The painting, titled Survivor by Deborah Colvin, is from the exhibit Face Forward Contemporary Portraiture: Curator’s Choice, which opens Sept. 12.
Markham
September 06, 2008 08:18 PM
By: Simone Joseph
A Varley Art Gallery exhibition, opening Sept. 12, explores questions of gender, ethnicity and sexuality.
The exhibit Face Forward Contemporary Portraiture: Curator’s Choice presents modern artists’ depiction of the human face and body.
“It is images of daily life. It is understanding our own personal identity,” curator Katerina Atanassova said.
The exhibition displays the work of 16 established and emerging Canadian artists, including 45 paintings, drawings, photography, sculpture and mixed media.
The painting Chernobyl Barbie, 1997 by Natalka Husar, is based on the Chernobyl tragedy and shows a young girl who lost her hair because of the disaster. She is combing her doll’s hair.
“She is remote and unaware of the tragedy,” Ms Atanassova said.
In the painting Memory, the artist has painted a portrait of a Holocaust survivor. Hebrew inscriptions are displayed in such a way that it reminds us of railway tracks leading to a concentration camp, according to Ms Atanassova’s interpretation.
Certain works such as Chernobyl Barbie and Burkas, 2002 by Marianne Reim, reflect the strong social message evident in contemporary portraits, according to a gallery press release. It no longer uses the genteel female image we tend to associate with portraits from the past, the release says.
This exhibit launches the gallery’s fall season.
Other exhibitions on now or coming up at the Varley Art Gallery include:
• The artistic legacy of Fred Varley in Unionville (on now until Nov. 9) — This includes works of portraiture and landscape painting from the gallery’s permanent collection.
• Weaving Leaves and Water — Judith Livingston: 25 Years in Markham (Sept. 18 to Nov. 9) — This is a retrospective exhibition including paintings and mixed media works to celebrate Markham artist and art educator Judith Livingston’s 25 years of painting in York Region. Members’ reception is Sunday, Sept. 21 from 2 to 4 p.m.
• Twelfth Annual York Region Juried Exhibition (Nov. 20 to Jan. 11) — A selection of 30 to 40 works by local artists created in a variety of media. Entry forms are on the Varley Gallery’s site (www.markham.ca/Markham/Attractions/ Gallery/)
• Aligning with Beauty (Nov. 23 to Jan. 11) — Aligning with Beauty is an exhibition in which beauty is embodied in art objects by artists from a variety of cultural backgrounds and experiences.
The Varley Gallery is in Unionville at 216 Main St. The Varley charges a nominal admission of $4 and has free parking. Go to
www.varleygallery.ca or call 905-477-9511 ext. 222 for more information.
The Varley Art Gallery of Markham explores Canadian art themes and operates the McKay Arts Centre for community artists and studio classes in Fred Varley’s studio.