Opening Tomorrow at MOCA: The Honest Shop & Last Chance to View Films by Chantal Akerman

Tomorrow, Friday, May 10th 2019, MOCA presents the fourth project in our Art in Use series, the Honest Shop. A self-service store that showcases and sells products handmade by people in the Junction area, the Honest Shop relies on a system of trust and generosity, where customers must record their purchases and leave cash in the ‘honesty box’ for collection. There are no salesclerks; no Air Miles; and no receipts given.

Rather than have a special selection process for what can be included in the Honest Shop, the products are only those made locally by hand. The disparate array of handcrafted items on display in the shop brings attention to the individual efforts and hidden talents of makers in the community. This unregulated model for trading offers an alternative to commercial mass consumerism—one that is driven by individuals, enthusiasm, and goodwill.

Last chance to view In the Mirror (2007) and NOW (2015) by renowned filmmaker Chantal Akerman at MOCA - these two films speak to the issues that Akerman has explored throughout her career: trauma, gender, belonging and identity.

This is the first Canadian presentation of NOW, which was originally produced for the Venice Biennale in 2015. It creates a sense of being immersed in an arid landscape. The content and controlled point of view make us very aware of the passage of time and the many-layered stories and histories of human occupation.

NOW, is set in stark contrast to the slow and gentle sense of exploration of In the Mirror. Yet both are reflections of and meditations on how we, as individuals, confront and experience our position in society and the world at large.

This exhibition is the first time that Akerman’s work is being shown in a museum in Toronto. The project was introduced to MOCA by curatorial consultant Andréa Picard who invited Akerman to exhibit in Toronto before she passed away in 2015. The opening of MOCA created an opportunity to give space and attention to this important artist. As a companion piece to this exhibition, Picard is curating a retrospective survey of Akerman’s films at TIFF Cinematheque in fall 2019.

Period of Adjustment an Exhibition by Carrie Perreault

Working primarily in sculpture and performance, Akin St. Clair member Carrie Perreault balances resistance and restraint in onerous actions that recount long-term precarity. In making her work, she expends great effort to achieve minimal results. This isn’t about labour; she prioritizes process to reflect on systems of abuse and their connection to emotional and psychological experiences. Through gestural, often repetitive acts and narratives that resist closure, she alludes to complex trauma and its residual effects. By exploring, in a visceral way, failures, vulnerabilities, and the limits of her body, Perreault makes viewers keenly aware of their own.

NAC’s Show Room Gallery
Opening Reception Friday 10 May 2019 7PM-10PM
On display until Saturday 17 August 2019

Presented as part of NAC’s Homecoming Series.

Carrie Perreault is an artist based in Toronto and New York. Her work has been included in exhibitions and projects at Idea Exchange, Cambridge Galleries, curated by Iga Janik (2019); Deathnastics, as part of Gymsick, curated by Hazel Meyer and Lucy Pawlak, Toronto (2018); Hamilton Biennale (2017); Strange Beauty, Tangled Arts +Disability Festival, Toronto (2015); Treasure Hill Artist Village, Taipei (2014). Perreault has been awarded residencies at Open Studio (Toronto), The Banff Centre and Taipei Artist Village.

Idea Exchanges Show.19 Opens Friday!

SHOW.19 brings together emerging artists from across Ontario whose works, processes and preoccupations are the latest in the ever-changing world of contemporary art. The exhibition is exclusively dedicated to those new on the scene and gives the necessary and well-deserved voice to the most ambitious and dedicated.

Idea Exchange

Where: Queen's Square, 1 North Square, Cambridge, ON

Opening Reception: Friday May 10, 2019 7:00 - 9:00 PM

SHOW.19 Features work by Akin members Nicole Crozier and Melanie Keay of Akin Ossington, and Carrie Perrault of Akin St. Clair.

Selected from an open call for submissions, the 13 artists chosen for SHOW.19 shed light on what's happening today and what Ontario has to offer the world of contemporary art in the coming years. This latest edition of SHOW presents works by: Tommy Bourque, Nicole Crozier, Rosellen D'Agostino, Laura Demers, Ioana Dragomir, Sylvia Galbraith, Mélika Hashemi, Hilary Hung, Melanie Keay, Neeko Paluzzi, Michelle Peraza, Carrie Perreault, and Tait William.

Opening Today! Satisfaction Guaranteed by Stephanie Avery

Satisfaction Guaranteed: Paintings by Stephanie Avery
Where: Flying Pony Gallery, 1481 Gerard Street East
When: May 3 - 31
Opening Reception: May 4, 4 - 7
Interactive workshop: May 12, 1 - 4. Come make some AdHacks of your very own!

Join Akin MOCA member Stephanie Avery for an exhibition of her ongoing 'AdHack' painting series. Stephanie uses reclaimed magazine ads as her canvas, painting her own whimsical additions directly onto them to critique and subvert the duplicitous aspects of consumer culture. ‘AdHack’ shifts the traditionally passive viewer/advertiser relationship into something much more active and empowering. By using humour and absurdity to co-opt advertisements, viewers gleefully disengage from the original narratives. 'AdHack' is a fun and engaging way to inspire critical thought/dialogue about advertisements and the role they play in our everyday lives.

