Pentimento Fine Art Gallery is pleased to now be the official representative of the work of Kirsten Johnson

I first met Kirsten Johnson as an emerging young actress during an audition at the CBC in the late 1980's.  To this day I remember that meeting and the intriguing woman that is and was Kirsten.  Most of our chat focussed on the narrow scope of interest for Hollywood producers and the vast potential to improve what was on offer to the masses.  Over the years I have reveled in the many fine performances that this fearless actress has given both on stage and in the films of directors like David Cronenberg, Jeremy Podeswa and Daniel MacIvor.

Imagine my surprise when years later after having left the CBC I discovered another facet to this woman I had no idea existed.  While over at a clients home for dinner one evening I was totally enthralled with a portrait that hung on their wall.  The work held my attention throughout a very animated dinner party and when I had the chance I asked my host who had painted it for them.  It was not a very far jump from theatre fan to being a fan of her explorations on canvas.  Kirsten had hooked me again!  I am very excited to be able to share her work with you all now through the gallery.  Kirsten will be taking part in the upcoming Salon here at Pentimento and I am excited to introduce you to her.  Here are some examples of Kirsten's works and a small film she has recently created for you to peruse and enjoy.  

Salon runs from June 7 to July 15th with the Vernissage taking place on June 7 from 6-9pm.

Geisha Fight 6

Windy 1

Windy 2

Stewardess Fight 4

FUEL: works by Gary Blundell

at the Clarington Visual Arts Centre

May 27-June 24, 2012

This past Sunday I attended the opening reception for Gary's work at the Clarington Visual Arts Centre located in beautiful downtown Bowmanville, Ontario.  The gallery is housed in what appears to be an old mill located next to a wonderful babbling stream.   Upon entering the gallery space you are confronted by Gary's vibrantly patterned large scale works of geological strata and patterns developed by the passage of time on the landscapes around us.  The work is invigourating, complex and filled with color.  

In a small side room off of the main floor space Gary is presenting a new series of work dealing with the aging process in meat.  The works are smaller in scale but just as complex in detail as the larger works.  The palate is fresh and appealing.  I spent a lot of time in this room before heading upstairs to the third floor space.

Entering the third floor space was it's own religious experience.  The room itself is fantastic with large wooden pillars and beams exposed and in some places still showing the remnants of the hundreds of birds that at one point made this their home.  Here Gary has presented his latest works based on the mining industry in Northern England.  Gary received a Canada Council grant to travel to England last summer and to explore the remnants of a once thriving mining industry laid waste by the Thatcher government.  These works will be a travelling exhibition in England in 2014.  The patterns presented represent the visual experiences of miners deep beneath the earth's crust.  The works are dark and moving.  The attention to detail from the wonderful musical soundscape which accompanies the work transports you to another time and another place.

I encourage you to make the trip to Bowmanville and to the Visual Arts Centre.  If you are looking for a weekend destination I recommend a picnic lunch outside the gallery by the stream...idyllic.  The Clarington Visual Arts Centre is located at:

143 Simpson Avenue,

Bowmanville, ON

905-623-5831

www.vac.ca

visual@vac.ca

The gallery hours are:

Mon-Fri  10 am - 5 pm

Sat  Noon to 4 pm

Sun 1 pm to 4 pm

FUEL: Gary Blundell at the Visual Arts Centre of Clarington

Pentimento Fine Art Gallery is pleased to announce the upcoming exhibition of the latest works by Gary Blundell, FUEL at the Visual Arts Centre of Clarington.  The opening reception is taking place this Sunday May 27, between 2 - 4 pm.  The show runs from May 27 through to June 24, 2012.  If you are looking for a way to spend a summer afternoon why not head east to Bowmanville and visit this exciting exhibition!

FUEL

"The work of Gary Blundell reveals a life-long exploration of observed patterns in the landscape.  His paintings embody these patterns found in rock and earth, etched by countless eons of wind and rain, receding ice, and by the intrusive hand of man.  In his large oils, done on wood panel, it is the artist's hand that transforms material.  "I use a router to tear into my surfaces and acrylic plasters to build them up.  They mimic how the land is transformed over time by human activity."  The paintings exude rich and vibrant colour, pulled from the varied palette of the earth itself.  In a recent series of "Figure" paintings depicting hanging portions of locally raised or caught moose and deer, the artist equates the patterns and transformations of animal flesh to that of the earth.  As does the surface of the earth, the body erodes, deteriorates with time, eventually revealing the underlying structure of bone and sinew.

In May 2011, Gary visited numerous collieries in North and West Yorkshire, England.  He came to know the people, the miners who drew their life sustaining "Fuel" from the earth.  A remarkable series of "Coal" paintings resulted.  We see the patterns found at the feet of the miners, illuminated by their lamps as they wander the underground.  A trained Geologist, Gary completed an Hon. B. Science in Earth Sciences from the University of Waterloo.  He and his partner, artist Victoria Ward, live in a cabin in the woods near Gooderham, Ontario.  As seasons shift, snow and ice recede to reveal new patterns in soil and rock, a continual reformation; the artist's own backyard providing source material, "Fuel", for his creative vision."

This exhibition has been curated by James Campbell.


The Visual Arts Centre of Clarington
143 Simpson Avenue,
Bowmanville, Ontario
905-623-5831
www.vac.ca

Jane Duncan in the Globe and Mail

Jane Duncan at Pentimento Gallery

Until April 29, 1164 Queen St. E., Toronto; pentimento.ca

R.M. Vaughan

"Duncan’s post-photorealism paintings re-invigorate the dead genre by supplanting earnestness with playfulness and exacting, prissy sheens with hot-as-molten-steel colours."

