The Mother’s Day Gift Guide

This post comes from the desk of Norah O’Donnell, Volunteer Co-ordinator & Gift Shop Operations.

With Mother’s Day just around the corner, we’re setting up for our annual Spring Fling Sale at the RMG Shop on Thursday, 8 May. As head of Gift Shop Operations, I often see guests torn between products, searching for that special gift. For mom, it must be unique, expressing your love and gratitude for everything she has done. At the RMG Shop, there is something to suit everyone’s taste – we carry a wide variety of handmade and locally-sourced products, one of which could be the perfect gift for mom!

This year, let me be your personal shopper – here are my top five choices for that ultimate Mother’s Day gift, straight from the RMG Shop:

Aide Bodycare – the Ultimate Handmade Spa Package

Aide Bodycare offers a variety of handmade soaps, scrubs and lipbalms that are perfect for pampering mom. Soaps are created using the traditional cold-process technique and feature such popular scents as Vintage Rose, Lavender and Organic Oatmeal, and Sweet Orange. What makes them even better? Owner, Michelle Treen, makes all products on location in Bowmanville.

Filipa Pimentel Ceramics – Classic Ceramics

A featured member of Ontario Craft, Filipa Pimentel creates beautiful ceramic pieces that are a mix of functional tableware and decorative art. The RMG Shop features her textured line that includes pitchers, serving bowls and bud vases. Each work is unique and influenced by her love for the ocean. These would be a treat to any mother’s home.

Bella Accessories – The Statement Piece

For those looking for jewellery ideas, the Bella Accessory line has many styles to choose from, making it perfect for the fashionista mom! My personal favourite is the chunky bib necklace made of woven red, orange and gray ribbons – it makes a great addition to any wardrobe and can be paired with a matching bracelet for that extra pop of colour!

Tealish Tea – Give the Gift of Tea!

Who doesn’t love a good cup of tea? Based in Toronto, Tealish makes gifting easy with their loose-leaf tea canisters in a variety of flavours including Toasty Almond, Sweet Macaroon, Dulce De Leche and Chocolate Loves Strawberry.

Filou Designs – Charming Accessories

Mom will treasure these timeless necklaces forever. Fiona Louie, of Vancouver, creates wearable works of art by transforming her own sketches into solid sterling silver necklace charms. Her signature style includes cut-out silhouettes of whimsical bicycles, anchors, fortune cookies and more.

Join us on Thursday, 8 May from 10 am – 7 pm for our annual Spring Fling Sale in the RMG Shop. For one day only, receive discounts of 10-50% off select merchandise!

Mother’s Day at the RMG

From family art activities, relaxing yoga for all ages, a classic brunch in our restaurant, Arthur’s on the 4^th, to thoughtful gifts in our shop, the RMG has you covered! For details on our Mother’s Day events, click here. For our Mother’s Day edition of OPG Second Sundays, click here.

Sneak Peaks: Pan Am Games!

“Hot Topics” blog posts come from the desk of Sarah Felgemacher, our
Communications & Social Media Co-ordinator.

In 2015, Toronto will be host to the Pan American/Parapan American Games, the third largest international multi-sport tournament behind the Olympic Summer Games and the Asian Games. Six thousand athletes from 41 participating countries will compete in 36 sporting events at over 30 venues across 16 municipalities.

That’s a wonderfully wide scope, and the General Motors Centre (GM Centre), Oshawa, will be a host venue for a one month period over July and August, 2015. The stadium at the heart of the City will be the competition grounds for the boxing and weightlifting events. This means the next 15 months will be a thrilling time of preparation, and the RMG is excited to be involved in such a momentous event!

Be sure to save Friday, 11 July on your calendar! The City will be hosting a one-year countdown event at the GM Centre – children’s activities, boxing and weightlifting activation stations and live musical performances are just a few of the events scheduled for the evening. Join us as we countdown to the festivities! The event kicks off at 5pm.

Beginning in May 2015, the RMG presents an exhibition featuring contemporary works focusing on the theme of boxing. What better way to get in the spirit of the games than to see a creative view of athletics?

Pete Doherty, Niagara Falls Memorial Arena, Niagara Falls, Ontario, 2003.

