Virginia Gordon, Special to The Nugget
When you think of the word ‘art,’ what image does it conjure up?
Perhaps a landscape or portrait done in thick oil paints to show texture, or maybe a loose and free water colour depicting flowers or those plump clouds tinged pink with the setting sun?
What about the dark, fierce lines that adorn the cashier’s arm at the grocery store made into lettering honouring a lost loved one, or the massive explosion of colour that is permanently etched into the skin of your high school teacher’s back, hidden by dress shirts but ever present?
Do you see a difference among these examples?
At the WKP Gallery, we definitely don’t. We want to push forward the notion that all making, all creating, no matter the medium or canvas, is art and deserves its chance to be showcased in a contemporary gallery space.
That is exactly why coming up on the WKP Kennedy Gallery’s website we will soon be releasing a completely online exhibition devoted to showing off the vast amount of talent that North Bay’s tattoo artists have to offer.
This exhibition, curated by myself, will feature six of North Bay’s tattoo artists who come from different shops. Each has a different style and skillset to show you.
The exhibition will be online, linkable through our website under exhibitions, and will always be up so it is accessible for everyone at any time.
It also will feature a section on the history of tattoo art so you can learn the cultural and historical significance of body art, and understand that it is not a modern concept and should be treated with the respect of thousands of years of heritage.
Regardless of your opinion on the art style, we hope you appreciate the beautiful art these artists have produced and the amount of work that goes into their daunting profession. So stay tuned and always keep up to date on our social media accounts for the opening of the WKP Kennedy Gallery’s first tattoo exhibition, coming soon.
Virginia Gordon is gallery assistant at the WKP Kennedy Gallery in North Bay.