International Art Treasures Web Magazine

August 2005  

• This Issue
• Subscribe
• Advertisers
• Ad FAQS
• Ad Web Sites
• About IAT
• Link to IAT

TOAE 2005

Contemporary art in Toronto was celebrated with the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition, showcasing some of the finest talent in the city and beyond. The public flocks to the event, held July 8-10, to enjoy some outstanding artwork showcasing a multitude of genres including painting, sculpture, ceramics, jewelry, wood and more.

Title: Dogwood Sunset
Artist: Micheal Zarowsky
Medium: Watercolor
Dimensions: 22" x 30"
Artist Web Site: www.zarowsky.net
Image Courtesy: Micheal Zarowsky

Ceramics

Wendy Walgate

Title: The Very Pink of Perfection, 2005
Artist: Wendy Walgate
Medium: White Earthenware, Glaze Fired to Cone 06, Wooden Toy Cradle
Photographer: Wendy Walgate
Artist Website: www.walgate.com
Image Courtesy: Wendy Walgate

Wendy Walgate works with slip cast earthenware animals and objects to form “accumulations” which reflect the culture of acquisition and display of possessions. Ceramic mementoes and souvenirs can be found on countless fireplace mantles, in china cabinets and in store windows. Often there is a compelling emotional attachment to these items. Remembering a small “Bambi” figurine from her childhood, Wendy believes that “ceramic animals can carry surprisingly strong meanings, through personal remembrance, imagination or perceived worth.”

By using children’s cast off containers, such as a toy cradle, Wendy intends to question the source of children’s attitudes towards animals. A pink cradle is entitled “The Very Pink of Perfection”.  It features creatures mounded together, climbing upward on top of each other. The animals and objects settle into precarious harmony, looking out at the viewer. An intentionally vivid color range evokes a child’s sensibilities and references the palette of commercially made animal figurines.

Textiles / Fiber Art

Peggy Mersereau

Title: Flowing Grid Poncho, 2004
Artist: Peggy Mersereau
Medium: Drape - Materials: Vintage silk buttonhole twist, silk and rayon threads
Technique: Free embroidery on water soluble stabilizer
Photographer credit: Peggy Mersereau
Image Courtesy: Peggy Mersereau

Peggy explains, "The constant factors in my work are illusion, negative space and shadow. Inspiration comes from many things.  Color, texture, pattern, light and dark, form and shape, and how they interact with and off of each other. "

Adding, "My work ranges from sculptural jewelry to wall pieces. In addition to silk and nylon monofilament threads, I also incorporate metal, recycled wool sweaters, paper and plastic into some pieces. Often a particular thread will challenge me to find a way to use it, such as the vintage silk buttonhole twist which is featured in Drape. The twist has a subtle luminosity and color, and that would have been lost if the threads that make up the cord had been separated."

Title: Flowing Grid Poncho detail, 2004
Artist: Peggy Mersereau
Medium: Drape - Materials: Vintage silk buttonhole twist, silk and rayon threads
Technique: Free embroidery on water soluble stabilizer
Photographer credit: Peggy Mersereau
Image Courtesy: Peggy Mersereau

Peggy states that, "2005 is my sixth year at the TOAE, and I have been fortunate to be awarded two Best Fiber Awards, one in 2001 and the other in 2003, and an Honorable Mention in Fiber in 2000.

Computer

Louis Cohen
Winner: Multi-Media / Computer-Generated Award

Title: Sugar Smacks
Artist: Louis Cohen
Medium: Giclee
Dimensions: 20 x 20"
Artist Web Site: www.louiscohen.ca
Image Courtesy: Louis Cohen

Louis says, "This image pursues an ongoing fascination with first world and developing countries. The dichotomy that this presents provides fertile ground to examine the degrees of urban living. The gritty bodegas and corner-stores provide inspiration for this particular work, Sugar Smacks."

"Image-editing software is used as a medium to compile and orchestrate various hand-drawn, personal illustrations and found imagery."

Painting

Karl Au-Yeung

The commentary of his painting is expressed in the use of abstract symbols rather than in pure figuration. It is for symbolic purposes to reflect the energetic fortitude of human beings; its meaning is hope kindles hope.

Photography

Danny Custodio
Winner: Murray Koffler - Founding Chairman's Award

Title: Leave / Remain / Return #3, 2005
Artist: Danny Custodio
Medium: C-prints mounted on Gator Board
Dimensions: 15" x 100"
Artist Email: danny.custodio@gmail.com
Image Courtesy: Danny Custodio

"For 23 years I have lived in the same house, on the same street, in the same neighborhood -- Little Portugal. The idea of moving and starting my life over again is terrifying -- then again, there is no need for me to relocate as my ancestors did."

