Author: artoronto

The Renaissance is often considered to be synonymous with rebirth, rejuvenation, revival and enlightenment so to speak. Fascination with this epoch has and will always continue to flourish in the art world. I visited the ‘Revealing the Early Renaissance, stories and secrets in Florentine art’ show at the AGO over the weekend and I must say while I was pleasantly fascinated with the work being shown I was mildly disappointed at the scope of the show. It perhaps did not live up to its full potential by limiting its focus on themes of religiosity while several other areas such as literature, philosophy, science and politics were somewhat brushed over or forgotten entirely. What can further observed is the lack of attention to the fact that this period of time saw vastly new and unique materials come into experimentation and use together with new methods and concepts. That being said, the show was quite effective in delivering themes of mysticism and opulence and displaying the narrative of their marriage through the eyes of the Church. 

Bernardo Daddi. Italian (Florentine), about 1280-1348. The virgin Mary with Saints Thomas Aquinas and Paul. Tempera and gold leaf on panel, 121.6 x 113 cm. The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles

The large ceiling-to-floor mural at the entrance of the show was quite fascinating to look at and took me by awe as I scanned the map of Florence. It was very powerful in setting the mood for the general exhibition. The background music went along with this concept. Blues and golds typified the theme of renaissance luxury and opulence and the richness of the compositions displayed only accentuated this theme. The mixture of small and large pieces gave an interesting diversity that captivated the audience.

Giotto Di Bondone, Italian, about 1266-1337, The Peruzzi Altarpiece, Tempera and gold leaf on panel, 105.7 x 250.2 cm. The North Carolina Museum of Art

Giotto di Bondone, Italian, The Apparition of God the Father (Pinnacle from the Baroncelli Altarpiece, Florence, Santa Croce). Tempera and gold leaf on panel, 30 x 28 inches. San Diego Museum of Art

My favorite work of art from the show would probably have to be Giotto Di Bondone’s ‘The Apparition of God the Father’ with its gold leaf and triangular form, it truly captivated me and provided a blast of mysticism that is so relevant in thinking about Renaissance artwork. The ‘Halley’s Comet’ seen by Giotto, toward the end of the show added a nice touch and reminded me why I love this time particular era.

Halley’s Comet as seen by Giotto

While this show was thought evoking and aesthetically coordinated it did not delve deeper into the Renaissance as an era of innovation but rather into the story of religion and wealth which is perfectly legitimate, however the addition of other aspects of the time period may have given it the kick of energy that it deserves.

Haafiz Karim

The Grange Prize for contemporary photography will now be known as the Aimia | AGO Photography Prize with a greater international focus and a new national scholarship program fostering the development of photographers across the country. Matthew Teitelbaum, Director and CEO of the Art Gallery of Ontario, and Vince Timpano, President and CEO of Aimia in Canada, announced the expansion of Canada’s largest and most innovative art prize program. The expanded Prize will feature a new national scholarship program that will recognize and develop the next generation of Canadian photographers. The Aimia | AGO Photography Prize will grant more than C$85,000 annually in cash prizes to photographers through the new scholarship and the prizes for the winner and three runners-up.

“The Prize will honour the core mission of the original Grange Prize, which is to engage the public in a dialogue about contemporary photography by connecting people with extraordinary Canadian and international talent, allowing the public to choose the winner,” said Matthew Teitelbaum. “The Prize will also continue to foster the growth of photography in Canada by providing all four shortlisted artists fully-funded residencies and exhibition programs.”

“After five groundbreaking years working together with the AGO on the Grange Prize, we wanted to take this important Prize to new heights by making several enhancements to build on its success,” said Vince Timpano. “We are particularly proud to be introducing the national scholarship program, granting more than C$20,000 each year to students whose artwork displays extraordinary potential in the field of photography.”

Please watch for the long-list announcement in July 2013 along with programming highlights for the 2013 Aimia | AGO Photography Prize.

Upon arrival, an essay by curator Lucas Soi, was left for the audience to read over before entering/while in the space.

Guest in front of Jeremy Jansen’s Handlebars, 2013

Installation view with Pipe and Nails, 2013

Soi sets the tone of the exhibit by narrating the main objective of the exhibition: the subjection of our bodies to the predetermined boundaries of space by linking Elias Canetti’s “fear of being touched”, Rodney King, and Agamben’s concept of ‘Aparatus’ with Jansen’s current body of work. When I entered the thoughtfully curated exhibition space it became clear that, like Niall Mcclelland and Jansen’s Barricades (2011), the works challenge the audience to rethink how their bodies are required to move/act in, as Soi puts it, “supposedly free and open environments.”

