Large artwork now up at Kelowna's International Airport

Photo: YLW

A new art exhibition has opened at the Kelowna International Airport.

The inaugural art installation spans almost 40-feet long and 8-feet tall.

It is titled Kate and Molly by Lake Country-based artist Wanda Lock.

The work was selected by the Kelowna Art Gallery, who will be organizing and curating the art space.

“We’re absolutely thrilled with the opportunities this new dedicated exhibition space provides,” says Nataley Nagy, executive director at the Kelowna Art Gallery. “Plus, it’s hard to miss.”

Lock's mixed media paintings are front and center, located above the airline check-in area, greeting travelers as they enter the airport.

Lock says she has woven literary and cultural references into the atmospheric paintings.

The work’s title, Kate and Molly, references a soliloquy involving Molly Bloom — a fictional character from James Joyce’s 1922 novel Ulysses — and singer and songwriter Kate Bush’s 1989 song, The Sensual World.

Lock began her formal training in the arts at Okanagan College, before attending Emily Carr College of Art and Design in Vancouver.

Since graduating in 1992, Lock's art has been shown in many solo and group exhibitions, including three times at the Kelowna Art Gallery.

Wanda Lock: Kate and Molly can be seen until June 2023.

Photo: YLW