The fourth annual painting project by second-year fine arts students sees them taking an obscure piece by relatively unknown Icelandic artist Erró and making it their own. The results are intricate pieces with plenty of depth.

The painting used for inspiration, The Background of Jackson Pollock (1967), features a variety of well-known paintings, like Vincent Van Gogh's self-portrait, recreated with aspects Pollock's paint-splatters adding cohesiveness, along with portraits of Pollock and a bottom border of horses.

The fine arts students, under the direction of program coordinator Tony McAulay, recreated their own versions of the painting by selecting paintings from the impressionist and abstract expressionism eras, choosing a linking artist and incorporating some of their signature style in the other paintings, creating a portrait of their linking artists and a self-portrait, and featuring a bottom border of an item painted about 30 times over.

The exhibit, Pinning Down Modern Art, got its name from the top right-hand corner of both the Erró painting and the ones by students, which features a hand that looks like it is pinning down the first recreated painting onto the canvas. The exhibition will be taking place from March 14 to the 19 at the Arts Project downtown.

Second-year student Cheryl Bender surrounded her painting with photos from books, as she decided on Canadian Group of Seven artist Emily Carr as her linking artist. She chose paintings by Claude Monet, among others, that are compatible with Carr's style and feature similar skies and colours. "There are lots of ways to connect pieces," she said.

To see the students' complex and detailed pieces, check out the Arts Project from March 15 to 19 at 203 Dundas St. The opening of the exhibition will be on Tuesday March 15 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., where a cash bar and free food will be available. For more information, contact the Arts Project at 519-672-2767.