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Home > Galleries

Galleries

Hot Art: Art Toronto’s Sprawling Display

photo by Arash Moallemi

OCTOBER 26 TO 29  Art Toronto is back to offer seasoned and neophyte collectors the Coles Notes on the hottest trends in painting, sculpture, new media and other visual formats. More than 100 local and international galleries bring their best and boldest new works to the country’s most influential modern-art expo; even if you’re not “in the market,” it’s an excellent opportunity to educate yourself about contemporary fine art and, perhaps, spot a few rising stars. The fair makes that latter proposition even easier this year: its Focus Asia special exhibition highlights emerging talent from China, Japan, Korea and elsewhere in the East. Metro Toronto Convention Centre, $14 to $18; visit here for more information.

Hot Date: First Thursday Art Events in the Cultural District

Tonight is the Cultural District’s monthly First Thursday event, wherein galleries in the downtown core open their doors for complimentary artist talks and receptions.

Tonight, don’t miss these events:

The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) hosts the opening reception for its new exhibit, A Night of Music & Art, featuring first nations multimedia works by Carl Beam and live music by Matt Masters. (more…)

Hot Art: Portraits of Inner Strength

"The Believer" by Gavin Murphy is one of the photographs on display for "Transitions."

Local photographer Gavin Murphy is using his art to support a good cause. Until April 6, proceeds from his latest fundraising exhibition will go to the organization Breast Cancer Action Ottawa. Entitled “Transitions presented by Meridian,” the show features portraits of women of all shapes, sizes, ages, races, and backgrounds. These inspiring photos are an apt celebration of women, while also raising money to support survivors of a disease that targets people from all walks of life. On view at Gallery Farina, 216 Elgin St., and Meridian Credit Union, 99 Bank St., 613-741-4029.

Hot Art: “Enfolded” at the Ottawa Art Gallery

Just one of the pieces by Ghitta Caiserman on view in "Enfolded." Photo credit: "Bedscape," (1976-79), Firestone Collection of Canadian Art.

For most people, clothing, towels, and linens just serve a basic purpose. For Ghitta Caiserman, they were forms of art. Caiserman, a modern artist from Montreal, passed away in 2005; since her death, many of her pieces have been acquired by the Ottawa Art Gallery. Take these last few days to check out the exhibit, which ends Feb. 12, to see these newly acquired works in the exhibition “Enfolded,” which shows just how prominent textiles were in the Canadian artist’s  drawings, paintings, and collages.

Hot Art: Inuit Art and National Identity

Just one of the pieces on view for "Truly Canadian." Photo credit: Kenojuak Ashevak, The Owl (1969) Carleton University Art Gallery: The Priscilla Tyler and Maree Brooks Collection of Inuit Art.

Canadians have a reputation for searching for a national identity. Curator Michelle Bauldic sees Inuit art as a Canadian symbol, something that is uniquely “ours.” That’s why she’s put together Truly Canadian: Inuit Art and National Identity at the Carleton University Art Gallery, which explores how and why Inuit is perhaps one of the only aspects of Canadian culture that truly defines us. Check it out until Jan. 29.

Hot Art: Prepare to be Awed by Nature

Still from "The Sugarcane Labyrinth," a short film about the Agricultural Land Art piece by Anne Katrine Senstad. In collaboration with Triple K and M Farms, Theriot, Louisiana. © Anne Katrine Senstad.

Contemporary art collides with nature in Preternatural, an original exhibition coming to the Canadian Museum of Nature as well as two other venues (Saint Brigid’s Centre for the Arts and Patrick Mikhail Gallery) this winter. Curator Dr. Celina Jeffrey wanted to create a “new cultural cartography” of Ottawa with this multi-venue exhibit, putting contemporary art in new places to appeal to a wider audience. And what a thrill it is to see.

Preternatural is all about the unknown as the artists, both local and international, explore their own particular version of nature. Ottawa native Andrew Wright describes his piece — a fusion of photography and sculpture inspired by his trips to the Arctic — as “a place of real confusion, where everything is profoundly disoriented and you don’t know which way is up.” German-born Mariele Neudecker, now of the U.K., uses chemical glass spheres and images of lighthouses to portray a mysterious, yet sublime, landscape. And Gatineau native Marie-Jeanne Musiol has created cosmic-like images using electromagnetic photography to catch leaves from Gatineau Park in a magnetic field. (more…)

Hot Dates: Art highlights

"Belmont Park" at the MSVU Art Gallery.

