Cezanne’s Closet 2013
Vol 20 Issue 1 / April 2013
Thank you to all artists, ticket buyers,
volunteers and sponsors who helped make
our annual fundraiser Cezanne’s Closet
another success!
Next year’s event will take place on February
8th 2014 - save the date!
Reception for The Last Swim, &
Self-Refraction
Feb 15 - March 19, 2013,
SPRING / SUMMER
programming
May 4 - June 7, 2013
// Main Gallery
Invitation
A joint show and art exchange between the Union
Gallery and Modern Fuel Artist-Run Center
Reception: Thursday May 9, 5-7pm
UNTITLED is a publication of the Union Gallery and is
published each April, August and December.
The opinions expressed in Untitled are not necessarily the opinions
of the gallery staff or the Union Gallery Board of Directors.
Direct inquiries and contributions can be made to Union Gallery
613-533-3171 or email [email protected]
Contributors: Patrick Allin, Taylor Katzel, Jesse Wardell
Newsletter Committee Chair and copy editor: Peter Green
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Emily Carlaw, Past President
Anna Speyer, President
Jesse Wardell, Vice President
Allison Vrbanac, Secretary
Chumeng Weng, Treasurer
Amanda Thackway, Development
Peter Green, Communications
Lindsey Wilson, First Year Representative
Rebecca Anweiler and Chantall Rousseau, Non-Student
Board Members
STAFF
Jocelyn Purdie, Gallery Director
Christine Dewancker, Program Assistant
UNION GALLERY
1st floor Stauffer Library
Queen’s University, Kingston ON
K7L 5C4
Tel 613-533-3171
Fax 613-533-6529
Become a Member and visit our website:
http://uniongallery.queensu.ca
[email protected]
GALLERY HOURS
May-August
Wednesday-Saturday, 12-4pm
Gallery is closed August 3- Sept 12, 2013
UNION GALLERY SPONSORS
Invitation is a display of invitation-inspired collages and other
works on paper created by members of the Modern Fuel and
the Union Gallery. Artists from both organizations were asked
to make new artwork using old invitation cards from previous
exhibitions.
As part of this art exchange opportunity, joint members of
both galleries will be able to choose a work to take home.
Others will be made available for sale in exchange for a joint
membership.
// Project Room
Hearth
Sarah Tompkins
Testing the boundaries between abstraction and
representation, Sarah Tompkins’ work explores themes of
fragility, abandonment and loss. She finds inspiration in the
interior spaces of abandoned homes, infusing these empty
spaces with new life through her use of vivid colour and
gestural lines.
June 22 - September 20, 2013
// Main Gallery
Wish You Were Here: Interventions into
Landscape
Susan Dobson (Guelph), Maria Whiteman
(Edmonton), Ben Darrah (Kingston),
Sarah Fuller (Banff ), Susi Brister (Texas)
The works in the exhibition investigate various modes of
dwelling in and around our surroundings through the tourist
gaze. Laced with subtle humour, the photographs of Susi
Brister, Susan Dobson and Maria Whiteman; paintings of Ben
Darrah; and media works of Sarah Fuller and Maria Whiteman
emphasize the constructed and mediated nature of tourist
encounters with landscape, while implicating the viewer in
both its construction and destruction.
// Project Room
The Road to Seeley’s Bay
Jane Derby
This exhibition features new work by local artist Jane Derby.
Installed as a bas relief, the work is a portrait of surfaces
that reflects the texture of swamps, marshes and fields
encountered on the scenic drive from Kingston to Seeley’s Bay
and is a continuation of her experimentation with recycled
materials and the challenge of transforming rigid material to
reflect movements of land and water.
