Laurier’s Robert Langen Art Gallery presents artist Vicky Talwar’s Shifting Energy Sept. 3 to Nov. 22

Sept. 3, 2024

Award-winning artist Vicky Talwar will bring her interdisciplinary talents to the Robert Langen Art Gallery at Wilfrid Laurier University to present the exhibition Shifting Energy from Sept. 3 to Nov. 22.

Talwar — a Hindu Canadian who lives and runs a studio in Stouffville, Ont. — combines painting, mixed media, performance art and installation artworks.

“Shifting Energy draws upon Talwar’s personal experience as a South-Asian Canadian and speaks to the hybridity of her cultural identity and the understanding of social displacement. This entanglement of social identity and post-colonial diasporic history invites viewers to reflect on the space between what is tangible and what is a distant memory,” says Suzanne Luke, university art curator of the Robert Langen Art Gallery.

Reoccurring spiritual motifs such as floral garlands, mala beads, sacred threads and salt are also introduced into Talwar’s works to suggest the intention of presence. “In this exhibition, I invite patrons to engage with the paintings and mandalas as a starting point to reflect on the ideas of purification, healing, and the space between what is tangible and what is a distant memory,” says Talwar.

Talwar was bestowed the juror’s award as part of the Annual Juried Exhibition at Latcham Art Centre in 2017. She holds both a Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts in Art, Media and Design from the Ontario College of Art and Design, as well as a Bachelor of Education from York University.

Among the highlights of Shifting Energy: 

• The gallery will host artist and Buddhist monk Lama Jam, who will present a Sound Energy Healing Mandala Performance on Thursday, Sept. 12 from noon to 1:30 p.m. All are welcome.
• An exhibition reception with the artist Wednesday, Oct. 23 from 7 to 9 p.m. It’s open to the public and admission is free.

The Robert Langen Art Gallery is located on the main floor of the Laurier Library. The gallery’s hours are Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

For more information, email RLAG@wlu.ca.