Ever since his friend Tyler Simpson opened the Good Gawd Gallery above The Vault Café — which has become a cozy artist enclave for many local creatives — local artist and graphic designer Sebastian Abboud has wanted to use it as a location for a group show.
The decision to finally go ahead with a group art show came about informally — as these things often do in a place like Nanaimo.
“It’s the perfect size. We don’t need that many people, so it’s manageable. And I had such a great experience with the last group show I did,” says Abboud, speaking about the Growler Howler, a show he organized as a fundraiser for Nanaimo Area Land Trust in 2019.
Abboud picked up his phone and messaged his artist friend, collaborator and business partner Mauro Dalla Costa, telling him it was time to plan a group show. He agreed.
“Think about a theme,” wrote Abboud.
“Ok. Creatures of the Island. Creatures of the forest. Inside the forest,” Costa messaged back.
“Inside the forest is great,” responded Abboud, which they then tweaked to In the Forest.
They set an opening date of Nov. 17 and the forest theme was kept fairly open, with some constraints around the size of the piece permitted due to limitations on what the gallery could accommodate.
After jotting down and contacting a list of Vancouver Island-based artists whose work they liked, virtually all said they were in.
“In the Forest invites a group of visual artists from Vancouver Island to explore the attraction of our forests and discover the hidden stories, creatures and mysteries that reside within,” reads the poster for the event.
“I think a lot of the artists in the show have pretty distinct and different styles. So there’s enough to unify the work, but it’s not super specific where you’re going to get 17 paintings of trees. There’s going to be some weird stuff, which is great,” says Abboud with a laugh. “It was all just very organic… we’ve been pulling it together on the side and it’s all pretty DIY.”
The show pulls together an eclectic mix of artists from a variety of styles and genres, including Eliot White-Hill, Kwulasultun, Fox & Koi, Alain Champagne, Lurk Loves You, Yvonne Vander Kooi, Aaramë, Marcus A.M. Hastings, Denny Provost, Sean Anderson and more.
Costa and Abboud also plan to showcase new works at the show.
A former instructor at Vancouver Island University, some may recognize Abboud’s bright, bold designs from a mural he contributed to the side of the old A&B Sound building back when its walls became a public art space, or more recently from the Love/Growth banners he created for the city.
More of his work can be found at Bueno, a pop-up retail space that Abboud and Costa opened together in April, also located in the space up above the Vault Café at 499 Wallace St.
All of the stores will be open during the In the Forest launch on Nov. 17 from 6 to 9 p.m. The group show runs at the Good Gawd Gallery until Dec. 3 and will be open at varying hours, including on weekends, and is part of the Nanaimo Artwalk, which runs from Dec. 2 to 3.