Image above: artwork by Claire Pierce (detail)
Untitled Newsletter / 8
Untitled Newsletter / 1
THE YEAR IN REVIEW
May-June
Main Space | Cut & Print
Mackenzie Browning, Ebonnie
Hollenbeck, Janghan Hong, Kaisa
Moran, Daniela Tanaka Lo
Project Room | In the River
Alejandro Arauz
Alejandro Arauz
July-September
Main Space | Strange Reverie
Martin Golland, Ufuk Gueray, Chris
Millar
Project Room | Glitter Island
Word
Ufuk Gueray
Samantha Mogelonsky
September - November
Main Space | Small Dramas &
Little Nothings
Sophie Jodoin
Project Room | Daisy Chain
Erin Finley
Sophie Jodoin
November
Jaclyne Grimoldby, Anicka VranaGodwin
Ebonnie Hollenbeck
The Newtown Creek Digester Eggs not only act as a utilitarian
service to the populace of New York City, but as an example of
the importance of community and involvement. With over half of
the energy created sold back to power facilities and the creation
of enough methane to heat near 2500 homes, the plant acts as
an environmental marvel. In honour of the plant’s industrial and
design achievements, the New York City Art Commission has even
presented the plant with two Awards for Excellence in Design.
With the environmental, aesthetic and practical concerns of community exceeded, this structure has truly gone above and beyond,
lighting the way for environmental awareness and bringing
forward the Percent for Art initiative.
Jesse Wardell is a 2nd year fine arts student at Queen’s University
and the incoming President of the Union Gallery.
Main Space | Anatomy Studies
Project Room | Into Your Hideout
Processing around 1.5 million gallons of ‘sludge’ daily, the giant
egg-shaped forms are designed, by Polshek Partnership and engineering consultants Greely and Hansen. They are designed not
only to be environmentally friendly but visually appealing. With a
budget exceeding a billion US dollars, multiple artists have been
brought on to create what is now nearing its final stages.
Vito Acconci’s fountain pieces invite guests into the plant’s visitor centre. The Nature Walk by French-Canadian George Trakas
surrounds the facility. French artist and lighting designer Hervé
Descottes’ lighting installation of blues, whites and yellows placed
throughout the exterior of the plant highlights its many different
structures.
Ebonnie Hollenbeck
December
Main Space | Queen Anne’s
Lace
Emily Carlaw, Rachel Lee
Project Room | Inhabit
Heather Halliday
Emily Carlaw
January
Main Space | In the Wake Of
Emma Kent, Kelsey-Lynn Corradetti
Project Room | Stories in Ink
Melissa Smallridge
Kelsey-Lynn Corradetti
February
Calls For Submissions
Brynn Higgins-Stirrup, David
Woodward
The Union Gallery provides a venue for the
presentation of contemporary art, encouraging
original, collaborative and experimental ideas.
Main Space | The Last Swim
Project Room | Self Refraction
Monika Rosen
David Woodward
MAIN GALLERY
March - April
The deadlines for submissions are March 15th and Nov 15th
Audrey Assad, Rosalind Breen
professionals will be accepted throughout the year and
Main Space | Bloom
of each year. Proposals from student artists, graduates and
Project Room | RITUALS
reviewed after each deadline.
Emma Fowler
Audrey Assad
May - June
The project room is a 16’x10’x16’ self-contained space located
Main Space | Invitation
inside the main gallery. It is a venue for use by students and
Various artists
Project Room | Hearth
Sarah Tompkins
professional artists to present primarily installation, new media
Claire Pierce
VOLUNTEER!
We are looking for volunteers to fill 2 hour time slots
each week. Please visit our website to download the
application form.
http://uniongallery.queensu.ca/volunteer/volunteer.html
Or call/email us at 613-533-3171 / [email protected]
A Special Thanks to all of those this term who volunteered
as gallery attendants each week.
Gemma Devir | Isa Montagnese | Sierra Megas | MIchael
Smolander | Bronwyn Shortly | Harrison Ritz | Madelaine
Thomas | Victoria Drysdale | Michael Ciesielski | Alexis Leader
| Jessica Gu | Brittany Wagner | Caileigh Prince | Meghan
O’Callaghan | Carling Spinney
Untitled Newsletter / 2
PROJECT ROOM
and time and sound-based works though other proposals will
be considered.
