When we were kids we would make up crazy games to play
that didn’t really make much sense, or have any objectives. 
That is, in relation to other games that consisted of rules.

Playing on common ground 
without rules. 
It may be difficult to understand the game of tennis, 
by changing or modifying the rules of this game.
It is not a matter of understanding that I am searching for.
But rather, these explorations are a means for ending up in a place 
I do not know how to get to 
through logical investigations.
That place being
An (un)common (playing)ground 
resulting in unfamiliar discourse through unrestrained playfulness.

Christian Nicolay is a former Kelowna artist and resident who has been based in Vancouver since 2000. For nearly ten years Nicolay has produced complex works on paper, sculptural installations, video and performance pieces. He uniquely combines images of innocence, fun and child-like play with sometimes disturbing and often humorous undercurrents.

The exhibition (un)common (playing) ground features new drawings, sculptural installations and video work by Christian Nicolay. For this exhibition the artist was asked to respond to the theme of play, sport and leisure and to Kelowna’s hosting of the Memorial Cup Junior Hockey Tournament in May of this year. Rising to this challenge Nicolay has produced a body of work that literally turns the sport of baseball inside out as well as offering variations on the games of tennis and golf that break all the rules.

Christian Nicolay received a BFA with Honors from the Okanagan University College in Kelowna in the year 2000. He is the recipient of a number of awards including several Helen Pitt Awards and a Canada Council travel grant. The Kelowna Art Gallery is pleased to present this first solo public art gallery exhibition of Christian Nicolay’s work in the Okanagan Valley.