Maybe you've heard, maybe you've seen: we have a whole collection of new art by McKenna Prather in the gallery. For those of you that are stuck at home, we wanted to share this blog with you to show a current glance into our space.
McKenna is an artist from Calgary, making paintings inspired by Canadian wildlife. She graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Alberta University of the Arts in 2018, and she has spent the last few years working as a freelance artist. McKenna was the 2019 Homes by Avi Stampede Rotary Dream Home Artist and has a growing following of collectors across Canada.
After she uses acrylic paint on stretched canvas, McKenna embroiders into the painting to add detail and texture. Her subject matter varies from animals to flowers, landscape and still-life. In a collaged fashion, she layers elements that are painted realistically, flat, or patterned.
Inspired by her family of makers and artisans, McKenna’s work has a folk-art quality. This is shown through playful mark-making, or representing textures of homemade objects, such as a quilt or knit blanket.
The collection showcased in FivePoint is inspired by Alberta’s flora and fauna. It captures animals such as antelope, red fox, and elk, and includes landscapes like the Rocky Mountains and grasslands. Using vibrant colours and patterns, this collection takes a whimsical approach to representing local wildlife.
While we've all been fawning over McKenna's art over the last few weeks, some people have been plotting their purchases. We've already seen a couple of paintings by McKenna find new homes and we couldn't be happier about it. Keep your eyes on the blog for notifications when more art comes in!
Don't forget: we have reproduced some of McKenna's art for our limited edition doob cases. Looking for a way to support a local artist and take home a little piece of functional fine art? These collectable doob cases also make great gifts!