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London Call Back The lure of London as centre of the contemporary art world has called me back a second time. But rather than immersing myself knee deep in oil paint and introspection, my artistic learning is taking a slightly different twist this time. I’m currently taking a Master of Art Business degree through the Sotheby’s Institute of Art in an effort to see the center of the art world from the inside out and to find a degree of personal clarity in an otherwise opaque marketplace. I want to bridge the conceptual gap between artistic integrity and intention and market demand. I think of my time here in London as a sort of ongoing performance; a piece whereby the experiences gained may provide the fodder for a painted body of work yet to come. I am fortunate and eager to soak up exposure to the endless number of museum shows, private views and auctions available in London but am all the while cognizant of the need to maintain perspective by watching with a critical eye. Photo credit: Grzegorz Lenczuk |
15.06.2009
Upcoming exhibition. Please join me and collegues from the University of Waterloo for the opening of Good Question - a snapshot of where questions have taken six MFA grads. Special thanks to the Elora Centre of the Arts.
Good Question June 18th to August 3rd Opening Reception Thursday June 18, 8:00pm Minarovich Gallery, Elora Centre for the Arts |
30.03.2009
I am excited to announce the details of my upcoming MFA thesis exhibition Performative Gestures. Please see the dates, and location information below. I look forward to seeing you at the opening reception.
Performative Gestures April 22nd - 30th Opening Reception Saturday April 25th 2009, 6-9pm Render Gallery |
11.08.2008
My artistic journey has taken me to London, England for the remainder of the summer to study at the Slade School of Fine Art summer school – an opportunity graciously made possible by the Keith and Win Shantz Fellowship and the University of Waterloo. I am going into my third week here in my studio and time is flying by faster than I could have ever imagined. The Slade's summer program is modeled after its full-time program but tries to pack a four-month curriculum into four short weeks. I am working closely with four advisors and my mind is brimming with new artistic perspectives as a result of regular critique through different cultural lenses. Cultural variety is emphasized by the global demographic of our class – we have artists from Israel, Australia, Portugal, Spain, Korea, Britain, Canada and my current studio mate who is from Finland.
There is an incredible sense of history at the Slade and in London. There is a reverence for the arts in the public consciousness of this city that permeates everything. With free access to such extensive historical and contemporary art collections it’s no wonder. There are only a handful of cities in the world where a professor could urge me (in a moment of my frustration) to “go look at the way Rubens paints a kneecap” on my lunch break! London is one of those cities. I hope that the next few weeks in the studio continue to be as productive. I'm looking forward to bringing my experience here back to my Canadian art practice.
View images from my study period at The Slade below