TRAFFIC CONTROL BOX ART & ARTISTS
ARTIST: Toby Anderson Installed at 12th Ave. & Albert St.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Often hailed as a visual art ninja, Toby “Cougar” Anderson graduated from The Alberta College of Art & Design in 2001 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Sculpture. Toby has been exhibiting his visual awesomeness in group and solo shows, creating murals, private commissions and illustrations as well as being a beloved Art Educator with numerous organizations for over the past decade & a half. Born and raised in Saskatchewan, yet relatively new to the Regina Arts community, Toby returned to the Land of Living Skies with his new young family a decade ago, after spending thirteen years in Calgary as well as two and a half in South Korea. Toby has instructed and created art with various age groups and communities, including extensive training and experience working at risk youth and adult and children with developmental disabilities. With a history of strong community involvement, Toby has also worked many roles within gallery, studio and artist run center environments. Taking inspiration from popular culture phenomena such as animation, robots, ninjas, skulls, luchadors, monsters, rock & roll, Tiki-modern, comics and movies, as well as Art History & religious iconography, Toby’s Pop-Surrealist work is often colorful, humorous, complex, filled with strange characters, surreal landscapes and eccentric narratives with a dash of the abstract/bio mechanical. Skillfully executed in a variety of mediums and served up for various venues, his work defies any simple explanation.
about the art
I have must have Drawn, Painted or Skullpted a million or more robots in my life, and participated in and organized several Art Shows with that theme. This could be the greatest robot yet. My concept was to turn the Traffic Control Box into a Pop-Surrealist “cartoon” with some additional friends. The design is in my classic style, loaded with color, details, whimsy & pop culture references, making it appealing for the young and old alike. As a drawer who studied sculpture in Art school, I especially like the idea of transforming 2-D drawings into a 3-D sculpture.
ARTIST: Cristian Barreno Installed at 12th Ave. & Rose St.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Cristian was born and raised in Guatemala, a country known for its deep roots with the Mayan Culture. This rich heritage has influenced and inspired Cristian since he first started painting using oils and acrylics back in the mid-nineties. Thanks to the help of his brother, Cristian moved to Canada in 2002 and pursued a Bachelor in Business Administration. Since his first weeks in Canada he continued developing his passion for painting and drawing. His themes and colors have constantly evolved, maintaining vivid colors, nonetheless. In each work he tries to achieve story telling or at least provoke a happy smile. During the past few years his wife Addy has been a great comrade in developing new ideas on blank canvases. He is pretty honored to see the recognition he has gained in Regina, and plans to continue exploring this skill and encourage others to try creating art.
about the art
My design uses shapes similar to a star-blanket and the iconic horizon of a sunset in the prairies. I wanted it to resemble a sunset using very bold colors like the ones observed in summer when the sun sets on the horizon. At the bottom of the picture, I added symmetrical shapes that would resemble flowers and or animals.
ARTIST: Jessie Dishaw Installed at 12th Ave. & Scarth St.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Jessie Dishaw was involved in various exhibitions and performance art works in Regina in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s. During this time she volunteered as the Director of the 5th Parallel gallery, and worked as a sculpture technician at the University of Regina, as well as a facilitator at the Dunlop Art Gallery. She performed music with her all female atmospheric improvisational group, ‘Ben Dot Day’ at both The Antechamber Gallery and the Mackenzie art gallery. She also stomped the subversive catwalk with her performance art partner Sarah McGaughey for Lorena Wolffer’s “Belle Rouge Collection” by Neutral Ground Gallery (link below). After Graduating with her BFA from the University of Regina in 2001, Jessie traveled to Korea to teach English “for a year” and surprised herself when it turned into a twelve year ESL teaching career. During this time Jessie continued to make art, but shifted her medium from installation and performance works, to textiles. When not working her day job as a teacher, Jessie created custom commissions by up-cycling old t-shirts or baby clothes into hand stitched pillows. She also ran Open Mic Nights and an Arts Market which allowed foreigners and Koreans in her community a chance to share their talents, foods, and art. In 2016, desiring to be close to family, a pregnant Jessie returned to Regina with her husband and her two year old daughter. She attended the Arts Entrepreneurship Business course through the Sask Arts Board in the winter of 2018 and launched her Etsy shop in January of 2019. Since 2017 she has been working on a series of family portraits, re-creating each family member as a doll, including their pets (link to a CBC story about her dolls can be found below). She is currently making a series of tattoo inspired art using felt and embroidery, and is working on a line of one of a kind growler bags for Malty National Brewery.
