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Every Face Tells a Story
July 2022 Portraiture is a very old art form that started thousands of years ago. Before the invention of photography, portraits were records of people, usually important or wealthy. At that time portraits were mostly flattering, to present the subject in the best possible light. However, portraits also tell a story, they are not simply a record. Especially as we move through history closer to modern times, portraits started telling a personal story of the subject and not simply presenting the best possible image. In this selection from the AGA's permanent collection we present different mediums and styles. Artists included in this exhibition by alphabetical order: Bruno Bobak Jack Bush Ghitta Caiserman-Roth Rosalie Favell Marilyn Guerriero Marlene Hilton Moore William Kurelek John Lyman Michael Mancuso René Marcil Kim Odine Van Stygeren |
Riley Greco: Within Me
April 2022
April 2022
Riley Greco is a young emerging artist based in Northern Ontario. In this body of work as a young woman and artist, Greco is depicting her inner world and her contemplations of life.
Riley Greco, Family Gathering, 2022, acrylic and wood. Collection of the artist.
"Overwhelming responsibilities and the pressures of society have caused an imbalance within me, effectively dismantling my well-being. By processing the ways in which I’m affected by external factors and my emotions, I can establish my connection to self and regain a healthy balance. I have given myself permission to feel what I feel, and be where I am, without intimidation or fear. The resulting paintings are raw, truthful, and a representation of my full human experience, felt through specific colour combinations and arrangements of line and space."
In spite of the heaviness of thoughts, which inspired this work, Greco is using vibrant colours and movement, giving us hope for healing, and continuous optimism, stating that life is amazingly exciting in all its forms and shapes. We hope that this exhibition will evoke sense of contemplation, exploration, and new perspectives for the viewers too.
Untitled. John Laford. 60" x 48". Acrylic on Canvas. Collection of the Art Gallery of Algoma; Gift of the Artist.
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Woodland Art
September 2021 The AGA is proud to announce the Woodland Art exhibition from the permanent collection. The exhibition features artwork by Norval Morrisseau, Jackson Beardy, Eddy Cobiness, John Laford, Russel Noganosh and Stephen Snake. Woodland art is unmistakably recognizable through the bright colours, bold lines, heavy black outlines of forms and X-ray views of people, animals and spirits. Lines connecting people, animals and spirits emphasize the unity all around us. These works carry powerful meaning and messages. They are full of symbolism, spirituality, and translate oral stories into visual stories.
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Untitled. Katrina Thibodeau. 60" x 48". Oil dry brushed onto stretched linen canvas.
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The Art of Emotions
March 11, 2021
“If I allow paint to be my voice… I know I will be heard.” The AGA is proud to announce the exhibition of emerging artist Katrina Thibodeau's work. Katrina views art as a means to transcend traditional categories and communication into something universal – the art of emotions. Katrina strives to capture genuine emotion in her work. Her exploration of emotion is reflected in the realism of her monochromatic portraiture. Katrina has received many awards for her entrepreneurship and was a Featured Artist at the OSA Opened Juried Exhibition November 4th to December 31st 2020.
An Artist's Talk Zoom event followed on March 25th at 6:00PM EST. |
Warren Peterson (Canadian, b.1952)
Morning Delight Acrylic on Canvas. Collection of the artist. 
Warren Peterson (Canadian, b.1952)
Hattie's Cove Acrylic on Canvas. Collection of the artist. 
Warren Peterson (Canadian, b.1952)
White River Rapids Pukaskwa National Park Acrylic on Canvas. Collection of the artist. |
Majestic Nature by Warren Peterson
November 5th - January 16th 2021 Peterson calls himself “Painter of our natural spaces and wilderness places”. The Art Gallery of Algoma is thrilled to present, the first solo exhibition of local artist, Warren Peterson. As a true landscape artist, Peterson depicts nature in its full glory – stormy clouds, beautiful sunsets, peaceful lakes, rushing waters, icebergs – beauty of all seasons is on view in this selection. Most of the paintings are new, based on a recent trip through Algoma. We invite you to immerse yourself in images of iconic Canadian landscapes and enjoy their splendor. The best explanation of the artist’s passion and craft comes from himself: Art has always been part of my life. I have been painting for over 50 years with a focus on landscapes in acrylics. Creating landscape art, especially of the wild Algoma region in Ontario, Canada is my passion. Peterson's Artist Statement States:
As a contemporary realist my landscape paintings are portraits of a real moment in time that reflect the beauty of the Canadian landscape. I am interested in connecting people to that inspirational sense of place, light, and space where joyful memories are made from being in our natural spaces and wilderness places. One word to describe my work – Serenity Warren Peterson’s art is currently in private collections across Canada; in Florida, Texas, California, Washington State & Oregon USA; in Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia and in Japan.
