Karen Blanchet: The Veil
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VASA Gallery and Studios 25 Sir Winston Churchill Avenue, St. Albert, Alberta T8N 2S7
Karen Blanchet, "The Veil," 2019
Opening Reception – Thursday, November 7th, 6:00- 9:00pm
“The veil was torn from top to bottom…” Matt 27:51, Mk 15:38, Luke 23:45
As a member of the world population on this jewel of a planet, I would like to offer something positive and lasting for the benefit of future generations. Not long ago I discovered the difference between charity and social justice. I have come to realise charity is a band-aid used to maintain the status quo and, at best, a temporary help in times of crisis. There seems to be a growing need for it these days. Social justice, on the other hand, attempts to source out the root causes of the dis-ease with a view to rectifying the imbalance. Much more long term. And peace can only be achieved within a balanced world.
Many comments verify an ambiance of peace within my images. Ambiance is good as far as it goes. Underlying the semblance of peace, however, is a desire to disturb the universe, to create awareness among the comfortable. The poetry and the Bible quotes aim at doing so. Yet in the hidden recesses of the painting they often go unnoticed.
Placing the poetry on a transparent veil covering the landscape brings more attention to the words. The veil moves with a passing breeze catching light here and there. Lifting the veil reveals another visual reminder of the beauty surrounding us and the responsibility we have to care for it as well as each other.
The veil separating the assembly from the “Holy of Holies” was torn from top to bottom upon the death of Jesus. Separation is an illusion created to protect the privileged. All is sacred. Now is the acceptable time to desist in the desecration of the holy. Let us begin today. - Karen Blanchet