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December 2 - 18, 2011
ANNUAL HOLIDAY SHOW
SW Austin, Anahita Azrahimi, Michael Black, Michael Brown, Donna Carruthers, Marilyn Blumer Cochrane, Erika Baempfer Deery, Irit Epstein, Erkan Gokche, Rosa Guasch, Judy Golvin, Marina Hanacek, Claus Heinecke, Olga Kotova, Maryam Mansouri, Saiedeh Moghissi, Lydia Panart, Kamelia Pezeshki, Rob Saley, Jayne Libby Sims, Ivo Stoyanov, George Szabo, keijo tapanainen, Adi Yehoshua,
Opening Reception: Friday December 2, 6 - 8 PM
Please join Arta Gallery on Friday, December 2 from 6:00pm to 8:00 pm for our Annual Holiday Show Opening Reception. Enjoy some wine and cheese, mingle with our artists, and browse a selection of visual art, sculpture, decorative objects and ceramics created by local and international artists.
November 22 - 30, 2011
Contemporary Art by gallery artists
SW Austin, Ivo Stoyanov, Marina Hanacek, Jayne Libby Sims, Jane Colden, Susan Belcher, Michael Black, Anahita Azrahimi, Andrew MacNaughtan, Beata Goik, Irit Epstein
Collection of art works by gallery regulars and a few new additions.
Mika
by SW Austin
In his recent work, Steve's declared concern is the paint itself - the physicality of the paint, the traces of the movement of his brush - as important to the final picture as colour and shape. Steve creates this new work through a building and layering process that results in a thick hide of paint on the canvas.
November 15 - 21, 2011
GRACE; Africa In Photogrpahs
Andrew MacNaughtan
Music video director and photographer Andrew MacNaughtan is known for his keen eye and creative art direction, MacNaughtan brings a unique vision to each project, seen in the direction of over 50 music videos, the album art photography of over 150 releases and the press & publicity material for several recording artists and celebrities.
MacNaughtan has photographed such premier artists as Avril Lavigne, Celine Dion, the Barenaked Ladies, Alanis Morissette, 3 Doors Down, Michael Buble and Nickelback. His eclectic style adapts to a wide range of subjects, from the progressive – cutting-edge rock band Simple Plan – to the sophisticated – the official portrait of Her Excellency, Madam Clarkson, the Governor-General of Canada. MacNaughtan has been the principal photographer for rock icons Rush since 1989, photographing all their tours, promotional materials and album art. In March of 2006 MacNaughtan raised $55,000 for families in Africa living with HIV/AIDS with his Art Gives Hope art exhibit fundraiser in conjunction with World Vision Canada, featuring over 60 images of his most striking work. He received national media attention with his project that include coverage by CTV National News, ETalk, Entertainment Tonight Canada, The Toronto Star, Mix99 Radio, Chum FM, Breakfast Television, CP24, and Global National News where he was named by news anchor Kevin Newman as “Hero of the Week”.MacNaughtan has won numerous awards over his 25 year career, including four Juno Awards, for Our Lady Peace, Tom Cochrane, Rush and Jann Arden, two East Coast Music Awards and a MMVA for his work with Great Big Sea.
November 4 - 13, 2011
Free Coloring
Jane Colden, Marina Hanacek, Jayne Libby Sims, Anahita Azrahimi, Erika Baempfer Deery, Irit Epstein, Ivo Stoyanov
A collection of art works drawn from every day experiences.
Exclamations by Marina Hanacek
October 26 - November 8, 2011
THE ECHOES SERIES - LANDSCAPES AND CRYSTALS
Marilyn Blumer Cochrane
Opening Reception: Wednesday October 26, 6 - 8PM
I begin my creative process with the stones. These natural minerals and crystals are nature's artworks - mysterious and beautiful. They are the inspiration for the paintings, each one my response to the energy, lines and colours of the stone that I am contemplating.
Each painting is created with about twenty glazes of colour, every layer adding to the richness of the image.
