Duality  /  Rotunda Gallery  /  July 4 – August 29, 2025

Artist Statement:

My work often blends elements of realism, surrealism and abstract art influenced by geometry. I also try to mix influences from graffiti art, tribal art and concepts from graphic design when creating. I like to let the ideas go to the paper subconsciously and determine meaning as a theme appears. Much of this show focuses on dream-like visuals with the intention of giving the eye a chance to find more underlying images.

I find inspiration from a wide variety of art. Some of my favorite artists are Rene Magritte, Nadir Afonso, Vincent Van Gogh, M.C. Escher, Georgia O’Keeffe and Casper David Friedrich.

When viewing my work, I would like to have the individual find their own meaning and imagery from each piece of art. My most recent work is ball point pen or felt pen on paper, as I find I work better in this medium and enjoy the stark contrast between the dark ink and white paper.

This show is called “Duality” in reference to opposites found in nature and the concepts of life and death as well as material and non-material. I feel my ink work has a very direct duality to the viewer between the black ink and white background.

I want to dedicate this show to my mother and aunt who both passed away recently. They were both born and raised Saint Johners and often told me stories of the city with great joy.

Biography:

Aaron recently moved to Saint John from Calgary, Alberta. He has a long family history in the Saint John area and was drawn here to be closer to the ocean, history and his extended family.

As a child he would often be doodling and drawing, whether in a note pad or in the margins of his homework. He began to take art more seriously in his early twenties after receiving a painting as a gift. Originally working in oil on canvas Aaron eventually found himself creating more work with pen on paper.  Aaron has formal training in graphic design but is a primarily self-taught artist. He has worked with many different media types as an artist, originally doing oil painting, animation, music production and more recently ink drawings. His general style could be described as a blend of abstract and surrealism with at times a hint of humour.

After a long stretch of time without creative output he started drawing again during the Covid 19 Pandemic. During this time Aaron experimented heavily with different styles before finding his own signature with ink on paper. His original introduction to Saint John was through his mother who was born and raised in the city and had several generations of ancestry in the region. She unfortunately passed away during the process of his move to Saint John and he felt compelled to apply to the Arts Centre as she was always supportive of his creativity and was fond of the city.

Aaron had previously shown work in the Calgary area and was a member of Art Point Studio and Gallery Society in Calgary. Aaron continues to draw primarily with ink and this has become his preferred media