Some Photos From The Opening

It's been a busy time in the studio and I just realized that I hadn't posted any photos from the opening of the Dark Drawings at the Centre culturel de l'Université de Sherbrooke. They did a beautiful job hanging and lighting the show, a huge thanks to Suzanne and all her team. I'm in the space called Espace Invitational, just outside the main gallery and there is a glorious show of Suzelle Levasseur,  Succession d'e`clats, in the main gallery; all works on paper and graphite with a stunning work, approximately 10 x 30 feet. Photos below. If you have a chance check it out. Opening hours and directions are here  www.GalerieUdeS.ca

Hanging the show, 2018

Dark Drawings, all works are charcoal on paper, 2016 - 2018

Dark Drawings, all works are charcoal on paper, 2016 - 2018

Artist talk with Sylvain Dodier

Suzelle Levasseur, Succession d'e`clats

A Heads Up

Heads up, save the date, February 28, 5 pm. Centre culturel de l'Université de Sherbrooke.

Getting Back to the Studio

After a rough summer [J. had to have some surgery, he's fully recovered now] the gardens are almost put to bed, ready for winter and I have had more time and inclination to be in the studio. I wanted to let you know that Rebelles / Rebelles opens this Thursday, Nov2, at Galerie Art Plus in Sutton; all the works are small format and all are 9 in x 9 in framed. I will be exhibiting new work from my ongoing exploration of light and shadow. Hope to see you there; the vernissage is Saturday, November 4 from 2 - 5 pm.

It's that time of the year....Rebelles / Rebelles returns.

Washington

It took us 40 years to make our pilgrimage to Washington to see Robert Motherwells' Reconciliation Elegy, a work we both have longed to see in the flesh. Washington's museums are wonderful and spectular and free. And my favourite was the East Wing of The Museum of Art; an elegant space, beautifully curated, that made my heart sing. Below are some of my favourites.

Motherwell, Robert: American, 1915 - 1991. Reconciliation Elegy; 1978: acrylic on canvas: overall: 304.8 x 924.2 cm (120 x 363 7/8 in.

Donals Judd, Untitled, 1965, galvanized iron and plexiglass

James Turrell, Deep Sky, 1984, aquatints

Idris Khan, 2009 The Creation, chromogenic print [detail]

Morris Lewis, Beta Kappa, 1961, acrylic o canvas, detail. 

Michelangelo Pistoletto, Woman who points, 1982, silkscreen on polished stainless steel

Brice Marden, 1989-91, Cold Mountain 5 [Open], oil on canvas, detail

Fred Sandback, Untitled [Gray Corner Construction] 1968, detail

William Anastasi, 1966-2016, Issue, wall removal

William Anastasi, 1966-2016, Issue, wall removal, detail

Detail of wall treatment beside the escalator

Check These Out

If you are in the area this weekend there are 3 really wonderful exhibitions on; an added plus, it's a gorgeous day for a drive in the country.

Suzanne Vié at Galerie Art Plus, 8 Maple, Sutton

Andrée Pelletier, "Le bout du monde c'est ici" jusqu'au 12 Juin au Centre d'Art de Frelighsburg.

Marie-Claude Lord à la bibliothèque de Dunham

Catching The Light

As I unpacked the kitchen a few weeks ago, I put some glass jars on the window shelf intending to remember to wash them and put them away. Three weeks later they are still there, giving me a certain quiet joy as the catch the light, and reminding me of Morandi's seeming simple still lifes.

Catching the light 2, 2016

Catching the light , 2016

Morandi, NATURA MORTA, 1949

Morandi, NATURA MORTA, 1956

Beautiful Tools

I have been admiring the tools that are being used to tape and seal the gyproc, all the prep work before the paint; Jim Dine's extraordinary drawings of tools came to mind.

A line up of trowels, 2016

A river stone cut in half and used to polish, and a porcelain stone, that also fits the hand and is also used to polish, 2016

Untitled (C-Clamp) from Untitled Tool Series, © Jim Dine, 1973.

