This year's Silent Auction includes artwork donated by the following artists as well as other items related to Food, Art and Entertainment.

Joan Archer

Joan has developed a unique interpretation of abstract realism by painting wet on wet using broad brush strokes and a tricolour palette. Her colours are blended directly on unstretched medium or rough paper. By allowing water and paint to interact naturally on the paper, Joan is able to convey a sense of tranquility and peace in her work. She seeks to capture the spiritual as well as the visual beauty of simple shapes that surround us. Natural landscapes, old buildings, boats and classical music provide unlimited sources of inspiration. Her paintings can be found in private collections across North America.
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Barb Bowen-Saez

Coming from an Irish-Chilean family and having grown-up veld area of North Eastern South Africa , Barb moved to Vancouver permanently in 1997. Her vast travel experience and multi-cultural background has allowed her to interpret the world from a unique perspective. Although she studied art at tertiary education level for eight years, she has concluded that when producing art work, it should stem from one's life and surroundings. Thus, her own art has developed from things, places and people that confront her daily. She prefers to have people with whom she has close relationships to be models and often draws from the visual platter of landscapes that Vancouver has to offer.
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Clay Davidson

Clay Davidson is an award-winning artist and resident in Toronto, he is now being represented by Art Works Gallery in Vancouver. Davidson’s unique point of view through the eye of the camera has resulted in dramatic black and white compositions, with his creative use of light and shadow. Architecture, nature and the human form inspire him, and his most recent exhibit was of the West Coast Culture that was held in Paris, France. Currently, Davidson’s series titled “Spirit of the West Coast” are available and can be viewed at Art Works Gallery in Vancouver. Davidson has been recognized and awarded by the Festival of Canadian Fashion and the Commonwealth Photographic Awards. Working together in the fight against hunger Davidson and Art Works Gallery donated a framed photograph of August Rodin’s sculptural embrace titled “Le Baiser” (The Kiss). The piece is valued at $368.00.
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Bessie Luteyn

Bessie was born in Saskatchewan and attended the University of British Columbia. It was her daily walks in the woods that first awakened her interest in tree bark and then in figured wood. With virtually no tools she began to create naturalistic but highly polished wood sculptures achieved by hand rubbing and generous use of running water. Over time she experimented with various sculptural techniques on various types of wood. From there, she graduated to surface designs on second hand wooden bowls as form, function and her love of pottery intersected. From then on, she decided to make concrete bend to her will rather than clay. The concrete plate series incorporates dry pigments, stones, minerals, charred wood, string, sand etc. Her wood sculptures retain most surface distortions; i.e., gouges, cracks, splits, embedded stones, etc. Bessie's tools are the four elements.
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Jeremy Morris

Upon graduation from Guelph University with a degree in Fine Art and English Literature, Jeremy moved to Ottawa, where he developed an interest in stained glass design and production. By the early eighties, Jeremy was creating pieces based on both traditional and original designs. In 1986, he began teaching classes in stained glass through the local school board and at retail businesses. From 1983-1991, Jeremy exhibited his glass work at The Wells Gallery Ottawa and has participated in many group shows in both Ontario and Vancouver. Since moving to Vancouver, Jeremy has opened his own glass studio, Great Panes, where he creates one of a kind stained and fused glass pieces.
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Ross Munro

Ross Munro lives in North Vancouver, B.C. He has painted all his life and began exhibiting his work in 1970 in Ottawa. Since 1977, he has worked in watercolour and acrylics. Ross teaches watercolour and drawing with the North Shore Art School and the Seymour Art Gallery in Deep Cove.
Munro's landscapes are strong and simple, using broad subtle washes in watercolour, and vibrant colour in acrylics. Lively expressive brushwork creates an impression of power - images of nature capture the sweep of a river or the nuances of wind on water. The mood created is of the calming presence of wilderness. The piece donated is a painting entitled 'Johnstone Straits' and a $200 certificate toward a commissioned piece.
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Dominique Norville

