Laurie Townsend comes to Bancroft art gallery

August 18, 2016

The public is invited to hear artist, documentary filmmaker and educator, Laurie Townsend, give an informal talk about her art practice and the work she is developing while in residency in Hybla.

Townshend is writing, directing, and producing documentaries and narrative films for a growing audience. Her take on human connectedness is explored in an online collection of two minute vignettes featuring strangers titled, Human Frequency Streetdocs. With a thematic lens aimed squarely at the resilience of the human spirit, her cinematic offerings extend to include acts of courage made visible through crisis. Townshend’s short film, The Railpath Hero (2013), is a gripping portrait of the threads of hope that hold a young athlete’s life together in the wake of childhood sexual abuse. In 2016, Townshend wrote and directed Charley, a visually powerful documentary about civil rights activist and human rights lawyer, Charles Roach.

Anyone interested in this stimulating talk where Townsend will discuss her work and current projects is encouraged to attend this free event. This is the first residency for Keith in Hybla and the fourth time the Hybla Residency has partnered with the Art Gallery of Bancroft (AGB).

The talk will be held at the AGB, 10 Flint Ave. Bancroft, Ont., at 2:00 p.m., Sunday Aug. 21. The talk and screening of her work will be followed with an informal Question and Answer session with the artist.

“No artist, or anyone for that matter, can visit the area and not be inspired by the natural beauty that our artistic community thrives in,” said Hybla Residency director Roy Mitchell.

Initiated in 2014, The Hybla Residency is an opportunity for artists to develop and reflect on their art practice surrounded by the beauty of Hybla. The Residency directors, Roy Mitchell and Ken Fraser welcome artists from various art practices to come and spend time in the residency’s beautiful location, meet area artists and see their work. It is hoped that both local artists and the artist-in-residence will have a chance to exchange ideas and skills and inspire new and thought provoking art in a place that has inspired many for many years. A century-old farmhouse, studio converted from a century old barn and artist accommodation in a 1976 Rover Trailer provide a contemplative setting amongst the forests, fields and trails of Hybla, a hamlet 15 kilometres north of Bancroft.

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