject. At the heart of her artwork, are the simple pleasures in life; moments to be cherished: "I am constantly searching for ways to simplify life so I have taught myself to observe sources of happiness, especially in children. It is this process that leads me to my concepts."
Growing up, Kris’s mother was working with a volunteer group designing props and sets for the theatre. She always encouraged her daughter artistically and made sure to include her in her projects. Kris told me, the best advice she ever got as an artist came from her mother: “She always told me how in art as in life everything is possible; you simply need to grab it by the tail and give it a try. There was never anything my mom would not take on as an artist.” So, Kris started sculpting clay when she was only eight years old and fell in love with the medium right away. After high school she went on to study Graphic Design and Applied Photography at Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario. She discovered her medium of choice about 6 years ago when she attended a one day course on recycled fabric and mixed media sculpting.
Kris’s sculpture showcases the love she has for her family and it is often through the imagery of the mermaid that she does so. These legendary marine creatures with the head, torso, and arms of a woman and the tail of a fish, have long fascinated humans and appear in the folklore of many cultures, including the Middle East, Europe, Africa and Asia. From Hans Christian Andersen's well-known fairy tale "The Little Mermaid" to John William Waterhouse influential painting entitled A Mermaid from 1901, these mysterious creatures have been a popular subject of art and literature.
Often confused with other anthropomorphic mythological creatures such as the sirens who were dangerous yet beautiful creatures known for luring sailors to their doom with their enchanting voices, mermaids were considered to be very beautiful and gentle creatures that were helping sailors and others travelling through the seas. The earliest mention of mermaid-like figure goes back to the Classical Antiquity with the ancient Syrian goddess Atargatis. She was a fertility goddess who was also responsible for the safety and well being of her city and its people.
"Hello" "Whale Watching" "Anticipation"
http://www.reflectingspirit.ca/artists/kris-walker
Not unlike the Syrian goddess Atargatis, Kris’s mermaids are portrayed as loving and caring creatures. Although she has created pieces inspired from the mythological sirens, most of her artwork features anthropomorphic marine creatures that possess the qualities of their close cousin. From her iconography often emerges the image of the expecting mother and maternal tenderness through the image of a woman wrapping her arms around her children in an affectionate and protective matter. Kris has the wonderful ability to capture the simple moments she shares with her loved ones and to breathe her love and tenderness in her sculptures. Serenity and peace emerges from her pieces, even without giving them facial expressions, the body language of her mermaids, lets us perceive the feelings and emotions of a loving and caring mother.
Title: "The Herald"
The creation of her mixed media sculpture often begins with Kris contemplating the beauty of the night or breathing the salty air of the west coast shoreline of Vancouver Island. Kris often finds herself walking along the beach imagining mythological creatures like mermaids emerging from the deep sea and wonders about their universe and activities. To bring these marine creatures to life, Kris starts by shaping a metal wire, which is then wrapped in tinfoil and embedded in cardboard. When the sculpture’s skeleton and shape is complete, she is wrapped in recycled fabrics, which has previously been soaked in a hardening medium. Kris then sculpts the fabric into the desired shape and uses cotton strings to create the hair. Once dry, she gives the sculpture about four layers of paint to create her color palette. She then competes the process with her signature metallic paint and varnish, giving the sculptures iridescence similar to a fish scales.
Through her creations, Kris lets us discover a universe of love and simplicity where she celebrates the importance of family in ones life. For Kris Walker, art is a family matter. Encouraged by her mother as a young girl and now inspired by a daughter of her own, Kris depicts through the imagery of the mythological mermaid, the care, affection and protection of a mother. During our interview, Kris shared with me how her experience in raising her daughter stimulates much of the imagery found in her pieces: “ my art is about how life changing it is to have a daughter. I feel privileged to have such an amazing child; she is an inspiration to me.” Without a doubt, this maternal love and tenderness is beautifully rendered in Kris Walker’s mixed media sculptures, which makes them uniquely inspired by the West Coast and love of a child.
The Reflecting Spirit Gallery is presenting, from March 18th to April 3rd, a mermaid themed art show celebrating the return of the gray whales to British Columbia's west coast. This event will be featuring various artist from Vancouver Island, including Kris Walker who created, for the occasion, a life size mermaid entitled "The Herald" !
http://www.reflectingspirit.ca/artists/kris-walker
