Page 14 - The Enso Circle Artists-in-Residence Exhibition Catalog, December 2022

About

the GAIL HIGENELL

Artist &

the Growing up in urban cities, where nature was limited to postage-sized

backyards, I developed into an artist who is passionate about the natural
Work world and our present and past relationship to that world. I was born in

Birmingham, England and emigrated to Canada as a small child. The

rolling hills of Fonthill, Ontario have been my home for the past 35 years,
as well as the setting for my creative workspace, Studio 1795.

Many years ago, I transitioned from a career in science to one in art.

This shift gave me an opportunity to share and integrate ideas from each
discipline. The value of this assimilation is original and is expressed
through my experimental techniques and conceptual themes that run
through my paintings. My art acts as a bridge inviting the viewer to cross

over and re-establish or restore a faded connection with nature.

The interconnectedness of nature is a key element in my work and
surfaces through suggestions of belonging, enchantment, awe, and

mystery. My previous paintings captured my experience of the ‘sense of
place’ of a location. I was inspired, during this residency, to intentionally
create a ‘sense of place’, directly on the substrate. This image is one
of eight in a series called The Geography of Belonging. It was chosen

because it best represents a ‘new geography’, one where belonging
links matter to place. Images of ancient materials merge with images
of contemporary nature to create the essence of belonging. Within the
natural world I find myself exploring and investigating the minute details

one often misses in nature: texture, line, form, colour, and pattern.
These become the elements that I use in my work.

My process involves layering original and manipulated photographs,

with paint, paper, wax, asemic writing, text, and fiber. This ‘new
geography’ offers the viewer an opportunity to pause and sparks the
imagination. The remaining pieces in the series can be seen on my
website: gailhigenell.ca

14