A Salmon Arm artist will be celebrating her father’s cosmic legacy in an art show and sale in Vernon.
Roxi Hermsen, daughter of the late Bill Sim, founder of the Okanagan Science Centre, is dedicating a show called ‘Into the Cosmos’ in his memory. The exhibit includes a collaborative piece called ‘Deva Dialogue,’ which Hermsen created in collaboration with fellow Shuswap artist Rebecca Shepherd. Hermsen will also include a chronological progression of Hermsen’s work before, during and after a humanitarian-motivated trip to Grenada in 2019.
“I just thought it would be really neat to dedicate the show to him because he is now passed into the cosmos,” Hermsen said.
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The show also includes a piece called The Ripple Effect of McGuire Lake, where Hermsen’s father used to take frequent walks. The piece will be sold via silent auction with the proceeds going to the science centre in memory of her father.
In the painting are two ducks bobbing in the lake, which Hermsen says represents her parents making ripples in 1985 which lead to the science centre’s creation.
Hermsen said her paintings offer a way to remember her father’s legacy but, when she first started, they were a way to cope with loss.
“Art has always been something that I’ve done to deal with difficulties in my life,” Hermsen said. “That’s all tied together with healing, mental health, well-being, all of that.”
“For me painting is my healing, it’s my mental health, it’s my therapy.”
The show will be held at Nadine’s Fine Arts in Vernon from April 1-30, with an opening on Friday, April 3, from 4 to 7 p.m. when viewers can meet the artist.
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@CameronJHT
Cameron.thomson@saobserver.net
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