Two years later, when she moved to Whitehorse, she found she was still trying to paint the feeling of the light through that fog, and of that call through the dark. She hadn’t yet found anything in the territorial capital that moved her in the same way until she noticed the early morning light in Whitehorse that November. It quickly became the focus of her work, even as her work expanded beyond a strictly studio practice.
In 1985, Loponen started working as an instructor with the Artists in the Schools program. In that role, she taught painting at schools and at the Canada Games Centre, for kids, adults, and everyone in between.
One of her favourite things about that job was teaching younger kids, who she says came to art with an excitement she didn’t see in other age groups. By the time they get to high school, she says kids have ideas about what an artist is and is not. They tend to judge themselves too harshly to really have fun with art.
Younger kids show up with their explorer hats on, she says. They don’t apply the same pressure to themselves—they just enjoy the experience.
Though she retired from that position, she says the arts community as a whole is something she’ll miss about her life in the Yukon (though she’s already been putting out feelers about how to get involved with the arts community in northern Ontario, as well as the writing and Tai Chi communities). She’s grateful to the galleries here, for the opportunities to show, and to the grants and residencies she’s received through the arts branch with the Yukon government.
She’s also excited though, to re-discover her home province, and what the land and light look like there.
The opening reception is Thursday, August 1, 5-7pm. Loponen will be in attendance.
Every Friday, (Aug. 9, 16, 23 and 30) from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., Loponen will also have drop-in hours at the gallery so guests can say goodbye and speak with her about her work.