Echoes flow, circling between my painted landscapes and these natural jewels from the earth.
Marilyn Blumer Cochrane is an award winning artist, interpreting Canadian landscape painting in a new and unique way. She incorporates a rich juxtaposition of natural crystals with her painted landscapes.
She has graduated with fine Arts Honours from: McGill university, Montreal; Ontario College of Art and Design (OCAD), Toronto, and The American College of Art, Paris France.
October 19 - November 3, 2011
I'm a fashionista. This is how I wear it.
Anahita Azrahimi
Opening Reception: October 19, 7 - 9PM
Vogue clippings provide underpinning for whimsical solo exhibition
by Toronto artist Anahita Azrahimi
“I admire the art of high fashion and its highest level of craftsmanship,” says Azrahimi who admits to a sense of gleeful achievement when she is able to turn this realm into a new creation.
Fascinated by the sublime movement and subtle sensuality of the cut-outs that still give away the seductive bodies underneath, Azrahimi blends these pieces into layered, vivid abstract textures .
Her creation process, at times challenging and labour intensive, involves solving a self-created puzzle. Finding the right collage piece and the right place on the textural painting is the solution. This new series of work is a continuation of Azrahimi’s quest to blur the boundaries between different media – this time on a much larger scale - in order to reach a sense of balance in the elements.
Born in Tehran, Anahita Azrahimi currently resides in Toronto. Her first solo exhibition, Mashup, was in 2009 and since then her work has been exhibited in various galleries and at events around the city. Most recently, her interdisciplinary installation, Homage to Guernica, was selected as an Independent Partner Project of Scotiabank Nuit Blanche 2010.
Azrahimi studied art independently with some of Iran’s leading visual artists. Her major in Visual Arts from the Arts Management program at the University of Toronto introduced her to various forms of visual expression.
October 6 - 16, 2011
19 Memories 2 Travels
Rosa Guasch
Opening Reception: Thursday October 6, 6-8PM
Like the French impressionist, the Fauvist and the German expressionist, my starting point is the escape of copying or imitating reality. Using exalted and contrasting colours through an abstract use of stains and agile strokes, I arrive at compositions in which colours and forms originate from perceived reality; figurative scenes of shorelines, cities, countryside, and moments that emotionally moved me through my journeys.
My work reflects my ongoing efforts to demonstrate the impulse of life, its changes or movement, moments of my immediate environment caught in my eyes through my travels. I try to involve the viewer in the act of looking, seeing or feeling emotions, emotions through art, because art has to be based on things of the mind, on thoughts, memories, dreams, and intuition with abstract elements of time, colour, shape, and surface dominating plastic form or spatial illusion.
October 1 - 2, 2011
NUIT BLANCHE
Richard Watts, Semco Salehi, Paula John, Paul J. Stoesser, Christine Lucy Latimer, Shannon Dobbs, Anthony Cristina, Arianne Pollet-Brannen and Rebecca Hannon
Opening Reception: Saturday October 1, 7PM - 3AM
Futurism Today or NOT!
An Independent Project for ScotiaBank Nuit Blanche 2011
Curated by Thom Sokoloski
Presented by The Distillery Historic District
October 1 - 2, 2011
Sacrifilm - An Interactive Installation at Scotiabank's Nuit Blanche
Semco Salehi
Opening Reception: October 1, 7PM - 3AM
September 20 - 30, 2011
CITY FIELD NORTH SHORE
Stewart Jones, David Grieve, Peter Rotter, Joe Sampson
Opening Reception: September 22, 7- 10 PM
The City Field North Shore exhibition was born out of a realization that four friends, and painters, seemed to share a common thread in their subjects and inspiration - the world around them and an environment they were close to. With completely different styles yet sharing the 4 elements of living and growing up in Southern Ontario, this exhibition presents a vast representation of their surroundings.