Proposals will be accepted anytime and reviewed after each
deadline. Exhibitions will be programmed at least 3 months in
advance and deadlines for submissions will be Sept 15th, Nov
15th, March 15th and July 15th.
Application forms are available at the gallery and on our
website. Please visit our website for more details:
http://uniongallery.queensu.ca/
Untitled Newsletter / 7
EXHIBITION REVIEWS
Assad and Breen’s ‘Bloom’ and the Role of the
Artist
Patrick Allin
Before viewing Audrey Assad and Rosalind Breen’s exhibit Bloom
in the Union Gallery, I chose to approach the exhibit with a blank
slate. I wanted to write of the immediate sentiments the show
evoked to me; no explanations, no guiding artist statements, no
reviews or critiques. The following is my interpretation; an honest
snapshot of a visitor’s arrival to the gallery.
Upon entering the Union Gallery my focus is drawn to the large
paintings on the back wall. The first painting appeals to a prurient
interest – intertwined bodies which appear to be engaged in a
sexual act. When I look over to the painting to the right which
uses the same colors and human figures, I expect it to continue
a theme of human sexuality. Rather, I see the four individuals
consoling each other. The exhibition reminds me of the different
forms that the human body can take on; here the visceral forms of
sexuality and empathy.
Looking at the surrounding walls, I see lone individuals who
appear unsure about their own body image. I see a set of three
paintings depicting a woman. In two of these paintings, she
appears to be looking at her body and struggling with negative
emotions towards it. In the third painting, the woman appears to
be asleep with a slimmer body image floating above her. Perhaps
she is dreaming of the figure that she wants but does not have.
The images of the lone woman help me to make more sense of
the large painting expressing human sexuality. All four individuals
are covering another person’s eyes. The heads of the figures
identify them as male and female, but these heads lead to tangled
bodies which appear to me as largely genderless.
I left the gallery with the artists’ written material in hand. The next
day, I compared my initial perceptions to the artists’ statement; my
interpretation was markedly different than the intended message.
I had layered my own interests on the art, and viewed through that
lens. I enjoyed this exercise as it made me rethink the role of the
artist. I ask myself: is a successful artist a strong communicator, or
is it someone who can create different channels for the viewer to
experience the piece?
Patrick Allin is a 4th year economics student at Queen’s University and a
sex educator at the Sexual Health Resource Centre.
Audrey Assad, Amy Two, oil on canvas, 2012
Queen’s Journal names Strange Reverie
‘Best Art Exhibit’
It doesn’t get better than a Dorito helicopter.
Chris Millar’s acrylic sculpture entitled “Dave and
Becca’s Sunday” is made entirely out of acrylic
paint. The detailed piece displays a miniature bag of
Doritos being poured upwards to form the shape of a
helicopter, propellers and all.
If that wasn’t cool enough, I discovered that the bag
of chips lying on the opposite side of the table was
built into a pyramid made of plain potato chips and
the table was made of wafer crackers.
Millar brings a new meaning to playing with
your food here, and art isn’t often as relatable as
miniaturized acrylic junk food.
— Savoula Stylianou
excerpt from the Queen’s Journal April 4, 2013
Rosalind Breen, Reoccurring Dreams, oil on canvas, 2013
Untitled Newsletter / 4
Dave and Becca’s Sunday
Photo credit: Tiffany Lam
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OPEN FORUM
Corrugated Creations
A word from the Director
Taylor Katzel
As many of you know this has been a challenging year
for the Union Gallery after receiving news that we lost
financial support from student fees in the fall student
referendum. As I mentioned in the last newsletter,
the gallery lost by a mere 28 votes, with only 26%
of the student population voting. This amounts to
approximately 50% of our operating budget for the
next fiscal year starting May 1st. While we continue
to receive some support from the University, it is not
enough to enable us to operate at the current level
for the next fiscal year nor sustain us into the future.
Efforts have been (and continue) made to secure
bridge funding for next year but to date there has
been no good news from either the University or the
AMS and so we have put a contingency plan in place
starting May 1, 2013.
