Saskatoon's Remai Art Gallery puts on exhibition in the sky

People in Saskatoon didn't havetogo to a gallery tosee works of art on Saturday. They only needed to look up.

Thanks to the Remai Modern Art Gallery of Saskatchewan, a stunt pilot flew over the city to draw selected works in the sky using smoke.

Gregory Burke, executive director and CEO of Remai Modern, said it was the first of a series of engaging projects the gallery will stage prior to its opening.

"It's something that would engage people," Burke said. "People got very excited. I was down at River Landing and people were quite joyful seeing these drawings happening in the sky. So, it was something that was available to everyone."

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Carmen Herzog was one of the many people who saw the performance while at the Saskatoon Farmers' Market.

"I saw a peace sign and an infinity symbol," Herzog said. "I think it's awesome. The creativity of it is just amazing and it adds to the day, for sure."

Daniel Brad wasn't exactly sure what all the art was supposed to be, but he watched with his excited young son.

"That's neat," Brad said. "You haven't seen sky writers for a long time ... it used to be very popular many years ago but not so much anymore.

"The kids seemed to like it a lot," he said.

Eight pieces were carefully chosen to recognize local, indigenous, and Canadian artists. Burke said the performance was a way to recognize that art can sometimes be temporary and fluid.

"The idea of these drawings is that they're fleeting," Burke said. "They talk about the animation of life."

The Remai Modern Art Gallery is expected to be open by the 2016 Labour Day weekend.