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EMERGENCE

Vernon Public Art Gallery May 29 - July 25, 2026

Averi Boerboom

Trinity Davis

Rain Doody

Carly Johnson

Clifford Jasper Ozee

Stevie Poling

Maya Taki

Catalogue of an exhibition held at the Vernon Public Art Gallery, 3228 - 31st Avenue, Vernon, British Columbia, V1T 2H3, Canada May 29 - July 25, 2026

Production: Vernon Public Art Gallery

Editor: Victoria Verge

Layout and graphic design: Vernon Public Art Gallery

Front cover: Rain Doody, Coke Float (detail), 2025. Mixed media.

Printing: Get Colour Copies, Vernon, British Columbia, Canada

ISBN 978-1-927407-98-1

All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted by the 1976 Copyright Act or in writing from the Vernon Public Art Gallery. Requests for permission to use these images should be addressed in writing to the Vernon Public Art Gallery, 3228 31st Avenue, Vernon BC, V1T 2H3, Canada, Telephone: 250.545.3173, website: www. vernonpublicartgallery.com

The Vernon Public Art Gallery is a registered not-for-profit society. We gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Greater Vernon Advisory Committee/RDNO, the Province of BC’s Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch, British Columbia Arts Council, the Government of Canada, corporate donors, sponsors, general donations and memberships. Charitable Organization # 108113358RR.

This exhibition is sponsored in part by:

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S FOREWORD

Congratulations Graduates!

What makes this one of my favorite exhibitions at the Vernon Public Art Gallery each year is the diversity of ideas and the excitement of gaining a glimpse into the future of contemporary art from a select group of graduates from UBC Okanagan. This year’s Emergence exhibition, brings together works from seven artists. Please take the time to delve into this publication which includes their artist statements for insight into each of their bodies of work.

This exhibition wouldn’t be possible without our partnership with UBC Okanagan and this year’s Co-directors of the Advanced Studies Course Shawn Serfas & David Doody. Enclosed is their joint statement and an introduction to the exhibition by VPAG’s Curator, Victoria Verge.

I would like to acknowledge the financial support of the Province of British Columbia, the Regional District of the North Okanagan, and the BC Arts Council, whose funding enables us to produce exhibitions such as this for the residents and visitors of the North Okanagan region and interested parties across Canada.

We hope you enjoy this exhibition and accompanying publication.

Regards,

Dauna Kennedy Executive Director Vernon Public Art Gallery

EMERGENCE 2026

CURATORIAL INTRODUCTION

BY: VICTORIA VERGE

Emergence is an annual group exhibition showcasing the work of graduating students from the University of British Columbia Okanagan’s Bachelor of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Media Studies programs. The 2026 exhibition features seven emerging artists—Averi Boerboom, Trinity Davis, Rain Doody, Carly Johnson, Clifford Jasper Ozee, Stevie Poling, and Maya Taki—whose practices span installation, sculpture, painting, fibre, and printbased media.

Across these diverse approaches, a shared sensibility emerges: an insistence on scale, material presence, and immersive experience. Many of the works extend beyond discrete objects into constructed environments, asking viewers to move through, around, and within them. This turn toward installation signals a broader shift away from contained image-making toward spatial storytelling; worlds assembled through accumulation and gesture, marked by the physical trace of the artist’s hand. In a moment increasingly shaped by digital production and artificial intelligence, these works foreground labour, tactility, and embodied processes, reaffirming the significance of making as a site of knowledge.

At the core of this year’s exhibition is a sustained engagement with personal narrative, not as isolated autobiography, but as a means of navigating broader cultural and psychological conditions. The artists in Emergence 2026 draw from memory, identity, and lived experience to construct visual languages that are at once intimate and expansive.

AVERI BOERBOOM

Averi Boerboom’s installation operates within the fragile terrain of memory, shaped by her experience of her grandmother’s gradual loss to Alzheimer’s disease. Drawing on the visual language of domestic space (closets, garments, and intimate interiors), her work reconstructs moments of closeness through layered print processes and textile-derived forms. These materials carry a quiet emotional weight, evoking both presence and absence simultaneously. Through repetition and delicate material choices, Boerboom suggests memory not as a stable archive, but as something that shifts, fades, and is continually reassembled through loss.

