Editor's note: The Squamish Valley ArtWalk 2005 Studio & Gallery Tour is set for Saturday, Sept. 17 and Sunday, Sept. 18 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. with local artists displaying their works in their own studios and local galleries. This is the fourth in a series of articles profiling each participant.
Judy McQuinn: Stained Glass
40257 Kalodon Road
Judy was born and raised on Vancouver Island and now lives in Squamish operating a bed and breakfast along with her home based stained glass business.
Always fascinated with stained glass, Judy was living in Port McNeill when the opportunity arose to take a community college course. One piece of glass led to another, she continued to learn and improve and as happens in a small town became the instructor.
Judy has worked with glass for 25 years and she creates a variety of art from whimsical to classic all with attention to detail and intricacy which is indicative of her own personal style.
Sasha Pello-Lenser: Jewelry
40628 Perth Drive
Sasha's Secrets began in B.C. She designs pieces that reminded her of certain days, certain places and certain feelings. A lot of her work is inspired by nature and the elements.
Through her pieces you see sunsets, waterfalls, fire and mountains. Canada's landscapes on the west coast have been key to her creativity with her jewelry. Using a large assortment of semi-precious stones and Sterling Silver, she hand crafts beautiful pieces.
She works with almost any colour of stone, using anything from chips to facet cut stones. Every piece has much dedication, love and time put into it.
Each piece is named after the women she knows.
Maureen Provencal: Photographer
38078 Cleveland AvenueMaureen began taking an interest in photography when she moved to Whistler in the mid-80's. She took her camera out on adventures with friends. Her commercial work developed from a growing image bank. She expanded to photographing weddings and she has been photographing people and the environment ever since.
Jenny Smack: Potter
38832 Newport Road
Jenny is an emerging ceramic artist with a studio and gallery in Paradise Valley. She graduated with honours from Skidmore College in New York with a B.A. in Studio Art. Jenny spent two years as a U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer in Honduras. She initiated the development of a pottery workshop to promote the continuation of native craft.
In 1999, she worked as the assistant to American sculptor, Martha Posner and also taught children's art in New Jersey while studying sculpture and ceramics at college.
In 2000, she was invited to apprentice with B.C. potter Vincent Massey. Jenny continues to assist him.
In Squamish, Jenny is President of the Squamish Valley Artist Society and showed at the Foyer Gallery for the month of February as part of a group show. Jenny will have a solo exhibit in November.
Fran Solar: Metal Weaver
1001 Tobermory Way
Fran has been a weaver for many years, specializing in functional clothing and textiles, using traditional fibers and techniques.
In the mid-90's, she began to experiment with basketry. After taking workshops at Basket Focus Conferences in Toronto, Ottawa, and the Okanagan, she developed an interest in using metals from scrap yards, hardware stores and Boeing Surplus. She used the materials to create unique woven sculptures. She finds she has more fun improvising arrangements of shapes, textures, materials, and colors than she did as a traditional fiber artist. She still uses the same loom-based textile techniques developed from earlier years to weave these new sculptural forms.