Untitled (Five-bladed-Saw) from Untitled Tool Series, © Jim Dine, 1973.

Untitled (Oil-Can) from Untitled Tool Series, © Jim Dine, 1973.

25 Years Later

Today is the 25th anniversary of what came to be known as "The Montreal Massacre", when 14 women lost their lives to a deranged gunman. And after the last few weeks, months and years' events, and the despair that fills me re our crazy love of war, death and destruction, there was a note of hope this week with the Quebec Government bringing back the Long Gun Registry. I created this work "The Singing of the Stones" in 1997 to commemorate the lives and spirits of the 14 women murdered on this day, December 6, 1989.

IN MEMORY OF

Geneviève Bergeron, Hélène Colgan, Nathalie Croteau, Barbara Daigneault, Anne-Marie Edward, Maud Haviernick, Barbara Marie Klueznick, Maryse Laganière, Maryse Leclair, Anne- Marie Lemay, Sonia Pelletier, Michèle Richard, Annie St-Arneault, Annie Turcotte

"The Singing of the Stones" [Link]

14 stones, 7 women, music, video, poetry, tableau vivant, installation

Fortunae, [Stations of the Cross ], 24 in x 18 in x 3 in, Mixed media, 1996-7

To see a video clip from the performance of The Singing of the Stones,  Fortunae, click here


And if you have problems with that link here is a direct link to YouTube.

To see the whole performance here is the link.

A Sneak Preview of Rebelles / Rebelles, 2015

The hanging is done, the labels are up and the show Rebelles / Rebelles at Galerie Arts Plus opens today with the vernissage this Saturday, November 7, at 2 pm. With forty one artists and over 300 small sized works; it's a great chance to add to your collection or dare I say buy Christmas presents for everyone on your list. Artists participating are Diane Lavarière, Isabelle Chartrand, Jean-Pierre Rivet, Hélène La Haye, Guy Parent, Sanders Pinault, Micheline Proulx, France Lamontagne, Francine Denault, Myriam Bardoul, Jocelyn Guilbault, Liz Davidson, Brigite Normandin, Monique Genest, Anne-Marie Dupont, John F Marok, Marie Bonneau, Françoise Lamothe, Lucie Daigneault, Peter Raymond, Johane Durivage, Danièle De Blois, Catherine Panchaud, Francine Potvin, Nicole Larivée, Josée Barrette, Carole Lebel, Denise Lamy, Michael Newman, Hélène Plourde, Marie-Claude Paradis, Claire Bienvenue, Nycole Julien-Gémus, Akycha Surette, Susan Surette, Richard Surette, Louise-Andrée Roberge, Brigitte Dahan, Katherine Godbout, Daniela Zekina, Peter Boyadjieff, Lucie Hébert.

Some of the work in Rebelles / Rebelles at Galerie Art Plus, 2015

Can you spot me, Rebelles / Rebelle, at Galerie Art Plus, 2015

Barkcloth Clothing

On the way back from Istanbul we stopped off for a brief orgy of museums and galleries in London. It was a feast, and I am still recovering;  one of my favourite shows was at the British Museum, called Shifting patterns, Pacific barkcloth clothing." In the islands of the Pacific, cloth made from the inner bark of trees is a distinctive art tradition. Probably brought to the region at least 5,000 years ago by some of the first human settlers, its designs reflect the histories of each island group and the creativity of the makers. Spanning the region from New Guinea in the west to Rapa Nui (Easter Island) in the east, "[from the British Museum website]. I love the strong colour and pattern, some of the clothes reminded me of the paper dresses we wore in the '60's.

In my jet lagged state I have said that this exhibition was at The V & A, and thanks to a friend [thanks Margaret!] who gently pointed out that it was at the British Museum ,I've fixed the links and the text. Sorry about that.

