The Minto Arts Council will host artist and yoga instructor Dana Savard’s upcoming art show, Return of Innocence, from Sept. 6 to 29.
The council also announced it will host a Hatha yoga workshop presented by Savard on Sept. 29 from 11am to 1pm during the Minto Cultural Days event taking place from Sept. 28 to the 30.
The opening artist’s reception for Return of Innocence takes place on Sept. 6 from 6 to 8pm.
Savard, formerly from the Czech Republic, where she attended the National School of Art and Music, now resides in Minto. She has been painting since she could sign her own name.
Along with an in-depth knowledge of art history, her own multi-coloured works are influenced by various artists from Frida Kahlo to Josef Capek. Her canvases are “provocative yet sensitive,” arts council officials note.
In 2015-16 she received a grant from the Ontario Arts Council which led poet Sandra Tone to ask her to create some art for her book Thoughts of the Mind, including the cover.
Not only does Savard work with different mediums from acrylics, mixed media, water colour, sculpture and carving, as a trained Hatha yoga instructor she specializes in post traumatic disorders and spiritual yoga. Her initial focus was to help people in the military who suffered from various blast injuries resulting in (TBI) traumatic brain injury and PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). She has expanded this work to include people who suffer from motor vehicle injuries, sexual and physical assault, natural disasters and other trauma as well as those wanting a more spiritual footing.
The yoga workshop on Sept. 29 will take place in the Minto Arts Gallery in the top floor of the historic Harriston Carnegie Library at 88 Mill Street. Participants will be surrounded by Savard’s paintings and sculptures.
There will also be a power point presentation on PTSD, brain injuries, yoga and meditation, followed by a yoga practice session.
Participants must bring their own mat (or pre-order with Savard), wear comfortable loose clothing and bring a yoga block or pillow.
For more information contact info@mintoartscouncil.ca or call 519-338-2497.