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Norval Morrisseau (Canadian, 1932-2007)
The Thunderbird, 1980 Oil on Canvas |
Wander Into the World of Norval Morrisseau
September 16th - November 14th 2020 Norval Morrisseau is the most known and recognized Indigenous artist in Canada. He is considered the founder of the Woodland School of art, which is the art style based on the traditional Indigenous legends. It is unmistakably recognizable through the use of bright colours, bold lines, heavy black outlines of forms and X-ray views of people, animals and spirits. Morrisseau was the first Ojibwa to break traditional rules by depicting spiritual knowledge in his paintings. Initially, he was criticized for doing that by the Indigenous community but today he is celebrated as the first artist who made this art form a visual language; traditional Indigenous stories, legends and culture are visually presented in his timeless paintings. Morrisseau’s images carry powerful messages, they are full of symbolism and spirituality translate oral into visual stories.
Norval Morrisseau was born in 1931 in Beardmore, Northern Ontario. In keeping with Anishinaabe tradition, he was sent to live with his maternal grandparents at Sand Point reserve on the shores of Lake Nipigon, Ontario. There, Morrisseau learned the stories and cultural traditions of his peoples from his grandfather Moses Potan Nanakonagos a shaman trained within the Midewiwin spiritual tradition. From his grandmother Veronique Nanakonagos, he learned about Catholicism. At age six, Morrisseau was sent to a residential school, St. Joseph’s Indian Residential School in Fort William, where he faced abuse which left permanent emotional scars on him and influenced his life.
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Metamorphosis: Connecting with Glass
June - September 22, 2019 Opening Reception - Wednesday, June 26 at 7pm Carson Merrifield is a Northern Ontario kiln formed glass artist who currently lives and practices her art on the shores of Lake Superior, just outside of the Sault. Her art is about experimenting with various techniques, manipulating sheet, powder and liquid glass. Artist's ongoing inspiration is in her beautiful surroundings. She manages to transform exceptional natural beauty into abstract forms that project her feelings of admiration and respect for the land and for the spirit of the land. |
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Bushplanes in the Sault
March 23 - June 1, 2019 Opening Reception - Thursday, April 4, 2019 at 7pm This exhibition is produced in partnership with the Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre as part of the year long celebration of their 30th Anniversary. The AGA was pleased to participate in celebration with this exhibition. |
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Algoma Collects
February 8 - March 16, 2019 Public Opening is on February 8th, 2019 This is a call to all Art Gallery of Algoma members and art collectors! The AGA would like to have an exhibition of artwork from your personal art collections. What pieces do you have in your home that you love, that you have acquired over the years or have in the family for many years? This is a chance to showcase your personal love and appreciation for the artwork that you enjoy in your home every day. We are hoping to gather a large range of works from possibly all corners of the world! Paintings, drawings, mixed media, sculptures, fabric works, and all other art forms are eligible. The only rule is that the art needs to be original, not a copy. If you are interested in participating and to get more information about this exhibition, please contact the AGA Director Jasmina Jovanovic at jasmina@artgalleryofalgoma.com. We look forward to seeing the treasures hidden in personal art collections in Algoma! |
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A Fresh Angle
Student's Artwork | December 4, 2018 - January 26, 2019 Presented by RBC and produced in partnership with the Algoma Fall Festival. Our recent Algoma Discovered exhibition celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Group of Seven’s arrival in Algoma was a starting point and inspiration for development of the exhibition A Fresh Angle. During the month of October, 550 school children who visited the AGA had a tour of the exhibition Algoma Discovered and were asked to make their own art piece inspired by the landscape paintings of the Group of Seven artists they saw in the exhibition. A Fresh Angle showcases the result of their inspiration by the art of the Group of Seven and by the nature that surrounds us. It is wonderful and inspiring to see the place we call home through the students’ eyes – a fresh look and a different angle. The exhibition A Fresh Angle is produced in partnership with the two School Boards: Algoma District School Board and Huron Superior Catholic School Board. |
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Algoma Through My Eyes
