Category Archive
The following is a list of all entries from the Uncategorized category.
silk screened shirt
I’ve been meaning to take a picture of this for my cousin for a while…here it is!…its a little blury 
Art Adventures in Toronto Land With Fitzgerald Part 2!
After our time at the Power Plant we found ourselves in Art Metropole, a smaller than expected gallery, publishing and archival space. They are interested in anything that can be mass produced which is pretty cool. they Also do a lot of archiving. just being in the space it was very comfortable yet when i looked at the price tag of say a sewn stuffed pigeon i became oddly aware of how much money some of the things in Art Metropole would cost. the space transforms into what Art Metropole needs it to be, but mainly it looks like a store. They do however have a massive array of subjects from books to pigeons to mini skateboards.
After leaving Art Metropole we went searching for Birch Librato, which we found the entrance to with some help from the T.A. whose name escapes me at the moment (Ryan i think it was). Two Artists works were being set up for an exhibition that was opening the next day. Peter Smith (the exhibit called And or Other Gods, which can only imply the nature of said exhibit) in the front part of the gallery and Andrew McPhail’s(the exhibit called LIT, which again implies the nature of the show) in the back. Both artists with different in many ways.
Smith used found objects, and paint and other such things as logs in his art which sticks at least 5 or 6 inches out from the wall. all of his pieces were really enticing to me, the craftsmanship of them sometimes seemed sloppy but obviously with that purpose, he often used the letter blocks which are in the majority of his pieces and if they are not small cracked and skewered plastic globes are in their place. many times using the blocks the name of the piece will be on it somewhere, an example is Scared Shitless it is placed at the top of the peice in the same blocks that are throughout the piece so you would never think anything of that specific phrase being there. Smith’s art is on an epic slace however unepic-sized his art is. Alot of the subject matter and visuals are of swirling worldpools, the world (or worlds) and somewhat off putting childrens toys which are placed very strategically in the works. his works make me think of something i would have done as a child had I been motivated enough to do so, but are fairly morbid for such a small child do.
Andrew McPhails are is much more illustrative and and pretty for lack of a better word. LIT is much more 2D and picture esque, but still hold a quality that makes them very attractive. to me his art reminds me of pop art merely for its simplicity.
Next we found (by accident) Pari Nadimi, 2of2 and Niagra Galleries. the fact that there were three galleries in one space confused me to no end as to why there were three titles on the building, but then i looked at the infosheets on the exhibits and figured it out.
In the Pari Nadimi portion of the exhibit we saw an exhibit by Michael Dudeck. His exhibit i quite frankly did not understand, I could tell it had something to do with nature and humans interaction with it and its own interactions with itself. There were three hanging manequins adorned with animal and animal esque structures as an earie sound played throughout the space. at the back was a large poster thing-a-ma bob with words on it and a broken cacoonish bright orange manequin, on the walls were 4 pictures of Dudeck titled as different things and large scale ink and pencil drawings he had done.
in the front gallery (2 of 2) there were black and white portraits part of an exhibit called Film Noir by Paige Holden and in the very front room Nothing of me is original by Melisa Esplina (not pictured) her peices are wax dripping works, i liked them very much actually, the surfaces seemed to be flat but there were very visible drips.
Diaz Contemporary
There were two exhibits going on, Texto and a show by another artist Nick Ostoff. Ostoff’s art was very simplistic but by using very simple lines and marks he created imense depth within a flat surface.
Texto on the other hand was a colaboration (also not pictured here) that included site specific peices and other werk by artists such as Deanna Bowen, Ricardo Ceuves, Joel Herman, Yam Lau, Ken Lum, Gordon Lebredt, Francine Savard. Some of the art was very pop-artish and Japanese media like, but they were all very different, some of them seemed to focus on our cutlure others on eastern culture.
and last but not least mercer union where we got to talk to john sizaki (i just butchered that last name) there were some very interesting exhibits. The group was explained something about Ubuweb which my bad memory is failing to let me remember at the moment. i think its about the work on the left wall (when you walk in) that it a collection of someones work whom the person who runs Ubuweb has collected. they are poems that are visually as well as mentally pleasing.
on the other two walls of the from portion of the gallery there were miscalanious papers and signs from NYC from the artists neighborhood. These collections allow the viewer to get to know his neighborhood slightly without actuallybeing there. they were very amusingto say the least on the wall facing the front doors there are rants from an unknown person that make no coheirent sense written down on scraps of paper are really amusing. all three of these walls show the contribution of thrid party and found objects and work and how by mearly displaying them for someone to see and critique.
and after mercer union we attempted to find the other galleries in the neighborhood and failed very miserably so here is where the Toronto Land adventures end and we got back on the bus and trecked off to Guelph again.
