Tag: Chali-Rosso

Dali artwork on display

Left to right: Oree Gianacopoulos, Chali-Rosso Gallery director; James Sanders from Dali Universe (Switzerland); and Susanna Strem, president of Chali-Rosso Gallery. (photo by Shula Klinger)

May 17 and 18 saw the unveiling of two sculptures by Spanish surrealist Salvador Dali, which will be on display until September. The sculptures were brought to Vancouver by the Chali-Rosso Gallery on Howe Street, the site of the annual Definitely Dali exhibition. More than 100 Dali originals are on display at the gallery, along with 20 smaller versions of Dali’s bronzes.

On May 17, “Dalinian Dancer” was revealed at the corner of Thurlow and Alberni. “Space Venus” was unveiled on the next day at Lot 19, on West Hastings at Hornby. The unveilings were accompanied by flamenco music, which Dali loved.

Oree Gianacopoulous, Chali-Rosso’s director, spoke before the unveiling of “Space Venus.” Describing it as one of Dali’s “iconic” pieces, she expressed her gratitude to Beniamino Levi, director of Dali Universe, the foundation that lends out the artwork. Levi worked with Dali himself to develop the collection of 29 sculptures.

This is the third year that Dali sculptures have traveled to Vancouver, under the leadership of Chali-Rosso president Susanna Strem, a member of the Jewish community. Working in close collaboration with Dali Universe in Europe, which loaned the sculptures to Chali-Rosso, Strem’s initiative has helped establish a new cultural tradition for the downtown core.

This year, the gallery also worked with Virtro Games to develop a smartphone application to enhance viewers’ experience of the sculpture. Definitely Dali is an augmented reality app – when a phone camera is focused on the image of Dali’s face, the dancer begins to move her arms and spin.

Alex Lazimir, who developed the app, talked about the privilege of spending many hours looking at Dali’s dancer. “I really like this piece because it was like going into Salvador Dali’s mind. The first thing I thought was that she has to be spinning.”

photo - Salvador Dali’s “Dalinian Dancer” can be found at the corner of Thurlow and Alberni
Salvador Dali’s “Dalinian Dancer” can be found at the corner of Thurlow and Alberni. (photo by Shula Klinger)

After the unveilings, Chali-Rosso hosted a champagne reception and a talk by James Sanders of Dali Universe (Switzerland). With reference to the sculptures at the gallery, Sanders spoke about Dali’s life and the tremendous influence of his surreal imagination on the world of art. Sanders is responsible for sourcing locations, sponsors and partners for exhibitions all over the world.

Originally from Europe, Strem came to Canada 25 years ago, via a spell in Israel. Formerly an information technology professional, Strem spoke about the challenge of bringing world-class art to public spaces in Vancouver.

“These sculptures are traveling all over the world. They’re exhibited in many major cities. Vancouver has to compete with cities like New York, London and Paris. These are major art hubs, so we are very happy that we managed to get two sculptures.”

Last year, Definitely Dali featured “Woman in Flame” and “Surrealist Piano.” More than three million visitors saw the sculptures.

Bringing monumental works of art here is a labour of love, however. “It takes almost a year to organize something like this,” said Strem. “Last year, when we had two other sculptures here, we were already talking about this year’s exhibition. It all depends on what is available and circumstances in other cities.”

The logistics of moving bronzes like “Space Venus” – which is 3.5 metres high – can be tough. “These sculptures were transported by ocean freight from Italy, then traveled through the Atlantic to the Panama Canal, up the Pacific Ocean past Mexico and California to Vancouver,” she said. “It’s a long journey. We experienced a delay. There was a traffic jam in the Panama Canal.”

photo - “Space Venus” by Salvador Dali has been placed in Lot 19, on West Hastings at Hornby
“Space Venus” by Salvador Dali has been placed in Lot 19, on West Hastings at Hornby. (photo by Shula Klinger)

These exhibits are both the impetus for, and a sign of, urban growth – “for a real city,” said Strem, “public art is a natural part of its evolution.” She spoke of the collaboration with the Downtown Business Improvement Association. “They were full-force behind it from day one, which helped motivate us. They were really enthusiastic,” she said.

Part of Chali-Rosso’s community involvement includes supporting Recovery Through Art, a charitable organization in Vancouver that gives individuals struggling with mental illness and addiction a chance to heal through the creation and appreciation of art.

Strem is already seeing the impact of the Dali pieces on public display. “If somebody is looking at their phone and they walk by 10 times but, this time, they look up and their face changes, even for a fleeting moment, that’s important. Or they might stop for 30 minutes. There are many ways to enjoy art,” she said.

Strem explained that, to truly become part of life, art should not just be locked away in special locations.