"This work examines how the landed Portuguese have cultivated their Canadian neighborhoods to sustain the lifestyles they were accustomed to in Portugal. I have used images from old family albums, Little Portugal, staged images of my family and myself, and visual investigations of my living space. I traveled to my parent's homeland to see for myself the land that they long for; the one they gave up to provide me with a better life. The work speaks about the tensions surrounding translation, tradition, and place.  With these tensions in mind, I have visually explored the dynamic of the Portuguese Diaspora. Through my travels, I have noticed striking similarities between Portugal and Little Portugal. It seems that the Portuguese did not assimilate into the Canadian culture. Instead, they bolstered Canadian multiculturalism with the creation of their Diaspora community. The work, comprised of five strips of photographs, reads as a narrative dealing with the issues that surround the culture. For example, the piece leave/remain/return #3, looks at the role of working class men within the context of Portugal and Toronto. I also approached these environments from the viewpoints of their children. My family and myself are actors portraying a way of life, but we are speaking from within the culture. This work is an homage to the sacrifices that were made by the first-generation immigrants in order to provide better opportunities for the second-generation Portuguese-Canadians."

Drawing

Maria Jones

Title: In Between
Artist: Maria Jones
Medium: Drawing
Artist Web Site: www.mariajonesart.com
Image Courtesy: Maria Jones

Maria discusses her drawing, In Between: as "A doorway is a point of passage and in this “space” a line is drawn over you. It is also a vehicle that defines when and sometimes how we arrive at our next destination."

"I am interested in exploring what lies between the “in and the out” and the “entry and the exit.” It is the notion of what is happening in the space between things and between people that informs my work. I immerse myself in this softness of sanctuary that I refer to as the, “in between” which is filled with memory."

Jewelry

Jessica Baneham

Title: Expansion Earrings
Artist: Jessica Baneham
Medium: Sterling Silver / Jewelry
Dimensions: 12 mm Diameter
Artist Web Site: www.jessicabaneham.com
Image Courtesy: Jessica Baneham

Jessica says, "My current work examines the qualities of direction and movement. I am interested in creating a sense of visual energy in what is normally viewed as a stable and static medium: metal. I combine volume, texture and color in order to achieve this goal."

She adds that, "Jewelry is my chosen medium as I find trying to combine my designs with the demands of wearability to be a unique challenge. I am also fascinated that the relationship I develop with the objects I make will end once the item has been purchased and a new relationship is then created with the wearer and my work. I view this as an opportunity to create a dialogue with the public."

Watercolor

Micheal Zarowsky
Winner: Watercolour Award Best of Medium

Title: Red Forest
Artist: Micheal Zarowsky
Medium: Watercolor
Dimensions: 22" x 30"
Artist Web Site: www.zarowsky.net
Image Courtesy: Micheal Zarowsky

"Red Forest grew out of an earlier series of paintings called Dogwood Sunset." states Michael. "Both works are meditations on light at the end of the day. It is about being in our forests. Red Forest is about that moment everyone has, of feeling lost, where no direction looks any better than any other, yet deep within oneself is the trust to able to find a way out. At that moment one become free to feel the totality of the forest; of being inside an ordered chaos, embracing a randomness of freedom yet feeling embraced within its totality . I simplified my choice of colors to express some of the totality I was able to feel. It gave the painting a pull-together kind of strength."

"My commitment to nature is expressed through my fascination with light and water, neither of which can be painted directly. Treating light as pure source the paintings are an expression/realization of its’ effects; water being transparent lets me explore it through the very reflections that try to confine it."

Wood

Kino Guérin

Title: Tobogan
Artist: Kino Guérin
Medium: Wenge and Zebrawood
Dimensions: 50 x 30 x 13 in.
Artist Email: kinoguerinebeniste@sympatico.ca
Photographer: Elyse Belanger
Image Courtesy: Kino Guérin

Kino discusses his work. "The aesthetics that I like are very simple, a combination of straight lines and curves, "dressed" with exotic wood veneer. The techniques I use to create my work is lamination and bending. I take many layers of thin and flexible wood panels, I glue it in the position that I want, in a mould, and when the glue is dry it stays like that. Now it's time to cut, sand and finish with a lacquer."

Sculpture

Jihee Min
Winner: Student Award Honorable Mention

"By decoding the object, I aim to create a space of imagination that stimulates the viewers’ mind. These paper boats are re/created with black fabric, some of them baring embroidery. Since soaked fabric doesn’t float the object has become physically functionless, yet its poetic significance is emphasized."

"I intend to bring nostalgic intimacy between the work and the viewer, as my works come from my land of eternal hopes, where narration is constantly meeting my time."

Metal

Sara Washbush

2005 Award Winners

Title: Stove, 2004
Artist: Amanda Hill
TOAE 2005 Winner: Painting Award Honorable Mention
Medium: Oil on Canvas
Dimensions: 34 x 34"
Image Courtesy: Amanda Hill