–Emma Tiffin
THE POWERPLANT GALLERY
This unique gallery is located in Toronto near the water on 231 Queens Quay West
This wonderful art gallery formerly used as an actual power plant, yet beautifully transformed into a house of contemporary art, has some features that I wholeheartedly adore. For instance I love that it does not actually have its own collection of art. It simply displays other artists’ pieces, and when their shows are over they take these works with them, and new displays by different artists’ are installed.
Also the industrial feeling I encountered as I took my first step into the gallery is too quite pleasant. This manufactured feeling resonates throughout the building due to the existing elements of the original plant carefully considered and left. I feel that these sometimes subtle architectural elements help to accentuate the modernity in which the building is attempting to portray.
Currently out of the three shows that I viewed at the plant the one that I fell in love with was called ‘Beauty Plus Pity’ and it was by Emily Vey Duke, and Cooper Battersby. This display involved spirit animals, and dealt mainly with religion and good vs. evil. As I walked through the dimly lit room, all around me were stuffed creatures dressed in clothes with jewels hanging above them or laying on them. In the background a collage video was playing.
“It’s easier to be faithful to a God that is unstable”
This is a quote that was sung over and over again on the film. The voice singing was very high and peaceful while the subject matted seemed to be about hunting and religion. The log that was intended for viewers to watch the video on was being lit from underneath. I found that this lighting created a sense of warmth, like I was around the campfire.
This show throws a spot light on guilt, and how much religion is based on it. For instance, in the video, a penguin tells a story of a woman said hail Mary’s in order to conceive, but then when her baby dies at a very young age the priest who told her to say hail Mary’s blames the child’s short life on the mother saying she did not say enough of them, and thus destined her child an early death. I believe that this artist is insinuating that the church is unfairly placing guilt among its followers in order to control them.
If we can’t get it together – artists rethinking the (mal)function of communities
Curator: Nina Montmann
Collection by a group of Canadian artists
Secta – Domestics of Community
KhirkeeYann – Gloomy Sunday
The first group in this collection that we saw was called ‘KhirkeeYaan’ a series of TV. Monitors viewing peoples everyday lives in other countries. This piece was particularly strong, and seemed to fit the series very well.
The second piece that was saw was an interesting set up of two cut out paper figures place on a pile of books, with a light, and projector behind them. The video played on the projector was of two students who moved into the same position as the cut out figures, so for a moment the figures in the video disappears. While this is taking place there is some very sad music playing. This piece deals with a student protest, where a one of the students tragically died during this protest. There was a definite sense of loss and melancholy emulated by this piece.
Another piece in this series that really caught my eye was a video documentary about a secret utopian society, who were doing things not socially acceptable. For instance, one lady was shaving her legs on a dock by the river in a public area, another gentleman went to the supermarket and was licking the fruit and then placing it back on the shelf. I really enjoyed this piece because it was sort of making fun of social norms, yet conveying it in an artistic fashion.
One of the last pieces I saw of this series was about traveling somewhere you’ve never been before. This artist was very interested in appealing to multiple human senses, for example their piece released the scent of dinosaur manure whenever it sensed movement, it also was hooked up to a large fan and a heat lamp. There were several found objects used in this piece, like hanging blinds to separate other objects, as well as a freezer. I think that this piece is quite interesting due to its sensory considerations as well as its initial idea of visiting a foreign place, however I am not convinced it fits the series as well as some of the other pieces.
The last piece that I want to talk about from the power plant gallery is called Headless. An Exhibit by Goldin and Senneby, however most of the work done in this exhibit was not done by the artists but by artisans. These artists are known for using artisans. This piece was very confusing for me, and I found it hard to understand everything that I was seeing.
