livingtalk
Introducing the Saga of SAAG
AMANDA BERG
P H OT O G R A P H Y: D E J O U R DA N ’ S B Y L I F E T O U C H
C E L E B R AT I N G 4 0 Y E A R S O F
S H A P I N G , influencing and facilitating art and
artists alike, the Southern Alberta Art Gallery (SAAG)
is sharing its history, its successes, and its bright
plans for the future over the next year. As part of the
celebrations, local cartoonist and Slaughterhouse Slough
creator, Eric Dyck, was approached to participate
as the Feature Artist in The Shop at SAAG, and
contribute his unique perspective on the SAAG’s 40th
anniversary celebration through the production of
a comic book, a limited edition print, and if you’ve
walked by or visited SAAG lately, you’ll noticed
The Shop at SAAG is sporting one of Eric’s fourpanel comics on its large cathedral window. Now,
learning about the people and the artists that shaped
SAAG, and in turn, shaped our community, is as
easy as picking up a copy of Eric’s special edition of
Slaughterhouse Slough: The Saga of SAAG.
“As we approached our 40th anniversary, we
wondered about the best way to celebrate,” says
Associate Director, Danielle Tait. “We thought,
‘Should we dive into our history, or should we look
towards the future?’ We determined that SAAG exists
because it looks forward, rather than back, but we
wanted to acknowledge our past. Bringing Eric on to
tell the story of our history through comics is a unique
nod to that past.”
“Eric’s ability to capture the spirit and humour of
our city made him the perfect fit for this project,” says
Nicole Hembroff, Communications Coordinator. “It
is incredible how he was able to capture the essence
and character of everyone who has shaped SAAG as
featured within the panels of the comic. We are so
lucky he’s chosen to live in Lethbridge and very lucky
he agreed to such an ambitious project.”
Eric pored through countless albums and
documents, and interviewed many people who
worked, volunteered, or were feature artists at
SAAG since it was established in 1976. “I spent the
summer digging through archives and met a really
In addition to the special project SAAG has developed with local cartoonist Eric Dyck, there is a full year of activities and
exhibits that are part of SAAG’s 40th anniversary installations that the public can enjoy. Visit saag.ca for details.
12 LETHBRIDGELIVING.COM
NOV-DEC 2016