Is a Vancouver artist based in East Vancouver who works primarily with photography, collage and book making. She began her art education in her late twenties and is working hard to catch up and learn it all. She is a member of the art collective 'Me & My 3 Friends,' who document personal and political life on the East side. Their work can be viewed at galleries around the city and at their annual studio sale. At this point in her life, Dominque is juggling work and art as well as being a Master’s candidate in Art Therapy. She is a firm believer in the healing power of art, for both the creator and the observer. The piece she is donating was created by using a colour copier to photograph avocadoes and then solarizing the picture. Her print is valued at $100, and is named 'Solar Fruit.'
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Paul Ohannesian

Paul took up art professionally in 1992, after leaving his first profession of architect. He practices visual art in several media, including intaglio printmaking, watercolour and mixed media painting. He is a member of Dundarave Printmaking Cooperative on Granville Island as well as a member of the Federation of Canadian Artists.
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Tim Paterson

Tim was born and raised in Vancouver, as a child he was very creative and always dreamed of being a painter. After graduating from BCIT, he worked on many building projects and won the prestigious Georgie Award in 1997 for restoration of a heritage house. This experience has contributed to his understanding of creativity, self- expression and attention to detail. Tim's artistry is largely self-taught, he has studied Art History in Europe and is constantly expanding his skills and developing his talent. As a result his style has evolved from black and white geometric shapes to bold, bright colours with an organic feel.
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Will Rafuse

Will Rafuse is a published artist whose works hang in corporate and private collections in over sixty countries world-wide.  Inspired by the works of Modigliani, Gauguin, and Balthus, Will’s medium is oil on canvas, and he is best known for the bright colours and the slightly-animated twist of the subjects he paints. Will Rafuse is well-known for his whimsical and colourful oil paintings of chefs, restaurants and servers. Rafuse has donated an original piece entitled 'Lorenzo' for sale at the silent auction. Painted in true Rafuse style, 'Lorenzo' fits well with the TASTE OF THE NATION theme, Food Is Art.   The vibrant colours that Rafuse uses reflect the excitement and the style of this event. Rafuse’s 'Lorenzo' is also featured on all of the promotional material for the 12th Annual TASTE OF THE NATION event. Value $1500.
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Stephen Rowe

Stephen Rowe was born in 1970 in Keswick, Ontario. He studied Classical Animation at Sheridan College in Ontario and relocated to Vancouver, BC. in 1992, where he attended Emily Carr College of Art and Design focusing on Computer Animation. While Stephen has studied many fields of art, he is a self-taught painter. Stephen uses acrylic on canvas to create his vivid floral images. These are flowers with attitude. Rather than portraying flowers in full bloom, when they are perceived to be most beautiful and symmetrically balanced, Stephen directs his efforts towards bringing out the life and character in each flower. He creates a candid portrait of a flower in thought. The paintings are not intended to be exact representations of each flower; Stephen often changes features of the flowers to suit the overall image. Strong colour and composition make these images ideal for someone who desires artwork that will be noticed and appreciated. They become the focal point in a room. Stephen’s website can be viewed at www.stephenrowe.com.
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Krisdy Shindler

Krisdy Shindler is a Vancouver born visual artist and graduate of Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design. Her work has been exhibited at the Emily Carr Institute and was recently featured in the group exhibition 'Failure' at the Morris and Helen Belkin Satelite Gallery. Her paintings are romantically inspired by the voyage of science into the depths of our physical universe. These abstract musings on contemporary physics theory portray both an optimistic and fearful fascination with the progress of science and technology over the past century. Shindler’s dynamically vibrant paintings, being both scientific and abstract, allow the viewers’ imagination to journey from a familiar realm, to the realm of the unknown. Donating an oil on linen and board painting entitled Beckoning Theory.
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Estelle Silver

I feel the energy and beauty of nature, and I take pleasure in sharing that experience with others through my work. My paintings portray impressions of nature that focus in light and express my passion for flowers and trees. Each piece is an adventure that takes shape as I work with acrylic and watercolour. In my work, I hope that you can find a place to pause and reflect for a moment to appreciate the wonders of nature that exist all around us.
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Anne Taylor

Anne is a Vancouver-based photographer who splits her time between this city and Bellingham, Washington. She is currently showing a retrospective of her work at Fiction on West Broadway. She will be donating an untitled photograph valued at $350.
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Other artists donating works for the Silent Auction will also be featured in this space soon. Check back for updates. For further details, please contact us at silent auction