Sheila Kernan

Sheila Kernan Description

From a family with strong ties to the arts and a belief in fostering all things creative, Calgary’s Sheila Kernan has journeyed from childhood Saskatoon to an education at the Alberta College of Art and Design to world travels filled with endless inspiration.

Today, Sheila continues her rapid ascent of the art world ranks, thanks to her extraordinary ability to transform city, prairie, and mountain landscape interpretations onto canvas, creating her own vibrant utopias teeming with life, depth and colour.

Sheila has already been named an active member of Federation of Canadian Artists, been granted full membership into the Alberta Society of Artists, named to the Heritage Property Corporations Art Exhibition and honoured with the Canadian Society of Painters in Watercolour’s Julias Griffith Memorial Award.

Proof she’s as Calgarian as they come, however, Sheila has been a featured artist in the Stampede Rotary Dream home and had her work showcased in the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede Western Showcase.

Sheila’s fascination with bright lights of the cityscape and golden hues of the Canadian prairie, and remarkable ability to paint them into something immensely more intense and alive than seen by the naked eye has led collectors and curators alike to deem her “the one to watch”.
Sheila’s combination of youthful vision, enthusiasm for art and talent for transposing her vivid imagination into one-of-kind works make her one of Calgary’s most sought after artists, and without a doubt, someone from whom there is much to come.

Sheila Kernan Statement

With an endless array of fascinating subjects and my camera on hand I am eager to experience,explore, and document my surroundings. Observing each unique environment. I pay close attention to the many different characteristics and subtleties. Absorbing the ambiance.Feeling compelled to reflect my love for such moments. I draw upon sketches, memories and photographic references. Taking a moment to reflect upon many whimsical visions. Reacting with a sense of urgency to describe them. It’s pure delight. Stories spill over onto the canvas with simplicity. Nothing is better than paint gliding across the canvas. A multitude of patterns and reflections form from the paint squishing, oozing and blending together. Surfaces become filled with thick impasto marks, brilliant colours, and flat shapes that fuse and meld together to create conversations. Transcending into a mystical realism that inspires us to see the world in a new and exciting way. My work celebrates a connectedness to our physical and spiritual environments. I believe paintings should be alive. Filled with energy and excitement. They should bring a sense of joy and allow you to reflect upon them. I paint to share with you my understandings of the world. I paint to develop a connection to the world. I paint to emulate the calmness of nature. I paint to create a world where you can choose to let your imagination fill in the gaps. I paint to experience life. The world is breathtaking and I just have to capture it. The possibilities are endless!

 

Sheila Kernan Resumé

Education

2006  Bachelor Fine Arts, Painting, Alberta College of Art and Design (ACAD), Calgary, AB

2002  Fine Arts, University College of the Caribou, Kamloops, BC

1998  Emma Lake International Art Conference, Emma Lake, SK

 

Exhibitions

2014  Snow Days, Canada House Gallery, Banff, AB

2013  Dynamic Demo Day, Canada House Gallery, Banff, AB

2013  A Time. A Place. A Connection, Gibson Fine Art, Calgary, AB (Solo)

2013  Memories and Impressions, Canada House Gallery, Banff, AB (Solo)

2012  Ground Level, Mayberry Fine Art, Toronto, ON (Solo)

2012  Between The Lines, Gibson Fine Art, Calgary, AB (Solo)

2012  Boundless, Assiniboia Gallery, Regina, SK (Solo)

2012  Dare To Dream, Canada House Gallery, Banff, AB (Solo)

2011  Free To Imagine, Gibson Fine Art, Calgary, AB (Solo)

2011  What May Come, Assiniboia Gallery, Regina, SK (Solo)

2011  Urban Experience: The City as a Sensory Machine, Elevation Gallery, Canmore, AB

2010  On the Edge of It, Gibson Fine Art, Calgary, AB (Solo)

2010  Calgary Stampede Western Showcase Artist, Stampede grounds, Calgary, AB

2010  Playful Interpretations: People and Places, Elevation Gallery, Canmore, AB

2009  Nowhere Near Ordinary: An Indulgence for Your Senses, Gibson Fine Art, Calgary, AB (Solo)

2009  A Bird A Stone A Letter, Federation of Canadian Artists Gallery, Vancouver, BC

2009  Calgary Stampede Western Showcase Artist, Stampede grounds, Calgary, AB

2009  Contrast and Harmony, Elevation Gallery, Canmore, AB

2008  Vibrations of Colour, Gibson Fine Art, Calgary AB

2006  Just and Indication, Marion Nicoll Gallery Main Space, ACAD, Calgary, AB (Solo)

2005  Simply Squared, Marion Nicoll Gallery, Epcor Centre for the Performing Arts, Calgary, AB (Solo)

 

Publications

Unknown “New Public Art to enliven walls in Banff” Rocky Mountain Outlook 2013 01 24

Barlow, Larissa “The Art of Banff” Banff Crag and Canyon Saturday, January 26, 2013

Macpherson, Alex J “Sheila Kernan’s Work Bold, Vivid, Boundless” Verb 1 June 2012

Gunn, Andrew Canadianinterviews.com/arts/ Sheila Kernan “Light In The City” 20 July 2011

Seiberling, Irene “Colour her successful” Leader-Post 11 June 2011

Seiberling, Irene “Art Star Grew up in Saskatoon” The Star Phoenix 15 June 2011

White, Richard “9 Artists To Consider Right Now” Galleries West Fall issue 2011

Alexander, Rob “Elevation Showing Evokes Sense of Fun” Rocky Mountain Outlook 2010 04 15

Sea, Lynda “Lights Fantastic” Avenue Magazine 6 June 2009

McLaws, Nicole “Capturing Spring… on Canvas” Décor Magazine Calgary Sun 12 March 2009

Vaive, Nicole “Home is Where Your Art is” Calgary Sun 34 June 2008

Hope, Marty “Artists Works Part of the House” Calgary Herald 14 July 5 2008

 

Commissions

2013  Town of Banff Public Art Installation

 

Affiliations

2008  Active Member of the Federation of Canadian Artists, Vancouver, BC

2007  Full Membership to the Alberta Society of Artists (ASA), Calgary, AB

 

Awards

2012 / 2013  Banff Public Art installation, Bear Street Mall Wall, Banff, AB

2010  Calgary Stampede Best New Artist 2010 Western Showcase, Calgary, AB

2008  Awarded Active Membership to the Federation of Canadian Artists

2008  Awarded Full Membership to the Alberta Society of Artists, Calgary, AB

2006  Bachelor Fine Arts, Painting, Alberta College of Art and Design (ACAD), Calgary, AB

 

Credits

2014  Guest Juror, 2014 Calgary Stampede Western Showcase

2008  Featured artist of the Stampede Rotary Dream Home 2008, Stampede Grounds, Calgary, AB

2004  Juro, Marion Nicoll Gallery, Alberta College of Art and Design (ACAD), Calgary, Alberta

2002  Sales Associate, Canada House Art Gallery, Banff, Alberta

2000  Visiting Artist, Artists at Work Program, Mendel Art Gallery School Art 2000 Exhibit, Saskatoon, SK

 

Collections

ATB Financial

Calgary Health Region

H&R Block

Maxim Group

Calgary Health Region

Pulcinella’s Restaurant

AFA Alberta Foundation for the Arts

Design Factor Homes

Calgary Health Region

Brookfield

Taurus Reality Group

Numerous Private Collections