“It’s not about having a destination for art, where you allocate time and energy to it,” she said. “When we don’t engage with art like this, in public, people are missing out.”

Shula Klinger is an author and journalist living in North Vancouver. Find out more at shulaklinger.com.

 

Chagall lithograph exhibit at Zack

Susanna Strem, owner of Chali-Rosso Art Gallery, in front of a Marc Chagall lithograph. (photo by Olga Livshin)

Marc Chagall needs no introduction. But perhaps not everyone is aware that there is a gallery in Vancouver that specializes in original graphic works by Chagall, as well as a few other 20th-century European masters.

“We opened the gallery in 2005,” Susanna Strem, owner of Chali-Rosso Art Gallery, told the Independent. “Since then, I always wanted to have a Chagall show at the JCC. I was familiar with the community and liked it. When I first immigrated to Canada and arrived in Vancouver, I often went there.”

Now, she finally will have her wish. On Sept. 15, she is bringing her selection of Chagall’s lithographs to the Sidney and Gertrude Zack Gallery at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver.

Strem considers herself not just a gallery owner but also an art educator. She is passionate about art and she longs to share her passion and her knowledge. She often discusses multiple aspects of the arts with gallery guests and she loves answering their questions. A recurring question concerns the nature of lithographs.

“Not everyone realizes that lithographs are original works by the artists,” she explained. “First, the artist creates an image on a stone block and then he transfers it on paper. It’s a time-consuming process and, after the artist makes a set number of copies, the stone image is destroyed. It is called a ‘limited edition.’ A limited edition could consist of 50 or 100 copies, or however many the artist had decided upon, but each copy has a number and is signed by the author. They are all originals, and that’s what we sell in our gallery. That’s what we’ll be bringing to the Zack.”

Lithographs, or prints on paper, while originals, are not unique. Consequently, they are more affordable than other works by the same artist.

“Some people, when they think of art at all, they think oil on canvas,” Strem mused. “But most artists create in different media. Creative minds always try something new and interesting. Salvador Dali, one of the artists we represent, created many amazing sculptures. Pablo Picasso worked on pottery. Both Picasso and Chagall enjoyed printmaking. When we first decided to open the gallery, we knew we wanted to represent graphic works on paper because of their relative affordability, compared to the oils. Oil paintings by Chagall could go for enormous prices, but a lithograph by Chagall could cost only a couple thousand dollars.”

Strem started her professional life far from the artistic field. She was born in Hungary and studied art history and computers in Budapest. After graduating from university, she worked as a software developer and IT consultant for many years, first in Hungary, then in several European countries and, for a short spell, in Israel. None of those places suited her for long.

“Europe has too much history and culture; it’s too heavy a burden. That’s why Canada, and specifically Vancouver, work for me,” she said. “It is a new world here, it is lighter, more accepting.”

In 1994, Strem settled in Vancouver and resumed her work with computers. For the first decade she lived here, she worked as an IT specialist, until the moment came when she knew it was time to embark on a new career.

“When my husband and I opened the gallery, it was a big change. It would have been impossible in Europe. People there don’t switch careers: once an engineer, always an engineer. If I decided to open a gallery in Europe, after being an IT person for years, everyone would look at me and think something was wrong with me. But it was OK in Vancouver.”

Chali-Rosso first opened on Granville Gallery Row – a short strip of Granville Street between Broadway and the bridge – where many major Vancouver galleries still reside.

“Art collectors knew to come there if they wanted some art,” she explained. “It was the right place to open a new gallery.”

A couple years ago, after their collection quadrupled in size, they moved the gallery to a new and larger facility in downtown Vancouver, on Howe Street.

They chose the name Chali-Rosso for their gallery because of the artists that comprise the majority of their collection: four European masters of the first half of the 20th century.

“The gallery name is an acronym of their names: Marc Chagall, Salvador Dali, Joan Miro and Pablo Picasso,” said Strem. “We focus on these four, although we have some works by other artists, too, including a small but wonderful piece by Rembrandt.”

For Strem, opening a gallery on the West Coast is a challenge.

“I like Vancouver, like living here,” she said, “but it’s not easy for any art gallery to engage people’s attention. Western Canada is still too new, too young. Most people are attracted more by the outdoors than by art. To spend $300 on bicycle gear is fine, but $800 on a piece of art is too much. There is no centuries-old tradition here, no art on the street. In Europe, people are surrounded by art, but here, art is not an integral part of life. It’s up to us, gallery owners and artists, to change the situation here. We’re pioneers.”

Marc Chagall’s Bible Suites opens at the Zack on Sept. 15, 7 p.m., with a reception to which the public is invited. The exhibit runs until Oct. 26.

Olga Livshin is a Vancouver freelance writer. She can be reached at [email protected].