Gallery Gevik is pleased to present an exhibition of new paintings by Rick Rivet. Tracks Through the Firmament features a selection of Rivet‘s most recent work, highlighting his exploration of Shamanistic beliefs, captured in dream-like canvases of rich colour. The mix of Aboriginal imagery and abstraction creates an otherworldly aesthetic that suggest an escape into the unknown. With hints of past lives and remnants of the present, Rivet‘s work is a timeless example art that inspires dreams, and connects with us on a deeper, spiritual level.

Born 1949 in Aklavik Northwest Territories, Rivet‘s formative years were spent on the Mackenzie River Delta, in a culturally diverse community consisting of Inuit, Métis, and various Europeans. His personal history was also rich and varied, having a mother of the Athapaskan First Nations, a Scandinavian father and an adopted family of Scottish descent. Following high school years in Inuvik, Rivet travelled to Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba to embark on his post-secondary education. Rivet draws from his experience of the rich diversity of Inuit, Indian and Métis culture. He is also influenced by other ancient shamanistic societies throughout the world, philosophical thought centered on the idea of the universal unconscious, and his interest in the art movements of Surrealism and Abstract Expressionism. For Rivet, art is a meditative process, one that mirrors the shaman’s function as mediator between the spirit world and the world of the human.

Rivet‘s work is exhibited nationally and internationally, and he is honored to have received many awards and accolades over the years including the Eiteljorg Fellowship from the Eiteljorg Museum in Indianapolis, IN and the Andy Warhol Foundation Fellowship from the Heard Museum in Phoenix, AZ. A solo public exhibition, Rick Rivet Paintings 2000-2005 was mounted by the Mendel Art Gallery, Saskatchewan and toured Canada into 2008. Rivet‘s work is represented in such collections as The Art Gallery of Ontario, The Canadian Museum of History, The Thunder Bay Art Gallery, The Glenbow Museum, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, and The Heard Museum, Arizona.