Steven Rhude - Paintings/Drawings

Spirit Cliff #2, oil on copper, 12" x 20.5", Steven Rhude Spirit Cliff #3, oil on copper, 10" x 20", Steven Rhude "A particular place in the land is never, for an oral culture, just a passive or inert setting for the human events that occur there. It is an active participant in those occurrences. Indeed, by virtue of its underlying and enveloping presence, the place may even be felt to be the source, the primary power that expresses itself through the various events that unfold there."  -David Abram, Spell of the Sensuous, pg 162 http://www.stevenrhudefineart.com/ A particular place in the land is never, for an oral culture, just a passive or inert setting for the human events that occur there. It is an active

Spirit Stone, Cape Blomidon, oil on canvas, 20" x 30", Steven Rhude https://ancientstoneart.blogspot.ca/p/did-you-know-that-native-americans.html They (Mi'kmaq) would have left under our very feet, in stream beds or along shore lines like Cape Blomidon, a long standing stone carving art form that held the conviction that a stone contains the spirit of a person, animal, bird, etc. Manipulated in one's hand, or held up against the sky, or sun - or fire light, one can explore the cultural practices of their lives and ethos as they elaborated on that which the stone contains. Steven Rhude, Wolfville, NS http://www.stevenrhudefineart.com/  

Spirit Cliff #1, Cape Blomidon, oil on panel, 19" x 20", Steven Rhude Glooscap was said by the Mi'kmaq to be great in size and in powers, and to have created natural features such as the Annapolis Valley . In carrying out his feats, he often had to overcome his evil twin brother who wanted rivers to be crooked and mountain ranges to be impassable; in one legend, he turns the evil twin into stone. Another common story is how he turned himself into a giant beaver and created five islands in the Bay of Fundy , Nova Scotia by slapping his huge tail in the water with enough force to stir up the earth. His home was said to be Cape Blomidon . - Wikipedia Steven Rhude, Wolfville, NS http://www.stevenrhudefineart.com/

  Recently Bloomberg News reported on the dramatic unloading of the so called "Zombie Art" market in recent auctions. Often rationalized as the emergent market, the contrasting example this time is a Canadian work by Hugh Scott-Douglas. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-09-19/that-100-000-painting-bought-to-flip-yours-for-about-20-000 What was once apparently valued at 100K is now worth 20K. The idea of young and mostly inexperienced artists garnering even $20,000 (less commission) for a single work, let alone 100,000 strikes me as absurd, but likewise as in real estate, this is about the art of the flip, not about the aesthetics and meaningfulness of cultural production, or an artist's skill, depth of study and developed vision.  A much needed probity in terms of social and cultural value is required. But where, if it exists can it be found? Four Seasons, New York Certainly not in the studios of  Bloomberg, covering hucksterism, and the robber b...

Roxanne During WW2, Near Canso, 35" x 22", oil on panel, Steven Rhude I will miss Roxanne, I hardly got to know her, and our time together was too brief. I thank her for her services rendered. I understand she is, like many a maritimer before her, headed down the road to Toronto. Be careful, it is a big city, yet full of kind, creative, and wonderful people - I can testify to this since it is where I grew up. I understand her reasons for going, and trust she will be appreciated where there is a larger market for her expertise. Bonne chance! :) Steven Rhude, Wolfville, NS http://www.stevenrhudefineart.com/  

Post Cod, oil on board, 24" x 24", Steven Rhude, part of Terroir, AGNS At the End of the Day, Rug Hooking, Laura Kenney, part of Terroir, AGNS Halifax   Event Art Gallery of Nova Scotia   https://www.artgalleryofnovascotia.ca/events-programs/terroir-talk-artists-laura-kenney-steven-rhude   Terroir Talk with artists Laura Kenney & Steven Rhude Sunday, 2 October 2016 - 2:30pm to 3:30pm Talks & Tours Join Terroir: a Nova Scotia Survey artists Laura Kenney and Steven Rhude for an in-depth discussion of their work and their on-going joint project. This project explores the Nova Scotian communities, their world, and shared future as framed by a post cod world. FREE with admission. About the Artists Laura Kenney was born in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan but her roots are in Nova Scotia and has resided in the province for the past 20 years. She has lived in many towns and cities across Canada as well as Germany and Jap...

Herbes de l'esprit , de l'Acadie, oil on panel, 28.5" x 22.75", Steven Rhude "A still life, really, is a fleet of cargo ships setting out to sea on a canal lined with gabled buildings. It’s ermine-trimmed silk jackets on barrel-chested ambassadors who are leaning, shoulders cocked, on Persian rugs. It’s a cellar of salt from processing plants in Venezuela sat next to lemons from the Mediterranean. It’s the dogged pursuit of empire and commodity, and a total assurance that every ounce of self-made wealth was not merely earned, but ordained." -  Caoimhe Morgan-Feir ,  https://canadianart.ca/features/banff-centre-still-alive-residency/ Like the odd Acadia student jogging, or tourists seeking a respite from the sun for a restaurant, most are oblivious to the deportation of the Acadians while they traverse the Dykelands of the great upheaval. I Phone discourse and spandex dominate the image. All that one...

Exodus, oil on panel, 24" x 24", Steven Rhude "Stop and think what an uproar there would be if a real restructuring along the lines of past resettlement were tried today. Stop and think what real hard choices would actually look like today." - Russel Wangersky http://www.thetelegram.com/Opinion/Columnists/2016-05-21/article-4534162/Russell-Wangersky%3A-Erased-from-the-map/1 Steven Rhude, Wolfville, NS http://www.stevenrhudefineart.com/

Cod's Eye, Heart's Content, oil on board attached to another oil on board , 24" x 24", Steven Rhude “The sea is not less beautiful in our eyes because we know that sometimes ships are wrecked by it.” - Simone Weil, Waiting for God Steven Rhude, Wolfville, NS http://www.stevenrhudefineart.com/

Cod's Eye, Towards Argentia, o/p, 24" x 24", Steven Rhude "It is instructive to contrast this with the tendency of the Baroque to present the affects of the persons as clearly and intelligible as possible; to give them that expressione that can also be captured in concepts, for which purpose the eye is not really a useful device at all." - Georg Simmel, Rembrandt: An essay in the Philosophy of Art. [1] The over night ferry to Argentia charts one slowly along towards the land of the cod - an ancient migration. The cod's eye providing the traveller with a window into the soul of a place for those that realise the age of enlightenment and reason still needed the eye as an agent for rational, and not vice versa. Light plays the role of an intermediary, reflecting and registering an image at the back of our ocular screen to be forwarded to our brain for distinction and definition. Opacity is quickly registered, yet transparency, (or in painting the applic...