PLACE – A solo Exhibition by AMY DRYER – Opening Night

We are very excited to announce the first of three gallery hops for 2023 . The long awaited solo exhibition “ PLACE” by Amy Dryer will open the gallery season .
Artist Statement
Place Exhibit
Spicer Merrifield Gallery,
Saint John, NB
2023
I live in an older house, for Calgary standards, built in 1945. My husband and I have lived here for 20 years and the memories from those years have become embedded in the walls. At night when I put the kids to bed I find myself staring at the ceiling, a ceiling full of patterns, and thinking about the people who built this house.
In Anne Michael’s book, ‘The Winter Vault’, a character named Avery talks about his view of good architects, and how they create spaces with a deep awareness of how people will live in them. The architecture is able to create intimate spaces to contain every day stories.
My memories of Saint John, N.B are those of a child, and children’s memories are particularly poignant. I remember my grandparents house with fondness: its rich colors, endless curious rooms and the people that occupied them. I aim to paint the way that I saw the world as a child.
My goal in making the show, ‘Place,’ is to capture the intimacy of Saint John — both in how I remember it and what I consider to be its poetic intimacy. People experience these buildings, both inside and outside, through common activities, such as reading, sitting and walking. My paintings aim to showcase people and spaces alike, and how they intertwine with each other throughout time.