As co-owner of a downtown Antigonish gallery, Rhynold has invested almost 24 years of her life in the business, and during that time has watched the industry evolve before her very eyes.
In fact, she credits that evolution for the longevity and success of her studio.
“I think our secret is that it’s constantly morphing, it’s constantly changing and keeping up with trends and the times of what people are looking for,” she says.
Rhynold co-owns Down to Earth Art Gallery with Gerard Mason. The business has been a staple in the downtown core for a long time, situated in the same location at 240 Main St., since first opening its doors in 1996.
The studio walls are adorned with several paintings from local and world-renowned artists – many who fetch a pretty penny for their works.
Down to Earth is hosting Quebec impressionist Pierre Nadeau Aug. 27, 28 and 29. It will be Naudeau’s first show since exhibiting at the Grand Palais in Paris last February. Following COVID-19 guidelines, Nadeau will have self-isolated in Nova Scotia for the mandatory 14-day period prior to his show.
“We’re unbelievably excited,” Rhynold said of the show. “We’re the only show he’s had in Canada this year after coming back from Paris, so that’s a huge accolade for us to be chosen for that.”
The works of renowned marine artist J. Franklin Wright, of Port Hawkesbury, also grace the studio space, along with titles from Aboriginal artists Norval Morrisseau and Alan Syliboy, of Millbrook, Colchester County, whose work is inspired by ancient Mi’kmaq petroglyphs.
Alan Syliboy’s work has been displayed at Down to Earth Art Gallery from the time the studio opened its doors almost 24 years ago. – Joey Smith
“We’ve carried Alan the longest of any artist we’ve had, and we carried him from just a month or so after we opened,” said Rhynold.
“His colours are vibrant, and we ship his stuff as far away as New Zealand and all over Europe.”
The price tag on some paintings at Rhynold’s studio might make the common man’s eyes pop and jaw drop, including pieces by Morrisseau and Wright that are in the $25,000 to $28,000 range. However, many collectors are willing to absorb the cost if it means adding premium pieces to their collections.
Frank Wright’s ‘Royal William Glory Bound’ sells for $28,000. – Joey Smith
“You are paying for the artist and the notoriety and the value of that artist, and we have a number of artists whose pieces are only going one way as far as value goes – Alan’s being one of them, Pierre’s and Frank’s – all of these artists’ prices and values have increased over the years,” said Rhynold.
Antigonish artists such as Bill Rogers and Kate Georgallas also have their paintings displayed at Down to Earth. Supporting local artists and having their work in her studio is important, says Rhynold, as they add community pieces that people in the region can relate to.
“These guys, even though they’re local, they are getting some notoriety as well.”
Rhynold grew up in Guysborough County, but has spent the past 40 years in Antigonish. She calls the art industry a “be-happy business” and says there are others locally, who, like herself, have a real passion for art and understand the value of having galleries in small communities.
“It’s one of those things no matter how often people come in, and locally, things change regularly, so they’re always looking at new pieces and they look at it with new eyes too every time they come,” she said. “You learn things, you find out you liked a piece of art that you never thought you would like, so it’s well-received and it becomes an experience for people and a good experience.”
Maud Lewis’ piece, ‘Two Oxen’. – Joey Smith
Did you know?
Down to Earth also offers a custom framing service, and has framed 30,000 pieces over the years – everything from paintings, to hockey jerseys, to graduation photos and a whole lot more.
Kate Georgallas is a local artist, whose work is displayed and sold at Down to Earth Art Gallery. – Joey Smith
LONDON (AP) — With a few daubs of a paintbrush, the Brontë sisters have got their dots back.
More than eight decades after it was installed, a memorial to the three 19th-century sibling novelists in London’s Westminster Abbey was amended Thursday to restore the diaereses – the two dots over the e in their surname.
The dots — which indicate that the name is pronounced “brontay” rather than “bront” — were omitted when the stone tablet commemorating Charlotte, Emily and Anne was erected in the abbey’s Poets’ Corner in October 1939, just after the outbreak of World War II.
They were restored after Brontë historian Sharon Wright, editor of the Brontë Society Gazette, raised the issue with Dean of Westminster David Hoyle. The abbey asked its stonemason to tap in the dots and its conservator to paint them.
“There’s no paper record for anyone complaining about this or mentioning this, so I just wanted to put it right, really,” Wright said. “These three Yorkshire women deserve their place here, but they also deserve to have their name spelled correctly.”
It’s believed the writers’ Irish father Patrick changed the spelling of his surname from Brunty or Prunty when he went to university in England.
Raised on the wild Yorkshire moors, all three sisters died before they were 40, leaving enduring novels including Charlotte’s “Jane Eyre,” Emily’s “Wuthering Heights” and Anne’s “The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.”
Rebecca Yorke, director of the Brontë Society, welcomed the restoration.
“As the Brontës and their work are loved and respected all over the world, it’s entirely appropriate that their name is spelled correctly on their memorial,” she said.
