Art Toronto – Fly On The Gallery Wall

FLY was thrilled to be invited to the “media day” preview of this year’s ART TORONTO art fair and it was exciting to meet new artists and galleries as wellas lots of favourites like the McMichael Gallery which was front and centre at the top of the escalator. FLY was fortunate to view their current Tom Thomson exhibition and they were busy promoting their upcoming show…. https://mcmichael.com/
Just around the corner from McMichael was Montreal’s www.Blouin-division.com featuring the stunning “bead” works of Renne Condo. FLY then discovered a new gallery along Dundas West (website coming) Zaal Art Gallery and the charming booth hosts welcomed questions about the art, esp. the 3rd image below – what do you see? The artist has actually painted his face mid-shaving – it’s a foamy portrait.

FLY was welcomed into the booth of Halifax-based IOTA Gallery and the lovely ladies representing Nova Scotia artists were happy to share news of their gallery and works on display.

And IOTA’s artist Carrie Allison creates unique and intriguing soft sculptures such as these, below….Next door FLY found this small booth packed with lots of art books. Aperture is based in New York City and run by a very knowledgeable Richard Gregg. http://www.aperture.org
FLY was looking for BC-based Jean Paul Langlois (FLY has one of his stunning prints on her wall) and found 2 of his paintings represented by The New Other Gallery – it was a stunning booth with a couple of secret nooks containing other fabulous works, including the large blue and gold work by Jaspal Birdi. Definitely recommend checking out: wearethenewother.com
So many cool booths, however, only a few of the artists and gallery directors/curators were on-site for this media day event. Sadly, FLY could not interview anyone else but took a lot of photos for you.

FLY always looks forward to Sandra Ainsley‘s big exhibition booth – she represents many superstars of the art glass world including Dale Chihuly of whom FLY is such a fan. This year’s booth did not disappoint! Bravo, Sandra. https://sandraainsleygallery.com/

Thank you to the Art Toronto show producers and good luck to all the galleries working hard to promote Canadian and international artists. The show opens tomorrow, Friday Oct. 27 and runs throughout the weekend. Check out times and details: https://arttoronto.ca/

FLY attended the opening night of the annual ART TORONTO, featuring Canadian and int’l galleries and artists, and found lots of exciting contemporary artworks exhibited, as well as discovering some new galleries and arts initiatives. The show runs until end of day Sunday Oct.30 – click on their website for details and tickets: https://arttoronto.ca/home/The first booth FLY visited was the Art Gallery of Hamilton (above & below) with their striking display and lots of information and merchandise. The ladies were welcoming and eager to share their knowledge of the gallery’s current, past and future shows. www.artgalleryofhamilton.comImmediately to the left, you’ll find an aisle displaying books and materials available from the arts bookstores and I found these two lovely people representing The Power Plant which is currently celebrating 35yrs – check out the line-up of FREE exhibition tours and other events happening through to December: www.thepowerplant.org

Love the cool kids of Floating Point Gallery! They have been very active on social media promoting their participation in this year’s Art Toronto. It’s good to see galleries being active on the ‘net, supporting their artists and activities. Bravo, team Floating Point. https://floatingpointgallery.com/
And speaking of cool…FLY walked into lead sponsor Infiniti‘s booth to view a unique hanging installation by world-renowned conceptual artist Michael Murphy. The Next Contemporary gallery offered several paintings and sculptures but these two (below) particularly caught FLY’s eyes. The gallery is located on Dupont Street so go visit after the weekend’s show. www.thenextcontemporary.com
Meet Monica Reyes, Director of the Monica Reyes Gallery in Vancouver. The elegance of the lady is reflected in the art she exhibits…the booth displayed a wide range of contemporary works including the backlit colourful panels that would illuminate any wall or room. www.monicareyesgallery.comThe booth that really blew FLY away was www.RochemontProjects.com exhibition of Ghana-based artists with these stunning HUGE canvases depicting “Material Memories” (see description below), curated by Ashley McKenzie-Barnes. You cannot walk past this large booth without stopping…the images are haunting, engaging and intriguing. FLY wasn’t too sure about the squished gold Jaguar in the middle of the lounge but being a devoted Jag lover, she had to stop and stare….Who doesn’t love a cute Barbie? How about this sexy cowgirl Barbie (below) by Maggie Hall? Check out her pop-art at: www.lovemaggiehall.comFLY enjoyed chatting with reps from 2 arts magazines: Border Crossings and C-Mag, both of which support Canadian contemporary artists and galleries. Check them out yourselves. www.bordercrossingsmag.com and www.cmagazine.com So many fabulous works on show – here’s just a sample…including those fabulous painted bowling pin Elvises (or is it Elvai?) Rocky LaRock shares his N.W. Pacific coast cultural imagery with these jaw-dropping carvings…his profile is below. FLY then ran into Napoleon…....and viewing Napoleon at the same time was an enthusiastic art lover, Glen, who introduced FLY to his colleagues from the Portrait Gallery of Canada (based in Ottawa), a newly formed organization looking to promote portrait photography or paintings of everyday Canadians – every face tells a story and there are millions of faces/stories out there waiting to be gathered and shared. Here’s Glen (below R) with artist Max Dean (L) who was participating in the pick-a-hat, pose-for-a-photo and create-your-own-portrait initiative. What fun!It was lovely to meet Portrait Gallery of Canada’s Exec. Director Robert Steven (C), along with Board Member Christine Sadler (L) and artist Darlene Cole (R).FLY is looking forward to supporting the endeavours of www.portraitcanada.ca

Before leaving the show, FLY had to buzz around the aisles to find one of her favourite Toronto galleries – the Sandra Ainsley Gallery and she was not disappointed. Sandra herself was there and gave FLY a tour of the stunning art glass sculptures on display. You MUST visit her gallery in person to see the magnificent works from her represented artists. https://sandraainsleygallery.com/ Below are the latest pieces from South Australian Clare Belfrage Sandra showed FLY the innovative glass panels from renowned glassmaker Dale Chihuly – turned off the panels look one way then flipping a switch to illuminate, they look completely different colours. WOW! FLY also got to meet the charming Susan Edgerley who created this delicate glass floating sculpture – looks like clouds – and when you brush the wires or individual pieces, it jingles melodically.Thanks so much for the mini-tour, Sandra!So much more to dazzle and inspire at the show so please visit Art Toronto this weekend. Big THANK YOU to Michael Usling and his team for the media pass. Good luck with the weekend.