If you’ve walked into Ontario Hall within the last couple of
weeks, you may have been surprised to have stumbled over a
few colossal sneakers, hurdled a giant clothespin lying about,
or stared down a super-sized laptop. You may have been even
more surprised to find that these objects were made entirely of
cardboard.
Armed with glue guns and X-Acto knives, myself and other
students in this semester’s ARTF102 class at Queen’s have all been
working diligently to bring a variety of mundane objects into a
new realm of characterization. What were once diminutive facets
of everyday life have now become full-fledged, aggrandized
structures, most of which are absent of their usual functionalities.
These physical re-characterizations are often accompanied by
semantic re-characterizations as well. For example, my piece, a
four and a half foot wrist watch, exemplifies the often insidious
presence that time poses on our day-to-day lives. Consistent with
this trend, other works also attempt to reveal the unseen through
obnoxious amplifications of the object’s formal qualities.
Cardboard isn’t typically a sculptor’s first choice to emphasize the
physicality or presence of an object. Sure, cardboard’s cheap and
malleable, but cardboard is a great vehicle for creative expression,
especially for students who are relatively new to the fine arts.
More importantly however, cardboard is brown. Due to the lack
of colour in the material itself, the other features of the work
immediately take precedence; whether this is size, form, detail, or
meaning depends on the piece in question.
As a whole, these works speak of whimsicality. They, in a collective
front, loom over the fewer and throw into question what they
would otherwise overlook in their everyday routine.
If you’re interested in getting a peek at these quirky creations,
be sure to stop by Ontario Hall before the graduating 2013 BFA’s
Maverick Behavior takes the building mid April.
Taylor Katzel is a 2nd year Psychology student at Queen’s
University and a part of the Concurrent Education faculty.
We still plan to present a top quality program of
exhibitions by both students and professional artists,
starting with Invitation and Hearth until June 7th and
Wish You Were Here: Interventions into Landscape
and The Road to Seeley’s Bay starting June 22nd. Both
local and national artists are featured in each of these
exhibitions. There will however be fewer shows over
the year and some of the other programs and activities
will be put on hold. Because staff hours are being
reduced, gallery hours and programming are being
adjusted accordingly.
Please note the following changes to hours:
Starting May 1- August 3rd, gallery hours will be WedSat noon-4:30 pm.
Starting in September the gallery will be open
Thursday, Friday and Saturdays 11-4:30pm.
The gallery will close from August 3-September
11, and from December 14-January 12th, 2014 and
February
It is possible that the current situation will change
over the course of the year and if so, we will make the
appropriate adjustments.
We have an excellent group of committed individuals
on our Board next year who will be working hard to
get the student fee reinstated by raising awareness of
the gallery and rallying support though various events
and a letter writing campaign. What you can do to help
is to write us a letter or send us an email telling us who
you are, what you do, your experience with the gallery
and why you think the gallery is important and needs
to continue to be supported. Please send your letter
of support to [email protected].
Newtown Creek Digester Eggs
Jesse Wardell
Growing in popularity, the Percent for Art law mandates that 1% of
the construction budget of city-owned buildings must go towards
public art.
This initiative has become popular in large cities in the United
States and Canada and is steadily spreading around the world.
The result: an increase in opportunity for artists, designers, and
engineers alike.
While many companies chose to fund separate works, New York
City’s Department of Environmental Protection opted to combine
the expansion of the Newtown Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant
in Brooklyn with the artwork it would be funding. This was the
conception of the Newtown Creek Digester Eggs.
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I would like to thank all our outgoing Board members
for their contribution over the past year. As always the
volunteers play a key role in supporting the gallery
program.
I would also like to thank Christine Dewancker who
was hired in January as the Program Assistant on a
short term. Christine is leaving Kingston and will be
finishing up at the gallery at the end of July. Thank you
to Christine and bon voyage.
If you visit the gallery this summer you will see a new
staff member. We welcome Dayna Reimland who was
hired through a summer work program starting May
1st.
Jocelyn Purdie
Director
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