Peace Gallery North presents double solo art exhibit in February

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — Peace Gallery North is displaying the work of two Peace region Artists through a double solo art exhibit in February. 

Haley Bassett is presenting ‘Bead Soup,’ while Farouzan Afrouzi highlights her work with ‘Entanglement’.

For Bassett, whose artwork centres on identity, this was a chance to get more in touch with her Métis roots.

A former program coordinator at Dawson Creek Art Gallery, Bassett said that despite her extensive work as a painter, beadwork was a relatively new skill she first learned in 2019.

She had assembled a beadwork workshop at the gallery, where she became interested and learned the art form.

“It was taught by a Cree artist named Adrienne Greyeyes,” said Bassett. “I learned from her. Originally, it was just a hobby, I didn’t do it as part of my artwork.”

Indigenous people have a long history of using beads to decorate or create items. According to the CBC, some 8,000 years before Europeans first arrived in Canada, Indigenous peoples used beadwork in elaborate designs and for trade.

The centrepiece for Bassett’s artwork at the showcase is a traditional Métis firebag called Tallgrass. 

The firebag was historically used to carry supplies for ammunition.

Other pieces by Bassett in the exhibit include bead paintings and pieces from her time at the Emily Carr Art Institute in Vancouver and the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity.

As for Afrouzi, ‘Entanglement’ is her second exhibit in Canada since moving from Iran eight months ago.

Primarily a sculptor, Afrouzi’s work focuses on the human body, taking inspiration from skin, muscle, and bones. 

“For me, the organic shapes that encompass intertwined lines, porous textures, and stretch marks have been particularly intriguing,” said Afrouzi.

She displayed her talents in Iran around 2015, where she first used the exhibit title ‘Entanglement’.

Afrouzi said she was pleased to work with Bassett because of their shared use of material and aesthetic elements. 

Having left oppression in the Middle East, Afrouzi views some similarities between women in her homeland and the plight of the Indigenous.

“Being a woman in a religious and traditional culture with restrictive laws meant social tension was part of your daily life simply because of your female body,” said Afrouzi. 

“Perhaps my experience shares something in common with the history of Indigenous people. However, the effects of these uneasy experiences can be seen in my art.”

The duo solo exhibits run at the gallery until February 24th.