TRINITY DAVIS

Trinity Davis similarly turns to memory, though through the lens of childhood imagination. Her large-scale, immersive environments expand the visual language of printed matter— halftones, illustrations, and fragmented imagery—into spatial experiences that viewers can physically enter. In doing so, Davis exposes the underlying structures of image-making while rekindling a sense of wonder often lost in adulthood. Her work resonates with the strategies of Pop Art and contemporary installation practices that amplify mass-produced imagery, yet her approach remains deeply personal, rooted in the tension between nostalgia and its erosion.

RAIN DOODY

Rain Doody’s sculptural installations embrace excess, imperfection, and the grotesque. Rejecting the polished minimalism that has come to dominate contemporary aesthetics, Doody constructs figures and environments that revel in texture, distortion, and humour. His work recalls the subversive and materially driven practice of Mike Kelley, where abjection, play, and discomfort are used to unsettle cultural norms. Drawing attention to the awkward and exaggerated, the deliberately “off,” Doody challenges expectations of beauty, coherence, and control. Rooted in personal experience, particularly in relation to queer identity and self-expression, his practice resists refinement in favour of something more visceral: works that feel unruly, bodily, and defiantly alive.

CARLY JOHNSON

Carly Johnson’s paintings offer a quieter, though no less psychologically charged, counterpoint. Working from personal photographic references, she renders familiar landscapes under the cover of darkness, where illumination becomes both a formal and conceptual device. Her compositions recall the starkness and heightened stillness found in the work of Christopher Pratt, where seemingly ordinary scenes are imbued with an underlying sense of tension and estrangement. Light in Johnson’s work does not simply reveal – it isolates – casting her viewers into moments of suspended unease. These are not just depictions of place, but psychological spaces shaped by memory, fear, and the persistent suggestion that something just beyond view may be present.

CLIFFORD JASPER OZEE

Clifford Jasper Ozee’s sculptural practice is rooted in precision, repetition, and a close engagement with material. Using hydroforming (a process in which pressurized water is

used to force metal to take shape) he transforms steel into fluid, seemingly elastic forms, complicating assumptions about the rigidity of the medium. Working consistently with the ampersand, a symbol of connection and continuation, Ozee establishes a framework for sustained experimentation. In the works presented here, vivid powder-coated surfaces lend the forms a striking clarity and immediacy, emphasizing their graphic presence in space. While these brightly finished pieces define the installation, they point to a broader investigation into surface treatment within his practice, where variations in finish alter how each form is perceived.

STEVIE POLING

Stevie Poling’s textile-based installation engages with the politics of domesticity, gender, and embodiment through a maximalist, materially rich approach. Drawing on craft traditions historically associated with femininity, Poling reclaims and reconfigures these materials into immersive environments that oscillate between comfort and confrontation. Her work resonates with the concept of femmage, as developed by Miriam Schapiro, where decorative, textile, and domestic materials are elevated as sites of feminist expression and critique. Through layered fabrics and handwork, often incorporating text, Poling constructs spaces that are at once intimate and charged—where personal narrative, queer identity, and broader cultural histories are woven together.

MAYA TAKI

Maya Taki’s practice bridges sculpture and painting, translating digitally conceived imagery into paintings on cut and manipulated steel surfaces that function as both image and structure. Drawing on visual languages associated with Japanese tattoo culture, her work engages with the complexities of cultural inheritance and lived experience. The steel supports are not passive grounds; they are shaped, layered, and, in some cases, extend fully off the wall. This interplay between flat image and dimensional object pushes painting into an expanded field, where surface and structure become inseparable. In Taki’s work, this material and visual layering becomes a way of working through overlapping cultural influences, where identity (like the work itself) is built through processes of layering and adaptation.

Together, the works in Emergence 2026 reflect a generation of artists attuned to the conditions of the present moment. Their practices are materially grounded and conceptually rigorous, unafraid of scale or intensity. Rather than retreating into minimalism or detachment, these artists construct worlds that are immersive, affective, and insistently human.

The Vernon Public Art Gallery is proud to continue its long-standing partnership with UBC Okanagan in supporting emerging artists at this pivotal stage in their careers. Emergence remains not only a platform for presentation, but a space of transition—where experimentation, risk, and ambition take form as artists move into the next phase of their practices. As in years past, this exhibition offers not just a reflection of where these artists are now, but a compelling indication of where contemporary art may be headed.