Photography Competition: 100th Anniversary of the Group of Seven in Algoma October 4 - November 24, 2018 100 years ago the Group of Seven arrived in Algoma. 100 years later the Art Gallery wants to see Algoma through your eyes. 2018 is the 100th Anniversary of the iconic Group of Seven's first visit to Algoma. Algoma is famously the favourite painting setting of the most prolific painters in Canada's history-the Group of Seven. J.E.H. MacDonald wrote that Algoma has "all the attributes of an imagined paradise". To celebrate 100 years since the group's first trip to Algoma to paint, the Art Gallery of Algoma is holding a huge photography competition - photos can be taken across all of Algoma and any other locations in Canada where the Group of Seven painted. The Group of Seven found beauty in these regions - we want you to take photos inspired by these regions 100 years later. What emotions do the landscapes that inspired the Group of Seven evoke in you? How can you interpret these regions in a new way? What do you see in Algoma? |
Reflections
AGA Permanent Collection
May 19, 2018 - September 23, 2018
AGA Permanent Collection
May 19, 2018 - September 23, 2018
Collection Highlights
AGA Permanent Collection
January 12, 2018 - May 18, 2018
AGA Permanent Collection
January 12, 2018 - May 18, 2018
AGA Bondar Challenge Exhibition
December 7, 2017 - January 6, 2018
December 7, 2017 - January 6, 2018
61st Northern Ontario Art Association Annual Juried Exhibition
November 25, 2017 - December 2, 2017
Opening Reception November 25, 2017 at 2pm
November 25, 2017 - December 2, 2017
Opening Reception November 25, 2017 at 2pm
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Canadian Icons:
Group of Seven and Beyond In partnership with The Algoma Fall Festival October 5 to November 17, 2017 |
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StoryLines by Karin Doleske
Saturday, May 27, 2017 - September 3, 2017 Opening Reception & Artist Talk: Thursday, June 15, 2017 at 7pm Karin Doleske’s explorations of the world started when she and David Court, her husband, met in Sault Ste. Marie in 1966. She was attending Sault Collegiate Institute. The fellow from “down the line” attending Sir James Dunn High School seemed an interesting person who wanted to travel as well. They joined forces just after finishing high school there and set off on the first of many trips in Algoma, Canada, the States, and other parts of the world. After teaching 10 years with the former Central Algoma School Board, and while living in Iron Bridge, she developed her art work as a way of questioning life, starting with life as she found it in Algoma District. Over the years she both published and self-published her writings, as well as exhibited visual pieces about her findings. With support from the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council, as well as her husband and devoted fan, she made artworks that resulted in shows at art galleries all over Ontario. “I work this way because neither way, writing or image-making, completely satisfies communicating how meaning evolves and what kind of meanings result. To me, among the acts of reading writing, and making and responding to images, makes an ambiguous space which allows scope for me, as well as others, to consider emotion-based ways of understanding the world. I think that learning to understand one another at an emotional level is what’s happening generally, and my work is part of that trend. |
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Traditions and Stories – AGA Permanent Collection
March 21 – May 23, 2017
March 21 – May 23, 2017
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Absence of Evidence
by Michael Burtch Thursday, December 22, 2016 - Saturday, March 18, 2017 Opening Reception & Artist Talk: Friday January 13, 2017 at 7pm The exhibition Absence of Evidence presents a new body of work by Michael Burtch. This multi component installation is addressing an issue of human body and its many mutations in relation to nature and environment we live in today. Concerns of human body have been an ongoing subject of Burtch’s art practice. In this particular work Burtch is looking at water as main component of bodies and of life in general. Water is changing as the commercialized society is abusing its limited sources the same as with all other gifts of nature. So are the bodies. There are mutations on each component in the installation pointing to many possibilities and risks. |
This work is posing many questions – is water as source of life sustainable, how long are we going to exploit it, is it going to permanently change human body as a result. What is the legacy today’s world is bequeathing to the future generations? All these questions have multifaceted answers, opening a discussion on a broader level as well as on a personal level. This work is simply pointing out some thoughts and questions for us to consider.
