2008 Exhibition Archives
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February 16 to April 27, 2008
TD Waterhouse Great Masters Series: Munkácsy’s Epic Christ before Pilate
Curated by Patrick Shaw Cable
This instalment of the TD Waterhouse Great Masters Series celebrates the return from long-term loan in Hungary of the Gallery’s monumental painting Christ before Pilate, by Mihály Munkácsy (Hungarian 1844-1900). When Munkácsy created the epic picture in 1881-his most ambitious project to date-he had already established himself in Paris as the most internationally successful Hungarian artist of the 19th century. Featuring a crowd of life-size figures posed in various attitudes and grouped within an arched, ancient Roman interior, the massive picture (measuring over 4 by 6 metres, or 13 by 20 feet) shows Jesus with bound wrists brought for judgment before Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor over Judaea. The dramatic mural canvas was initially exhibited in the gallery of Munkácsy’s dealer, Charles Sedelmeyer, who collaborated on the project’s conception. Placed at floor level Christ before Pilate struck visitors by its resemblance to a living religious diorama. Following the enormous success of this episode from the Passion of Christ, the artist completed a trilogy of Passion scenes by painting two more huge canvases, Golgotha (1884) and Ecce Homo ("Behold the Man") (1896).
After Christ before Pilate entered the Gallery’s collection in 2002 - part of the donation of The Joey and Toby Tanenbaum Collection - the AGH followed a generous precedent set by the Tanenbaums by agreeing to loan the work for several years to the Déri Muzeum in Debrecen, Hungary, where Munkácsy is venerated as a national artistic hero. (In return for this gesture, local audiences were able to enjoy the 2006 exhibition of 78 paintings from Hungary - Hungarian Splendour: Masterpieces from the National Gallery in Budapest.) For years, Christ before Pilate has held pride of place in Debrecen’s museum, adjacent to Munkácsy’s other two paintings of Christ’s Passion, and now the AGH is thrilled to be able to present its epic Munkácsy masterpiece back at home in Hamilton.
As a complement to Munkácsy’s Christ before Pilate, the exhibition includes two other large-scale religious paintings from the AGH Tanenbaum Collection by French artist Gustave Doré (1832–1883), whose work Munkácsy admired: The Triumph of Christianity over Paganism (1868) and The Dream of Claudia Procula (1874). A contextual feature of the exhibition is the exploration of how both artists’ monumental religious paintings were involved in two remarkable instances of promotional display at a time when the modern art market was just beginning.
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February 16 to April 27, 2008
Atelier: Ora Markstein
Curated by Sara Knelman
Ora Markstein’s powerful sculptures reverberate with emotion. Carved by hand from blocks of soapstone, marble and alabaster in every imaginable colour, Markstein lets the shape of the sculpture slowly reveal itself, transforming unwieldy slabs of stone into images of beauty. Her legacy silently restores faith in humanity after her painful experiences during the Holocaust in Hungary, and defies Theodor Adorno’s famous idea that "it is impossible to write poetry after Auschwitz." Although always drawn to the arts, Markstein did not lay her hands on any variety of stone until the early 1970s, when she first came to Canada. Eventually settling in Hamilton, she has been sculpting from her downtown home for the last quarter century, making up for lost time. Although she consciously avoids recreating horror in her art, Markstein’s work often describes the pain of death and loss, but counters the sadness through explorations of love and spiritual renewal. Whether inspired by myth, biblical references or her own life experiences, Markstein evokes a rare purity that cuts through to the heart of the matter, by finding the life in the stone.
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January 26 to April 27, 2008
Cheap Meat Dreams and Acorns: Ken Gregory
Ken Gregory has played with form and technology for more than fifteen years, creating interactive computer-based installations. He approaches the work through process and the intuitive application of tools and ideas, discovering and learning through constant experimentation. This exhibition reveals Gregory's place in the history and development of media-based art in Canada.
Gregory’s work is based in improvisation and performance - his or that of the sculpture. Of critical importance is how his innovation and playful sense of discovery stimulates our imaginations. Encountering any work by Ken Gregory means you are about to enter an experience, not merely contemplate an image.
CHEAP MEAT DREAMS AND ACORNS: KEN GREGORY was organized by Plug In ICA, Winnipeg, with the financial assistance of the Manitoba Arts Council, the Canada Council for the Arts and the Winnipeg Arts Council New Creations Fund. The circulation of this exhibition is made possible by the Museums Assistance Program of the Department of Canadian Heritage.
*On Thursday, January 17, at 5:30 pm, multi-disciplinary artist Ken Gregory performed 20 minutes of live sound art on McMaster campus radio station CFMU 93.3 FM’s A Little Notice in the System programme for the International Birthday of Art, founded by Fluxus artist Robert Filliou.
