We gather here today to celebrate the union of ART and WINE

"How to grab a woman's attention: Be a glass of wine"

VAUGHAN, ONTARIO, July 15, 2016 - Magnotta Winery Corporation invited participants to submit an original painting or drawing that would be suitable for Magnotta Winery's upcoming wine labels. As a student artist and wine enthusiast, I could not resist entering.

The piece I submitted was, 'Presence of a Nightwalker'. I completed this work when I was in my third year of study at Queen's University with Professor Jan Winton. Coming into her class with a hyper-realist background, I was excited to experiment with a new style that would allow me to loosen up a bit. Believe it or not, the subject of this piece changed over 10 times. It first started off in a vertical perspective of two old women walking along an open field on a dirt road with old-school mailboxes in the foreground…and now look at it.
My final work examined alternate dimensions beyond the one we live in. Motivation behind this theme came from the notion that an empty space could actually be full beyond our dimension. You know that feeling when you are sitting in an empty space and suddenly everything seems more tense, more still, more heavy...You know something isn't right, the energy feels off, but there's nothing to see. It was all about a feeling that carries a certain vibration and resonance that exists beneath the visible layer.

The beauty of this piece is all of the different paintings underneath the final image (although totally unrelated) were absolutely essential for helping me arrive at the ideas behind the final piece.

The moodiness of the final piece I thought perfectly fit the characteristics of Magnotta's Cabernet Sauvignon which was described as a dark, bold, full-bodied, intense, off-dry. Turns out, they thought so too.

On August 25th, 2016, I was announced a finalist by Rossana Magnotta at Magnotta Winery's Underground Cellar event in Vaughan. With this, Magnotta Winery acquired sole ownership and reproduction rights of my work for inclusion in their permanent art collection for future wine labels.

Upon the release, there will be in store bottle-signing events and special promotions. Keep up with my social media to find out when the bottles being launched

Cheers!