Douglas Drdul & Sanna Rahola
biography |
portfolio | artists listing
SELECTED EXHIBITION
2008 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2007 Acoustic Art, Argyle Fine Art Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Cartography, Mary Black Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Solo Exhibition, Place Near & Far Gallery, Kennetcook, Nova Scotia
Sweet Tooth, Argyle Fine Art Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia
2003-07 Nova Scotia Designer Craft Council Show, Halifax, Nova Scotia
2006 Originality, Sculpture to Wear Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
Hants County Arts Show, Windsor, Nova Scotia
Solo Exhibition, Maples Décor Gallery, Bedford, Nova Scotia
2005 Artful Garden, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Solo Exhibition, Moncton Public Library, Moncton, New Brunswick
2003-05 The Great Little Art Show, Avon River Heritage Society Museum, Nova Scotia
2004 Central Finland Institute of Arts and Crafts, Petajavesi, Finland
2003 Welcome Home, YWCA Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Fiber Connections, Argyle Fine Art Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Born in Canada, Douglas moved to Walton, Nova Scotia where he designed and built beautiful stringed musical instruments. His artistry as an instrument maker led to a collaboration with Sanna Rahola, a fiber artist originally from Finland.
As a young child, Sanna quickly became familiar with the vernacular of weaving in her home country. Sanna was already an accomplished weaver by the time she came to Halifax, Nova Scotia in the mid 1990’s.
It was there she met Douglas Drdul, a gifted stringed instrument maker, beginning a partnership that has led to an extraordinary collaboration of uniquely inspired pieces combining their individual mastery of medium into a singular artistic vision. After studying the virtuosity and subtlety of wool felting, Sanna developed a unique ability to “paint” with fiber. At first glance it seems her images must have been rendered in pastel or paint, reflecting her astonishing abilities as a textile artist.
Once a direction has been agreed upon, it is Douglas who begins the journey of realizing the work. Using Black Walnut, Birch and Limewood, he hand carves the elements, usually the central piece in a multi-paneled image. These often ornate and highly invested carved elements are completed before Sanna starts her journey of interpreting and completing the vision, complimenting it by incorporating her hand felted artwork. Together Douglas and Sanna work as a single artistic vision, creating artworks of astonishing beauty and subtle
The felted and wood elements come together in a cohesive image that defy the limitations of fiber and wood, creating canvases that exude the nuance of sunlight through mist and the primeval power of land.
2008 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2007 Acoustic Art, Argyle Fine Art Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Cartography, Mary Black Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Solo Exhibition, Place Near & Far Gallery, Kennetcook, Nova Scotia
Sweet Tooth, Argyle Fine Art Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia
2003-07 Nova Scotia Designer Craft Council Show, Halifax, Nova Scotia
2006 Originality, Sculpture to Wear Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
Hants County Arts Show, Windsor, Nova Scotia
Solo Exhibition, Maples Décor Gallery, Bedford, Nova Scotia
2005 Artful Garden, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Solo Exhibition, Moncton Public Library, Moncton, New Brunswick
2003-05 The Great Little Art Show, Avon River Heritage Society Museum, Nova Scotia
2004 Central Finland Institute of Arts and Crafts, Petajavesi, Finland
2003 Welcome Home, YWCA Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Fiber Connections, Argyle Fine Art Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Born in Canada, Douglas moved to Walton, Nova Scotia where he designed and built beautiful stringed musical instruments. His artistry as an instrument maker led to a collaboration with Sanna Rahola, a fiber artist originally from Finland.
As a young child, Sanna quickly became familiar with the vernacular of weaving in her home country. Sanna was already an accomplished weaver by the time she came to Halifax, Nova Scotia in the mid 1990’s.
It was there she met Douglas Drdul, a gifted stringed instrument maker, beginning a partnership that has led to an extraordinary collaboration of uniquely inspired pieces combining their individual mastery of medium into a singular artistic vision. After studying the virtuosity and subtlety of wool felting, Sanna developed a unique ability to “paint” with fiber. At first glance it seems her images must have been rendered in pastel or paint, reflecting her astonishing abilities as a textile artist.
Once a direction has been agreed upon, it is Douglas who begins the journey of realizing the work. Using Black Walnut, Birch and Limewood, he hand carves the elements, usually the central piece in a multi-paneled image. These often ornate and highly invested carved elements are completed before Sanna starts her journey of interpreting and completing the vision, complimenting it by incorporating her hand felted artwork. Together Douglas and Sanna work as a single artistic vision, creating artworks of astonishing beauty and subtle
The felted and wood elements come together in a cohesive image that defy the limitations of fiber and wood, creating canvases that exude the nuance of sunlight through mist and the primeval power of land.