Artist not going solo
November 20, 2008 09:24 AM – This year, Erin Mills artist Zhi Qiang Lou will have some company at his annual art exhibition.
Typically, Lou shows his works in the oil and pastel media in a solo exhibition.
However, when his latest show opens tomorrow at Visual Arts Mississauga, Lou will be there like a proud papa, showcasing 10 pieces from five of his young students. The show gets underway with a reception, from 7-9 p.m.,
“I’m not nervous; I think people will like my students’ work,” Lou said. “Their work is very good so I asked them to join my exhibition. I think they will get some good experience from it. As I always tell them, keep (growing) and one day your art will be successful.”
Lou teaches the students for two hours, twice a week.
In addition to the student pieces, Lou will show about 50 of his original paintings.
Many of the works are influenced by the people, places and things of Mississauga. His chief source of inspiration is, arguably, Erindale Park.
For example, the oil painting, The Best Wish, came about after an early morning trip to the park. Last March, Lou ventured into the greenspace before the sun had even risen, to stake out a spot.
He hunkered down and waited until the sun was just peeking over the tops of the trees to snap his picture. Satisfied with what he managed to capture – a sun-drenched collection of saplings trembling towards the sky from a bed of frozen earth – Lou returned home to translate his vision from film to canvas.
“It was such a beautiful view,” said Lou, a member of the Mississauga Art Society. “The birds and animals had just started to make noise and the air (that early) is so fresh. It’s one day that’s just beginning.”
As a Mississauga artist, Lou feels it’s important to create pieces that reflect the community.
“People love to see paintings of places they know,” said Lou. “They know the (city) and they’ve lived here for years. I just received an e-mail from someone who bought my art who says they love looking at it every day.”
The exhibition continues Saturday and Sunday. Hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Lou will be in attendance throughout the weekend.
For more information, visit www.visualartsmississauga.com.
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