September 15 - 15, 2011
Margaret Trudeau and Fine Art Auction Supports Clean Water for Africa
Holly Wilmeth, David Burdeny, Michael Kenna, Paul Emile Rioux, Peter Leverman, Barbara Cole, Ralph Resnik, SteveGordon, Cameron Davidson, Graham French, Tom Feiler, George Simhoni, Eric Whip, Ruggero Maramotti
Opening Reception: 6:30 - 8 pm
Toronto Philanthropists Steve and Sharan Gordon will turn fine art into water as they host their inaugural H2O Art Auction, to benefit Canadian chariy WaterCan.
Auction Preview:
September 14, 2 - 6PM
September 11 - 11, 2011
Serene Passage: A Traveller's Prayer At Ground Zero
Judith Leitner
Opening Reception: September 11, 1 - 5 PM
In February 2008, during a Sabbatical year, I travelled to New York City to join my family in celebrating our uncle’s 100th birthday. This was indeed a year of magical travel; from my home in Madrid I journeyed through many lofty skies above Spain, Portugal, Holland, Israel, the Americas and China.
I was soulfully mindful of potential peril during these passages. Often I would seek solace in a Hebrew prayer found in the tattered end-pages of a small prayer book that had once belonged to my father. The prayer’s Hebrew name is ‘Tefillat Ha’Derech’, which translates as ‘A Prayer For The Way’, or more commonly, ‘The Traveller’s Prayer’. It is an appeal for divine protection as one prepares for and sets out on journeys and was composed by Talmudic sages in the Middle Ages at a time when travellers--on foot, by coach or ship--were vulnerable to unforeseen, omnipresent danger.
I first encountered Ground Zero at sunrise on a clear, winter morning. As I stood at the precipice of my floor-to-ceiling window, positioned 45 stories above ground level, I had the unnerving sensation of hovering in flight. My glass portal revealed, in the distance below, an expansive abyss in deep shadow and nascent light. Instinctively I began to make pictures, and continued to photograph in the early hours of the next 4 days. I needed to fathom the chaos of form, texture, movement and emotion within Ground Zero’s sacred remnants and construction strata. With each frame and click of the shutter, I heard my heart whisper passages from The Traveller’s Prayer: ‘Lead us in peace…Grant us serene passage, until we arrive at our destination… Rescue us from the hand of every foe and ambush along the way… and from all afflictions that visit and trouble the world’.
This photo essay encompasses everything I experienced during those moments: profound sorrow and compassion for those who were vulnerable and unprotected on another bright morning in September 2001; radical amazement for my own wellbeing--in this place and at this time; astonishment at the magnificent courage of a city to re-imagine, renew and endure; and finally, questions--so many questions--about the nature of good and evil, fate, time, memory and prayer.
I dedicate this work to all memories from above and within Ground Zero--past, present and those yet to come.
© Judith Leitner August 2011
September 8 - 13, 2011
WONDER
Maryam Mansouri, Aisha Hassan, Amanda Basu Roy, Nevena Krilic
Opening Reception: September 8, 7 - 9PM
(Juhani Pallasmaa, 2005)
Through wander we arrive at wonder.
This exhibit reveals over ten years of adventures through the insight of four female architects, uniting four independent journeys into a collective tale. It covers the realms of landscapes, cities and people – weaving and interconnecting a deep desire to reveal the spirit of place.
August 21 - 21, 2011
Abeona foundation
Opening Reception: Sunday August 21, 6 - 11 PM
A wine and cheese gallery reception aimed at raising funds through the use of visual arts in support of the creation of a Daycare/Orphanage for the marginalized children of Santa Fe, in Bogota Colombia.
Abeona will be showcasing photographic images of the community in need combined with Colombian Art.
Admission is free. Suggested donation at the door $20.00
All proceeds go to fund the Abeona Foundation.