The next year will be in inspirational time in Oshawa. This is an opportunity to showcase what our City and community is about and we are excited to be a part of it all!

For more information about the One-Year Countdown and future events: http://www.oshawa.ca/panam/default.asp

For more information on the Pan American/Parapan American Games in Toronto 2015: http://www.toronto2015.org/

For volunteer information: http://www.oshawa.ca/panam/join.asp

Painters Eleven at Sixty

Tom Hodgson, Yellow Hydrant, 1953; oil, sand and acrylic ? on masonite; Gift of Martin Vagners, 1989

This post comes from our Senior Curator, Linda Jansma.

‘This exhibition is not a compact to agree, but rather the expression of a long repressed desire on the part of eleven painters to disagree harmoniously in terms visually indigenous to this age.’

While a fall 1953 meeting at Alexandra Luke’s cottage officially launched Painters Eleven as Ontario’s first abstract painting group, their inaugural exhibition took place at Roberts Gallery in Toronto from February 13 – 27, 1954. The above quote is taken from the exhibition flyer; indeed, the group wasn’t interested in presenting a manifesto similar to the Automatistes’ Refus Global, but in seeking opportunities to show their abstract work to the public.

Jock Macdonald, one of the oldest members of P11, would write in a letter to friends about that early exhibition: “It was the bombshell of the Art world in Toronto. It set the established and recognized artist on their ears.” Roberts Gallery had a huge attendance for the exhibition opening for which each member could contribute three paintings. As one Toronto Daily Star reporter noted: “The show has one common denominator: it gives conservatism a polite but firm kick in the pants and blazes independent trails.”

The RMG has organized an exhibition celebrating P11’s first sixty years and has included early work by each of its members. The gallery’s first mandate emphasized collecting and exhibiting the work of the group and the RMG now has the largest collection of work by Painter’s Eleven, as well as an extensive archive. Four paintings from that first exhibition are part of the RMG permanent collection, including Forest by Kazuo Nakamura, Yellow Hydrant by Tom Hodgson, and Tumult for a King by Harold Town (a Varsity reviewer remarked, about the latter painting, that it was “rather violent, too violent perhaps”).

Kazuo Nakamura, Forest; 1953; oil on masonite; Gift of Charles E. McFaddin, 1974

In the invitation for the group’s second Roberts exhibition, they further clarified their aims:

‘There is no manifesto here for the times.
There is no jury but time. But now
There is little harmony in the noticeable disagreement.
But there is a profound regard
For the consequences
Of our complete freedom’

After sixty years, the jury is back, and the verdict, is no doubt, positive.

Harold Town; Tumult for a King; 1953- 54; oil and Lucite 44 on masonite; Gift of the artist’s estate, 1994

The Curator’s View: Av Isaacs

This post comes from our Senior Curator, Linda Jansma.

I was going through the lobby of the gallery recently, when a gentleman in the lower Alexandra Luke Gallery caught my eye. “Hmmm, looks like Av Isaacs,” I thought. A quick step closer confirmed that Av was taking a turn around the gallery, something he does two or three times a year.

This was serendipitous. The day before, we had taken delivery of approximately 25 8” x 10” black and white photographs from Pat Feheley. She had inherited them from her father, Budd, who was a co-founder of Park Gallery in Toronto which he opened in the 1950s on Avenue Road. The photographs were taken at an opening of work by Painters Eleven and included candid shots of Jock Macdonald, Hortense Gordon, Ray Mead, Harold Town and Tom Hodgson. But the other people in that crowded room were a mystery.

Portrait of Jack Bush at Park Gallery 1958 Photo courtesy the new studio photography

Portrait of Jack Bush at Park Gallery 1958. Photo: The New Studio Photography

So I sat with Av for a half hour in the gallery space with that pile of photographs on my lap, one by one passing them on to Av. Av was the owner of Isaacs Gallery, a Toronto institution that he opened in 1955. He represented artists like Michael Snow, Joyce Wieland and Jack Chambers. He reminisced about living below Jock Macdonald in a duplex on 4 Maple Avenue while the latter was teaching at the Ontario College of Art, and his own father’s reaction when he sold a work by William Ronald for the princely sum of $900 (his father was incredulous). He told me of the opening of the RMG-organized exhibition of the work of William Kurelek and the impression the presence of a red-robed bishop had made on him, as well as the after-party at the home of our Director Emerita, Joan Murray, and how the majority of the guests ended up fully clothed in her swimming pool.