ABOUT THE ART
Mental health awareness, support, and reduction of stigma are important issues for myself personally. I was diagnosed with PMDD (Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder) in my mid-twenties. I struggle at times with my mental health and share my experience with others in the hopes of reducing stigma and providing support. I was recently interviewed by CBC’s Nicole Huck for her ‘Beautiful Mess’ series regarding parenting and mental health (link above). I created an traffic control box cover that offers words of love and support to anyone who may be struggling. The images for the box were created first using felt and embroidery, then photographed to create the digital image for the vinyl wrap. One 30” x 56” side features a swallow holding a banner that reads, “It’s ok not to be ok” The other 30” x 56” side has clouds, an umbrella, and the phrase, “There’s always blue skies above the clouds” The top has a heart and banner reading, “You are loved” One 17” x 56” side shows a hand with an eye in the center and the words, “Stay strong, your story isn’t over yet” The other 17”x 56” side has a horseshoe and flowers with the words, “Be kind to yourself” All embroidery pieces were made using a blue background and feature the dots and stars that are commonly used to tie together multiple traditional tattoo pieces.
ARTIST: Phyllis Poitras-Jarrett Installed at 12th Ave. & Smith St. (north side of RPL Central)
ABOUT THE ARTIST
I grew up on a small Saskatchewan farm overlooking Last Mountain Lake. There I discovered my love of art. Our small house was busy with six siblings and often a few cousins that my caring parents took under their wings. My peaceful creating space was upstairs by a window that was often covered in an inch of frost during the winter. Frosty winter months meant less work, with only the cows to feed and milk. This gave me plenty of extra time to pencil sketch for hours and hours. Being a self taught artist in the digital era is beneficial and numerous online tutorials provided me with a wealth of knowledge. I have made it a point to self-teach myself in several different mediums. Presently my focus is mixed media collage and illustrated watercolours. I have designed several Metis beadwork graphics with photoshop to incorporate into my artwork. My recent purchase of a professional camera will fulfill my photography interests and I love it! Yes I am a bit of an art fanatic and thoroughly love creating! I had a very rewarding career as a teacher for 28 years in Regina. I am fortunate that I can now focus my time creating art and enjoying more moments with my family. I have two amazing sons, Neal (a former Saskatchewan Roughrider, two time Grey Cup winner) and Steven, both compassionate human beings. I’m a proud grandma of three beautiful grandchildren, Callie, Logan and Mearah, who also have a flare for art. My Kokum’s creativity and determination inspired my art. She lived in a two room house on Jackrabbit Street on the road allowance in Lebret, Saskatchewan. During the winter months she lived with us as her home lacked electricity, heat and running water. Lovingly we would string beads for the gorgeous necklaces she would create. For our efforts we received a nickel per string. Later that evening we would play rummy for a nickel. The nickel would often go full circle. The sales of her necklaces in the community provided her with extra income for living expenses. The elders in my youth were positive role models and always encouraged my creative nature. It’s my way to show the pride I have for Indigenous cultures. I was fortunate to have the Saskatchewan Arts Board recently award me with a grant to create a 108”x48” triptych with mixed media techniques and my floral artwork. I have always celebrated life through art and in the past years created several backdrops for musicals and community events. I was proud to donate art for silent auctions, one recently for the Early Learning Centre of a turtle. During my career I helped organize and co-presented several workshops to integrate children’s Indigenous stories with art. I have endless ideas and plans to continue my growth and drive to create art throughout my life. I sign my art with P. Poitras-Jarrett honouring both my Metis mother and my Scottish-English Father. I will always promote pride and positivity through art in the community and in Indigenous people. I have chosen the social media name and web site name “Feliss” which means “lucky, fortunate, happy”. It’s also a shorter version of my name “Phyllis” for online search purposes.