Art Metropole
This museum felt precious to me in the sense that I almost felt as though I was in a private attic filled with treasures of every kind. Perhaps the cluttered feeling comes from the simple fact that this museum is a multi-tasker, it is also a book store, and completes publications. The cluttered array of books, pamphlets, exhibitions and individual pieces of art make for an exciting experience.
Birch Libralato
When I visited the Birch Libralato gallery, the artist Peter Smith was being highlighted. His work was so interesting. He used every and any material, from corkscrews wire and nails, to star stickers, pencil crayons, and children’s building blocks. His work incorporated sketches and globes along with text to match. It was fresh and inspiring at the same time. I very much enjoyed his work. The artist himself was at the gallery when we were there and he was rather comical. He was finishing some pieces and placing finishing touches here and there. He seemed out of breath but very laidback.
2 of 2 Gallery – MELISSA ESPINA + PAIGE HOLDEN
This gallery had incredible wax paintings along with black and white macro portraits. Both of which were striking especially from a distance. The wax paintings are so beautiful and rich looking. This is a technique I would love to learn some day.
Art Adventures in Toronto Land With Fitzgerald
Toronto the magical land of smog–and art, hidden and not so hidden.
Our adventure began at The Power Plant with Beauty Plus Pity by Emily vey Duke and Cooper Battersby. The exhibit was at first really jarring to walk into a small cramped room with taxidermy animals that are nearly touching you as soon as you’re in the room. Then you take a step back and their cute, and i kind of wanted to cuddle one–i’m very aware thats creepy. Anyway, on the back wall of the exhibit once you get past the ridiculously adorned and dressed kind of cute stuffed animals there’s a video with a lovely log bench to sit on. Unfortunately we only got to see a segment of the video but that was way more ominous and creepy that the animals ever could be.
Let me just point out the phyiscal animals were much less creepy than the animals on the screen. There is just something about the voices that Duke and Battersby gave them and in the video at one point thier setting seems to be an underground plot to over throw God, infact in the video i think the otter (who was my favoritely dressed but unfortunately I wasn’t able to steal a photo of it that wasn’t an animation) say that the spirit guides are pissed off and are going to get their revenge. what’s creepier than that? well…the hunter in the video killing animals so he can touch them. may i say ew a bit of beasiality necrophelia in there. The video makes a good point though, if killing an animal for a positive reason is still killing it, but it is it still bad? apparently we’ve all pissed off the spirit guides and need to make them happy–there’s even a song that the little cartoon spirit guides sing to tell us this….it makes me fear them immensely.
There are other Parts of the 14 minute video loop that ontain footage of baby animals and small children(sepately) with a voice over from the hunter.
When i read the blurb about it in the Power Plant Pamphlet i found out that part of what is being recited on the video is a Philip Larkin poem “This be the verse” about parental dysfuntion. This exhibit is incredibly deep even if you’re attempting to look at it at a surface view…i still want to pet the ridiculously dressed up animals.
then our adventure in Toronto Land lead us (well more like the tour guide) to If We Can’t Get It Together: Artists rethinking the (mal) function of communities. A collective work commenting on social formations (thank you again to the powerplant pamphlet for that phrase).
pictured below (from left to right) luis jacob Shining, Hassan khan Host, Haegue Yang Domestics of Community, Hadley and Maxwell Gloomy Sunday, Emily Roydon Strategic Form, Egle Budvytyte Secta, Shaina Anad KhirkeeYaan
Some of he peices in the exhibit lack resinance for me such as Host for the soul purpose that there aren’t shows that have the hosts undress for people to win money. On the other hand peices like Secta are just universally absurd and i think everyone can relate to that in some manner, whether its “oh i would never do anything like that” or “thats awesome i should try it.”
Secta being a mocumentary on how people find each other and create a Utopian society by doing incredibly absurd things in public. this Utopian society is reinforced by the actions they perform such as licking fruit at a market then putting the fruit back or doing chin ups in a tree.
Domestics of Community was very overpowering if only for the sent of poo, I didn’t get a good look at the peice but the smell was increidbly overpowering. The artist used alot of things that could be found at a hardware store, such as blinds and a fan and other found objects.