Artist Jeremy Jansen in front ofPortrait, 2013

Jansen takes ordinary objects that we find in public space and after a labour-intensive process of erasure through polishing; he places them in the context of a gallery in order to generate open, unrestricted, dialogue and reflection.

Installation view with Gate, 2013

 Although we are given the context to understand the straight-forward dialogue regarding constrained conduct in open environments, Jansen also leaves room for the audience to consider a few other themes, including: the everyday/mundane, form, minimalism, pretension with a purpose of critique (and, potentially, Socratic irony), as well as whimsy (Jansen’s bird was nibbling on grains along the ceiling banister).

Jeremy Jansen’s bird enjoying the opening reception, Bird, 2013

While chatting with Jansen, he stated that he is “calling out” a few Torontonian artists with his new body of sculptural works. Consequently, I will, eagerly, be keeping my eyes peeled for any possible targets of Jansen’s critique.

Text and photo: Leanne Simaan

*Note: The show is open until June 24, 2013. COOPER COLE Gallery is located at 777 Richmond Street West—2nd Floor. Gallery hours: Monday, Friday, and Saturday: 12 – 4 p.m., and by appointment.

FREE Contemporary ARTbus Tour

Sunday, June 9, 2013, 11:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

The tour starts at the Justina M. Barnicke Gallery with a tour by guest curator, Rosemary Heather and then departs for the Art Gallery of York University and Oakville Galleries, returning to Hart House.

FREE but registration is required. For reservations, contact artbus@oakvillegalleries.com or 905.844.4402, ext. 27 by Friday June 7, 4 p.m.

Sanaz Mazinani, detail of Living with War, 2011. From the series “Frames of the Visible”. Courtesy of the artist/Stephen Bulger Gallery.

For Screen and Décor the use of pattern and ornament (in the sense of extended motif) in contemporary art is understood as an organizing principle in a world of excessive data. Screen and Décor proposes to look at this phenomenon through the work of six artists. The exhibitionis open:  June 8 – August 17, 2013. Justina M. Barnicke Gallery is located in Hart House, University of Toronto, 7 Hart House Circle. Opening Reception: Friday June 7, 6 – 8 p.m. Gallery hours: Mon – Fri 12 – 5, Sat 1 – 5 p.m.

Michael Smith
Opening Reception: Thursday, May 30, 2013, 6 – 8 p.m.
Nicholas Metivier Gallery

Artist Michael Smith at the opening reception

In his most recent paintings, Montreal artist, Michael Smith investigates a wide range of mark marking to create his highly abstracted landscapes and seascapes.

Michael Smith, Sunset #2, 2013, oil on board, 20 x 20 inches. Courtesy of Nicholas Metivier Gallery

Several of the works in this exhibition are large-scale and depict what may appear to be a magnified view of a forest floor. The specificity of nature however is subjective as the paint refuses to fully define trees or foliage and the image is left in a constant state of flux.

Michael Smith, Ochre Bark, 2013, acrylic on canvas, 57 x 60 inches.  Courtesy of Nicholas Metivier Gallery

Michael Smith, Ochre Bark, 2013, (detail)

While several of the works are similar in theme, each painting has a distinct temperament depending on Smith’s use of colour and texture.

The show is on display until June 22, 2013. Nicholas Metivier Gallery is located at 451 King Street West. Gallery hours: Tue – Sat 10 – 6 p.m.

Photo: Fox Martindale

Thursday, June 6, 2013
VIP begins at 8 p.m.
Party begins at 9 p.m.
The Power Plant
231 Queens Quay West

Power Ball is the gallery’s largest annual fundraiser. From its inception in 1999, Power Ball has set the standard as the most influential, vibrant and original contemporary art party. Attracting a sophisticated “who’s who” crowd of artists, fashionistas, celebrities, and financiers from the world of film, advertising, music, design, and art, this is one sensational party providing vital funds to the exhibition and public programs at The Power Plant.

It was 45 years ago when Andy Warhol uttered his now infamous remarks on fame: “In the future, everyone will be world famous for 15 minutes.” But what is fame in our contemporary world? What does it mean to be famous?