Tom Hodgson (left), Jock Macdonald (right) Park Gallery opening 1958 Photo credit: The new studio photography

Tom Hodgson (left), Jock Macdonald (right) Park Gallery opening, 1958 Photo:
The New Studio Photography

Av was able to identify a number of people in those photographs which will be incredibly helpful as they’re archived into the collection. But the best part was sitting beside a Canadian legend and hearing his stories.

Thanks for dropping by Av.

Interested in learning more? Click here to read about our upcoming Michael J. Kuczer exhibition. Kuczer also lived in Toronto at 4 Maple avenue with Isaacs and Jock Macdonald.

The Curator’s View: Thomas Bouckley Collection, An Art Perspective Part 2

This post comes from the desk of Sonya Jones, Curator of the Thomas Bouckley Collection.

While studying and reviewing the photographs in the Thomas Bouckley Collection, I’m always looking for new ways to re-contextualize and interpret the Collection. What’s refreshing is that no matter how well I think I know the collection, I’m always pleasantly surprised to discover something new, or see something in a different light. For example, in a blog posted in 2012, (click here to view) I put on art historical lenses and selected a number of images from the collection that reminded me of famous artworks.

Since then, I’ve discovered more images that have similarities to artworks, whether through subject, composition, or both. Just for fun, here are a few more examples:

Jean Antoine Watteau Mezzetin, c. 1718

Jimmy Jacques With A Williams Banjo, 1910

Hans Holbein The Ambassadors, 1533

William and Wilkie White, 1890

L.S. Lowry The Fever Van, 1935

Traffic Signals at the Four Corners, 1920

Edward Hopper Office at Night, 1940

Tax Office, City Hall, 1957

Isabel McLaughlin Untitled, undated

Sand Filter Plant, Oshawa Harbour, 1919

Interested in exploring the Thomas Bouckley Collection? You can browse the collection online through our website here.

The Curious Curator: Marman and Borins

In this blog series, our Senior Curator Linda Jansma or Assistant Curator Sonya Jones email artists with questions about their creative experiences. The emails are sent after the opening of the artists’ exhibition, and strive to reveal the experience of showing works at the RMG. In this edition Linda Jansma emailed Jennifer Marman and Daniel Borins about their exhibition The Collaborationists.

Marman & Borins at the RMG during the opening of The Collaborationists

LJ: The Collaborationists opened at the Art Gallery of Hamilton in June. How would you compare the final versions of each exhibition?

M & B: The Art Gallery of Hamilton (AGH) exhibition was a broad installation that made use of three distinct and somewhat separate rooms. At AGH, a series of ideas were linked through defined boundaries and thresholds, adjacent to each other, but not necessarily explicitly linked as one unified theme. We were interested in the associations and distance between the works and how the audience would link them. The Collaborationists is not a static exhibition though, it can exist in multiple states. We enjoy the opportunity to present a new form of the exhibition in each of its touring venues. At The Robert McLaughlin Gallery we were inspired by the grandeur of the exhibition space. We responded to this with the decision to install a large-scale singular work. Two editions of Pavilion of the Blind are positioned adjacent to each other to create the largest kinetic sculptural installation that we have produced to date.

LJ: As collaborators, how do you begin work on a concept for a piece? What are your first steps?

M & B: Early in our career it was a longer process, but as we engaged in form, kinetics, technology, and historical reference we began to make more and more connections in our work and so did our audience. Implied here is that we have established a lexicon of precedents that now make our new works easier to rationalize. So for a work like Pavilion of the Blind, we had the precedent of our piece In Sit You, and we had made a remote controlled painting 6 or 7 years ago; we felt that this was the next logical step. How could we make a large-format kinetic work that functioned as painting and sculpture? The nuts and bolts of it are really elemental: what materials to use, how to build, what motors, what computer interface? From there it was a really enjoyable problem solving set of logistics.

