Fair Gloaming – Kim Fortin
Fair Gloaming – Kim Fortin
Opening Reception: Saturday November 7, 6pm – 9pm (part of a 5-stop downtown gallery crawl)
Fair Gloaming – Kim Fortin
The gloaming is the moment that lingers between day and night. It is equally neither and both. The gloaming inspires a sense of calm and becoming, preparation and magic, gestation and endings. This gloaming has often appeared in folklore as a moment that invites the uninitiated, binds the spell, or begins the hero’s journey. Ritual spaces have long used visual elements reminiscent of the gloaming to sanctify space, making emotional and psychological room to commune with the sacred. Similarly, abstract art often uses the play between light and colour to replicate these qualities and invite the viewer in, convey emotion, and spark wonder.
For this series I chose to create my own materials. The labour invested parallels the prototypical tasks assigned to the uninitiated in folklore who accept the invitation to participate in the lore. I readied myself for the journey by building panels, preparing them with traditional gesso, and using encaustic paint, all made in studio. Direct participation in each step of the artistic process connects me with the lineage of past creators.
To allow the work to grow and develop organically I have purposely limited my ability to control the final image. I have chosen the colour pallette, manipulated the transparency of the material and planned the structured compositional elements. However, as each layer is applied, manipulated and scraped away, unexpected and largely uncontrollable details grow and emerge, mimicking the organic growth of nature and the unpredictable wear of time. The result is a scattering of colour and light reminiscent of the worn fragments of bright pigments seen on old cathedral walls and stained glass windows.
The work in this series is influenced by the precedent set in the fragmented and random use of colour by Gerhard Richter in his 2006 Cage series of squeegee paintings, and the deep layering of colour and light in the work of Mark Rothko. In these pieces form gives way, allowing the interplay of colours to become more central. Light and colour become the subject.
Kim Fortin is a painter, textile and metal artist rooted in the southern Alberta town of Vulcan, where she has lived since earning her BFA at ACAD (now AUArts). Through combinations of traditional and non-traditional techniques, materials and themes, Kim seeks to capture the essence of moments that repeat throughout time, culture, and lore. Equally influenced by ecclesiastical architecture and abstract art, Kim attempts to replicate the space between light and dark in her encaustic painting series Fair Gloaming.
Date:November 7th, 2026 - January 8th, 2027
Location:Casa - Concourse Gallery
Casa Program Guide
The Casa Program Guide is produced three times a year; Winter, Spring/Summer and Fall. Inside the guide find listings for the upcoming class and workshop schedule, upcoming exhibitions at The Gallery, information about artists in residence and seasonal events in the building. Program guides are free. Pick-up guides at Casa or at facilities throughout the city.