Another peice i didn’t get a good look at was Strategic Form but it consisted of photographs that seems to be peices of people in a human pyramid.
Gloomy sunday is about student protests in the 1970’s at Kent State, the use of the song Gloomy Sunday, which ended up getting banned at the time it was made because people got so depressed by said song they would commit suicide (the source for this is my grandmother who loves this song who mentions this story whenever she gets the chance ) is used as a audio aide along with its visual of reflected images on plexiglass which blocks the image out on the projected screen in reflection of this violence. The books that hold up the plexiglass cutouts are a refference to learning and university.
KhirkeeYaan uses cheap survalence technology and flips it on itself. the survalence equipment is used as an open curcuit network for a neighborhood in New Delhi.
Finally I get to Shining the taxidermic swan, made to show how art can be made on it’s own or by the artists self in separation from other things–Plus its just a cool swan anyway.
All the Works in this exhibition curated by Nina Montmann are connected in someway, mainly in the technological framework in someway or another, the exhibit gives the view pretty much what the title says: Aritsts rethinking the (mal)function of communities. All the works show this in very different ways but still connect. A comment on how technology is being used whether it is at a university, a small town or a Television show.
We then travelled onto Headless; a slightly more complicated ehibit. this exhibit by Goldin and Senneby includes the notion of collaberation, the two artists produced the work but much of what is being produced if done by other people, the other people are artisans. They are looking for headless, my understanding of the exhibit is not very good but when i read the expilnation in the Power Plant Pamphlet i found out that my understanding was not what it was about at all. Headless is a research coorperation made by them that is registered as an offshore buisness in the bahamas. this is an incarnation of ‘Acephale’ a secret society created by Georges Bataille in the 1930s. there are three installments of a documentary that goes along with headless, we just happened to be there on the day the second installment started. included in the exhibition is a fictional novel Looking for Headless. now that i read the expilation my understanding that this exhibition is that of looking for what headless is…i think.
next adventure: Galleries around King and Tecumseth!
–Emma Tiffin
Buttons!
I now have a button maker. its really awesome–i definitely have been neglecting my school work for a couple days to make buttons…not so good…
ALSO! i finally finished the baby blanket and hat for my neice pictures to come!
Polaris 22
yay! i went to polaris this weekend it was awesome. i went as the sixth doctor on saturday. it was amazing. there were many many other doctors we were missing one, two and seven and the only reason we were missing two was because she got sick and had to go home. but we won in the masquirade for best artisan! yay! and people were taking our pictures for ages….well about 30 minutes it was so intense! but still kick ass.
pictures will come soon!
sick!
a) I hate being sick and b) i’m missing work for this! and i actually like my work…usually.
anyway! so i’m working as a mural painter as part of a graffiti transformation project and its awesome…and i’m already down 28 hours…which i really would hope to make up….which i dont think is going to happen easily…but hopefully it’ll be able to happem..which reminds me of my job issue for the year! i need to find one it kind of sucks…hopefully i’ll be able to find one though… gaH!
now my head hurts and i think i need a nap….
Ottawa!
its roadtrip season and what does that mean?! roadtrip with michelle tomorrow morning. 3 days of kick ass times with my girl michelle and the great city of ottawa!
yay!
no gnome yet again..i’m still on gnome overdose from the stools
summer!
So I’ve started to somewhat move into my house for next year, it’s been cleaned and somewhat painted. I still have to paint and move all my stuff into my room and such. I’m excited for that, but what i’m not excited to be doing is finding a job! but really who is? i have a few months, i’ll figure something out.
no gnome picture after the bombardment of gnome stools sorry!
Gnomes in Paris!
i found gnomes in paris!
the were in the pompidou…it made me so incredibly happy!
So after an adventure in the Pompidou (well really half way through it) i found these stools and i actually squealed and got a lot of weird looks but it was so worth it for gnomes in Paris. then we went up the Eifell tower and nearly shit myself. it’s really scaring going up the elevator, so we pretty much were at the top of the tower for all of 5 minutes then we high tailed it to the second floor where we were (slightly) closer to the ground. then the next night we went out for the whole night and then i hopped on a plane and promptly passed out.