Shifting patterns, Pacific barkcloth clothing. British Museum, 2015

Shifting patterns, Pacific barkcloth clothing. British Museum, 2015

Shifting patterns, Pacific barkcloth clothing. British Museum, 2015

Shifting patterns, Pacific barkcloth clothing. British Museum, 2015

Barkcloth, masi kesa, The multiple bands of motifs around the centre of this cloth were applied using stencils. This technique is unique to Fiji. Fijian cloths featuring the elongated diamond motif interspersed with linear patterns have been made since the early decades of the 1800s. [text from the British Museum website]

Shifting patterns, Pacific barkcloth clothing. British Museum, 2015

Waist garment, salatasi. In Futuna in Western Polynesia, waist garments known as salatasi, sashes and turbans were finely decorated with geometric patterns using a pen made from coconut fond, a technique considered ancient and distinctively Futunan. radiating triangles filled with stepped patterns are typical of salatasi, but the trio of spikes surrounded with black add a strikingly unique element to this cloth made in 1840s. [text from the British Museum website]

Shifting patterns, Pacific barkcloth clothing. British Museum, 2015

Shifting patterns, Pacific barkcloth clothing. British Museum, 2015

This is a women's skirt; cloths several meters in length were layered and gathered around the waist to create the full skirts of hawaiian women. Red plant dyes known as 'ula'ula were widely used to decorate barkcloth in Hawaii. Linear patterns were pressed into the cloth using multi-pronged liners of wood or bamboo, dipped in dye. [early 1800s, text from the British Museum web site]

Last Weekend

This is the last weekend to see "Ceci nest pas an exposition", a group show that I am part of, along with John Murphy, Brigite Normandin, Richard Surette and Susan Surette at Galerie Art Plus, 8 rue Maple, Sutton, QC., gallery hours are 1-5 pm.

Poster for "Ceci nest pas an exposition", at Galerie Art Plus

Ceci n'est pas une exposition / This is not an exhibition

Last week was so busy and I forgot to post about this non exhibition. For the month of February, Galerie Art Plus has an impromptu exhibition: «Ceci n'est pas une exposition». A little wink to forget the winter cold. It's a group show with John Murphy, Brigite Normandin, Richard Surette, Susan Surette et moi. and runs until the 23rd. The gallery is at 8, rue Maple, Sutton and is open from 1 -5 pm, Thursday to Sunday. Take a winter break and come out to see it! Additional information is on the poster at the bottom.

Winter's slanted light on the gallery floor as we install, 2015

Ceramic works by Richard and Susan Surette

Tables, cupboards, benches, woodworking by John Murphy

Coming up the stairs, Brigite Normandin in front of some of her collages

Topographical map # 2, Liz Davidson

February invitation, 2015

William Blake

The new Taschen catalogue came the other day and I was excited to see a new publication of "The drawings for Dante's Divine Comedy". Well I was excited until I saw the price. Instead of the book I checked out the edition online and downloaded my favourites. 

cover, all images are from the Taschen website

William Blake, The drawings for Dante's Divine Comedy, images are from the Taschen website

William Blake, The drawings for Dante's Divine Comedy, images are from the Taschen website

William Blake, The drawings for Dante's Divine Comedy, images are from the Taschen website

William Blake, The drawings for Dante's Divine Comedy, images are from the Taschen website

William Blake, The drawings for Dante's Divine Comedy, images are from the Taschen website

William Blake, The drawings for Dante's Divine Comedy, images are from the Taschen website

William Blake, The drawings for Dante's Divine Comedy, images are from the Taschen website

Plate 9 (detail), Inferno V, 1–51, Minos.
Dante and Virgil have arrived in the Second Circle of Hell, which is reserved for the Lustful. Seated on a throne at its entrance is Minos, the Judge of Hell.© National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia / Bridgeman Images, from William Blake, The drawings for Dante's Divine Comedy, images are from the Taschen website