Find the answers at Power Ball: 15 Minutes. The Power Plant will blow out the walls to extend this year’s art party across Harbourfront Centre and around the world, with interactive online installations and with you at the centre of it all. Join The Power Plant at Power Ball and become world famous for 15 Minutes. #PowerBallTO

Co-chairs for Power Ball: 15 Minutes / Anthony Novac and Isa Spalding

Power Ball: 15 Minutes Committee:

Rui Amaral, Aristotle Andrulakis, Andrea Beechey, James Blackburn, Amanda Blakley, Kimberely Bozak, Belinda Chun, Kate Daniels, Perry Dellelce, Asheligh Dempster, Mary Dailey Desmarais, Bernard Doucet, Laurent Fort, Andrew Francis, Michael Garrity, Natasha Gidaro, Trinity Jackman, Rebecca Kacaba, Mark Keliar, Jeremy Laing, Hank Latner, Michael Liebrock, Gord Love, Daniel McClure, Serena Morris, Kevin Morris, Jonathan Naymark, Manny Neubacher, Zack Newton, Wishal Patel, Anya Shor, Julianne Taskey, Christina Walters-Arseneau, Jim Warren.

For sponsorship opportunities or ticket packages, please contact: Mark Teeple, Major Events & Business Development Coordinator, 416.973.1264 or mteeple@thepowerplant.org

Ezio S. Molinari, Vista / Main Gallery
Leftovers / Process Gallery
Alex Liros: Men at work 3 / Cell Gallery
James Gardner: Frank / Window Box
Opening Receptions: May 30, 2013,  7 – 10 p.m.
Gallery 1313

New exhibitions opened including member artist Alex Liros ‘s: Men at work 3, photographer, Ezio S. Molinari ‘s beautiful, Vista – An aesthetic Exploration of Europe, James Gardner’s window box exhibit titled Frank and in the Process Gallery – Leftovers.

Artists Ezio Molinari (in black shirt) surrounded by friends

Molinari’s work inspired by travelling and one could imagine being on the streets of Paris or Barcelona on a hot summer night. He had even prepared guide books and music to help capture the moment.

Ezio Molinari, Burning Souls, 2012

Ezio had put out fans for visitors to ward off the evening’s heat. He also had a selection of European wines, beers and appetizers for guests.

Alex Liros sold at least half a dozen works and had trouble trying to leave as guests kept arriving.

Artist Alex Liros (left) with a friend

Alex Liros, Pipelines, from Men at works series, 2013

James Gardner’s window piece looked great when lighted.

James Gardner: Frank, 2013

Artist James Gardner (right) with friends

All exhibits continue to June 9th, 2013. Gallery 1313 is located at 1313 Queen Street West. Gallery hours: Wed – Sun 1 – 6 p.m.

Text and photo: Phil Anderson

Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, 2013 is closing this week but many of the shows are still on display in various galleries

Impact Resistance by Mats Nordstrom
Opening Reception: May 30, 6 – 9 p.m.
May 30 – July 21, 2013
Julie M. Gallery
15 Mill St, Distillery Historic District

Impact Resistance features photographs and video that reflect philosophical engagement with the passage of time.

Mats Nordstrom in front of Untitled, Swimmers series

Three photographic series, 33 bathhuts and a hotdogstand, Remnants, and Swimmers, pivot on moments of emotional vulnerability and their place in human memory.

Mats Nordstrom, Untitled (Bathhut No. 16), 2007

Mats Nordstrom, Untitled (Funnel), Remnants series, 2007

Complemented by abstracted seascapes, these gentle and contemplative works prompt their audience to meditate on the formative moments that inflect the landscape of their past.

Photo: Celeste Ringrose

BMW Exhibition Prize Gala and the 17th annual Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival wrap-up party:
May 30, 2013, 6 – 8 p.m.
Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art
952 Queen Street W

Photographers, curators, art critics and organizers celebrated this past month of photography featuring over 1,500 national and international artists.

From left to right: Max Dean, Toronto-based artist, juror, Dr. Matthew Brower, curator/art historian,  Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival Executive President Darcy Killeen, winner Marlene Creates and BMW Canada Marketing Director Kevin Marcotte

The winner of this year’s $5,000 BMW Exhibition Prize for an outstanding exhibition was announced as well. A jury considered both Open and Featured exhibitions and based their decision on the caliber and concept of the work, the curatorial vision and the overall impact and presentation of the exhibition. The winner of the BMW award was Marlene Creates.

