Surrey Art Gallery showcases art of Surrey educators with Connect exhibition

A digital illustration from the Mother Mother series by Clayton Heights Secondary art teacher Joy Kim. Kim is just one of the teachers featured in Connect, a new Surrey Art Gallery exhibition highlighting the artistic work of educators in the district.A new exhibition at the Surrey Art Gallery (SAG) highlights the creativity and artistic talents of many of the district’s art educators.

Twenty-two art teachers from the Surrey Art Teachers Association (SATA) are participating in Connect, a showcase of staff artwork that takes place every five years. The exhibition includes work from elementary, secondary and district staff – not strictly art teachers, but all artists at heart.

Down the Dunes by Allison Johnson, acrylic and oil on wood, 2021“Usually, in some art shows, the work will follow a sequence or theme, but because we all work on such different things, we chose the word Connect because education is what connects us together,” said École Salish Secondary art teacher Sofia Trujillo. “We’re all working on such diverse, different things.

“There’s digital art, textiles, paintings and sculptural pieces. There’s some photography as well and mixed media. It’s a huge range. A lot of the teachers actually did specific paintings just for this exhibition.”

Trujillo said many district art teachers are part of the SAG committee, and for an exhibition like Connect, the gallery provides the space with a curator and invites SATA teachers to display their art outside of the classroom.

“We feel it’s really important for us to be involved with our local art gallery,” she said. “One thing that’s cool about art educators is we were artists first, so all of us are still artists. We work on our art outside of our work.”

Along with the variety of artistic mediums and styles – from conceptual art to landscapes to contemporary to abstract – comes an array of subject matter that can differ greatly from one teacher to another and lends a personal element to each piece.

Mt. Robie Reid by Jean-Francois Dyment, oil on canvas, 2022“Some teachers did very personal self-reflection and identity in their work,” said Trujillo. “One of the teachers’ pieces is about the loss of her grandmother, another has to do with family and the family memories you create.

“We have one from an Asian-Canadian teacher exploring the idea of being an Asian-Canadian educator – she has a series of works that discuss that.”

Trujillo said she’s grateful for the opportunity to further share her own art with others and highlight that art teachers aren’t just teachers, but artists.

“In the fine arts, we’re all kind of like that – every drama teacher I know acts or directs in different things outside of school,” she said. “All our dance teachers are dancers. All our band teachers play in bands. Being in fine arts is unique because it allows you to practice what your passion is first.”

The exhibition is free and runs until Sunday, Jan. 22 at Surrey Art Gallery, 13750 88 Ave. For more information, click here.