The Downtown Sculpture Exhibition in Fenelon Falls

Summer 2024 marked the first installation of The Downtown Sculpture Exhibition by the Fenelon Arts Committee (FAC). The exhibition, a national call for temporary public art, is released each year, with a jury of local arts and business leaders appointed by the FAC to select the works.

Five temporary sculptures were installed in the garden planters along Colborne Street in the first year, with six sculptures following in the second and third years of the project. The official launch takes place in early May with an artist talk and guided walking tour. The exhibition closes on October 22, 2026.

All sculptures are for sale, and the FAC does not take a commission on sales. All sales are handled by the Artist. Contact information is on the FAC website and the plaque that accompanies each sculpture on-site.

This year’s exhibition includes work by:

James Cameron Smith

Rosalinde Baumgartner

Carole Chaloupka Burton

Chance Shermet

Jeff van Leeuwen

Mary Sullivan

James Cameron Smith, Darner

2026

mixed media

56 x 30 x 30 inches

Artist Statement

Inspired by the Canadensis Darner dragonfly, I became immersed in the visual brilliance and functional elegance embodied by these 300-million-year-old creatures. Darners, members of the aeshnid family, are revered throughout Ontario's cottage country for their role as natural predators of mosquitoes and black flies. They begin their life cycle in watery environments. Rooted in both ecology and Indigenous shapeshifter mythology, the dragonfly carries deep symbolic resonance. This sculpture invites viewers to reflect on metamorphosis, sustainability, and the enduring beauty of nature’s ancient characters.

Perched on a cedar stump, Darner is brought to life through inventive material use: vintage stainless steel golf club shafts form its legs, a digital dye-sublimation process on laminated aluminum for its wings, bulbous compound black rhinestone eyes representing her 30,000 lenses, and the thorax and abdomen are formed from thermo-shaped ABS pipe reinforced with polyester resin.

Rosalinde Baumgartner, Hans

2018

black clay

15 x 11 x 8 inches

Artist Statement

My figurative pieces start from work sessions with a model. A friend of our sculpture group consented to model for us. Kind, wise, tall, and very slim, he was a joy to work with. How did I know when the work was finished? With Hans it was easy. He grew so naturally, there was no doubt in my mind at all. This does not always happen. Some of my sculptures have 3 versions, growing and changing from a small piece. My favourite material is clay. I have used different versions, black, red, white.

Carole Chaloupka Burton, The Dawning Recognition of Fundamental Aloneness

2023

Winterstone

25 x 19 x 32 cm

This sculpture forms part of an ongoing body of work titled Fragile Masculinity, which explores the quiet tenderness present in young boys and the ways it is often diminished or suppressed over time. The work seeks to hold space for vulnerability, sensitivity, and emotional openness, inviting reflection on how these qualities are shaped by cultural expectations and lived experience.

The piece is originally sculpted in terracotta clay. A silicone mould is then created to enable casting in Winterstone, a modified cement material chosen for its durability and capacity to hold fine detail. The surface is finished with acrylic, lending depth and tonal sensitivity to the final form.

Chance Shermet, Mountain No. 1

2023

river pebble, plywood, pine, aluminum, and grout

35 x 19 x 16 inches

Mountain No. 1 is a part of a series titled Building Mass with a Grain of Sand. This project explores a spectrum of tiny or vast, individual and collective, and abundance versus scarcity. Connecting these diverse ideas, whether natural materials from the earth or the labour and skill of people, there are references to measuring, extracting, industry, wealth, and greed.

Mountain No.1 was created using river pebbles applied to a form reminiscent of a stalagmite mineral deposit, or a pile of building materials. Experimenting with the aesthetic of pebbledashing used on architectural exteriors, the piece presents each stone as both remarkable as a formation of minerals over immense periods of time, but simultaneously an ordinary fragment, aggregate or material that might be molded into our built environment.

Jeff van Leeuwen, Untitled 23 // Janus

2026

concrete and charred driftwood post (Lake Ontario)

50 x 12 x 12 inches

The (Im)Balance Series is a collection of self-portraits made using casting techniques and found objects. Producing these works has helped navigate my grief after losing my mother to mesothelioma (cancer caused by asbestos exposure). For years, I struggled with anger, sadness, and emotional disconnection. Exploring art and spending time in nature became essential parts of my healing and catalysts for rebuilding my sense of self.

During nature walks, seeking solitude and peace, I was often unable to escape the sight of waste and discarded human-made debris. I found this deeply upsetting. These sculptures are my attempt to assuage negative feelings and to revalue the discarded. Each work uses some element of balance–the physical act of which helps me solidify my own emotional stability. Rather than imposing a predetermined structure, I listen closely, responding to the textures, histories, and tensions already present within the objects I collect.

Mary Sullivan, Angler’s Dream

2026

gypsum cement and spray paint

43 x 20 x 24 inches

Angler’s Dream speaks to the connection between community and water. From the beginning, I envisioned a school of five fish. Positioned at different heights and angles, the fish suggest dynamic movement through water and the natural rhythm of a school in motion. Each fish was first sculpted in clay, then a two-part silicone mold was created. The fish were cast in Ultimate Drystone Gypsum cement with an embedded metal rod for strength and stability, sanded, painted, and sealed for durability.

The FAC identifies opportunities for artists, strategizes on arts initiatives, and works to increase public access to art in Fenelon Falls. The FAC is a part of the Kawartha Works Community Co-op (KWCC). KWCC operates to improve the social infrastructure in Kawartha Lakes by enabling the creation, development, and management of not-for-profit initiatives with artistic, cultural, recreational, health, environmental, economic, and social improvement aims.

Unfortunately, on August 23, 2026, Hans by Rosalinde Baumgartner, was stolen from our community. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the OPP. Please visit fenelonarts.com/news for updates.