Victoria Verge Curator

Vernon Public Art Gallery

TO THE BFA GRADUATES

Congratulations to the Bachelor of Fine Arts – Emergence artists on reaching this extraordinary milestone. What you’ve accomplished is nothing short of remarkable, and it brings a strong sense of pride to everyone who has been part of this journey. The range, originality, and depth of work produced over the past eight months point to a vibrant and promising future for the arts. Your energy, persistence, and commitment have clearly paid off, and the results are genuinely inspiring.

Over the course of this year, you’ve likely moved through moments of excitement, uncertainty, discovery, and transformation. Carry those experiences with you. Approach what comes next with courage and resilience, and let your passion guide you forward. Stay open, remain inquisitive, and don’t shy away from risk. Meaningful work often grows out of trial and error, and some of the most valuable lessons emerge when things don’t unfold as expected.

Being part of this stage in your development has been a privilege. It’s rewarding to see not only the refinement of your skills, but also the growing clarity in your sense of self. Watching that confidence take shape is just as significant as the work you produce. As mentors, we aim to support and challenge you, trusting that these final efforts help propel you into what comes next with strength and direction.

This exhibition represents years of dedication and deserves to be celebrated. While it closes an important chapter, it also marks the beginning of something new. We look forward to seeing how you continue to grow, create, and contribute in ways that are meaningful to both you and the communities you engage with.

Shawn Serfas & David Doody Co-directors of Advanced Studies Course

ARTISTS AND THEIR WORKS IN THE EXHIBITION

Averi Boerboom

@mythoughtscreated averiboerboom03@gmail.com

Averi Boerboom’s printmaking and installation practice centers on memory and nostalgia, rooted in vivid childhood experiences with her grandmother. As a child, she would explore her grandmother’s closet, draping scarves around her shoulders, layering jewelry over her small hands, and stepping into oversized heels. These sensory memories, filled with scent, texture, and presence, formed a deep connection that later shaped her understanding of her grandmother’s journey with Alzheimer’s disease.

Boerboom transforms personal recollections into layered prints and installations using lace, ribbon, buttons, and clothing patterns printed on evolon and Stonehenge paper. Through material cutouts and carefully composed arrangements, she echoes the structure and intimacy of her grandmother’s wardrobe. Neutral tones and delicate fabrics carry sentimental weight, evoking both closeness and absence.

By engaging with the intersection of remembering and forgetting, Boerboom’s work preserves fleeting moments, inviting viewers to reflect on the fragments of memory that endure over time.

Alice, 2026. Mixed media installation, wood, chiffon, various fabrics. 8’ x 6’ x 8’.

Frilly Tank, 2025. UV screen printing ink on Stonehenge. 34” x 50”.

Trinity Davis @trindavisss

trinity.eavis.00@gmail.com

Trinity’s work explores themes of childlike wonder and unrestrained creativity-qualities that shaped her earliest memories. As a child, imagination came naturally as she built worlds with toys and immersed herself in the colour and charm of illustrated books. Over time, however, that sense of wonder faded as adulthood introduced responsibilities, expectations, and the pressures of sustaining a future. Celebrations once filled with excitement, such as holidays and birthdays, gradually became quieter, often overshadowed by everyday concerns.

Through her printmaking practice, Trinity confronts this loss and works to restore a sense of awe. Her prints are multilayered collaged compositions that distort, reassemble, and enlarge imagery drawn from childhood books and illustrations. Small images are amplified into monumental forms, transforming familiar visuals into immersive experiences.

By enlarging halftones, dots, and printed textures, Trinity reveals the structure behind these imagined worlds, inviting viewers to reconnect with nostalgia, curiosity, and wonder.

A Page Out of My Book, 2026. Mixed media installation.

Rain Doody

@that_gargoyle raindoody@gmail.com

Rain Doody is a multimedia artist working mainly through sculpture and caricature. In his work, he experiments through usage of raw vs polished materials, and toes the line of the jank. He draws inspiration from acne scars, mole hairs, folds and shades of skin, and the muppets.

“My vision is inter dimensional beings have noticed the ridiculosity in humans selfinflicted suppression. Why must everything be tiny, smooth, and minimalist? Humans are losing their most interesting parts; so they’ve infiltrated this plane to shock us back into our factory settings.”

Growing up queer in the 2000s, Rain explores the effect of social media on self expression and perception. He embraces the strange and unusual through texture and colour, and creates ‘perfectly janky’ works to reflect the unique delight in imperfection.