 Marlene Creates and  Dr. Matthew Brower, curator

Marlene Creates, excerpt from Sleeping Places, Newfoundland, 1982

Through Creates’ lens, geographies marked by human intervention expose multiple legacies of interaction with place, and document the artist’s own movement through the natural world she inhabits. Questioning the assumption that the “natural” is unmediated, the work depicts the ways in which language, signification, and individual memory construct our perceptions of the land and contest local and national heritage. Her work is on display at the Paul Petro Contemporary Art, located 980 Queen St W, till June 1, 2013.

Photo: Alice Tallman

Anonyma
Opening Reception: May 25, 5 – 11 p.m.
May 24 – June 10, 2013
Goodfellas Gallery
1266 Queen St

Seven photographers explore the difficulty of establishing an identity in photography; these images address the tension between the inherent obscurity that comes from being behind the camera, and the desire to express one’s identity through one’s work.

From left to right: Andrew Lee, Christine Kwan, Hitoshi Murakami, Vincent Luk, David Kim, Carmen Cheung, Nicholas Tam

Carmen Cheung, From the series: “Unveiled”, 2013, Light Jet Archival Print, 27 x 36 inches

Visitor in front of Christine Kwan, “The Watch”, Light Jet Archival Print, 52 x 36 inches

Photo: Celeste Ringrose

Tuesday, June 4, 2013, 7 p.m.
Location will be confirmed on RSVP
Mercer Union

Refreshments will be served

Join in this exclusive opportunity to visit Canadian designer Jeremy Laing and artist Vanessa Maltese, who collaborated on Laing’s 2013/14 fashion collection. Maltese and Laing will discuss their recent collaboration, in addition to current issues and interests in their practices. The In Studio series is free and guaranteed to Mercer Union Sustaining Members on RSVP.

Space is extremely limited. Space may be available to non-Sustaining Members for $25. For membership inquiries, contact York Lethbridge, Director of Operations & Development by email at york@mercerunion.org or by calling 416.536.1519

Canadian-born Jeremy Laing spent his childhood on an army base in Germany. He learned to sew at age 13 by watching his mother, and has been making clothes ever since. Jeremy’s self-taught method, which combines organic and geometric approaches to pattern making and construction, was honed while studying in Toronto, on exchange at Westminster University in London, and through an apprenticeship with Alexander McQueen. Following his apprenticeship, Jeremy worked freelance developing showpieces for five of McQueen’s collections, demonstrating his strength in innovative pattern making, garment construction, and the use of textile to create form. In 2011, Jeremy was a finalist for the prestigious ANDAM Fashion Award.

Vanessa Maltese lives and works in Toronto and holds a BFA from OCAD University. The National Winner in the 2012 RBC Canadian Painting Competition, she has presented two solo exhibitions at Toronto’s Erin Stump Projects and in February participated in the Soi Fischer Thematic Residency Program with artist Artie Vierkant at Artscape Gibraltar Point. Maltese’s upcoming projects include, group exhibitions at Onsite [at] OCADU in Toronto and Wil Aballe Art Projects in Vancouver.

Kim Adams: Recent Works
February 20 – August 11, 2013
Art Gallery of Ontario
317 Dundas Street W.

Kim Adams, Artist’s Colony (Gardens) (detail), 2012-13, HO plastic model parts eand landscaping, 48″d x 32″h x 80″l. Courtesy of the artist and Diaz Contemporary. Photo: Toni Hafkenscheid

Using commonplace objects ranging from farm machinery and automobile parts to household objects, toys and model train parts, Adams creates sculptures in large and small scale that resemble fictional worlds and imaginary landscapes – a type of collage in three dimensions.

Val Nelson
May 18 – June 1, 2013
Bau-Xi Gallery
340 Dundas Street W.

Val Nelson, Thief with a Toy Camera, oil on panel, 45 x 60 inches

“…she crafts the kind of post-photographic painting that does its best to make an eye dulled by electronic media vibrate anew. I am happy to say she is largely successful.” — Terence Dick

Michael Smith
May 30– June 22, 2013
Opening Reception Thursday, May 30, 6 – 8 p.m.
Nicholas Metivier Gallery
451 King Street W.

Michael Smith, Shadow Burn, 2013, acrylic on canvas, 57 x 60 inches

In his most recent paintings, Smith investigates a wide range of mark marking to create his highly abstracted landscapes and seascapes. Several of the works in this exhibition are large scale and depict what may appear to be a magnified view of a forest floor. The specificity of nature however is subjective as the paint refuses to fully define trees or foliage and the image is left in a constant state of flux. While several of the works are similar in theme, each painting has a distinct temperament depending on Smith’s use of colour and texture.