Stephanie Avery is a Toronto-based interdisciplinary artist. Focusing on themes of play, discovery, identity and memory, Stephanie uses humour and absurdity to intervene with familiar objects and imagery to give them new meanings and narratives. Her goal is to inspire new perspectives and initiate critical dialogue about elements of contemporary culture that are often taken for granted.

On View Now: Kin Collective's Constructing Liminal Space

In Constructing Liminal Space, KIN portrays the personal dilemma of being an immigrant and the impact of relocation on individual identity. Jieun June Kim of Akin MOCA and Marina’s immigration experiences have forced them to straddle the boundary between their homes in Korea and Russia (respectively), and their new home in Canada. Their work reflects the duality of the “in-between” space where their identities collide such as realities and dreams, and past and present life.

KIN Collective will also be hosting a FREE family-friendly collaborative art installation, “The Place of Belonging,” on May 4.

Date: April 25 – May 13
Opening Reception: April 25

Opening Reception: 6pm – 9pm

Gallery Hours: Tuesday to Friday 1pm to 6pm
Thursday, May 2 the Gallery will be open until 8pm

Place: Toronto Centre for the Arts, Lower Gallery

AGYU Upcoming Public Programs

Artist Tour | Wednesday April 17, 2019 @ 6:30 PM | AGYU

Join us at Toronto’s Igloolik outpost (aka AGYU) for a rare opportunity to hear Arnait discuss the development of their practice over three decades and the importance of women making art in the north. Members of Arnait will share their work in English and Inuktitut with translation. Coincides with our opening reception.

Igalaaq (Seeing Through) | April 17 and May 4, 2019 | AGYU

Step into the portal! Igalaaq promotes new configurations of Inuit/non-Inuit relations through video chat technology. On April 17 at 7:30 pm we open the portal between North and South for a conversation between installation artist, curator, writer, and educator Bonnie Devine(Serpent River First Nation, Anishinaabe/Ojibwa) and Arnait members Susan Avingaq, Marie-Hélène Cousineau, Madeline Ivalu, and Uyarak (Lucy Tulugarjuk).

On May 4 from 10 am to noon we host a special three-way transcontinental portal between Igloolik, AGYU, and Venice, where Isuma, the celebrated film collective from the North, is representing the Canadian Pavilion at the Biennale. This conversation is hosted by artist, educator, curator, and Vtape co-founder Lisa Steele, in conversation with Marie-Hélène Cousineau, Madeline Ivalu, and Uyarak (Lucy Tulugarjuk). Keep an eye on our website and socials for the time when the portal will open!

Public Talk | Thursday April 18, 2019 @ 12 pm | The Commons, 401 Richmond Street West, Suite 440

Members of Arnait from three generations—Marie-Hélène Cousineau, Susan Avingaq, and Uyarak (Lucy Tulugarjuk)—dialogue about their collective filmmaking practice with writer and curator Candice Hopkins (Carcross/Tagish First Nation). This talk will be in English and Inuktitut with translation. Presented in partnership with Images Festival.

Contemporary Art Bus Tour | Sunday May 26, 2019, 12 – 5 pm

The bus departs from OCADU (100 McCaul Street) at noon and travels to AGYU for a Curator’s Tour of Arnait Ikajurtigiit at 1 pm and continues with stops at the Doris McCarthy Gallery and the Robert McLaughlin Gallery where other CONTACT exhibitions are on view. To reserve a seat, please email Alissa Firth-Eagland, alissafe@yorku.ca. Co-presented with Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival.

Student Tour Series | Wednesday May 15, 2019 @ 5:30 pm | AGYU

As Indigenous communities come to adopt new digital technologies in the North, what are the potential effects on Indigenous sovereignty of exploring their identities online? Join PhD candidate in Communication Studies at York University Ali Hirji for a tour of Arnait’s exhibition. Ali discusses the artists’ broad creative practice through his experience and research in artificial intelligence, broadband, cyber security, and Indigenous populations in remote communities like those in Nunavut. Courtesy of York U’s Mobilizing Inuit Cultural Heritage.

Seneca Illustration Graduation Show - starts Friday!

Artscape Youngplace
3rd floor hallway Gallery
180 Shaw St, Toronto ON M6J 2W5

April 19-27, 2019
Reception: Wednesday April 24 from 7 – 10p.m. (RSVP)
Gallery Hours: 8AM. – 9 PM daily

Seneca's Illustration diploma is excited to present its 15th Graduate Exhibition from a program that produces a diverse array of talented artists in both digital and traditional mediums. These skills, combined with the entrepreneurial business knowledge produce individuals ready to work in many different specialties including comics, indie arts, children’s books, concept art, spot and packaging illustration. Aboveground Art Supplies is again sponsoring the exhibit with Best in Show award and the Japanese Paper Place is sponsoring with the Japanese Paper Place Traditional Media Award. Both awards will be selected at the reception.

