COCHRANE— Celebrating the women who helped settle the prairies, the Town of Cochrane will be hosting its first virtual solo artist exhibit.
The upcoming virtual show, Women in Kind, features the work of local artist Starr Kolb.
“The prairies are really my home and just looking into a field of prairie grass and big sky is to me so calming,” Kolb said. “You can’t beat it— That’s kind of my core.”
Kolb has been creating her ‘Prairie Girl pieces since 2008. Each piece embodies the idea of simple, mindful and thoughtful living, she said, embracing all sizes, shapes and forms.
Kolb said the prairie fields surrounding her property serve as a constant muse for her creations. Each day brings something new— be it the change in the colour of the land or sky, the different seasons and more all working together to create a dynamic landscape to explore with her paintbrush.
It has been important to celebrate and honour the women who were homesteaders on the prairies, Kolb said. The artist described how in the winter she is often struck by the thought of how women in the past were able to embrace their resourcefulness and make a home on the Alberta prairies.
“It’s just something that I so highly regarded,” Kolb said. “Just reading about them and their resilience really blows my mind because they’re so strong.”
The theme for the upcoming virtual show was chosen because of the depth and exploration of her ‘Prairie Girl’ project, she said.
It is important to celebrate women while representing the region of Cochrane, Kolb said, and the exhibit served as an opportunity to showcase the women who have inspired her as an artist.
“They really are moments of inspiration that other women have given me,” Kolb said.
She added that the title Women in Kind was in part inspired by Cochrane Mayor Jeff Genung’s messages of hope during the COVID-19 crisis.
“One of his second words was ‘be kind,’” Kolb said describing how using the title Women in Kind seemed appropriate given the messaging taking place with the COVID-19 strategy in Cochrane.
Kolb said she hopes people look at the paintings and relate to the experience of living in the prairies and the wildness of the open spaces.
The Prairie Girls are often depicted without facial features, Kolb said, because she wants the figures to be open and ready for viewers to place their own expressions to the faces.
“I wanted to provide a variety of work that I hope would not only speak to women but everybody within this region in a special way,” Kolb said.
Women in Kind was originally set to be showcased at the RancheHouse in May but the physical show was cancelled due to COVID-19 public health emergency protocols, said Town of Cochrane arts and culture programmer Jola Muran.
Kolb’s show is special, Muran said, because it features a stream of work that unites the exhibit together. She added she appreciates that Kolb featured 27 paintings in the virtual art show.
“The whole show flows, it’s vibrant, colourful, moving‑ It’s a special show… It’s very expressive, you can almost feel the movement” Muran said. “It’s a celebration— It depicts women in all sorts of situations.”
Muran said she was inspired to launch a virtual art show to ensure people could access art during the pandemic.
Within a week of the public health orders shuttering all exhibitions, Muran said she came across the idea of hosting virtual art shows. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to ensure artists in Cochrane could have a platform to showcase their art. She added that it is exciting because going online provides an opportunity to celebrate more pieces than would traditionally fit into a gallery.
The first virtual show was hosted by the Cochrane Art Club and featured 12 artists who contributed work that could be accessed online.
“We’re all looking for a new way to communicate with our community,” Muran said. “It was definitely fun working with the art club.”
Starr Kolb’s virtual art exhibit Women in Kind opens May 1 and runs to May 31. It can be found at Cochrane.ca/artshow.