August 17 - September 6, 2011
SUMMER SALE
Judy Golvin, Ivo Stoyanov, Jayne Libby Sims, Marina Hanacek, Beata Goik, Michael Black, Sarah Tacoma, Peter Colbert, Olga Kotova, Salomon Khammi, Adela Yerushalmi, David Marshak, Rob Saley, George Szabo, Steve McDonald, Claus Heinecke, Sassan Nassiri
A Variety of styles and mediums from our wonderful gallery artists and selected local artists are on display for the annual summer sale.
July 27 - August 16, 2011
Annual Summer Show 2011
Arta Gallery presents the 10th annual summer show.
Gallery will be featuring diverse collection of works by selected artists as well as gallery permanent exhibiting artists.
July 7 - 20, 2011
NEW WORK
D.Marshak, S. McDonald, R.Saley
Opening Reception: 6-10 pm
June 27 - July 1, 2011
Retro Revisited: Exploring the Anthropology of KICKZ Culture & Wearable Art
Ato Seitu, Tafewa Turner, Dwayne Morgan, Adrian Hayles, Trudi Ferguson, Ras Stone
KICKZ is a colloquial expression describing athletic shoe wear. Since the 1970’s, the KICKZ trend has moved progressively from function to customizable wearable art. Retro Revisited examines this evolution, revealing its relationship to branding, fashion, lifestyle, identity, group affiliation, hip-hop and street culture. The second of a four part series by the SIX AH WI Artists’ Collective, Retro Revisited is a multi-disciplinary exhibit featuring photography, paintings, installations, experimental video and sculpture.
June 2 - 19, 2011
Vietnam Now!
Nguyen Kim Quang, Dinh Thi Tham Poong, Ha Tri Hieu, Vu Thu Hien, Hoang Phuong Vy
Opening Reception, Thursday, June 2nd, 6-9pm
Artist Nguyen Kim Quang will be in attendance
For more information please go to: www.theeastgallery.com
As in China, art in Vietnam has undergone dramatic changes since it threw off the shackles of Socialist Realism in the late 1980’s. With fewer restrictions on creativity and growing exposure to international art trends, Vietnamese artists have become increasingly experimental in developing their own unique style while at the same time continuing to incorporate Vietnam’s rich cultural heritage in their work.
Today, the country’s art scene is thriving with art works being exhibited in galleries and museums around the world. Torontonians will have an unprecedented opportunity to see a cross-section of contemporary Vietnamese art by five of the country’s leading artists.
Ha Tri Hieu
As a member of Hanoi’s ‘Gang of Five’, the first group of young artists to gain international renown after Vietnam opened up in the late 1980s, Ha Tri Hieu is one of the founding fathers of Vietnamese contemporary art. The subject of much of Ha Tri Hieu’s poetic, expressionist work is the beauty and simplicity of rural life. Born in the capital Hanoi in 1959, Hieu was deeply influenced by the years he spent as a child in the countryside where his family sought refuge during the Vietnam War
Nguyen Kim Quang
Hanoi native Nguyen Kim Quang (born 1958) is one of Vietnam’s leading lacquer artists. Painting with lacquer was first introduced by the Chinese for decorative handicraft purposes centuries ago but has developed into a uniquely Vietnamese art form in the last 100 years. Unlike most conventional lacquer art, Kim Quang’s work is abstract and minimalist. His art is full of symbolic messages that are often anchored in his Buddhist beliefs.
Dinh Thi Tham Poong
One of Vietnam’s most successful female artists, Dinh Thi Tham Poong’s work reflects her Tai and Muong ethnic roots and her childhood growing up in a mountainous region on the border with China. Her intricate, vivid and often surreal paintings depict the close interrelationship between humans and nature.
Vu Thu Hien
Vu Thu Hien’s watercolours are delicate, dreamlike, and at times haunting. Many of her paintings refer to the soul, to spirits and to the afterlife. Her traditionally clothed figures are mysterious and real at the same time and are often embodiments of the spirits that coexist with and influence human lives.
Hoang Phuong Vy
Hoang Phuong Vy’s boldly coloured, minimalist oil paintings are reminiscent of Vietnamese folk art and depict scenes of traditional, everyday life – a market scene, for example, or a beautiful spring day.