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January 12 to May 4, 2008
Two Artists Time Forgot: Frances Jones (Bannerman) and Margaret Campbell Macpherson
Organized by the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and The Rooms, Provincial Art Gallery of Newfoundland and Labrador, and circulated by the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia with the support of the Museums Assistance Program (MAP), Department of Canadian Heritage.
Co-curated by Dr. Dianne O’Neil and Caroline Stone.
Two women. Two artists. Two painting careers lost to us through time and art historical neglect. The exhibition Two Artists Time Forgot offers a rare opportunity to experience firsthand the work of Newfoundland’s Margaret Campbell Macpherson (1860 - 1931) and Nova Scotia’s Frances Jones (Bannerman) (1855 - 1944). As the first in-depth study of these artists, the exhibition seeks to introduce their works to a wider audience while providing the opportunity of experiencing a selection of over sixty paintings on loan from private and public collections.
The parallels between the two artists and their practices are particularly interesting. Macpherson and Jones shared similar family backgrounds: both were born in Atlantic Canada, traveled to Europe to study in the late nineteenth century and experimented with Impressionism. Indeed, any artist of ambition (either male or female) of the period made the pilgrimage overseas for the purposes of advancing their art training and career. Through their travels and various residencies in Europe, both Bannerman and Macpherson were exposed to the vanguard of Western painting and immersed themselves within various European art communities. Each earned significant honours during her lifetime, including having work accepted for exhibition at the prestigious Paris Salons, including Bannerman’s In the Conservatory exhibited at the 1883 Salon.
The work of Bannerman and Macpherson certainly merits our attention and the exhibition and accompanying publication for Two Artists Time Forgot not only brings their work to life but recounts, for the first time, the rich artistic journeys of these two pioneering Canadian women artists.
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March 1 to August 17, 2008
Angkor Wat, Cambodia: Vision of the God-Kings - Photographs by Lois Conner
Curated by Sara Knelman
Lois Conner’s exquisite photographic portfolio explores the ancient civilization of Angkor, Cambodia. Conner set out, despite the palpable threats of the long-running civil war in the region, to capture the stunning landscape, monuments and people who remain there. Renowned in its age for incredible art and architecture, Conner relates the story of the Angkor Period, about 802 to 1432, through panoramic vistas that stretch the borders and place us inside the frame. Her highly-detailed contact photographs utilize an unusal elongated format, in part because it lends itself better to the narrative effect she wished to evoke. Conner, renowned for her depiction of China and the US, has said plainly of this work: "These photographs are not documents. I’m interested in landscape as culture - how land can hold the subtle yet indelible imprint of those who lived before us."
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May 17 to August 24, 2008
The Collectors Series: Joe Ng
The Collectors Series: Luke Chan
Curated by Dr. Patrick Shaw Cable
Prominent Hamiltonians and friends Joe Ng, founder of Joe Ng Engineering Ltd. and the Joe Ng Group of Companies, and Luke Chan, Associate Vice-President of International Affairs at McMaster University, have each assembled through the years a sizable collection of Asian art. Joe Ng’s collection focuses primarily upon an eclectic range of Japanese ceramics dating from the 17th to the 20th century, but also includes screens, sculpture, lacquer and metalware. Luke Chan has embraced modern Chinese painting that is nourished by and continues the age-old tradition of Chinese landscape painting and calligraphy. These adjacent exhibitions continue the Gallery’s commitment to present significant private collections from the area.
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May 10 to September 1, 2008
From Geisha to Diva: The Kimonos of Ichimaru
Organized and circulated by the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria
Curated by Barry Till
Exhibition Partner: Stitch It
This internationally successful touring exhibition presents a lavish array of more than twenty kimonos of one of the most famous geisha of 20th-century Japan: Ichimaru (1906–1997). From a life of rural poverty, the adolescent Ichimaru began as a low-rank geisha, and blossomed into one of the most revered and elegant geisha, known to possess the singing voice of a nightingale. Signing as a singer with Victor Recording in 1931, Ichimaru soon left the geisha world, becoming a full-time diva and one of her country’s national treasures. In her lifetime, therefore, the exceptional Ichimaru was a major figure of both the centuries-old Japanese geisha tradition, and the modern, Western phenomenon of popular recording star.
As a singer Ichimaru promoted traditional Japanese music and folk melodies, and continued the geisha tradition of elegant, stylish dress. Alongside Ichimaru’s kimonos, the exhibition includes several related objects, portraits, and publicity photographs of this renowned geisha-cum-diva.