ABOUT THE ART
The title is “Honouring Turtle Island” and it is signed P. Poitras-Jarrett to honour my Metis mom and Scottish-English father. The graphics are all hand-painted then a photo was taken of them to create the design. The water is a photo of an acrylic painting of mine. The designs on the sides of the box have small turtles swimming everywhere and a few more Metis Floral Designs similar to those on the front.
ARTIST: Ward Schell Installed at 12th Ave. & Hamilton St.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Ward Schell received his art education at the Emily Carr School of Art in Vancouver, the University of Regina, and the Banff School of Fine Arts in Banff, Alberta. His work explores the representational documentation of nature within the micro confines of shape, contrasts and texture of surface. Ward has exhibited his work in many solo and group exhibitions over several decades and his work is held in many public and private collections. His numerous public murals can be found in museums across North America. After teaching a variety of art classes for over 24 years at the Neil Balkwill Civic Arts Centre in Regina, Ward continues to educate and inspire art students by giving workshops on drawing and painting throughout Saskatchewan. His affinity to nature, travel and history have taken him around the world painting and drawing the people and landscapes he encounters.
ABOUT THE ART
The subject of my work is Saskatchewan Landscape which explores the representational interpretation of nature within the micro confines of shape, contrasts and the texture of surfaces. My intention with this design is to bring a refreshing and unexpected contrast of the unfamiliar forest landscape, into the very familiar urban landscape of the City. There have been studies which suggest that prior to humans establishing the construct of cities, we spent 90% of our time in the landscape and 10% of our time in our dwellings. Subsequently since urbanization, we have completely reversed that statistic and now spend 10% of our time in the landscape and 90% in dwellings. With this installation, I’m hoping the public will be able to reflect for a moment on the natural landscape while they shift from place to place through the urban landscape. Based on painting entitled Drifting (1996), acrylic on canvas, 28” x 48”
ARTIST: City of Regina Archives Installed at 12th Ave. & Lorne St. at the request of the Victoria Park Heritage Conservation District
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Photographer unknown
ABOUT THE ART
Black and white photo of Victoria Park in the 1920s
Artist: Nicole Chen
Title: "我会记得", which means "I will remember"
(Southeast corner of 11th Ave & Scarth St) Nicole Chen’s work is concerned with the unique experience of what it means to embody both Asian and Western Cultures in one’s identity. She is fascinated with Chinese history and her parents (born in China during the Cultural Revolution) probably hate her for asking so many questions about it. Her art is composed of a series of peonies, the national flower of China and western red lilies, the floral emblem of Saskatchewan. Together, they symbolize harmony between two communities with different pasts. To learn more about Nicole Chen, visit her at: @wingfred
Artist: Phyllis Poitras-Jarrett
Title: Circle of Rejuvenation
(Southwest corner of 11th Ave & Albert St) Phyllis is a self-taught artist whose creations come from the heart. I sign my art as P. Poitras-Jarrett to honour both my Metis mother and my Scottish-English father. Her Metis ancestry has provided her with a rich history and inspired many of her art ideas. Metis people were known as the “Flower Beadwork People” and her Kokum was indeed a flower. The pride and appreciation that she has of their ancestral floral designs is evident in this graphic art. The beads were graphically drawn and the floral design was slowly created bead by bead. To learn more about Phyllis Poitras-Jarrett visit her at: felissart.com
Artist: Jamie Slawson
Title: Space Voyager
(Southeast corner of 11th Ave & Hamilton St) Jamie Slawson has been interested in art from a young age and he has worked mainly on portraits. Jamie paints emotionally resonant images that are meant to establish a connection between subject and viewer. The juxtaposition of the watercolor’s painted impression and the hand drawn look of the futurism of space create a compelling image for the viewer to look and pause. To learn more about Jamie Slawson, visit him at: jamieslawson.tumblr.com
Artist: Cyril Chen
Title: Mosaic City
(Northeast corner of 11th Ave & Smith St) Cyril Chen is a story artist & writer, working with animation, illustration, comics, sculpture, robotics, programming, and installation. They are based in the Treaty 3 (Hamilton ON) and Treaty 4 (Regina SK) Territories. Find there art here: https://cyril.art/