LJ: Is there a division of labour in your joint practice? Does one person tend to do more of one thing than another?

M & B: This is a question we are often asked. In all reality some projects are handled by one of us as the lead and the other as the support, and we trade back and forth. In the case of Pavilion of the Blind there were so many suppliers and so many components – we just divided the tasks as best we could. Our collaboration is fluid.

LJ: Your practice deals with social and political issues through the lens of modernism. How does modernism help you engage with the issues that are prominent in your work? And are there particular issues that you will be dealing with in future work?

M & B: There was a sense in 20th century Modernism that we would design a better way of living. Paradoxically there was also a sense that a form of self-conscious individualism could be expressed in visual art. We suppose that in our case, we mine aspects of modernist architecture in Pavilion of the Blind, its positive influences of form and function, but also the off-putting aspects of automation and technocratic societies. So the question is: does the critique come in the form of highly self-conscious expression, or should it be a mirror? And if it is the latter, can it claim the lofty results of high modernism – its claims to presence and weightiness. Suffice to say that we think finding a basis and extrapolating from there is a worthy strategy.For example, there is a current trend in formalism first, in art as vanguard fashion, in some ideas about post-industrial cities and found objects. Maybe we see ourselves as responsive to this. Maybe we see ourselves as an individual style. Maybe this sounds confused? But what we are saying is that there are aspects in our work that attempt to reflexively address our current culture through an analysis of what has also informed it. Modernism is a good place to start. Shamanism, to us, seems like a bit of a stretch.

Visit the Marman & Borins website

LJ: Your work often includes kinetic elements that are instigated by the viewer. Do you find that visitors look at work that they’ve helped to “create” by their presence in the room, differently than static works?

M & B: We definitely have always been a bit skeptical about works of art in general. Should we or anyone trust what an art work is purporting to accomplish? Should we trust what people write or say about an artwork? So this line of thinking informs some early ideas that we had about agency. We were interested in how a viewer controls what is perceived and how an artwork does this. Definitely we think that there is a solid place for interactivity in the art world, its galleries and and museums. Institutions are placing a huge emphasis on interactivity – it is a reflection of our current information culture. And so is Pavilion of the Blind and other works of ours. Yes in this case we definitely imagine our work as connected to the viewer; as completed by the viewer. We like to imagine a viewer watching another viewer view Pavilion of the Blind.

Did you enjoy learning more about these artists? Come to The Collaborationists: A Conversation on Sunday 19 January from 2:30 – 4pm for a lively, engaging, and personal conversation between Jennifer Marman and Daniel Borins, two artists who have been collaborating for over a decade. This is a rare opportunity to sit in on a collegial conversation exploring each artist’s work, process and history. Free to attend.

The Robert McLaughlin Gallery receives an Ontario Trillium Foundation Grant

The Robert McLaughlin Gallery receives an Ontario Trillium Foundation Grant

The Ontario Trillium Foundation announced today that The Robert McLaughlin Gallery, located in the heart of Oshawa, received a significant grant that supports the organization’s purpose—a dedication to sharing, exploring, and engaging with various communities through the continuing story of modern and contemporary Canadian art.

The grant totals $167,100 over 36 months and will support improvements to the gallery including new flooring and signage. The funds also support the growing volunteer program, with specific focus on increasing youth and young adults’ access to arts and cultural programming and volunteerism in Oshawa. Funds are also included to support the popular RMG Fridays program through increased youth participation. RMG Fridays is a monthly all-ages event that includes live music, art talks, gallery tours, openings, and community partnerships.

Andrea Cohen Barrack, CEO of the Ontario Trillium Foundation said,

“The Ontario Trillium Foundation has the unique opportunity to partner with a diverse range of not-for-profits and charities, all of whom are passionate and committed to helping their communities. I am excited to see what this round of grantees will accomplish with our support.”

Gabrielle Peacock, CEO of The Robert McLaughlin Gallery agreed that,

“This grant provides us the support we need to increase youth participation and engagement with arts and culture programming, ultimately helping us to forge valuable long-term relationships in our community while supporting youth volunteerism. We are grateful to the Ontario Trillium Foundation for their support of our initiatives.”

The Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) enables Ontarians to work together to enhance the quality of life in their communities. The OTF believes that communities across Ontario are rich in talent, creativity and drive, and their grants stimulate communities to build on these assets.

Learn more about the OTF at their website www.otf.ca.
Learn more about RMG Fridays at https://rmg.on.ca/RMG-FRIDAYS.php
Learn more about the RMG by watching this video:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCzUEN6HbCc&w=560&h=315]

DATCA 2013

This month’s RMG Fridays is moved back a week and hosted on the second Friday in November. It is for a great reason! For the second year in a row, the RMG has partnered with the Region of Durham and Durham Tourism to present the Durham Art of Transition Creative Awards (DATCA).

[vimeo http://vimeo.com/73012045]

The event is sure to be busy and attended by many! The event blends the familiar format of RMG Fridays, an event that includes live music and a cash bar, with the DATCA event, which includes an inspiring awards ceremony, honouring the best in creative achievement from 2013.

“Durham Region’s creative talent is thriving, and our judging committee was impressed by the quality of nominations submitted for this year’s Durham Art of Transition Creative Awards,” said Kerri King, Tourism Manager. “Our rich heritage, dynamic attractions, and thriving arts and culture scene make up a quality of life in Durham Region that is second to none.”

Awards to be presented are:

Best creative collaboration
Best story about Durham Region
Best entertainment in Durham Region
Best creative innovation
Best use of creativity to advance social and environmental sustainability
Best example of philanthropy in the arts

Congratulations to the nominees:

Blue Heron Books; Shelley Macbeth
Broken Arts/Fallen Love; Harley Pageot (Three Nominations)
City of Pickering
Draughthorse Productions; Diana Lopez Soto
Durham Improv; Stephanie Herrera
Edward and Marla Schwartz
Geetika Dance Co.; Geeta Leo
Herongate Dinner Theatre; Ann Ward
Highest Level Entertainment; Marko Ivancicevic
Janice McHaffie
Jay Yerema-Weafer
Municipality of Clarington, Mayor Adrian Foster
Oshawa Space Invaders; Steven Frank (Two Nominations)
Peacefully Productive Studios; Darrin Davis
Pickering Museum Village; Katrina Pyke
Social Solutionz, Abilities Centre, Accessible Arts; Adam Wilkinson
SOUND TEAM Team Building Events; Rob Hanson
The Table; Carol Cavallari

The event is free and open to all! Please come out on Friday night and celebrate creativity with us. Doors open at 6:30pm and the awards start at 7.

Read an article in the Oshawa Express about this event.

The Curious Curator: Toni Hamel

In this new blog series, our Senior Curator Linda Jansma or Assistant Curator Sonya Jones email artists with questions about their creative experiences. The emails are sent after the opening of the artists’ exhibition, and strive to reveal the experience of showing works at the RMG. In this edition Sonya Jones emailed Toni Hamel about her exhibition, The lingering, on now until the 24 of November, 2013.

SJ: What artists have influenced you and why?

Toni Hamel: There are many. Stylistically, I am attracted to the work of Michal Borremans, Joseph Cornell, Amy Cutler and Marcel Dzama. Conceptually, I love Mona Hatoum and Annette Messenger, both installation artists, for their choice of subject matter. Their work addresses the same issues I investigate in The lingering, such as gender role and discrimination, identity and self-acceptance. I also adore Betty Goodwin because I feel that her life story, much like mine, has been marked by serious struggles and heartaches, and I feel somewhat connected to the biography of Mary Pratt, although for different reasons. Married to the better known Christopher yet equally talented, Mary had to put her career on the back-burner while raising her family, her work considered more a hobby than a necessity during those years, and was able to re-focus on her practice only much later on in life. It is interesting to me to see how much I have in common with other women artists of my generations. Our biographies at times read very much as one: attempted our rise in the art world fresh out of art school, had to step away from it for two decades or so for familial commitments and obligations, and returned to it as middle-aged women. I wonder how many male artists have had to place their careers on such long hiatus because they had to dedicate the best years of their lives to caring for others…

Toni Hamel The Improvement 2013

SJ: Women often struggle with guilt at feeling discontented with their domestic existence. What would you say to these women?