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Directional by Nancy Caldwell
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60th NOAA Exhibition
Saturday November 23, 2016 to Sunday, December 18, 2016 Opening Reception: November 26 at 2pm |
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The Art gallery of Algoma presents
Spectrum: A Visual Language October 20 – November 17, 2016 Spectrum: A Visual Language is a community art project. The Art Gallery of Algoma offered art studio sessions in the last three months to present creative opportunities for children and youth with autism. Art is an effective and inspiring tool for self-expression. Teaching about design, colour, form and texture visually stimulates the child, and art techniques encourage fine and gross motor skills. The studio space fostered personal bonding, time to imagine and nurtured great personal discoveries. In addition, making art can have a meditative, calming effect that is helpful for those who get easily stressed. With small classes to ensure that we provided a fun, supportive, and creative environment, the participants learned new art techniques and were encouraged to explore and experiment with diverse mediums. This impressive range of work is a fantastic celebration of creativity, talent, humour and imagination. Right at the onset, the studio sessions motivated those that have significant creative talents and have great stories to tell. This exhibition celebrates the genius in everyone and will shed new light on the often misunderstood world of autism. The AGA would like to thank all participants, their families and teachers for being open to this project and supportive of it throughout the months of August, September and October. It was a learning and inspiring experience for everyone involved. This project has been generously sponsored by Autism Ontario. We would like to acknowledge the support and contributions: |
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J.E.H.MacDonald, British Canadian, 1873–1932
Untitled, Circ 1919 Oil on Board, 21.3 x 26.7 cm Image: 20.3 x 25.4 cm Collection of the Art Gallery of Algoma; Gift of the Great Lakes Power Corporation |
From Shimmer to Force: Wonderment of Water
April 9, 2016 - October 16, 2016 Water is life. Most of our body is water. It is most of our planet. It gives us solitude and piece. It also gives us fear, it can take our life the same as it gives life to us. We enjoy it, it inspires us and it frightens us. There is a level of unpredictability and volatility involved in water imagery, which can be exciting and scary at the same time. I suppose for some of these reasons water is a continuous source of inspiration for artists of all kinds. It changes colour and shape; it is never quite still, even when it appears to be. The shimmering of water in blasting sunshine gives an illusion of movement. Water and light can create wonderful images. The shimmering of water is dazzling, captured famously by impressionists. Living in Sault Ste. Marie and being surrounded by water on a daily basis makes this exhibition and survey of the collection an obvious choice. |
In this exhibition there are some examples of art by artists spanning from the 19th century to contemporary, depicting the ever-lasting subject of water in its various forms, colours, and states – from snow to rain storms to the calmness of lakes, to rapids, rivers, and oceans – all of them in their glory and splendor.
Early images from the 19th and early 20th century showing scenes from around Sault Ste. Marie as seen by a couple of artists who were following expeditions that came through the area at that time, on their way to the west. They left us a legacy and a record of how this area looked during this time. This area, being on the water, surrounded by Great Lakes, with its untouched nature and a number of smaller lakes, rivers and streams has been a gold mine of inspiration for artists from all times. It continues to be so to this day.
Renowned Canadian artists, Group of Seven, found their source of inspiration on the shore of Lake Superior and in Algoma. The Group was formed during the time they visited Algoma. They came back time and again. There are a few examples of their work in the exhibition, by three artists – Jackson, MacDonald and Casson. Each of these artists came to this area many times over the years and left artworks that will forever be parts of the Canadian cultural heritage in the eyes of Canadians and the world alike.
Artists Ken Danby and Zoltan Szabo spent some time in this area as well and also found inspiration in water. Shimmering light on the water in works by Danby are immaculately portrayed in two works in the exhibition.
Harold Feist depicts water in the work Ocean, as an explosion of movement, force and colour. Contemporary artist, from the Algoma region, Valerie Palmer, sees and depicts water as a place of solitude and calmness, almost isolation. In her painting, Icarus, figures are not interacting, they are solemnly taking in their surroundings completely absorbed in their thoughts.
John Hartman, a contemporary artist from Ontario, depicts water in most of his art. He adds another element to it: cities. Unlike the other artists who are depicting untouched nature and beauty, Hartman is inspired by human developments on the bodies of water. During Hartman’s stay in Sault Ste. Marie, as artist-in-residence in May 2012, he painted a number of studies and a Legacy Painting of Sault Ste. Marie. These are great examples of Hartman’s work. The colours in his study of Sault Ste. Marie are depict the power of water, its force and splendour. The legacy Painting, acquired with generous support from Canadian Heritage, is on display in the Gallery Lobby at all times, welcoming our visitors to the AGA, to the Sault and to the shores of Lake Superior.
Jasmina Jovanovic
Executive Director
Art Gallery of Algoma
Early images from the 19th and early 20th century showing scenes from around Sault Ste. Marie as seen by a couple of artists who were following expeditions that came through the area at that time, on their way to the west. They left us a legacy and a record of how this area looked during this time. This area, being on the water, surrounded by Great Lakes, with its untouched nature and a number of smaller lakes, rivers and streams has been a gold mine of inspiration for artists from all times. It continues to be so to this day.
Renowned Canadian artists, Group of Seven, found their source of inspiration on the shore of Lake Superior and in Algoma. The Group was formed during the time they visited Algoma. They came back time and again. There are a few examples of their work in the exhibition, by three artists – Jackson, MacDonald and Casson. Each of these artists came to this area many times over the years and left artworks that will forever be parts of the Canadian cultural heritage in the eyes of Canadians and the world alike.