Artist: Allan Dotson
Title: They Came Back
(Southeast corner of 11th Ave & Cornwall St) Allan Dotson is a Regina-based arts, educator and self-publisher. Allan has self-published a fantasy graphic novel, an ongoing webcomic and several storytelling game books. Allan loves how close he feels to the native prairie, native animals and people while out walking or biking. This is reflected in his interpretation that traffic control boxes help us share space by warning us to slow down, to stop and allow space for others. He gives us an opportunity to imagine a future after cars when the prairies are reclaimed by the animals. To learn more about Allan Dotson, visit him at: sites.google.com/site/maycontainmonkeys/
Artist: Chad Geran
Title: Traffic
(Southeast corner of 11th Ave & Rose St) Chad Geran provides fun, thoughtful illustrations for print materials, branding and visual identities. His style combines a light-hearted approach with sophisticated intelligence which delivers simple, approachable illustrations with unmistakable depth. Chad has created images that relate to traffic and these illustrations juxtaposed with other simple illustrations that are inspired by downtown has created a composition which reflects Regina’s downtown. To learn more about Chad Geran, visit him at: www.geran.ca
Artist: Michelle Harazny
Title: Bees in the City
(Southeast corner of 11th Ave & Lorne St) Michelle Lynn Harazny likes to dabble in ceramics, drawing, graphic and facilitate paper craft workshops. She grew up in Regina, lived in Montreal for 8 years and recently moved back to her hometown in 2017. In Regina, the growing number of beekeepers reflects a global movement of urban beekeeping in backyards and on rooftops and balconies. This is reflected by bringing more visuals of nature to our cityscape and reminding us that we need bees in our rural and urban environments. To learn more about Michelle Harazny, visit her at: https://mlharazny.wordpress.com/
Artist: Sandra Knoss
Title: Evening in the City
(Southeast corner of 11th Ave & Broad St) Sandra Knoss was raised on the family farm at Glentworth and now resides at Rockglen where she runs a grain farm and cattle ranch with husband Calvin and their children Brett and Hayley. Sandra’s interpretation of a prairie sunset, provides the viewer with brilliant colors that depict “Land of Living Skies”. To learn more about Sandra Knoss, visit her at: facebook.com/SandraLKnoss www.voidgallery.ca
Artist: Kayla Hanson
Title: Meadowlark Dance
(Southwest corner of Broad St & Saskatchewan Dr) Heavily inspired by the Aboriginal Grass Dance, I wanted to capture both the movement of the fringes on the Pow-wow regalia and the image of the meadowlark, a classic, priairie summer soundscape. It’s a bright and cheerful song and dance in one image, juxtaposed on a bright, blue summer sky. To me, this image embodies life, and the very heartbeat of Saskatchewan, much like downtown Regina. To learn more about Kayla Hanson, visit her at: https://www.facebook.com/KH.32Flavours/
Artist: Jera MacPherson
Title: Travellers Building Revisited
(Northeast corner of Broad St & 12th Ave) Built in 1929, the Travellers Building (Storey and Van Egmond) had been in disuse and disrepair for many years until boarded up and long since abandoned over to its new pigeon-tenants, it burned down in 2017. Travellers Building Revisited proposes a reminder of the rich gathering place of both leisure and business that historically, the Travellers Building provided to its human users.
Artist: Sarah Cummings Truszkowski
Title: To Consider and Pursue
(Northeast corner of Broad St & College Ave) As a contemporary artist in Regina, Saskatchewan, I focus on ideas including motherhood, femininity, injustice, our natural environment, and the cultural histories of women. While I feel deep angst and sadness towards the vast inequalities that thrive in our society, I still hold much hope for the future. I come from a long line of flower gardeners and have always included roses in my work. But presently, I want to do more than paint flowers; I aim to break down inequalities in our society through my art, inequalities that I see and feel every day. This piece, titled “To consider and pursue”, includes a large Queen Elizabeth Rose layered with the words LOVE and EQUAL RIGHTS. I hope that these words might encourage, enlighten, and/or draw attention to breaking down inequalities and will perhaps inspire less hate, and more love. I wish for each member of our community who passes by, to consider these words, and pursue through thoughts, discussions, and actions that could lead to a better world and a more kind, just, and peaceful world.