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May 10 to September 1, 2008
The Japonisme of Edgar Degas and James Tissot
Curated by Dr. Patrick Shaw Cable and Davida Aronovitch
Presented by Orlick Industries Ltd.
Complementing the Gallery’s series of Asian shows, this intimate exhibition explores the influence of Japanese art on two of the great French realists of the 19th century—the Impressionist Edgar Degas (1834–1917) and the “Victorian realist” James Tissot (1836– 1902). Friends from their student days, Degas and Tissot were inspired by the special forms, colours, and motifs of the art of Japan, in particular Japanese woodblock prints.
The Japanese influence melded with other sources of inspiration, such as photography for Degas and the popular fashion plate for Tissot. This thematic exhibition highlights the original japonisme of each artist’s work by juxtaposing a select number of paintings and prints, including Degas loans from the National Gallery in Ottawa and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, and the AGH’s beloved painting by Tissot, Croquet.
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May 22 to September 7, 2008
Great New Wave: Contemporary Art from Japan
Co-presented by the Art Gallery of Hamilton and the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria
Curated by Sara Knelman and Lisa Baldissera
This groundbreaking Canadian presentation of Japanese art examines new and recent work by emerging and mid-career artists. After its economic collapse in the 1990s, Japan’s Superflat movement, epitomized by the work of Takashi Murikami and Yoshimoto Nara, catapulted these and like-minded artists onto the contemporary art world stage. Today, an exciting new wave of work follows in the wake of the Superflat aesthetic, defined by a new generation of Japanese artists. Their diverse works, on view in Canada for the first time, reflect an acute consciousness of cultural tradition, while simultaneously proposing visions of a globalized future.
The exhibition will include work in a variety of media including drawing, installation, photography, sculpture, textile and video. In addition to new and recent work by Manabu Ikeda, Kohei Nawa, Tabaimo and Miwa Yanagi, the exhibition will also showcase two site-specific works created in Hamilton: utilizing discarded consumer packing material gathered over many months from local residents, internationally-known artist Yoshiaki Kaihatsu will transform our waste into a contemporary take on the traditional Japanese teahouse, and textile artist
Sayaka Akiyama will spend four weeks in the community, ultimately translating her experiences of Hamilton’s environment, geography, history and sensibility into a large-scale signature mapping project.
This exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue featuring curatorial essays and full colour illustrations ...
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May 22 to September 7, 2008
Atelier: Tor Lukasik-Foss - The Monotheatrum
Curated by Sara Knelman
This summer, Tor Lukasik-Foss will build Hamilton’s newest performance venue inside an AGH gallery. The Monotheatrum, as it has been named by Lukasik-Foss, is like nothing you’ve seen before. Described by the artist as a "nomadic amphitheatre," the structure’s meticulous design references the architecture of opera houses, scaled down here to house only a single performer. The innovative twist is the stage itself: although physically present, the performance space remains concealed from view – the stage is not visible to the audience. This separation between performer and spectators riffs on the notion of obscurity as a viable creative path – perhaps even as the necessary ingredient in the mysterious recipe for success.
In the summer of 2008, The Monotheatrum will set up its stage for the very first time at the AGH. During the course of its exhibition, The Monotheatrum will begin to build-up a storied past through performances and audience encounters. As it moves on from here, its legend will continue to build, slowly generating the kind of psychic energy that defines the great performance venues of our time, like Massey or Carnegie Hall.
Stay tuned for notice of occasional live "performances" by Hamilton musicians, and visit the exhibition anytime to experience sonic documentation of past performances, and to contemplate the nature of such elusive entities as performance, fame and ambiance.
Tor Lukasik-Foss is a visual artist, musician and writer based in Hamilton.
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April 26 to September 21, 2008
TD Waterhouse Great Masters Series: Masters of the Ukiyo-e
Curated by Dr. Patrick Shaw Cable
A quintessential Japanese historical art form, ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world") are colour woodblock prints that represent subjects ranging from brothel scenes and legendary episodes to landscapes and urban views.
Masters of the Ukiyo-e features more than a dozen ukiyo-e prints from the AGH collection, including images of the geisha, the Kabuki actor, and the sumo wrestler; episodes along the Tokaido Road; and snow and river scenes. In addition to the work of 19th-century masters like Ando Hiroshige (1797–1858) and Utagawa Kunisada (1786–1864), the exhibition presents a few examples by talented artists who continued the ukiyo-e tradition into the next century, such as Hiroshi Yoshida (1876–1950) and Kiyoshi Saito (1907–1997).
