Studio Tour King 2021 Goes Virtual showcasing area artists

By Kathleen Rodgers

Visiting the country is a wonderful way to spend a weekend. It offers the opportunity to explore quaint villages and the studios of the local artists and artisans whose artwork often reflects the landscape around them.

In King Township, each spring brings the Studio Tour King, typically held at the end of April. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic and public health restrictions, the studio tour cannot be in person but will be held virtually.

The 16th Studio Tour King has been extended and will take place from April 12 to 25 with the preview from April 5 to 11. The studio tour will include fine paintings (in acrylic, oil, and watercolour), wood working, photography, fibre arts, metal works, mixed media, etc. 

Studio Tour King will feature many artists and artisans in studios around King, including King City, Nobleton and Schomberg.

Their information can be found on the Arts Society King (ASK) website at www.ArtsSocietyKing.ca as of April 5. Go to the ASK website, click on EVENTS then VIRTUAL STUDIO TOUR 2021 to see the participating artists, their biographies and up to 12 photos of their artwork for sale. There will be a link to their website and social media accounts for additional artwork available.  If you are interested in purchasing any item, please contact the artist directly for their payment options and to arrange for delivery of the item.
Here are a few of the artists who will be participating this year:

Michelle Zikovitz has been weaving functional baskets for over 20 years and teaching for the past 15 years, throughout southern Ontario. Her early weaving years were spent at her two floor looms focusing on woven tapestries, rugs, placemats and runners.
A basketry workshop taught by a fellow guild member, a love of baskets and the ability to weave baskets almost anywhere all led to a newfound passion for basket weaving. Reed is her personal material of choice for teaching, incorporating her own hand dyed reed whenever possible.

Michelle enjoys experimenting with random dyed or “space dyed” skeins of reed, creating many unique colour combinations and resulting in truly one-of-a-kind baskets.

When not basket weaving or working, Michelle dabbles in photography, sewing, fibre arts and various painting mediums. She loves to explore and find local basket weavers, artists, shops and galleries on her travels. Her website is www.michellezikovitz.ca.

Catharine Somerville was born in Toronto. She works in the UK and Canada. After completing her diploma at Georgian College, Catharine studied printmaking at York University and later realized a BA Arts and Humanities (Art History) at the Open University. In 2009 she completed her postgraduate studies at West Dean College/University of Sussex, UK.

Somerville is a recognized award-winning artist. Her work can be found internationally in public, private and corporate collections in Mexico, the U.S.A, Canada and England. Her website is www.catharinesomerville.com.

As a life-long photography enthusiast, Stephen Sloan hopes his work brings you some of the joy he has found in creating it. He enjoys the entire process of creating a photographic print, from the press of the shutter all the way through to the translation to the print media.

He has worked with both film and digital, in the dark room and in front of my computer.
He likes to work with various print media and his interest in subjects and techniques varies greatly as he enjoys constantly learning and challenging himself. While Stephen strives to satisfy his need to express himself with every image that reaches the printed stage, to deliver an image that also evokes an emotional response, prompts a memory or even inspires a viewer is an even greater reward. 

His work can be seen online at considerthis.company.

A native of Toronto, Steve Silverman is an award-winning fine art photographer with a keen and unique artistic vision. His love and passion for black and white photography are reflected in his dramatic landscapes and engaging cityscapes from across Canada and abroad. Steve's photos are visual metaphors – ntimate, interpretive views of the world around him. An implied comparison creating a link between the mundane and the sublime.

He uses strong tonal contrast, texture and mood to express his artistic vision. His photos are easily recognizable by his use of strong leading lines combined with the interplay of light and shadows to create depth, giving a two-dimensional image the illusion of three dimensions. Simply put, he can transform a simple, mundane scene into a compelling black & white fine art photograph.

Steve's photos have been published in many international books and magazines. He is also a guest speaker at local camera clubs. Steve works with several Canadian art galleries and publishers on a variety of corporate and home decor fine art projects. His website is www.monochromevision.com.

If you are looking for something to do in April after a long winter, visit some art studios virtually to support area artists and artisans. Some artists offer classes so it may be an opportunity to try something new! Who knows, maybe one day you will be participating in a studio tour!
The artists look forward to “seeing” you and sharing their work with you on this year's Studio Tour King 2021.