2011 VAB Board of Directors include new member

Visual Arts Brampton welcome Alecia Charny, new to our Board of Directors. A relatively new member of VAB, Charny creates at our Thursday daytime open studio sessions, with Jacqueline Veltri. The rest of the board returns in their previous positions:

• Keith Moreau, president
• Jacqueline Veltri, vice-president
• Pat Wepf, treasurer
• Bill Riopka, secretary
• Stephanie Czolij, Paul Draper, Marian Simpson

Wepf has informed us that this will be her final year as treasurer, and we thank her for her years of assistance. We are in the process of finding a replacement for the 2012-2013 annum.

VAB's 25th continues at Rose Theatre, March to June

Currently on display at the Art Gallery at the Rose Theatre are Visual Arts Brampton artists Debra Ali, William Band, Keith Moreau, Ryan Christopher Thompson, and Jacqueline Veltri. The show features five works of each of the five artists, in celebration of the group's 25th anniversary. The show wraps March 3.

Visual Arts Brampton has been invited back for a continuation. Along with works by the five artists listed above, various other members are participating in this second showing. They are Cindy Langdon, Luis Barrios, Paul Highgate, Peter Emslie, Merlene Boyce, Yulia Duchenko, Betty Jean Evans, and Stephanie Czolij.

This second show will premiere to visitors that night, viewing shows Aion Clarke and Kellylee Evans, and  ALTdot Comedy Lounge on Location, and continue on until early June 2011.

EnviroArt winners announced

As promised, here's the list of winners for the EnviroArt contest.

First place went to Ethan Peluso for "The earth cries out, won't you help?"

Runner ups

• Olivia Pietrangelo for "Putting paper back into trees"
• Daniel Battaglia for "Without care today could become tomorrow"
• Ian Eubanas for "World BBQ Day"
• Paulina Su for "City Imprisons Nature"
• Stephanie Czolij for "Untitled"

For more coverage, check out The Brampton Guardian article "Enviro-Art winners announced".

The Brampton News: Artist explores visual inspiration

Brampton - While dedicating long hours to her passion, Stephanie Czolij wants to keep things light-hearted. “I often insist on keeping things fun while trying to fulfill assignment requirements.”

In her fourth and final year at University of Guelph, Stephanie is close to completing her Bachelor of Arts.

Her levity ties many of the works in her current solo exhibit at the Artway Gallery together.

Well over two dozens of her drawings, paintings, etchings, block prints, computer graphics, and mixed media works are on display from now until January 26th. The collection on display, titled “Visual Ramblings”, draws from various personal inspirations, ranging from the Baroque and Renaissance, to various artists throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, to the contemporary imagery of instant messaging graphics.

Stephanie was originally a student at St. Thomas Aquinas, and for two-and-a-half years, Visual Arts Brampton’s teen classes.

Free, Artway Gallery is located in the corridor on the west side of Shoppers World mall, between The Bay and the food court. Shoppers World is located at 499 Main Street South, at the intersection of Hurontario and Steeles Avenue. Hurry though, as the short-run exhibit is only on for another two weeks.

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This article is still available on The Brampton News.

The Brampton Guardian: A rambling artist

From the Wednesday, January 10th, 2007 issue of The Brampton Guardian.

Stephanie Czolij is the featured Brampton artist in Visual Arts Brampton's Artway in Shopper's World. Her exhibit, which is on display until Jan. 26, is called Visual Ramblings. The show includes drawings, paintings, prints and digital works. Czolij is entering her final semester at the University of Guelph.

Artway: Stephanie Czolij

Running at Artway from January 6th to 26th, Visual Ramblings consists primarily of work created by Stephanie Czolij at the University of Guelph. Currently in the final semester for her Bachelor of Arts Honours, Stephanie was a VAB youth class member for 21/2 years.

At Guelph, she is majoring in Studio Art with a minor in Art History. She tells us:

"In my art historical studies, I’ve been most interested with the Baroque and Renaissance periods as well as the art and culture of Ancient Greece. In Studio Art I have had the opportunity to investigate a variety of art forms, but I’ve concentrated on drawing, computer graphics, and have most recently developed a greater interest in painting."

The exhibit includes drawings, paintings, prints and a couple of digital works. She believes the pieces show her development as an artist over the past few years, and the techniques and styles she experiments with and develops.

The majority of her work is fairly light-hearted--Stephanie insists on keeping things fun while trying to fulfill assignment requirements. Much of the work also reflects her interest in illustration.

Pictured is "My Masterpiece", based on a Roy Liechenstein, and a painting featuring Bambi and Mickey Mouse, called "Untitled".