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December 15, 2007 to September 21, 2008
The Word Made Flesh: Images of Devotion
Curated by Patrick Shaw Cable
For centuries the Church was a chief patron of art, supporting some of the most famous artworks in history, such as Michelangelo’s David and Leonardo’s Last Supper. The Word Made Flesh features religious art from the AGH European collection, depicting Christian saints, Biblical and historic narratives, and artists’ personal imaginings of religious themes. On view is an assortment of paintings and sculptures dating from the Middle Ages to the early years of the 20th century. Including altarpieces, oil paintings of dramatic narratives, and carved and painted sculptures of saints, the show discloses stories and heroes that are both familiar and unknown, as well as the passion and beauty of Christian art through the ages. A portion of the exhibition, on view until mid-April, presents a corridor of prints from the Renaissance and Baroque periods. Many of the handsome pieces in The Word Made Flesh are generous long-term loans-for example, the sole Canadian work in the exhibition, Christ by 19th-century Québécois sculptor Louis Jobin, is on loan to the Gallery from Mrs. Wynn and Dr. Bill Bensen.
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The Jean and Ross Fischer Gallery
February 8 to March 2, 2008
Heart of the City
Art Rental and Sales
This show of works from the AGH's Art Rental and Sales Programme was inspired by the painting Cuore Città by Italian-Canadian artist Pietro Adamo. This exhibition draws on two powerful themes that emerge from Adamo’s work - the energy of urban spaces and the power of the vibrant, “heart”-inspired colour of red. The works on view here portray the energy of life, familiar objects and urban form in some of the great cities of the world (Paris, Hong Kong, Toronto). The use of the colour red inspires romance, generates excitement and conveys the frantic pace of city life. Available for sale or rental, these original works of art are ideal way to conquer the winter blues. Each work sparks a wide range of emotions... and passion is only one of them!
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March 6 to May 4, 2008
Vitae Urbanae
Art Rental and Sales
"Inspiration can come from anywhere. It sometimes bursts forth in the most awkward place and inconvenient time. Learning to harness it and to keep that feeling is what drives my work. Some pieces are titled due to the obvious sentiment that is apparent to me as I complete them. Other pieces remain untitled simply because they evoke a general idea rather than a strong, specific sentiment. The titles are not always serious-some are humorous or even a play on words. It all pertains to the moment and to what inspired the particular feeling in me.
In 2004 I introduced some stronger graphic elements in my work in a show entitled Vitae Urbanae. Using silk screened imagery from my collection of photos enabled me to evoke a sense of time in my work-the finished piece was a stitch in time. I was always drawn to architectural imagery and I included it in that show. Fast forward to Art Gallery of Hamilton and Vitae Urbanae 2008. The show highlights new imagery and surface treatments without abandoning my lifelong obsession with texture and colour."
- Pietro Adamo
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On view March 22 to June 1, 2008
Women’s Art Association 112th Annual Juried Exhibition
The Women’s Art Association is one of Hamilton’s oldest arts organizations. Formed in 1896, the efforts of their earliest members were instrumental in the founding of the AGH and as such, their history is closely tied to the Gallery’s. The strong relationship between the AGH and WAA continues to this day, and the WAA is one of the regular exhibitors in the Gallery’s Jean & Ross Fischer Gallery. We are pleased to present their 112th Annual Juried Exhibition, which promises to continue the rich range of styles and subjects pursued by various WAA artists.
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On view June 5 to August 4, 2008
Follow Your Art III: SAGE and SAGE Quest Student Exhibition
Curated by Pearl Van Geest, Laurie Kilgour-Walsh
It is thrilling to once again have the pleasure of collaborating with the students, teachers and parents of SAGE for the third annual Follow Your Art exhibition. This year’s adventure began as usual with visits to the AGH exhibitions and continued as students explored the connections their lives and ideas made with the ideas, materials and techniques discovered in investigating the exhibiting artists’ work.
- Pearl Van Geest
Art Educator: School Programmes
Students from the SAGE Quest programme also participated in an inspiring and interactive Gallery experience. During three visits to the Art Gallery of Hamilton, students looked at, talked about and created art. As each student’s skills and ideas developed over the course of the programme, all involved were pleased to see a growing curiosity and articulation develop. This exhibition is a celebration of talent, creativity and inspiration.
- Laurie Kilgour-Walsh , AGH Educator
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August 9 to September 21, 2008
"Purely Pastel": PastelArtists.ca 17th Open Juried Exhibition
The AGH is delighted to host Pastel Artists Canada’s 17th Open Juried Exhibition in the Jean and Ross Fischer Gallery. PAC started out small in southern Ontario in 1989, and now boasts a wide membership across Canada. PAC members revel in working with the vibrancy and subtlety of dry pastel. Each year selected entries in the Juried Show stand as wonderful demonstrations of the versatility of the medium and the imagination and skill of the artists.
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