“Hiraeth”, is an exhibition of new paintings by Megan LeForte and Caitlin McGuire. Hiraeth is a Welsh concept defined as, “a homesickness for a home you cannot return to, a home which maybe never was; the nostalgia, the yearning, the grief for the lost places of your past.” Both are approaching the concept from different perspectives.

Caitlin McGuire, Untitled, Oil on Board, 2017

A selection of witty sculptural works from 1972 to 1990 by the Nova Scotia-based artist John Greer, all shown at the Isaacs Gallery in Toronto. Curated by Pan Wendt

John Greer, Take Some Respondability, 1974, epoxy clay, steel spoons, paper, 29 x 21 x 23 cm Courtesy of the artist.

This exhibition is the third collaboration by these two veteran printmakers. In Warren’s work, the body speaks. Her’s is the expressive language of hands, feet and torsos. Come close to enter intimate, detailed landscapes of muscle, tendons and fluid line. Viewers will have to take many steps back to grapple with Hainstock’s 4’x4′ monsters. His subject is the changing landscape of rural place and threatened viability.

Sally Warren, Waiting For The Miracle, offset drypoint on gelatin plate, 2017

Bob Hainstock, Urban Domino, Mixed Media on Rust Collagraph Print, 4’x4′, 2017

Opening: Wednesday Sept 6,  6 – 8pm

The Hydrostone neighbourhood, now nearly one hundred years old, is one of the most striking legacies of the Halifax Explosion. It stands as a powerful testament to the reconstruction efforts required to house the working-class families who were left homeless by the events of the Explosion. For many, however, the Hydrostone’s appeal lies in its unique ability to express the passage of time: in this neighbourhood, layers of the present co-exist with traces of the past. The original grey granite ‘hydrostone’ blocks live anachronistically side-by-side with a dizzying array of wood, composite, and vinyl siding materials. Extensions have been added, shutters have been removed, exterior walls have been painted, porches have been closed in, and trees, shrubs, and gardens have been cultivated.

Halifax artist Claire Hodge has systematically photographed all of the existing homes to create a portrait of the changing face of a landmark neighbourhood. Hodge notes, “The Hydrostone townhomes reveal a complex set of negotiations realized tacitly or explicitly by the people who have lived there. Some blocks of houses are united in their aesthetic vision. Others seem to attest to greater individualist streaks and look strangely disjointed. Most often, the blocks of houses suggest a series of compromises between harmony and difference, between the ‘greater good’ and tenacious individualism.”

Kim and Andy are both exploring the idea of nostalgia and shared memories, through popular objects in popular culture or recent history.

Andy MacDonald, Slow Century, Acrylic on Board, 2017

Kim Floyd, Parking Ramp, Kim Floyd , Acrylic on Board, 2017

In contrast to abstract art, figurative art is a diverse category for artworks that represent recognizable objects in the world. It ranges from realism to nearly abstract. The artists included in this exhibition explore human and animal figures. Through figurative narratives, the painters Brian Burke and Michael Harrington consider basic questions of the human condition and comment on contemporary society. Marcus Jones’ aluminum and bronze sculptures of human and animal sculls employ the lost wax process. They are rooted in representation but also explore abstraction, fragility and decay.

Brian Burke, Untitled, oil on canvas,2016.

Marcus Jones, Trophy, cast aluminum, 2017.

 RE:collection explores the building of a Canadian art collection in Charlottetown as both an optimistic mission and a reflection on the evolving country, its history, geography, people and communities. The diverse visions, observations, and ideas of artists represented within the collection allow us to mark the 150^th anniversary of Confederation with one of the Confederation Centre Art Gallery’s largest collections-based exhibitions and publication.

Robert Harris (1849-1919), The Studio Boy’s Private View, 1886, oil on canvas, 89.5 x 74.5 cm. Gift of an anonymous donor, 1978, CAG H-571

Kathleen Daly (1898-1994), Untitled (Young Man & Landscape), undated, oil on canvas, 96.5 x 83.8 cm.Gift of the Estate of Kathleen Daly, Toronto, Ont., 1994, CAG 94.5.60

Garry Neill Kennedy (1935-), Q (from Quid Pro Quo), 2012, acrylic on canvas, 274.3 x 213.4 cm. Gift of the artist, 2016, CAG 2016.3

Ten double ended mixed media/metal necklaces feature coins and king and queen motifs of playing cards.  They represent different areas of employment, comparing wages of male and female and questioning conventional values. Displayed on stands they allow viewers to experience them aesthetically as three-dimensional, sculptural objects demonstrating thematically that every discussion has at least two sides.

Michelle Chaulk – Change in Perspective – Metalwork – 2014

During their 2016 artist residency at The Rooms, Meredith Carruthers and Susannah Wesley became fascinated by the many stories of people losing track of time and place while berry-picking and the associated folkloric narratives that attempt to explain this phenomena. Using archival images, sound, and berry-dyed fabrics, they reflect upon how perception can shift to disorientation even in the most familiar landscapes.

Leisure,  Narrative no. 9, Digital photograph, 2016

The next installation of Truth or Myth? draws on the permanent collection to explore the changing relationship between cultural identity and food in Newfoundland and Labrador, as portrayed by artists such as Grant Boland, Martin Lyons, Derrick Pottle, Mary Pratt, and Helen Parsons Shepherd.

Grant Boland, High Class Candies, oil on canvas, 2002. Photo credit: The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Collection

Gallery 3
Artist Talk: Fri 29 September, 4:30PM
Doucette’s exhibition presents a new version of history, shedding light on our colonial past, reframing key figures and exposing false ideas. He offers, “My work stems from the hypothesis that historyis a lie that no one ever questions. Often artists were obligated to convey an official message, sometimes largely tainted by political motivations, thus evoking an incomplete version of the facts. This is certainly the case of the artists who represented the history of the Acadians in Canada. It is a history that is often a one-sided perspective from a Colonial British viewpoint which presented the Acadian population in terms of a problem that needed to be solved.”

Bio: Mario Doucette is an Acadian artist from Moncton, NB. He is a painter, but also works with video, digital animation, performance and Super8 film. He has been featured in many exhibitions in several Canadian museums and galleries, notably at Toronto’s ROM where he was a Sobey Art Award finalist in 2008. Generously supported by Canada Council for the Arts and Arts NS.