June 2 - 19, 2011
I PAINT
Erika Bämpfer Deery, Jayne Libby Sims, Pam Burt, Peter Barelkowski, Sabine Liva, Adriana Joshua, Claus Heinecke, Bridget Griggs
Opening Reception: Thursday, June 2, 6 - 9PM
Located in the Historic Distillery District, “I Paint,” features a collection of emerging and established artists exploring both painting and sculpture. Their styles range from delicate Encaustic to Oil abstracts. These contemporary works demonstrate the artist’s unique visual language with an emphasis on the juxtaposition between the material world and the natural world.
May 22 - 22, 2011
Twisted years, Book launch
May 22, 4 - 6:30PM
Mr. Stephen van Beek is the guest speaker at 5:00PM
Reza Ta has designed a book as an experience with hidden and not so hidden symbolism embedded in the work.
The book carries the weight of the trauma and torment he carried for the eight months he spent policing in Iran as part of his compulsory military service, enforcing laws that did not make sense to him. Twisted years, is brief account of the experience coupled with pictures and a unique presentation.
Edition of 250. Signed and numbered by artist
May 18 - 31, 2011
IDEA OF NATURE
Ozant Kamaci, Salina Kassam, Marilyn Lightstone, Misha Masek, Mehraban Mehrabani, Atossa Nami, Kimia Rahgozar, Sue Russell, Reza Ta, Dave Todon
Opening Reception: 6 - 9 pm
This group of 10 artists, will examine the festival theme of “Figure and Ground” and showcase their perspective on the complex and dynamic relationship between humanity and nature. This can be perceived as both beautiful or tragic and will evoke unique emotional responses. Through photographic techniques, the artists visually express their personal interaction with the fragile planet that they share in this Post-Industrial Revolution world.
Curated By Fay Athari
April 28 - May 16, 2011
Landescapes
Bob Carnie, Laura Paterson Carnie, Denis Lalonde, Mark Freedman
Closing party Friday May 13, 7 - 9PM
Landscapes occur in infinite forms as perceptions are eternally in flux. The world exists in innumerable ways. Ultimately it depends on one’s perspective. The photographer’s expressions on land transition through four states of being. Beginning with the beauty of a dreamlike fairy tale the viewer moves through imagery from a stunning natural world onto an optical illusion of outer space crafted from inner space then concludes with a haunting post - apocalyptic vision.
April 12 - 26, 2011
Vibrant Perceptions
Marlene Pape, Kellie Jobson, Liz Russ
Opening Reception: April 15, 6 - 9PM
Marlene, Kellie and Liz are long-time residents of Toronto. In this vibrant city and surrounding areas, they find a rich palette of inspiration for their artwork which is primarily nature-based, with forays into abstraction. Through their art, they attempt to reinforce the sensory abilities of their viewers with a visual message in an appreciation of the world we live in and as we relate to our day-to-day experiences.
In their art there is no angst – merely reflective imagery and an organic contemplation of our roles as custodians of our environment. So forget about your deranged schedule in the business uber world and breathe and feel relaxed in an exhibit that is furnished with a sense of serenity and delight.
April 7 - 9, 2011
Meta 2011: A Showcase of New Media Artworks
Victoria Markowski, Paul Feltoe, Takin Aghdashloo, Samantha Brown / Bryson Gilbert, Kelly Hutcheson, Ajayen Paramalingam, Moses Eniojukan, Oliver Banyard, Kristen Bunting, Sasha Arfin, Jessica Devnani, Connor Deachman, Jisun Lee, Keet Geniza
Opening Reception: April 7, 5 - 10Pm
Meta 2011: A Showcase of New Media Artworks is the fifth annual graduate exhibition hosted by Ryerson University’s New Media program. It is coordinated within the School of Image Arts, a highly regarded program in Ryerson’s Faculty of Communication and Design. The showcase presents the opportunity for graduating students to introduce themselves and their distinct styles to the Toronto arts community and begin their professional careers. The whole project consists of 35 artists and 11 members on the curatorial team who are putting great effort into exceeding expectations with the event. The event will open at the Arta Gallery on Thursday April 7 from 4pm to 10pm and will continue to Saturday April 9, 2011.
