Fireflies, an exhibition of paintings by Catharine Somerville at Elmwood Spa

    TORONTO, Oct. 22 /CNW/ - Catharine Somerville is a Canadian born artist
who has spent her painting career travelling between Canada, the United
Kingdom, the Caribbean and Mexico. Somerville's most recent series is inspired
by her time at Las Pozas - a surrealist sculpture park situated deep within
central Mexico's forests. This series of work deals with pagan themes of
nature, dreams and magic, whilst attempting to capture the ethereal. Her
paintings strive to articulate her personal experiences in Mexico through
paint, and fuse aspects of fantasy and the surreal.
    Catharine's extraordinary works will be on display at Elmwood Spa from
October 22 to October 26, 2008. Over 140 paintings will be on display at the
spa, including important works such as Mosquito Coast, a 5ft by 7ft work in
oil and resin, Northern Lights, Water Babies and Carousel Stallion.
    Sherry Brydson, owner of Elmwood Spa said, "I'm very proud to welcome
Cathy Somerville back to Elmwood Spa, and to Canada! Since her last show here,
her work has gone in several stunning and provocative directions which we are
excited to share with her many admirers, and with our guests. At Elmwood, we
have always believed that art is an important part of the relaxation
experience.
    "Elmwood houses a small permanent collection of Canadian, American and
Thai artists, including several by Cathy Somerville. Our guests can enjoy its
beauty or use it to spark an inner dialogue. I encourage our guests to relax
in our urban retreat and let the artist's bold use of colour challenge,
stimulate and rejuvenate you."
    A year after a mystery fall left her in a coma, Somerville, who graduated
in 2007 with a post graduate diploma in visual arts from West Dean College in
the UK, "capped a remarkable recovery" by winning the Chairman's Prize for
outstanding work by a student.
    Somerville, who has been working with Dr. Edward Winters and Robert
Pulley, Principal of West Dean College, says, "My accident taught me to be
very optimistic. I was the only painter to have received that prize, and I
want to thank the many people who helped me there. Without them I would not
have had the opportunity to visit Mexico."
    "I am also very grateful to Sherry Brydson, who has believed in my work
for a number of years. It is wonderful to be able to exhibit my work in an
environment where people are able to contemplate it for a long time in a more
empathetic environment. They've just had a massage! What a great thing - to
come out of that experience in a very peaceful way and then to connect quite
deeply to the art. With galleries, so often people really only view your
artwork for two minutes. Paintings like Mosquito Coast, Northern Lights, Water
Babies and Carousel Stallion took me over a year to make. It's very gratifying
to be able to engage people in this way."
    Showing art at Elmwood Spa is about community. It's about aesthetics
people can enjoy and energy given out by the artist. But the true poetry
happens with the viewer's experience. We all see it and feel it in our own
ways."

    
                         "So stunning words fail me!"

           "A nemesis of metaphysical metaphor" - Don Rouge-Humber
    

    With more space than any other day spa in the region, Elmwood Spa is a
complete wellness destination that caters to women and men who want stress
relief and relaxation in a serene atmosphere. It is an ideal place to gather
with friends, to celebrate milestones, to reconnect with a loved one, or to
use as one's own destination for stress relief and self-renewal.

    
    /NOTE TO PHOTO EDITORS: A photo accompanying this release is available on
    the CNW Photo Network and archived at http://photos.newswire.ca.
    Additional archived images are also available on the CNW Photo Archive
    website at http://photos.newswire.ca. Images are free to accredited
    members of the media/
    

For further information:

For further information: Catharine Somerville, Herringbroom Studio,
Duncton, Petworth, West Sussex, UK, GU270QP, T +44 (0) 1798 344 287,
www.catharinesomerville.com, sales@catharinesomerville.com; For a personal
viewing with the artist, by appointment, please contact Emily Simek, (416)
323-4275 or by email: esimek@elmwoodspa.com; For more information about
Elmwood Spa and its commitment to the arts and social responsibility, please
contact: Marie Picton, Executive Manager, Spa Services, T. (416) 646-0105,
mpicton@elmwoodspa.com, www.elmwoodspa.com; Elmwood Spa, 18 Elm Street,
Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5G 1G7