Artscape Youngplace is fully accessible by Ontario standards, with a wheelchair ramp at the 180 Shaw Street doors, an elevator servicing every floor and a fully accessible washroom on every level. The nearby 63 Ossington bus on the TTC is wheelchair accessible. (http://artscapeyoungplace.ca/about-us/accessibility/)

The Illustration Diploma offered within the School of Creative Arts and Animation at Seneca College is a two year diploma that combines traditional illustrative media, digital media and business skills. It educates the independent artist to succeed in the rapidly changing world of professional illustration. In addition to building on visual art skills such as drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture and digital media, students also register their own small business. With website, accounting, marketing and revenue generating skills in the curriculum, students will succeed as entrepreneurial artists. Graduates go on to work in children's and comic book illustration, spot and advertising illustration and concept art for TV, film and game animation.

OPENING TOMORROW NIGHT! Arnait Ikajurtigiit: Women helping each other

The Art Gallery of York University’s (AGYU) spring 2019 exhibition includes film, objects, and photography made over three decades by internationally celebrated Arnait Video Productions, the dynamic collective of Inuit and non-Inuit women artists from the North who put Inuit innovation and tradition first. Arnait Video Productions (Igloolik, NU/Montreal, PQ) gives voice to several generations of Inuit who articulate the challenges and opportunities that arise when living and working between Inuit and non-Inuit world views. Arnait Video Productions was founded in 1991 by Atuat Akkitirq, Susan Avingaq, Marie-Hélène Cousineau, Madeline Ivalu, and Carol Kunnuk. Uyarak (Lucy Tulugarjuk) is the newest member of the team.

Arnait Ikajurtigiit is curated by AGYU’s Interim Assistant Director/Curator Alissa Firth-Eagland and is a Primary Exhibition of Toronto’s Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, presented in conjunction with the 2019 Images Festival Off-Screen program. Arnait Video Productions is distributed in Canada and internationally by Vtape.

Upcoming Exhibitions

Tarpaulin - Greg McCarthy

Exhibition Reception: April 20th, 1-5pm, artist talk at 3pm
Exhibition Dates: March 30- April 28, 2019
Location: Patel Projects 184 Munro St back entrance
Patel Projects is open for receptions and by appointment only, please contact info@patel.gallery to schedule a viewing.

About the Work:
Tarpaulin uses the physical similarities between the material of tarpaulin and a painting, as a way of critiquing the role of landscape painting in Canadian art. The work uses the commonplace object of a camouflage piece of tarp, with its woven structure and abstracted depiction of nature, and insists on its value as being similar to that of a landscape painting by a member of The Group of 7. Throughout the exhibition the sculptures and collages involved will change and evolve, exploring different facets of the project. Although the works are never fully resolved, this unrest illustrates how our changing approaches to creating depictions of the Canadian landscape and proposes a reassessment of our visual vocabulary when moving forward.

About the Artist:
Born in Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Greg McCarthy is a multidisciplinary artist living and working in Toronto, Canada. His work often deals with the ethics of archiving and the role of photography in forming a visual narrative for history. McCarthy received a BFA from OCAD University and is a founding member of OKAY Collective an art collective based in Toronto, focused on publishing and promoting the works of emerging artists.

His works have been featured in Magenta Magazine, Art With Heart, Edition Toronto and have been collected by various private collections and The Library of The National Gallery of Canada.

About the Gallery:
Patel Projects is a project space and incubator that presents accessible, cutting-edge work by emerging artists and curators. The alternative arts space provides a platform for experimental practices, innovative exhibition formats and new experiences of art. With an emphasis on artistic integrity and ethical practice, Patel Projects also works on public art, programming, licensing, publishing, sponsorship, activations, and more.

Ryerson New Media students META 2019!

Opening Reception: Thursday, April 11th 6 - 9 pm Opening remarks take place at 6:15pm
Exhibition Hours: Friday, April 12th - Sunday April 14th: 2pm - 8pm
Location: Black Cat Showroom 1785 St Clair Ave W, Toronto

META is an annual exhibition that showcases artwork by students of Ryerson's New Media program. The event celebrates creative innovation by providing a platform for displaying work created at the intersection of art and technology. META includes installation art, interactive storytelling, augmented reality, video art, interactive sound projects, performance, and games. The exhibition takes place at an off-campus gallery and invites friends, family, colleagues, as well as institutional and industry professionals, to experience the work of next-generation new media makers.

About the Gallery:
Black Cat Showroom is the second iteration of Black Cat Artspace, the contemporary art gallery in Roncesvalles Village.Taking over one part of a former Chevrolet Oldsmobile dealership, gallery owner Andrew Williamson (who clearly has a penchant for transforming old spaces) has once again turned a run-down room into a place for art.