Artist: Chris Morin
Title: Dance All Night
(Northeast corner of Broad St & 13th Ave) Working in-between the digital, print and adhesive realms, Chris Morin creates visually-striking illustrations that are boldly whimsical yet offer sly nods to the environment surrounding them. These images are presented as something out of the ordinary juxtaposed with something familiar, such as a place to get pizza, where we walk our pets, where to people watch, consume culture, endure the weather, and where we meet and sweep each other off our feet. To learn more about Chris Morin, visit him at: https://www.instagram.com/chrixmorix/
Artist: Gerri Ann Siwek
Title: Summer Garden Splendor
(Southeast corner of Broad St & Victoria Ave) The urban garden has been a source of inspiration for many of my recent paintings. In Regina, many small spaces in backyards, vacant lots and on porches, patios and balconies are transformed into a Natural Refuge for plants, birds and insects. This sustainable practise in environmentally- friendly settings enriches our neighbourhoods and quality of city living. In my painting, I present the splendour of the summer garden, appealing to all the senses. The painting presents the urban garden in its ideal meeting moment of Natural Splendour.
Artist: Justine Stilborn
Title: Unum Under The Moon
(Southeast corner of Broad St & 14th Ave)
“Unum Under The Moon” is my submission for the Regina Traffic Control Box Call, it is influenced by modern art, indigenous imagery and contemporary commercial art.
Unum is the gender neutral equivalent for “one” in Latin, which refers to my own idealized concept of unity. This piece is inspired by the painterly of technique of Van Gogh, specifically “Starry Night” and Matisse’s “Dance.” By combining the two artists I’m making a nod to the history of modern art. Nodding to modern art is important because it was the beginning to a large cultural change towards consumerism. The four figures reference the four corners Medicine Wheel as well as cultural diversity and the braids along the sides and the hands holding onto one another tie into the notion of unity and interdependency.
Having created this piece in a digital format highlights a newer graphical medium to support the progressive idea of my work and connect me to the commercialism of contemporary art. To keep the art piece culturally relevant in the age of social media I depicted each dancer in a different body type to promote not only cultural diversity but diversity in body shapes and genders. It is imperative to contemporary art to investigate intersectionality and how our differences contribute to our differing experiences that shape who we are.
I also believe I am shaped by our cultural history. I have indigenous ancestry as well as ancestry belonging to that of Romanian immigrants; I am the product of colonization but also that of cultures coming together in harmony. I want this art piece to leave the viewer with a feeling resolved conflict; a conflict between the old and the new, the us and the “other.” Most importantly I want the view to be left with a sense of appreciation for where they came from and the things that make them different and to appreciate those same differences in others. I believe we have many societal problems in contemporary culture and that resolution can be found in embracing our differences and find unity and balance.
Artist: Stan Channing
Title: The Happy Little Beaver and Friends
(Northwest corner of Broad St & 15th Ave)
Stan Channing (aka Rob Bos) is a dedicated Sunday painter. Stan found his calling in art after retirement, and since then he has actively painting and drawing. Drawing his characters over and over again, have given him many hours of quiet comfort and happiness. While Stan is very proud to have had his work purchased by the Saskatchewan Arts Board; he also loves the delight in giving work away. This city traffic box is Stan’s first digital artwork and features his favourite characters, the Happy Little Beaver, Robot Duck, and the ‘unhappy’ rabbit.
Rob Bos is an artist living and working in Regina, Saskatchewan. Bos received his BFA and MFA from the University of Regina, and the School of Art Institute of Chicago respectively.
Photo provided by City of Regina Archives
Title: Looking West on Victoria Ave., Regina, Sask.
(Corner of Victoria Ave and Scarth St)