>>PREVIEW
HIT OR MISS: AN EXHIBIT OF CONTEMPORARY DRAWING
Runs until February 10
The Triangle Gallery
Hit or Miss, an exhibition of contemporary art at The Triangle Gallery, references the creative process while delivering works from both stalwarts and relative newcomers on the Canadian artscape.
In an era where some believe works of art can be made by pushing a button on an Apple computer, there remain (thankfully) artists, as this exhibition aptly demonstrates, who are committed to putting pen to paper and paintbrush to canvas.
Curated by well-known local artists Chris Cran and John Will, Hit or Miss is an exhibition that lacks (by design) an overarching theme.
"In putting together an exhibition of drawing," state the curators in the exhibition’s mission statement, "it seemed that our duty was clear. Choose the artists based on past work we had seen and let the artists choose the work they wished to exhibit. There would be no theme. Nothing would be chosen to go along with other works. In choosing the artists, we knew we could not be comprehensive or fair. We also knew we could not be arbitrary."
Muted apologies from the curators aside, peppering the walls of a gallery with (mainly) individual works from select artists allows viewers even more opportunity to linger and be more critical in their assessments. Instead of an artist being able to seduce visitors to the gallery with multiple works, the singular piece affixed to a white wall must stand up to close scrutiny.
An example of where this inspection yields mixed results is the three small drawings by Ryan Sluggett. The new darling of Calgary’s art scene, Sluggett (who now lives in Vancouver) has been celebrated for his efforts over the past couple of years since graduating from Alberta College of Art and Design.
From his first solo exhibition at the Art Gallery of Calgary in September 2004, the artist has captured the attention of collectors, gallerists and curators with his painterly brand of suburban angst coupled with studies in perspective and stylistic nods to historical figures from the world of art.
Tediously, Sluggett’s paintings are invariably described as whimsical or witty. Yet his drawings here seem to fall flat. One work depicts a couple at a passport office. One wonders how many similarities Sluggett shares with the figures in the work shown obediently waiting for their turn to apply for their documents as they imagine far away, and much more exciting destinations.
With success foisted upon him, this young painter has now become part of the machinery of the art business. Will he also obediently continue to turn out "clever" works or evolve into an artist whose creations have deeper meaning?
One of the gems in this exhibition is Allan Harding MacKay’s mixed media work, 401.
MacKay has a long and distinguished career in art as the founding director of the Southern Alberta Art Gallery in Lethbridge, former director of the Mendel Art Gallery in Saskatoon, former director of the Power Plant in Toronto and curator of countless exhibitions across the country, including serving as co-curator of the 2000 Alberta Biennial of Contemporary Art.
Beyond his pedigree, MacKay is a talented artist, as this depiction of Ontario’s dreary 401 Highway proves. A view out of the front windshield of a car on a wet and bleak day, the piece gathers into a defined frame all those foreboding moments experienced by anyone who has driven on a road that leads into banks of charcoal black clouds pissing down sheets of rain.
An exhibition that is more hit than miss, nearly 30 artists took up the challenge to have their works placed on the walls of The Triangle Gallery while the curators stepped aside to allow the creative process to become the most important aspect of this show. |
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