Meet the Artists:
Maestro Gabriele Vicari
Gabriele Vicari was born in Lucca in 1971.
After studying at the local art institute, he obtained a diploma with full
marks at the Academy of Fine Arts in Carrara, discussing a thesis entitled
"Morphological Differences in Human Anatomy". He attended the
ateliers of renowned sculptor Marcello Tommasi, in Pietrasanta and in Florence.
The art of Vicari draws upon the great
Italian figurative tradition. His style has also been shaped by the Tuscan
tradition of sculpting which has in its roots in technical perfection and
formal harmony as essential principals to creating expressive authenticity.
However, Vicari transcends this ancient tradition with a visual language and
subject matter that also expresses contemporary issues.
Recognized as an acclaimed portrait sculptor he
won the international "Portrait Pangolin" prize organized by the
National Portrait Gallery, London in 2009. He has a number sculpture and
painting commissions on permanent display in public and private collections
across Europe and beyond: Denver, Victoria, Santa Maria a Monte, Yale,
Bruxelles, Camaiore, London, Oslo, Florence, Pisa, Cefalù.
Amongst the many portraits he has completed
are those of Harvey Goldblatt, Armando Barbon, and the musicologist Don Angelo
Bevilacqua. He has completed many public sculptures across Canada including the
monument to Sir James Douglas, the first governor of British Columbia.
In 2013 he co-founded with fellow sculptor
David Hunwick, the Sculpt Italy summer school, hosted at the acclaimed Tommasi
studio in Pietrasanta, Tuscany. He has also been a guest instructor for
sessional classes in Victoria, BC and New York.
Other artworks he has been commissioned to
create include the bust of Giosuè Carducci in Santa Maria a Monte; the great
wooden painted crucifix of the Collegiate Church of S. Maria Assunta di
Camaiore; the statue in honor of the Blessed Maria Assunta Marchetti placed in
hometown, Lombrici (a copy of the same
work is also found in São Paulo, Brazil) and the 15 paintings of the Via Crucis
exhibited in several churches along the Via Francigena, also in the territory
of Camaiore. He also has exhibited his paintings in the Medici Chapels of
Florence.
In his sacred art commissioned pieces as well
as in his portraits, achieving realism and the attention to detail are not ends
in themselves and mere exercises of style, but pointers that push the viewer to
look beyond the surface of things, for a more intimate and engaging sense of
beauty.
David Hunwick BA (Hons) PGCE
David studied sculpture at Ravensbourne College of Art and Design in London, UK, where he gained his BA degree and then his Post Graduate Certificate in Education from Leeds University.
David’s sculptures are currently located in many private and public collections in the UK; Australia; Italy; Germany and Canada.
David was a regular exhibitor at the Royal Scottish Academy in Edinburgh. Also exhibited at the Whitworth Gallery in Manchester at the New Contemporaries show and the world-renowned Yorkshire Sculpture Park. David emigrated to Canada in 2001.
David taught at Victoria College of Art, and at Brentwood College in Mill Bay on Vancouver Island, and continues to teach private classes and sculpt and paint in his studio based in James Bay, Victoria. In 2008, David set up the Sculpture Studio offering sculpting and drawing classes and specializing in mould making and casting.
In 2009-2010 David was commissioned to work on the Blue Whale project
for University of British Columbia which is now on display at the Beaty
Biodiversity Museum at UBC.
In 2012, David worked as artist-in-residence at the Gitskan Art Centre
in Hazelton, teaching first nation carvers how to mold and cast their artifacts
and molded and cast an 8ft totem. David
also worked on molding and casting another major first nation public sculpture
which was installed at Fraser Valley University in the Fall of 2017. In the
summer of 2022, he was invited as a guest sculptor to the Fivizzano Symposium
in Italy.
Currently David has one of his sculptures on display at the Governor
General’s house in Victoria.
trail:s public sculptures are on display at the Sidney Sculpture walk;
Oak Bay sculpture trail; Kingsbrae sculpture garden, NB, in 2013 and the
Castlegar Sculpture walk in 2014, 2018 and 2021, Penticton 2023.
David is also the co-founder with Gabriele Vicari of the Sculpt Italy summer
school, with classes in the famous Tommasi studio, Pietrasanta, Italy.
Linda Lindsay, SFCA
Linda is an award-winning artist known for her sensitively sculpted figures, imbued with strength, grace, and beauty. She instills life-like and thought-provoking facial expressions of confidence showing dignity, hope, and love into her pieces. Linda creates bronze and fired terracotta sculptures allowing for more variety, subtlety, and permanence. Her compositions are created to be beautiful and meaningful from every angle.
Her sculpting career spans over 40 years. Her work is in private collections across Canada, the United States, and Taiwan. She has two permanent public sculptures, M’akhotso Mother of Peace, and Winds of Time, both located in Victoria BC.
Born and raised in California, Linda comes from a family of artists. Following her passion, she completed her Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1978, then her secondary teaching credentials from California State University, and was later awarded Community College teaching credentials from the State of California. She taught at Lemoore High School and West Hills College.
In 1993, Linda married the love of her life and immigrated to Canada, where they raised a family while she continued to develop her sculpting skills. Thousands of hours of sculpting from life-models, and intense individualized studies of anatomy, honed her skills in figurative art. Notable anatomy studies include artistic anatomy with Scott Eaton (England) and gross anatomy (Island Medical Program, UVic). This deep knowledge of anatomy underlies her ability to create believable form and expressive feeling in her sculptures.
Linda is a dedicated and experienced instructor who empowers her students with in-depth knowledge and skill so that they can bring their own creative visions to life.
She has offered sculpture and anatomy courses through her atelier in Victoria since 1993, and has instructed at the Victoria College of Art, the Sculpture Studio, and in Pietrasanta Italy, where she taught artistic anatomy and facial sculpture from 2016-2018 in the Sculpt Italy workshops.
Linda has recently exhibited with the National Sculpture Society in New York City and South Carolina, winning the prestigious Ortmayer/Corcoran ward. She has also exhibited and competed at the Federation of Canadian Artists in Vancouver BC, American Women Artists online exhibit (US), the Vancouver Island Sculptors Guild Victoria BC, Arts Alive Oak Bay Victoria BC, and the Sidney Museum BC. She has previously exhibited at Winchester Galleries Victoria BC, Gallery De Felice Spokane Wa, The Bronze Works Gallery Tacoma Wa, Bronze Editions Gallery Seattle Wa, and Bronze Coast Gallery Cannon Beach Oregon.
She is a member of the National Sculpture Society (USA), the Federation of Canadian Artists, and is a board member and past president of the Vancouver Island Sculptors Guild.