Continuing through November 20 at Mount Saint Vincent University Art Gallery: Works by photographer Lisette Model (1901–1983), famed for her shoot-and-run portraits of strangers.

Continuing through November 27 at Dalhousie Art Gallery: Stealing the Gaze features symbolic portrait photographs and video installations by Canada’s most celebrated Native artists.

Take 5

Wildlife photos at the Royal BC Museum

Head Indoors for these Winter Escapes.

Victoria is indeed a beautiful city no matter what the season, but during the winter, it’s inevitable we’ll have at least a few days that aren’t ideal for outdoor activities. Luckily there’s plenty of indoor options to both inspire and entertain! Here are five of our favourites…

1. Make it the museum. Victoria is blessed with several fine museums that make it easy to while away an hour, an afternoon or a day! Overlooking the harbour is the Royal BC Museum, with its natural history, First Nations and settlement displays. This winter, meet animals around the world with the visiting exhibit Wildlife Photographer of the Year, from London’s Natural History Museum. Around the harbour, the Maritime Museum of British Columbia explores all things nautical, from pirates to the BC Ferries and everything in between!

2. Take in a movie – IMAX style! Also at the Royal BC Museum is the six-storey tall screen of the IMAX Theatre, showing both the ever-popular IMAX films as well as Hollywood movies given a whole new look with the theatre’s state-of-the art technology.

3. Enjoy a little family fun. No matter what your age, who can resist an entertaining stroll through history and literature at Miniature World or the fascinating world of insects and arachnids presented at the Bug Zoo, both within a few minutes’ walk of the Inner Harbour.

4. Chill out at the rink. Victoria boasts two great choices for hockey, the WHL’s Victoria Royals and the BC Hockey League’s Victoria Grizzlies. The Royals heat up the ice at  downtown’s Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre, while the Grizzlies entertain fans at the Bear Mountain Arena in Colwood.

5. Get inspired in the garden. The world famous Butchart Gardens is a joy any time of year. In addition to the outdoor gardens, the New Year also brings two indoor features, Spring Prelude and the annual historical exhibit. Take a tropical vacation without ever leaving Vancouver Island with a visit to the beautiful Victoria Butterfly Gardens, also on the Saanich Peninsula. With colourful birds, butterflies, fish and flowers, it’s impossible to visit and not be inspired.

Hot Dates: For art lovers

Sobey Art Award finalists at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia.

•    October 15: Nocturne, the “art at night” festival, brings art to the streets of Halifax between 6pm to midnight. The free event celebrates the visual arts scene in Halifax with exhibitions in galleries and public spaces throughout the city.
•    Continuing through January 8: The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia on Hollis Street showcases works by artists short-listed for the Sobey Art Award. It’s the pre-eminent prize for Canadian contemporary art.

Hot Date: Sites to See

Reflections, by Gravenhurst painter David Dawson, an Autumn Studio Tour participant

SEPTEMBER 24 & 25, 2011 With the arrival of fall comes another longstanding tradition, as area artists open their doors for the Muskoka Autumn Studio Tour. This annual event encourages art lovers to guide themselves on a scenic drive through picturesque northern Ontario with stops along the way at participating studios—a great opportunity to discover what inspires the region’s painters, sculptors, ceramicists, potters, woodworkers, weavers and more. And, of course, be sure to buy a local piece or two. Visit here for a map and more information.

Hot Dates: Piedras: Gem Carvings

"Frog" by Luis Alberto. Photo by Karen Lipsett-Kidd

To September 29

Coming between a rock and a hard place can be a good thing—at least to Peruvian artist Luis Alberto, whose gem pieces are in Piedras: Gem Carvings and Minerals of Peru at Crystalworks Gallery. Satisfy your inner geologist with colourful creations (“Frog,” pictured) as well as unusual mineral formations.—Kristina Urquhart

Canada’s Best New Attractions for Summer 2011

Art Gallery of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta

For travellers planning their summer trips in Canada this year, the regional editors of Where magazine have released their top picks for summer travel. The winners of Where Canada’s Best New Attractions for Summer 2011 represent the most exciting attractions – new, significantly improved, or celebrating major milestones this year. A diverse group of attractions from coast to coast, this year’s winners offer a wide range of activities and events suitable for any family, art lover, sports fanatic, nature lover or adventurer. Together, these attractions serve as the top must-see and must-dos for anyone travelling in Canada this summer. (more…)

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