More than 150 people attended a book launch, celebrating the life and art of Hungarian-born Eva Stubbs (nee Koves m. Wolinsky) that took place in the multi-purpose room of the Asper Jewish Community Campus on Tuesday evening November 23, 2010.

For the Love of Creation: the Life and Art of Eva Stubbs, published by the Winnipeg Art Gallery, offers an extensive look at the artist and her art. The book, generously funded by the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba and by the Manitoba Arts Council, has been four years in the making. Faye Hellner, retired professor of the Faculty of Architecture, University of Manitoba, authored the book.

Hellner told the Winnipeg Jewish Review that she first met Stubbs over a decade ago. " I phoned her, introduced myself, and asked if she would mentor me. I wanted to work with clay. She was direct, generous and willing. I moved into her studio that summer, shared her model and was taught by a master. I loved working with her."

The book launch event was truly a celebration and a huge success –as people filled the multi-purpose room to hear writers Patricia Bovey, Leonard Marcoe, Andrew Kear and Faye Hellner read excerpts from the book and share anecdotal stories. Stephen Borys, Director of the Winnipeg Art Gallery, welcomed guests and introduced the evening. Stubbs concluded the evening with memories from art school and then joyfully signed books while the crowd mingled and raised their wine glasses.

The introduction to the book reads, “Stubbs is an example of the diverse immigrant population that has been attracted to Winnipeg over the past century. Conditions in Europe led Eva Stubbs’ parents, Adelbert and Helen, to seek refuge and a new life in Canada. Eva arrived in 1944 loaded with experiences and thoughts about the traumas of her own childhood and of Europe during the Second World War… “.  Enigma, 2008, created in the artist’s eighty-third year, is a culmination of the artist’s ability, technique and emotional power. Enigma portrays the infinite connection between mother and child, the invisible tie you have forever. “It is a mystery”, says Eva, “and a universal message.”

Between 1954 and 2009, Eva produced a body of profoundly moving sculpture. Mother and Child with Bird, 1976, can be seen in the waiting area at Mount Carmel Clinic. It is a work of simplicity, beauty and hope. Eva says, “While the world remains in a state of chaos, the individual human is precious. And with training, our children will be responsible for the lessening of the chaos”. 

Memories for the Future, featured at the Winnipeg Art Gallery in 1987, garnered international acclaim when it travelled to Europe for a two-person show with Caroline Dukes at the Vasarely Museum in Budapest. 

Leonard Marcoe, well-known  art consultant and critic who wrote reviews for the Winnipeg Free Press and was the Director of the Leonard Marcoe Studio Gallery in Winnipeg for twenty-five years, spoke eloquently about the mysterious and spiritual nature of  Stubb's work. 

“Eva introduced her ten humanoid personalities of no apparent gender. The entire installation of grand proportions generated an atmosphere of richness and power, intelligence and meditation, sobriety and mystery…I believe in Memories for the Future, in fact in the entire multi-faceted spectrum of her art making career, Eva Stubbs has made a considerable advancement onto the art milieu for Canada.”

Hellner told the Winnipeg Jewish Review that she "absolutely" enjoyed writing the book. "Getting to know Eva was the best part of it," she said.

The book, For the Love of Creation: the Life and Art of Eva Stubbs was designed by Rachel Hellner. It is an illustrated biography, linen-bound limited edition, and contains full-page images of sixty-four selected works, which will be exhibited at the Winnipeg Art Gallery. Rachel Hellner is an instructor at both the University of Victoria and the Vancouver Island School of Art where she teaches drawing, painting and design. Rachel has had solo exhibitions in Victoria, Winnipeg and Edmonton. Her work is in private collections in Canada, U. S., England, Israel and Australia.  For more info on Rachel, go to www.rachelhellner.com

Eva Stubbs: The Rough Ideal will open at WAG on December 16, 2010 from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m. and will run until March 20, 2011. 

This is Faye Hellner's second book on Manitoba mid-century artists and designers. The first, Étienne Gaboury, published by Éditions du Blé won a Manitoba Book Publishers and Writers Award for best illustrated book in 2006. Hellner also was a contributing writer for Serena Keshavjee and Herbert Enns' Winnipeg Modern, University of Manitoba Press 2006.