Wabi: Imperfect Beauty
Aggie Beynon, artist and metalsmith
January 24 to July 20, 2008
"Wabi-sabi is a beauty of things imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete.
It is the beauty of things modest and humble. It is the beauty of things unconventional"
— Leonard Koren, Wabi-Sabi: For Artists, Designers, Poets and Philosophers
Wabi: Imperfect Beauty was a retrospective exhibition of metal and mixed media works by Waterloo artist and metalsmith, Aggie Beynon. It was a body of work that revealed the depth of Beynon's experimentation, innovation and achievements over the past 20 years. The exhibition featured 51 jewelry pieces and vessels, including two Perfume Bottles from the Macdonald Stewart Art Centre's collection of contemporary Canadian works in metal.
Ann Roberts, in her catalogue essay, defined Wabi as “a word first used by Japanese Zen Buddhist tea masters, priests and monks whose practice emphasized direct, intuitive insight into transcendent truth beyond all intellectual conception.” This ancient philosophy is embodied in Beynon’s work: irregularity, simplicity, unaffectedness. Central to her practice is her technique of powder metallurgy through which she achieves a relationship between her materials and the rock formations that inspire their transformation. From powdered metal to jewelry or vessel, many of Beynon’s pieces transcend functional object to sculptural form.
Aggie Beynon achieved a BA in English from the University of Waterloo (1975), a BFA in Design from the University of Kansas (1982), and developed a patentable metal process with Ken Rose, Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Kansas (1980-84). In 1987, Beynon founded Harbinger Gallery Inc. in Waterloo where she is a leading figure in the growth and development of the arts community.
Wabi: Imperfect Beauty was curated by Suzanne Luke for The Robert Langen Art Gallery, Wilfrid Laurier University (Waterloo). The exhibition toured to the Anna Leonowens Gallery at the Nova Scotia College of Art & Design (Halifax") and the Illingworth Kerr Gallery at the Alberta College of Art & Design (Calgary).
Artist Talk with Aggie Beynon
followed immediately by a wine and cheese reception
Wednesday, January 30 at 7 PM
Image:
Untitled (Brooch), 1989
polished powdered metal (pure silver, copper) and sterling silver formed to clasp carved ebony, Rokusho patina,
10.0 x 6.0 x 2.5 cm
Collection of the artist