Various sculptures, 2026. Installation image.

Coke Float, 2026 (detail image). Mixed mediums.

Coke Float (left), Don’t taste the batter (right), 2026. Mixed mediums.

Carly Johnson @ieatacrylicpaints

carlydj2002@gmail.com

Carly Johnson’s body of work stems from an interest in the theme of the contrast of lighting in night scenes, and a fear of what lurks in the dark; physically and metaphorically. She decided to reach out of her comfort zone to create a body of work that specifically incorporates dark lighting and themes of discomfort, encompassing the uncertainty of the unknown through oil paints on canvas. The locations painted are all places that hold meaning to her, whether it is simply close to her childhood home, or local places that hold a deeper, significant impact.

Carly works by capturing her own reference images, typically shot around the Rutland community. Having a personal connection to the photo and painting itself helps to establish a sense of nostalgia for her. She hopes to explore ways in which she can further the narrative of something potentially lurking, and a feeling of mystery in her paintings.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game, 2026. Oil on canvas. 36” x 48”.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game (left), Home (right), 2026. Oil on canvas.

Another Bridge to Cross, 2026. Oil on canvas. 36” x 36”.

Clifford Jasper Ozee

@cliffordjasperozee

cliffordjasperozee.com

Clifford Ozee is a sculptor whose work centers on the fabrication and transformation of steel. His practice is built through hands on experimentation and a close engagement with the physical behavior of the material. Using welding, plasma-cutting, and hydroforming, he pushes steel beyond what can be shaped by hand alone, learning its limits through repeated trials of pressure, heat, and force.

Ozee’s current work focuses on hydroformed ampersands, the “and” symbol. Each form is carefully fabricated and finished through mirror polished stainless steel and powder coating in bright primary colors. The work emphasizes precision and craftsmanship while acknowledging the subtle distortions created by pressure.

Through disciplined fabrication and repetition, Ozee develops forms that reveal both the strength and vulnerability of steel. Each sculpture reflects a commitment to process, technical skill, and refinement within a demanding material.

M1, M2, S2, 2026. Powder-coated steel. 25” x 45” x 7” (M1, M2), 15” x 25” x 5” (S2).

M2, 2026. Powder-coated steel. 25” x 45” x 7”.

&&& (installation image), 2026. Hydro-formed steel/ stainless steel. Various sizes.

Stevie Poling

polingstevie@gmail.com

Stevie Poling is a queer multimedia artist working primarily with fibre and textile materials. She was born in the Kootenays and grew up in Melbourne, Australia. Stevie practices textile manipulation through an interdisciplinary feminist and queer lens, viewing the medium as an “inherently, unavoidably female and/or queer practice”. The connections made within sewing communities is manifested in the way fibres are woven and tangled together to form a garment or artwork.

She is inspired by her Mum, Samantha, who is a quietly counter-cultural feminist, an antique collector, and photographic artist. Samantha’s love of history and oddities found its way inherently interwoven into Stevie’s practice, visualised in her maximalist exploration of themes of domesticity and patriarchal expectations and, further, the Abject (Julia Kristeva) and embodiment. Stevie’s work aims to evoke a playful sense of scale and gesture while counterbalancing its aesthetic with dichotomous feminist and queer discourse.

Various sculptures, 2026. Installation image.

Maybe just a little bit, 2026. Vintage placemats, acrylic paint, glitter, beads, various ribbons.

even

And an

better house plant, 2026. Ceramic, steel, copper wire, cotton fabric, beads, plywood, acrylic stain.

Maya Taki

@mtaki_art

mayasarinataki@gmail.com

Maya Taki is a sculptor and painter who works primarily in oil paint and steel. Her work explores iconic Japanese imagery popular in tattooing.

Working with designs that she creates digitally, she transforms them to large steel cutouts with several layers that she uses as painting supports. Blending sculptural language with painting, she works across mediums to merge her interests together. A recurring theme in Maya’s work is identity, and the tensions that come along with being from a mixed heritage. Combining traditional styles and ways of making art with a contemporary lens has been a way for her to learn more about her ancestry while also including a perspective as someone who grew up and currently lives in Canada.

Various sculptures, 2026. Installation image.

Balancing Act (Sensu), 2026. Steel, screen mesh, aircraft cable.

Various sculptures, 2026. Installation image.