Pancakes and Booze Toronto April 12

Pancakes and Booze Toronto April 12
Event Date: April 12
Location: Revival 8pm- 2am
$10/$13

Aaron Lozynsky is an Akin Lansdowne member and is the Canadain coordinator of Pancakes and Booze Toronto. Pancakes and Booze is an LA based event originated in 2009 and has since popped up more than 500 times in 35+ cities around Europe & North America.

Batter sizzles, beer foams, and canvas lines the walls from ceiling to floor as hundreds, sometimes thousands, of revelers indulge in endless pancakes.

This is no stuffy wine-and-cheese, pretentious, someone-gag-me art event. It’s an innovative reimagining of the art show concept. A welcoming vibe for up-and-coming artists to sell and strut their stuff in a free verse, anything goes environment.

Pancakes and Booze travels the world transforming some of the best music venues and event halls into exhibitions of art, photography, jewelry, & music. Pancakes and Booze focuses on keeping the work on display local and original in an effort to help living artists of all types sell their work. Each show features up to 150 local artisans, a unique lineup of live musicians and/or DJs, live painting, and body painting along with many other forms of entertainment.As well as free PANCAKES all night! Pancakes and Booze aim is to bring the art community and those outside the artist community together by creating an upbeat and unique event. They work to make each event a judgement-free environment in which artists, potential buyers, and pancake fanatics alike can make connections with a diverse community that they may not have an opportunity to engage otherwise.

About the Artist:

Akin Lansdowne member Aaron Lozynsky  is a Toronto based Canadian visual artist. Exploring the human figure and the soul. Conveying the energy and vitality of my subjects with expressive colour and vibrant brushwork. Acrylic works on panel board that illuminate their surroundings.

Through Rose — a solo exhibition by Curtia Wright

The MOEG invites you to join us for the opening of ‘Through Rose’, a solo exhibition of Akin King member Curtia Wright. ‘Through Rose’ is a series of works discussing the complex skin of Black femininity through Wright’s own relationship to femininity as a Black womxn. Directly referencing the phrase "through rose coloured glasses", ‘Through Rose’ suggests that our concept of Black women’s everyday reality is stilted by a blissful ignorance. Delving into the psychological ramifications of having to navigate spaces that dissect you – examining our perception of Black femininity and the often one-dimensional the gaze that dehumanizes Black women’s bodies.

Opening Reception: April 18th, 2018 from 7-10pm
Exhibition Dates: April 19th – May 4th
Gallery Hours: Wednesday to Friday from 12-7pm, Saturdays from 12-5pm

Entry to the exhibition will be PWYC, will all entry proceeds donated to Black Women in Motion.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Curtia Wright is a multidisciplinary artist and muralist based in Toronto, Ontario. She’s interested in the way society’s perceptions of bodies—specifically Black bodies—have the ability to shape their narratives without consent. Her current works delve into the spiritual and mental wellness of African peoples, links to mythology, and disseminating what 'fantasy' is and who it belongs to. Her work questions our indoctrinated beliefs of what femininity and Blackness are, the perseverance of the black body, and issues surrounding mental illness in the Afro-Caribbean community.

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CUE is a radical arts initiative dedicated to providing funding and support for new-generation artists who live and work on the margins in Toronto. Since 2008, the initiative has provided almost $300,000 in high-access grants to support the creation of more than 290 art projects.

The MOEG is a project of CUE: a multidisciplinary arts space dedicated to showcasing the work of new generation artists aged 15-29 who live and work on the margins. Some of the most important artwork is being created by artists who experience social, cultural, and economic marginalization, and systemic barriers can preclude many relevant artists from contributing to our cultural narrative. The MOEG is a space to engage with these artists and their work--an environment where communities that have been excluded within the arts can be recognized and represented.

Surgi Dolls on display at the Textile Museum

Exhibition: Friday, April 5-Thursday, April 11, 2019
Ticketed Reception: Thursday, April 11, 7:00-10:00pm
Online Auction Ends Thursday, April 11, 2019

The Textile Museum of Canada is partnering with Project Sunshine Canada for a new fundraising initiative in support of family-oriented programs at both organizations. Professional artists, designers, and celebrities are creating one-of-a-kind, collectable Surgi Dolls, to be auctioned online and displayed at the Museum from April 5-11. Surgi Dolls represent an intersection of healing and creativity through textiles: Project Sunshine gives children blank dolls of diverse skin tones to make their own, to travel with them through their medical journey and provide a sense of comfort and control. By participating in the auction, you could take home your very own collectible Surgi Doll - these art objects are not for hospital use. The auction will culminate in a ticketed event at the Museum on April 11, 7-10 pm, with special guest Sally Siren.

Akin King member Rakefet Arieli, Akin alumni Emily Norry and many other talented artists were invited to decorate a Surgi Doll for The Doll Project: #SewMuchHeart. The Textile Museum of Canada has partnered with Project Sunshine Canada for a new fundraising initiative in support of family-oriented programs at both organizations. Get a chance to see the dolls in person at the Textile Museum until April 11th. Or bid on them online here.

Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival 2019 Programming Announced!

Renowned American artist Carrie Mae Weems will headline the 23rd edition of the citywide event spanning the month of May. As Weems’ first solo presentation in Canada, her exhibition in five parts will include an array of pivotal, celebrated works, some in unique new iterations. Her work will be shown at the Art Museum at the University of Toronto, at CONTACT Gallery, and at three outdoor sites in Toronto’s Entertainment District, including the exterior of the TIFF Bell Lightbox. Weems will also give a public lecture discussing her practice.

Festival Launch Party
Ryerson Image Centre
33 Gould St
Wednesday May 1, 7-11pm
Free and open to the public

On view:
Scotiabank Photography Award: Moyra Davey
Meryl McMaster, As Immense as the Sky
Adrian Raymer, Rejects
Maximum Exposure 24

Throughout Toronto every May, CONTACT presents lens-based works by acclaimed and emerging artists, documentary photographers, and photojournalists from Canada and around the world. The core programming of Primary Exhibitions (co-presentations with major museums, galleries, and artist-run centres), and Public Installations (site-specific public art projects), are a central focus of the Festival. These are cultivated through partnerships, commissions and new discoveries, framing the cultural, social, and political events of our times. The Featured and Open Exhibitions present a range of works by local and international artists at leading galleries and alternative spaces across the city. The Festival also includes a wide range of Events including the CONTACT Photobook Fair, a symposium, lectures, talks, panels, and workshops.

COUNTERPOINT: SUMMA 2019 - McMaster University BFA Student Exhibition

Since entering the McMaster Studio Art program in 2015, our class has developed and grown as individuals and as a group. There is harmony found within the juxtaposition of our individual concepts, thoughts, and ideas. By contrasting one another, we make way to highlight the individuality of each respective artist; not overpowering each other, but forming a melodic equilibrium. With the elements of our art practices merging and influencing one another, Counterpoint is a commemoration of experiences and artistic endeavours.
– The McMaster BFA Class of 2019

Follow the graduating class on Instagram @mcmastersumma2019 for a preview of their work.

THE ARTISTS
Norah Andresen, Lucia Cackovic, Jayda Conti, Sean Cooper, Neville Dennis, Deeshani Fernando, Safiyyah Figaro, Deanna Gallo, Meghan Giudice, Andjelija Jancic, Emily Kester, Katherine A. Laird, Caroline Eun-ae Lee, Anthony Lok, Robyn McCallum, Delaney McVeigh, Audrey Pearson, Josh Ravenhill, Jason Lee Rhyno

COUNTERPOINT: SUMMA 2019
Graduating McMaster University BFA Student Exhibition
Guest Curator: Hitoko Okada

LOCATION: THE COTTON FACTORY
270 Sherman Ave N, Hamilton, ON L8L 6N4
April 6 – 17, 2019

OPENING RECEPTION and AWARDS:
Saturday, April 6, 11:30 am – 3 pm at The Cotton Factory
Following the reception, open hours are April 8 – 12, and April 16 – 17 from 11 am – 3 pm

MCMASTER UNIVERSITY BFA PROGRAM
Studio Art at McMaster University is a small, highly-selective program, giving students exceptional opportunities to gain in-depth knowledge of numerous areas of study, including printmaking, drawing, sculpture, painting, mixed-media, installation, and ceramics/foundry. Along with major studio courses, this allows students to build a significant body of work and to explore and develop their artistic talents. Find out more.

*McMaster Museum of Art (MMA) has hosted the Studio Art Graduation exhibition for more than 30 years but necessary building updates forced it to temporarily close March 19 – August 23, 2019. The MMA continues to support the BFA student activities including the SUMMA exhibition, sponsors art student awards, and looks forward to future SUMMA presentations.

The Life of a Dead Tree by Mark Dion - Coming Soon!

Opening May 24th on MOCA’s 3rd floor, The Life of a Dead Tree by Mark Dion brings a massive, fully grown, deceased tree, along with its inhabitants, to MOCA for the museum’s first summer exhibition in the Tower Automotive Building. This specially conceived project marks the 100th anniversary of the Tower Automotive building and brings attention to our role in observing and caring for Toronto’s natural ecosystems.

Appropriately sourced from a cemetery, a site that continues to play a role in sustaining Toronto’s urban forest, the dead tree will be the central host for a “live” and sensory experience. With the support of the Faculty of Forestry at the University of Toronto and other partners, visitors can observe and participate in a kind-of autopsy of the tree that will unfold over the course of a two-month exhibition period. This shared investigation will remove, preserve and document all the various life forms the tree continues to support. Most importantly, the project will act as a site for conversations around specific pernicious, invasive insects threatening North American forests, such as the Emerald Ash Borer and Elm Bark Beetle.

