Artefact Artefiction exhibit explores materiality
What do portraits made of chewing gum, small-scale sculptures mimicking swirled confections, ornately framed illustrations, and a human-animal hybrid bust covered in fur, have in common?
They’re all a part of the current exhibition, Artefact Artefiction, which aims to examine materiality and the use of found objects alongside traditional artist’s media, at contemporary gallery Macdonald Stewart Art Centre (MSAC). It’s one of four exhibitions MSAC is offering this fall, and the opening reception for these concurrent exhibits took place on Thursday, Sept. 26.
According to Dawn Owen, Curator of Contemporary Art at MSAC, Artefact Artefiction looks at the trend in contemporary art practice of using found objects and artifacts as material in artist’s works. “For example, antique picture frames, ivory piano keys, recycled prom and wedding gowns, chewing gum – materials that come from our social and cultural space that are evidence of the way we live our lives, as opposed to traditional artist materials, like oil-paint or bronze,” said Owen.
Although these materials are re-contextualized and incorporated within artworks in unusual ways, their origin is recognizable to the viewer and they retain a sense of history. “They’re both artifact, and art object,” said Owens.
Upon entering the gallery, Jay Kronenwald’s Gum Blonde series attracts immediate attention; the bright and glossy portraits, including images of infamous blondes Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, possess undeniable pop-art appeal, but evoke a sense of curious aversion upon closer inspection, when it is revealed that these images were created using chewing gum. This unconventional use of conventional materials is carried throughout the rest of the exhibit, which includes work by a total of six artists.
Fiona Kinsella’s small-scale sculptures and canvases highlight the sculptural qualities of baking ingredients, with thick swirls of paint uncannily mimicking creamy cake frosting, appearing simultaneously delectable and untouchable.
In the next room, Tammy Ratcliff’s richly textured prints use mixed media to explore the natural world. Dana Holst’s illustrations retain a slightly haunting and unsettling quality – featuring human and animal subjects, they are presented within mismatched, decorative antique frames and arranged on a damask wallpapered surface.
Whitefeather’s Homme Fatale is a sculptural piece that includes both human and animal features to form a strange mythological hybrid whose sharp teeth protrude into space. A portion of a human face is molded in wax, set within patches of recycled fur that adorn the head and shoulders, and bright red ribbons hang from the chest. Displayed with a collection of twelve grainy black and white photographs of deceased animals and bones, this work seems to highlight the aesthetic qualities of natural materials during the process of decay.
A similar theme is approached from a divergent perspective in Susan Detwiler’s Midas Series, which consists of aluminum casts in the shape of road kill; untouched by decay, the deceased creatures are cast in a perpetual rigor mortis, glossed over with an iridescent sheen of auto paint in shades of turquoise, silver and green.
In addition to this exhibit, a variety of work is on display in anticipation of the Beyond the Frame art auction, which takes place on Nov. 9. Approximately 45 works have been donated by artists from Guelph and the surrounding region, and will be auctioned in support of the gallery.
Upstairs, A table! is a collection of contemporary metalwork and includes work by a collective of 16 metal artists from across the country. A single long, narrow table is arranged diagonally across the room, displaying quirky and playful individual place settings that explore the theme of the dining ritual.
“They thought it would be quite interesting to challenge the notion of form and function, as it relates to the dining table,” said Owen.
On the second floor, you’ll also find Sound Check: The Jazz Photography of Thomas King, which highlights King’s archive of approximately 70 classic black and white photos that span two decades of the Guelph Jazz Festival, which celebrated its 20th anniversary this year. King will be giving an artist talk and will be signing books on Tuesday, Oct. 15th at noon. The Artefact Artefiction exhibit runs until Nov. 3, 2013.