Jane Duncan TROPHY LOVERS Artist at Gallery

ARTIST RECEPTION!

PLEASE JOIN US ON SUNDAY APRIL 22ND FROM 2 UNTIL 5 PM and MEET THE ARTIST, JANE DUNCAN.

With the exhibition completing it's second week it is interesting to share the feedback that I've been getting here at the gallery. TROPHY LOVERS is very quick to engage the viewer who inevitably believe Jane's work to be photographic. Due to the nature of the work it's photo realistic quality can definitely fool the eye. Upon closer inspection the viewers are startled to discover that these are in fact paintings and that the amount of work is quite staggering. As a result I have asked Jane to supply me with some images to further explain her process. Here in a nutshell is how Jane is able to create these wonderful works:

Jane starts by positioning the trophy hardware in her desired position. She creates her lighting by the use of flashlights and foil party hats to deepen the reflective quality she is looking for.

Once Jane has achieved the desired effect she takes a reference photograph to work from. Using photoshop she can take out any unwanted portions of the hardware that are left after she has cannabilized the actual trophy to further enhance the image.

After weeks of hard work the end result!

Trophy Lovers continues at Pentimento Fine Art Gallery until April 29th! I look forward to seeing you here!

Stev'nn Hall at Pentimento Saturday March 24, 1-4 pm

THIS IS YOUR LAST WEEKEND TO VIEW THE WONDERFUL WORKS BY STEV'NN HALL THAT COMPRISE

MANIFEST

PLEASE JOIN STEV'NN IN THE GALLERY THIS SATURDAY MARCH 24TH FROM 1 - 4 PM!

MANIFEST, works by Stev'nn Hall

MANIFEST: works by Stev'nn Hall

“The last collection of works by Toronto-based multimedia artist Stev'nn Hall that I stared down was a series of portraits of sexy tough guys who looked like they had just attended their first, and not very successful, mixed martial arts class. Simultaneously confrontational and seductive, the works required you to either glare back or walk away. And, they sold better than porn. “

R.M Vaughan/Globe and Mail

In MANIFEST, his latest collection of works currently on display at Pentimento Fine Art Gallery, Toronto Artist Stev'nn Hall continues with his series of portraits of men initially explored in his show, WOUNDED. While the subject matter may be the same the works have taken on a more impressionistic tone. His exploration of light color and texture continue to broaden the works to a new level of maturity. The undeniable masculinity of his subjects is tempered by their battered, bruised or bleeding countenances. The work is skilled, sexual and cutting edge. The men are handsome, introspective and unflinching. The exhibition opens on March 1, 2012, with the vernissage on Thursday March 8, 2012 from 6-9 pm. It runs through to March 25, 2012.

PRESS FOR DUET

Sometime the Art Touches You, Sometimes You Get to Touch the Art

Spent a lovely afternoon in the East End yesterday – had a great meeting with the AD of Atrium Theatreand we’re going to work together on a couple of things. Then I trundled off with my friend Colette toPentimento Gallery to see what John had up on the walls.

Never disappointed. John was delighted to see us and talk to us about the current exhibition, Duet – sculpture by Haydn Llewellyn Davies and paintings by Eva Koller Davies.

Mr Davies may be known to you for the 2005 dispute with Lambton College in Sarnia, which tore down his outdoor sculpture, Homage, claiming the sculpture was a danger to children who attempted to climb on it.Created in 1974 of red cedar, it was his first public commission — won over more than 100 other artists in an international competition. Davies sued the college for than $1 million over the destruction of his artwork, saying it was a violation of his rights as an artist and a cause of “emotional distress.”

He won. He’s done something marvelous with the money.

All the pieces in the gallery are obviously model sizes of these giant works – there’s a beautiful feeling the tension in them – like they’re all being held together by a breath. You can see Japanese influence, you can see Stonehenge influences.What do I like most about him? That he resigned as senior vice-president and director of McCann-Erickson Advertising in 1976 at the age of 55 to become a full-time sculptor. To leave at the top of your game because you`ve succeeded and on to the next thing is truly admirable. To me, anyway.

I always stand with my hands clasped behind my back in sculpture galleries – something about them makes we want to touch them, the feel the smoothness of a curve, or the sharpness of an edge, to get the sense of heft of something. John asked why i was standing that way and I explained – and he said I could touch the art. Happy me. It adds another dimension of experience to the work.

Plus when we go visit during the week, John is usually alone in the gallery and so he has time to talk, really talk about the work, and the artist behind it – things that make them a human being (fun fact – Haydn and Eva met when they were children, selected to attend very special art classes at OCAD. At the time of his death, they`d been married 60 years.) We`re lucky to have that opportunity to essentiall yhave a personalized tour of a gallery and its work.

It`s always a treat to visit John and Pentimento. I learn something every time I go, whether it`s about the current show, the last show or a showdown on the set of something. Lovely day indeed.

More Birthday celebration photos!

Just received these additional images from Eva's 87th! It was a wonderful afternoon filled with friends, family and memories!

Globe and Mail Review for DUET

Haydn Llewellyn Davies and Eva Koller Davies at Pentimento Gallery

Until Feb. 26, 1164 Queen St. E., Toronto; pentimento.ca

Two pioneers of Canadian abstraction brought together in one space. Pioneers, but not fossils. This work is as lively today as it will be in 10 years. Teachers, set up your student tours.