The Lift of a Dead Tree by Mark Dion

Location: MOCA, 3rd Floor, 158 Sterling Rd, Toronto, ON

Date: May 24–July 29, 2019

Trees and forests have long populated Dion’s imagination and a particular body of production. He is well-known for artworks that question how we experience, study, display and think about the natural world. Through this particular project, a range of partners will be called upon to help expand the conversation and research being undertaken at MOCA. Dion states: “to build a culture of nature that features regeneration over destruction, sustainability over depletion and nurturing over domination, it requires input from a diverse collation of thinkers, makers, and doers. Art is one of many areas which can be important to this constellation.”

MOCA will offer a variety of public programs that will run in parallel with the exhibition. A series of talks and walks will discuss the myriad of lifeforms supported by dead trees, including Dead Trees for: Birds; Insects; Fungi etc.. There will also be opportunities for visitors to participate in the autopsy of the tree, as well as undertake drawing classes that examine the organisms sourced from the tree, along with focusing on the intricate textures of the tree itself.

'Don't We Know' by Laura Kay Keeling

Laura Kay Keeling’s newest collage series Don’t We Know, features interesting and beautiful images found in field guides, 35mm film photographs, National Geographic Magazines and other vintage books which have been cut apart and put back together in a new way. Not only does Keeling love photographing nature, she also enjoys allowing it to inspire her and guide her collages to become a new representation of things organically found in nature. Themes she is exploring with these new works include but are not limited to: ideas and concepts of “home”, the internet, television and effect of social media.

Don’t We Know

Location: QEPCCC, Corridor Exhibition (main corridor, entrance into the gallery at Queen Elizabeth Park Community and Cultural Centre in Oakville)

Dates: January 20th- May 31st, 2019

Rough Gem by Laura Kay Keeling. On view now at QEPCCC.

About Laura Kay Keeling

Travels, daydreams, field guides, coffee and film. Laura Kay Keeling, a member of Akin’s Dupont location, resides in Toronto, ON and pulls inspiration from beautiful everyday moments shared through her 35mm photography, collage work and installation projects. She has always been drawn to extreme environments and things that come from nature. Her focus is on creating work that instills an overall feeling of calm, curiosity and peacefulness within others as well as introducing opportunities for celebration and self reflection often with her own humorous twist. She aims to explore the idea of “home”, how we utilize and design living spaces and form connections with our communities. She is driven to explore the connection between art and nature and environmental elements are often the main focus of her work.   

ART SHOW: Verbal Gems - Zoë Bridgman

Verbal Gems
Solo Show by Zoe Bridgman

April 9- 10
Exhibition hours: 12-7
Opening Reception : April 9 6pm-9pm

Costume House
165 Geary Avenue, 2nd Floor Unite A

Akin Dupont member Zoë Bridgman is a painter and photographer currently living in Toronto. She studied at Parsons School of Design and graduated with a BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute. She worked as a commercial photographer for over a decade in Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto. 

She has participated in several group shows throughout her career in San Francisco, Montreal and Toronto. In 2013 she exhibited her “Influence” project at Contact Photo in Toronto and in 2013 participated in Flash Forward. 

More recently Zoë has been painting and completed her “Verbal Gems” project which she started in 2017.

Upcoming Events: <3 <3 <3

I <3 Paint 3, Curated by Kim Dorland Opens April 4th at 7pm

Opening Reception: Thursday April 4th, 7-9pm
Exhibition Dates: April 4-28, 2019
Location: 1151 Queen St East

Patel Gallery is pleased to present I ♥ Paint 3,  an exhibition of international painters curated by Kim Dorland with works by:

Tunde Adebimpe (Los Angeles, USA)
Todd Bienvenu (New York City, USA)
Seth Birchall (New South Wales)
Sara-Jeanne Bourget (Vancouver, Canada)
Keiran Brennan Hinton (New York City, USA)
Greg Burak (Ridgewood, USA)
Rudy Cremonini (Bologna, Italy)
Laura Dawe  (Toronto, Canada)
Anna Fidler (Corvallis, USA)
Shaun Morin (Arnes, Canada)
Hilary Pecis (Los Angeles, USA)
Jonathan Podwil (New York City, USA)
Francisco Rodríguez (London, UK)
Joseph Tisiga (Montreal, Canada)
Paige Turner Uribe (Los Angeles, USA)
Nadia Waheed (Austin, USA)
Guim Tio Zarraluki (Barcelona, Spain)
Aaron Zulpo (New York City, USA)

Kim Dorland on  I ♥ Paint 3:

"I’m not a curator. I’m not a taste maker or a gallery professional. I’m a painter. And I ️ paint. I love looking at paintings. I love thinking about paintings. I love the act of squeezing a brand new tube of paint. Painting is romantic. Painting is sexy. Painting is infuriating, but I can’t give it up.
When I did the first I ️ Paint shows it was a reaction to this boring, cyclical idea that “painting is dead”. I’m happy to report that that idea is now dead (at least for now). A quick scan through Instagram is proof that painting is alive and well (especially reassuring to this middle-ager is the amount of young artists picking up the mantle).
There’s good painting being made all over the place these days, and thanks to Instagram and such we have access - which is how I “curated” this show. This isn’t proof of what’s “on trend” right now. You’re not going to get a dense or complicated thesis. This is a show about using paint. About the talented ways that some artists are exploiting paint’s possibilities - materially, thematically, stylistically... At the end of the day, I just wanted to put together a really good painting exhibition."

