Marie Lannoo, creator of the Saskatchewan Arts Awards sculptures says:
Saskatchewan is one of the most saturated geographic locations when it comes to light in Canada. Added to this phenomenal amount of light is a landscape that is by and large free from visual obstructions. You can see for miles on the prairies into clean, transparent, uninterrupted space where sky is predominant.
Light produces wavelengths, the raw materials that illuminate colour. We are essentially immersed in the light and colour of our environment on the prairies.
This Saskatchewan Arts Award celebrates excellence through light and colour. Each award represents one color of the spectrum and has one color gradation. The aluminum wavelength has a stem that fits into the base, a polished, acrylic cylinder. This solid, transparent base acts as a counterpoint to the airy, graphic metal wavelength. Light is transparent. The base holds the key to how light translates a structure travelling through space into color. Unprocessed information – the straight line – comes out of a transparent cylinder – space – to be formed into a wavelength of the spectrum seen as colour.
Part of the beauty of using transparent acrylic is that the engraved names on the top surface reflect through the material and show up at the base of the cylinder.
The pouch is the "reveal" adding a performance dimension to the design. Each pouch is the color of its wavelength with a contrasting, coloured satin lining and a gold drawstring. The velvet and satin offer other surfaces to interact with light and amplify the colour. Together, the colours and tactility of the materials activate the senses while celebrating excellence and high achievement in the arts.
The fabrication of the award has been a team effort infused with the spirit of working together. Many thanks to Laser Impressions, Engineering Shops, University of Saskatchewan, Laura Hale, North Star Trophies, and Novokoski Quality Collision.
The concept of this award shines a spotlight on artistic excellence through the use of light and colour, bountiful ingredients in Saskatchewan and imprinted in the DNA of flatlanders. It speaks to who we are through its design and materials and honours all artists inspired by living and working in this glorious place.
Marie Lannoo is a Saskatoon artist who has exhibited widely in Canada and abroad. Learn more about her and her work at www.marielannoo.com.
Photo credit: Marie Lannoo, North, South, West, East – Nothing, Something, Wavelengths, Everything, 2019, Mixed media – painted aluminum, acrylic, fabric, cord. Photo courtesy of the SK Arts Permanent Collection.