New Media is a highly recognized, prestigious fine-arts program that produces some of the greatest talents in technological innovation. It is defined by the use of emerging technological mediums, not limiting how one can utilize his or her creative expression to create new art forms; it stretches the boundaries of artistry today. Although New Media practices have existed for some time, lately it has been gaining a great amount of recognition. It is important to keep publicizing what New Media practices are, so opportunities like Meta 2011 will continue to fuel this great art form.
Over twenty projects will be featured at Meta 2011 such as:
Contact(4444) - The product of an obsession with light and electricity. The piece aims to represent binary code in pure visual form through the direction of over 200 clear incandescent light bulbs.
Expansion Felt - A social and kinetic sculpture that is an embodiment of the ideal interaction between humans in a web of public relations. As a person approaches the form, it unfolds and expands outward, welcoming the presence of another. When the person moves away from the piece, it folds back down again.
Armour – A time-based installation via an avant-garde gown that aims to respond to prejudice and ignorance towards the gay community which is prevalent in modern society. The piece symbolically represents both sides of an individual: the homosexual incognito, as well as one full of pride and acceptance.
March 10 - 23, 2011
The Art of Art
Adriana Joshua | Brian Wyers | George Szabo | Momcilo Simic | Michael Solovyev | Patrick Kerney | Ramin Saadat Gharin | Susan Belcher
Opening Reception: Thursday March 10, 6-8
This collection of 10 emerging and established artists will explore colour and composition, using a variety of mediums. The colours will be brilliant with an emphasis on graceful forms and organic movement. This show will appeal to both the beginner and discerning collector, with a variety of genres explored at varying price points. The viewers will immerse themselves in our unique space, where the featured artists will stimulate their senses and imagination.
March 10 - 23, 2011
Vision of Light
Beata Goik
Opening Reception: Thursday March 10 6-8 PM
Beata’s primary focus is on light and texture. Light in her work speaks about spiritual aspects of our existence and about divine and mysterious Presence. The textured and organic emergence of the surfaces relates to our earthly physicality and symbolizes our human struggle with life circumstances and with ourselves. Light penetrates through the texture and offers transformation, a sense of peace and belonging. It reminds us of our true destination. These symbolic images refer to Beata’s own spiritual and emotional development and also to the inner experiences of people who share with her their life journey.
Both the light and texture in her work are developed through the complex, layered and mixed-media processes which she experimented with and learned over the years of her artistic activity. She wanted to achieve relief-like appearances to emphasize depth and dimension and to express complexity of the interior.
February 22 - March 8, 2011
Group Exhibition
For a limited time, Jeremy Down and a selection from the Drawn Onward exhibition, will be showcased at Arta Gallery. " Lake Effects" play of light and water, will be complimented by a collection of paintings and sculpture by Arta gallery artists.
February 3 - 20, 2011
DRAWNONWARD
Jeremy Down, Gordon Kemp, Paul Mantrop, David Marshak, Steve McDonald, Christopher Roberts, Robert Saley
Opening Reception: February 3, 6 - 10PM
A collective of artists, Drawnonward, featured in a Juno nominated documentary have followed in the footsteps of Canada’s famed Group of Seven. Their latest adventure involves a group excursion for en plein air painting at Canoe Lake. Arta Gallery in Toronto’s Distillery District presents their latest exhibition entitled 'Lake Effects' at an opening reception this Thursday, February 3, 2011 from 6-10 PM with artists in attendance.
The show closes February 20, 2011.
December 12 - January 31, 2011
Winter Sale
Our annual winter sale, featuring local and international artists.