Kim Dorland pushes the boundaries of painted representation through an exploration of memory, material, nostalgia, identity and place. Born in 1974 in Wainwright, Alberta, Dorland holds an MFA from York University in Toronto, and a BFA from the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design, in Vancouver. He has exhibited globally, including shows in Milan, London, New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. His work is featured in the Contemporary Art Foundation (Japan), The Sander Collection (Berlin); Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal; Musée d’art contemporain de Montreal; Glenbow Museum (Calgary); Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, Art Gallery of Alberta, the Audain Art Museum and numerous important private collections. Dorland currently lives and works in Vancouver.

Please direct inquiries to devan@patel.gallery

Public Volumes

Opening reception: April 6, 2019 | 2–5pm at the Small Arms Inspection Building
Exhibition Dates: April 6–May 5, 2019
Exhibition continues at Bradley Museum and Mississauga City Hall

FREE Contemporary Art Bus Tour: April 6, 2019 | 11:45am–4:45pm
Pick-up and drop-off at Kipling Station
Features visits at Humber Galleries, Art Gallery of Mississauga, and SAIB

Public Volumes Bus Tour: April 13, 2019 | 12.30-4.30pm
Pick-up and drop-off at the Gladstone Hotel
Features tours of SAIB, Bradley Museum and City Hall with artists HaeAhn Paul Kwon Kajander, Amanda White, soJin Chun and LeuWebb Projects.

Public Volumes gestures towards broad interpretations of spatial justice, a concept that acknowledges the connection between space and justice as integral to understanding how we arrive at our relationships. Bringing together exhibitions, public programming and writing, the many projects within Public Volumes focus in or out from a particular location or series of locations, fostering deeper insight into why space matters. From thinking through ideas around memory and ways of living to community mobilization and immigration, Public Volumes espouses the multiple meanings folded into the spaces of everyday life and those of unexpected circumstance. This program looks to the tangled means by which we defend the spaces that offer support and the efforts we take to transform those that fail.

Taking place over three sites within Mississauga and featuring collaborations with Koffler.Digital and independent curator Anu Radha Verma, Public Volumes features existing and newly commissioned work from artists working across a range of media

ARTISTS at Small Arms Inspection Building:
Joi T. Arcand
Cathy Busby
Stephanie Comilang
Sheena Hoszko
Germaine Koh
HaeAhn Paul Kwon Kajander
Morris Lum
Dawit L. Petros
jes sachse
Kara Springer

ARTISTS at Bradley Museum:
soJin Chun
LeuWebb Projects

City Hall (April 6-20, 2019): Amanda White

Guest curators and collaborators:
Letticia Cosbert
Nicole Hanson
Sajdeep Soomal
Anu Radha Verma

Curated by: Noa Bronstein
To RSVP for bus tours, please email small.arms@mississauga.ca

Pio Abad: Splendour

Exhibition Dates: 31 March – 2 June 2019
Oakville Galleries in Gairloch Gardens

In Pio Abad’s Splendour, the London, UK-based artist brings together objects and images that draw connections between specific moments of political and economic upheaval, from the fall of Cold War era dictatorships that erroneously heralded ‘the end of history’ to the economic crises of 2008 that brought us to our current age of political disenchantment. Lifting its title from an Abi Morgan play, which takes place in the drawing room of an unnamed autocracy on the eve of its collapse, the exhibition imagines Gairloch Gardens as the domestic setting of another scene of political devolution and decay. Splendour reflects on the roles of repetition and mistranslation in our understanding of history and asks how we might meaningfully go forward at this moment of worldwide political unease.

Free exhibition tours:
Saturday 13 April 2019, 3:00 pm
Saturday 11 May 2019, 3:00 pm

Rebecca Brewer & Rochelle Goldberg: Waves and Waves

Exhibition Dates: 31 March – 2 June 2019
Oakville Galleries at Centennial Square

Longtime friends and occasional collaborators, New York-based artist Rochelle Goldberg and Vancouver-based artist Rebecca Brewer have been engaged in a dialogue about their respective practices for years. This exhibition emerges from that conversation, with their distinct ideas unfolding materially in a shared space for the first time. The project sees both artists explore forms that allude to the relationship between human life and the natural world: Brewer's recent textile works recall dream-like perceptions—seen here alongside new paintings that stem from an early memory of being carried out to sea on a wave—whereas Goldberg's sculptural works evoke material transitions, tactility and the traces that contact leaves on human bodies and other living beings.