Toni Hamel: It is ultimately a matter of choice. Guilt has many roots. It might stem from religious beliefs, from the social dictum, or from psychological predispositions. It is important to state at this point that this type of guilt is only experienced by women. Since for millennia we have been told to place our value as individuals on our ability to care for our families, it is quite understandable to feel guilty when our aspirations differ from those dictated by our society and/or culture. We are then confronted with an existential dilemma: do we continue living and behaving the way we have always done? Or do we break away from the norm and carve our own path? It is ultimately an issue of self-preservation and survival as guilt, in the long run, may also lead to more serious psychological complications.

An easy fix to this dilemma would be to physically remove ourselves from the context in which our guilt finds its fertile ground, to ultimately lead a life that is shaped by ourselves and for ourselves. When this option is not possible, I strongly believe that one way to alleviate one’s own discontent is to express it through a creative process. Such output not only has the power to sooth our soul, albeit momentarily, but it will also allow others to understand how we truly feel.

Our creative output, in fact, most times is able to succeed when simple words may otherwise fail. It is a form of communication that bridges the gap amongst us and brings us closer: as couples, as families, as communities, as human beings.

Toni Hamel Attachments 2012

SJ: You are refreshingly open about your personal struggles. How has the response from this exhibition been?

Toni Hamel: The response has been unimaginably positive, beyond my expectations in fact. A much welcome and collateral benefit of this exhibit has been that it is encouraging other women to come together and share their life stories, to speak about their own personal struggles and collective experiences, and find constructive ways to re-direct their psychological uneasiness.

The lingering might be my story, but it is also the story of countless other women, therefore it is very easy for them to recognize their own lives in these works.

SJ: What do you hope people will take from the exhibition?

Toni Hamel: I hope that The lingering will guide its female viewers through a journey of self-empowerment and self-realization, and direct its male visitors toward a path of understanding, appreciation and admiration for all women. As artists and intellectuals we are called upon to shape the culture of the society in which we live, and I strongly believe that exhibitions like The lingering lead us all in the right direction.

Read an article by Will McGuirk in the Durham College Chronicle.

Visit the artist’s website.

Visit the artist’s tumblr page.

We’re Pleased to Announce Two OAAG Awards!

The 2013 Ontario Association of Art Galleries (OAAG) Awards were presented on September 27 at the University of Toronto Art Centre. The Awards are annual, province-wide, juried awards of artistic merit and excellence. They recognize the new exhibitions, publications, programs and community partnerships that have been commissioned and produced by Ontario’s public art galleries over the previous year.

Our Senior Curator, Linda Jansma commented “The OAAG awards are particularly important as they represent the best in the work that Ontario art galleries are doing as reviewed by our peers. We are very pleased to have nominated Stuart Reid for the writing award and congratulate him on being chosen as the winning recipient.”

We’re thrilled to announce that we were named as partners in two exhibitions that won Curatorial Writing Awards:

Simone Jones All That Is Solid Catalogue Cover

Essay
Stuart Reid
“Simone Jones: The Image Stream”
Simone Jones: All That Is Solid
The Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa, Rodman Hall Art Centre, St. Catharines, Thames Art Gallery, Chatham-Kent, and The Reach Gallery Museum, Abbotsford, 2012

The exhibition Simone Jones: All That Is Solid was at the RMG from 17 November, 2012 to 13 January, 2013.
Click to learn more.

A Vital Force Catalogue Cover

Major Essay
Alicia Boutilier
“A Vital Force: The First Twenty Years”
A Vital Force: The Canadian Group of Painters
Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Queen’s University, Kingston, and The Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa, 2013

The exhibition A Vital Force: The Canadian Group of Painters opens at the RMG on November 30th and is on view until February 9^th, 2014. The opening reception is held at RMG Fridays on Friday December 6 from 7-10pm.

For more information on the OAAG Awards and to read more about all of the recipients in 2013, click here.

If you’re interested in reading these essays, the catalogues are available for purchase at the RMG Shop or through ABC Books Canada.