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Contact: Chery! Minns, Arts Editor
Marts@theotherpress.ca

 

See nature and culture interact at ‘GreenLinks’

» New Douglas exhibit features art and science

, Cheryl Minns
& Arts Editor

Marts
@theotherpress.ca

 

melia Douglas Gallery’s
atest art exhibit,

GreenLinks 2014: Urban
Oases, explores the changing
definition of what an oasis is
in today’s urban landscapes.
Now motor vehicles, buildings,
and corporate logos such as
the Golden Arches are just as
much a part of an urban oasis

Lawther’s series of oil paintings
on display in the gallery.

“I’ve always been interested
in urban landscapes, urban
parks, urban streets, and
the way nature and culture
interact,” Lawther told the
Other Press. “There’s kind of a
dialogue between the two and
I really believe it’s necessary for
us as a civilization to come to
terms with that because it’s not
going away.”

The artwork on display
includes large paintings of local
scenery as well as miniature
paintings called studies, which
are the basis for the larger
works.

“I set up ona street corner
and paint the little ones. I take

: lots of photos and I work from
: the photos and the studies,”

: Lawther explained. “In the

: winter, you can just have all

: your studies and your photos,

: hunker down, and do some

: larger paintings.”

The seasons not only

: influence where Lawther paints

: but also what she paints. Two of

: her studies on display are of the

: same location created during

: different seasons. Study #5, a

: scene of bright, lush greenery

: on either side of a city street,

. : was created in the late spring

as nature, as shown in Margaret : h . :
: when everything was coming to

: life. Study #6, a harvest orange

: tree losing its leaves on the side

: of the road, was painted in the

: late autumn when the area was

: preparing for winter.

“The light is different and

: the colours of the leaves. The

: whole colour cast is because

: of the light,” she said. “When

: youre painting in plein air,

: youre really painting the colour
: of the light that envelops the

: scene.”

Lawther gave a presentation

about her work in the Amelia

: Douglas Gallery on September
: 12, speaking to a crowd of

: students and members of the

: community. She also brought

: her easel and painting tools to

: demonstrate how she creates
: “plein air” (outdoor painting)
: artwork.

Her advice to the art

: students in attendance

: regarding their art is “don’t

: listen to what other people say

: you should do; just do what

: you want to do. You have to

: work hard, really hard. Paint

: whenever you can, even when

: youre not inspired. That’s really
: what it’s all about.”

To view more of Lawther’s

: Oases series and other works,
: visit her official website at
: margaretlawther.com.

Alongside Lawther’s

: paintings in the gallery are

: displays by the Douglas College
: Institute of Urban Ecology’s

: UNIBUG project (User Network
: for Insect Biology in the Urban

: Garden). The displays feature

: the group’s work, research, and

: tools as well as fact sheets about
: UNIBUG and the insects the

: group has been studying.

For more information about

: the project, visit the UNIBUG
: website at unibug.ca.

GreenLinks 2014: Urban

Oases will be open until

: October 17 in the Amelia

: Douglas Gallery at the New
: Westminster campus.

if

By Cheryl Minns

 

 

Chairman of the Board: drinking and gambling? I’m in!

» ‘The Red Dragon Inn’ game review

Ed Appleby
illustrator

M illustrator
@theotherpress.ca

 

ou know what’s a lot of

fun? Going ona classic
dungeon crawl full of danger
and treasure. But you know
what’s even more fun? Going to

your friends under the table.
The Red Dragon Inn isa
medieval fantasy card game for
two to four players designed
and published in 2007 by
SlugFest Games. There are four
different box sets with four
characters each, and six solo

accommodate up to 22 players
at once with all the expansions.
In the game, players take

: turns playing cards that force

: others to drink, get hurt, or

: gamble away their treasure. A

: player is eliminated once their

: character’s body gives out due

: to drinking or damage, or if

: they don’t have enough money
: left to pay for their drinks. The

: game includes two very unique
: and fun mechanics: damage

: and drunkenness are measured
the inn afterwards and drinking : on the same bar, one starting at
: 20 and the other at 0, and when
: they meet you are out. The

: gambling mechanic was so well-
: received that SlugFest Games

: released it as its own game

: called Gambling? I’m in!

This game is ideal for

: role-players, not just due to
characters allowing the game to : the pedigree of the medieval
: fantasy, but because the

: characters are well-developed

: and each one responds in a way

: that leads to characterization.

: My clumsy Gog the Half-Ogre is
: a personal favourite among my

: gaming group.

The downside of game is

: the elimination mechanic. I

: really hate elimination games

: as it makes for an unbalanced

: experience for all the players.

: And though the basic rules

: are simple enough, the third

: and fourth box sets and solo

: characters add new mechanics
: to the game that can make

: play too complex for first-time
: players.

The Red Dragon Inn isa

: great party game fora lot of

: players. I usually pull it out at

: the end of a long night, where

: the elimination aspect isn’t such
: a big factor and the craziness

: of the game is amplified by the

: exhaustion.