Free exhibition tours:
Saturday 13 April 2019, 2:00 pm
Saturday 11 May 2019, 2:00 pm

ARTBUS: EXHIBITION TOUR

Sunday 31 March 2019, 12:00 pm–5:00 pm
Pick-up and drop-off at the Ryerson Image Centre
$10 donation includes transportation to all galleries and afternoon refreshments

 Our spring ARTbus begins at the Ryerson Image Centre with a tour of True to the Eyes from the private collection of Howard and Carole Tanenbaum. The ARTbus continues to the Art Gallery of Burlington to visit Ears, Eyes, Voice curated by Dr. Julie Crooks. Lastly, at Oakville Galleries participants will visit the opening of Rebecca Brewer & Rochelle Goldberg: Waves and Waves and Pio Abad: Splendour.

Akin Launch New Exhibition and Community Programming Space ‘REMOTE’ and New Studio Location, Akin Richmond

REMOTE and Akin Richmond
Gallery, Programming Space and Art Studios
568 Richmond Street West
www.remote.gallery
 

Launching Friday, March 29th, REMOTE is Akin’s new dedicated exhibition and programming space at 568 Richmond Street West. REMOTE will provide opportunities for artists and members of the public to rent low-cost space for exhibitions and programming of all kinds. This multi-use space will be available for workshops, presentations, meetings, and community events as well as exhibitions, performances and other artistic programs.

To inquire about REMOTE space rentals, please email sara@akincollective.com to discuss availability and pricing. Please include a brief description of your exhibition or idea, the dates you are looking at, and any other pertinent information in your inquiry. We aim to make our space rentals as financially accessible as possible and look forward to hearing your ideas! Akin will be prioritizing Toronto’s newcomer artists, the Toronto Arts Council’s Equity Priority Groups and Akin’s current members for rentals of the space, but everyone is welcome to inquire!
 

Gallery Launch & 'Movement' Exhibition Opening Party Next Friday!
Friday, March 29th, 6-9pm. 
Cash bar.
Join the event on Facebook 
Follow REMOTE on Instagram

Join us as for the public launch of REMOTE as we celebrate the opening of our inaugural exhibition, “Movement” featuring new and recent works by Akin artists Clara Hirsch, David Salazar, Helen Dreifelds, Jamileh Salek, Julianne Ess, Nicole Krstin and Zach Tuinman.

A huge thank you to the Toronto Arts Council for their collaboration on this space, without whom this would not have been possible. Special thanks also to our friends and collaborators Neighbourhood Arts Network and Toronto Employment and Social Services’ Art Connectionsprogram.

Programming Space Features:
Total Square Footage: ~300 sqft.
Gallery quality fluorescent lighting
Polished concrete floors
Fully accessible entrance and bathroom
Additional promotion on our website and across Akin’s social media channels
Occupancy: 42 people
Please note that artists are responsible for providing gallery attendants for their exhibitions, and planning any associated events and receptions.

Akin Richmond

In addition to programming space, Akin is also launching Akin Richmond artist studios next door, which will be available to rent on a month-to-month basis, specifically prioritizing Toronto’s newcomer artists, the Toronto Arts Council’s Equity Priority Groups and Akin’s current members. To be added to the waiting list for studio rentals at 568 Richmond Street West or inquire about any of Akin’s studio locations please contact info@akincollective.com

Akin Richmond Art Studio Features:
Studios Ranging in size for 25sf to 60sf
Shared memberships available for $70/month
Fully accessible entrance and bathroom
Separate entrance from main REMOTE programming space

Accessibility:
Akin Richmond and REMOTE are fully accessible spaces. There are no steps to access the space, automated entrances, and both have gender-neutral washrooms with grab bars.

Being Scene 2019 featuring work by Stephanie Avery

Workman Arts presents BEING SCENE, a sweeping exhibition encompassing over 100 artworks by 60+ artists, including work by Akin MOCA member Stephanie Avery, that give shape to compelling ideas and narratives from the sublime to the absurd to the fearless. Being Scene covers a wide range of conceptual and material approaches, giving voice to diverse life experiences.

Location: Toronto Media Arts Centre

Dates: February 28 - March 23, 2019

Exhibition is FREE and open daily from 12-6 PM.
Toronto Media Arts Centre is an accessible venue.

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AdHack by Stephanie Avery. More on view at Being Scene.

About Stephanie Avery:

Stephanie Avery is a Toronto-based artist currently working out of Akin’s MOCA location. She is best known for her ongoing project Ruins, a photographic journey through abandoned buildings around the world. Abandoned buildings possess a unique and surreal beauty that is completely unlike any other environment. Within the confines of abandoned spaces, time is in limbo. We are able to glimpse a lost vision of the past, as well as a potential future where human life is absent. Their combination of time, nature and vandalism imbues each image with a chaotic beauty, effectively transforming the familiar into the surreal, the every-day into the extraordinary.