Reclamation by Sally Thurlow
May 22 – June 15, 2013
Red Head Gallery
401 Richmond Street W.

Sally Thurlow, Swimmer, 2012.  Lake Ontario driftwood, 58 x 94 x 29 inches. Courtesy of the artist.

“Time worn driftwood, the textured surface of ancient rocks, and porcelain shards from shattered china; each fuel her creative vision. These objects have been carefully collected and studied by the artist during her shoreline wanderings. Both natural and man-made, they have been transformed by time and the elements. Sally reclaims these objects, reinterprets and reshapes them, imbuing them with new meaning while honouring their origins and history.” – James Campbell, Executive Director/Curator of Visual Art Centre of Clarington

Unburying Our Histories by Alicia Coutts, Coco Riot
May 31 – July 13, 2013
Opening Reception: May 31, 2013, 6 – 8 p.m.
A Space Gallery
401 Richmond Street W. Suite 110

Coco Riot, Los Fantasmas #6, Ink and Acrylic Paint on Paper, 2013. Photo: Salma Al Atassi

Unburying Our Histories lays bare the devastating intimacy of political violence, and the centrality of its denial to our unequal social and political reality. In works that trace their families’ histories in meticulous detail, Alicia Coutts and Coco Riot have created vivid, trans-generational archives of genocide that confront us with the violence of their disavowal.

The Print Process: Varied Prints on Washi: Rebecca Cowan, Catherine Farish and Jerry Silverberg
May 24 – June 22, 2013
Open Studio Gallery / Print Sales Gallery
401 Richmond Street W. Suite 104

Left to right: Rebecca Cowan, #4 Balsam Cres. (detail), double accordion book, 4.25” x 23” (open), drypoint with pochoir on Sunago Mingei White, Sudare Kingin Beige, and Sunome Gold on Tan washi, 2013, Catherine Farish Day Scribbles #2, relief on Hadura S3 paper with chine collé, 2010, Jerry Silverberg, Rojo, collagraph on Gozan paper, 12.5″ x 9″, 2013.

Historically used by Japanese Buddhist monk for writing sutras, contemporary artists in the west have gravitated towards using washi, or Japanese papers, as an alternative to western paper. The paper’s strength, pliability, and absorbency provides an ideal surface for various print media. This group exhibition focuses on the use of washi in printmaking by Rebecca Cowan, Catherine Farish and Jerry Silverberg.

Currently on view at Birch Libralato is Kelly Richardson’s latest video installation, Orion Tide. Drawing from the aesthetics of sci-fi films and dystopian stories, Orion Tide presents a Roswell-esque desert with spurts of light and smoke repeatedly taking off into the dark night sky. As a part of this year’s CONTACT festival, Orion Tide rests somewhere in the territory between science fiction and biblical wraths. By uniting the cataclysmic commonalities that both worlds share, Richardson created an apocalyptically sublime space in which all ideals dissolve and a universal transition is made for whatever may come next. Be it rapture or evacuation, the solution of departure is immensely satisfying to witness. Self-destructive yet soothing, Richardson convinces her audiences that however bleak, a conclusive end possesses great beauty.

Kelly Richardson, Orion Tide, 2013. HD video installation. Courtesy of the artist and Birch Libralato

In keeping with Richardson’s practice, Orion Tide questions the fine line between truth and fiction by challenging our ability to assess the integrity of images. Hinging on the fringes of reality and fantasy, the schematics of Orion Tide seem entirely plausible for today’s world. The work’s lack of specificity and ability to conjure the familiar poses an array of questions. Simultaneously convincing yet synthetic, the balanced ambiguity of the scene could be a peaceful ascent towards the heavens, a forced migration, or an exploratory venture towards the unknown. Ultimately, Richardson does not grant us any definitive answers, forcing her audiences to consider the “evocative power of the imagination” and the blurring line between what is possible and impossible. Through a carefully calculated application of digital effects and documentary footage, Richardson questions the credibility of what we see and our increasingly mediated doors of perception.

Shellie Zhang

*Orion Tide premieres at Birch Libralato in parallel with Kelly Richardson’s 15-year retrospective at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York. The exhibition in Toronto runs till June 8th, 2013 at Birch Libralato, 129 Tecumseh Street. Gallery hours: Wed – Sat 11 – 5 p.m.