”I Wonder...” with Celan Bouillet, Cody Lecoy, Paige Bowman

Conversations With Creatives by Opus Art Supplies

To start 2023, we want to reflect the untapped year. ‘I Wonder…’ is a conversation starter, opening up the dialogue about art and techniques. It’s an exploration of the creative process, including planning and development, to discover how we continue to renew, experiment and evolve.

Celan Bouillet, Cody Lecoy and Paige Bowman are three artists we asked to consider how they got here and where they are going. What impact do they want to have and how will they achieve this?

Mixed media painter and installation artist Celan Bouillet's upbringing in the American South influenced a love of spinning a good tale, textiles, and fantastical landscapes. At the start of the pandemic in early 2020, she moved to Vancouver with a newborn and three year old. Everything was shut down and we didn't know anyone - I was one of the artists that found it difficult to work. Celan explains how she navigated these trying times and the way they shaped her new collection of large body works, ‘Field Guide to Staying Lost.’

An artist of Syilx (Sailx and Lekwung-en) ancestry, Cody Lecoy was born in Richmond, British Columbia in 1989. Most of his work is acrylic on canvas, using Northwest Coast formal design elements and surreal expressionism to create a visceral response that connects us to the environment. Before coming to art, Cody grappled with where he stood in the world. These days he feels part of a lineage, making work that is informed by shared values. My hope is that the art I make serves to show common ground where people can come together within subjects and concepts that affect all of us within this time period.

Paige Bowman is an illustrator who is constantly inspired by the natural world. Their childhood growing up on the west coast enriched their upbringing with a passion for wildlife and the aesthetic of flora and fauna. It was a period of personal upheaval and artistic disillusionment in 2018, which opened up a new world of experimentation, colour and creative expression. I felt aligned, aligned more with my work than ever before. And I think I've just been kind of coasting off that since. Although they struggled through the pandemic, Paige’s wheels have kicked up again and they share their passion for fostering creativity.

What has your journey looked like and how will you continue to evolve through 2023? We’ll be carrying on the conversation virtually through Artist Talks, where you’ll have the chance to ask your questions to this podcast’s panel, and engage in the dialogue around art and creativity.