Artists Ken Danby and Zoltan Szabo spent some time in this area as well and also found inspiration in water. Shimmering light on the water in works by Danby are immaculately portrayed in two works in the exhibition.
Harold Feist depicts water in the work Ocean, as an explosion of movement, force and colour. Contemporary artist, from the Algoma region, Valerie Palmer, sees and depicts water as a place of solitude and calmness, almost isolation. In her painting, Icarus, figures are not interacting, they are solemnly taking in their surroundings completely absorbed in their thoughts.
John Hartman, a contemporary artist from Ontario, depicts water in most of his art. He adds another element to it: cities. Unlike the other artists who are depicting untouched nature and beauty, Hartman is inspired by human developments on the bodies of water. During Hartman’s stay in Sault Ste. Marie, as artist-in-residence in May 2012, he painted a number of studies and a Legacy Painting of Sault Ste. Marie. These are great examples of Hartman’s work. The colours in his study of Sault Ste. Marie are depict the power of water, its force and splendour. The legacy Painting, acquired with generous support from Canadian Heritage, is on display in the Gallery Lobby at all times, welcoming our visitors to the AGA, to the Sault and to the shores of Lake Superior.
Jasmina Jovanovic
Executive Director
Art Gallery of Algoma
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Brian Tremblay
Out of Sight: Out of Mind January 28 - April 2, 2016 Opening reception: January 29, 2016 at 7 pm Artist's Talk is on February 17 at 6:30 pm. A new body of work of black & white photographs. Out of Sight: Out of Mind. We hear about poverty and hunger. It is in our city but just because we do not often see it, does not mean it does not exist. It is here, in plain sight. Because it is not openly visible everywhere, there is not always a direct impact on people’s lives. Yet, for many, they are only a paycheque or personal disaster away from becoming one of the invisible. With this portrait series, I want to show that the people who use and volunteer at the Sault Ste. Marie Soup Kitchen & Community are regular people. They come from all walks of life, with their own diverse stories, to help out or use the kitchen’s services. Many of the volunteers started out using the services themselves and have returned, even after they no longer need the help, in order to give back. Others volunteer just to help or to visit friends they have made. Anyone who benefits from the services is grateful it is available. In meeting them, I came away with this: These are good people, just like us, but with different circumstances. I often see campaigns for awareness that benefit those in other countries, far away. Yet, right here in Sault Ste. Marie, there are many who also need compassion and help. Hunger and poverty is a reality that is not going away. These portraits offer an honest look at folks who tend to be overlooked. They were photographed using Kodak Tri-X film and silver gelatin prints on Ilford Multigrade Fiber Based paper. Their words are included so they will be heard as well as seen. ~ Brian Tremblay |
59th NOAA at the AGA – Featuring 40 paintings by top Northern artists
Friday December 4 to Sunday December 20, 2015
Opening Reception: Saturday December 5 at 2:00 p.m.
Friday December 4 to Sunday December 20, 2015
Opening Reception: Saturday December 5 at 2:00 p.m.
INCLUDES 7 BY ALGOMA ART SOCIETY MEMBERS
Three Award Winners - Livio Ubaldi, Doris Anne Ray & Anne Laidlaw
Nancy Caldwell, Phyllis Dorman, Wendy Easterbrook & Hilkka Pellikka
Three Award Winners - Livio Ubaldi, Doris Anne Ray & Anne Laidlaw
Nancy Caldwell, Phyllis Dorman, Wendy Easterbrook & Hilkka Pellikka
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40 Years of Collecting. AGA Permanent Collection
October 1, 2015 - November 29, 2015
October 1, 2015 - November 29, 2015
Video still of artist Sarah Febbraro and Joe Desimone making pasta.
Project Participants: Joe Desimone, Joe Febbraro, John Febbraro, Emma Febbraro, Frances Messore, Ortenzio Sicoli, Carla Sicoli and Ida Trinca.
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Kitchen in the Basement: Lessons from Italian Canadians is a community art project that shares and celebrates local Italian cultural practices and cooking knowledge with its’ local community. Five local Canadian Italians have participated and taught artist Sarah Febbraro how to make homemade pasta, sausage, giardinara, bread, pitticelle (Italian fritters), and roasted red peppers. This project also includes free cooking lessons for the local community at the Art Gallery of Algoma and The Marconi Club in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario including how to make sausages, breadsticks and pasta from scratch. The results of this project including video footage and food made throughout the year will be exhibited at the Art Gallery of Algoma in July 2015; celebrating the project with all participants and volunteers involved and the local community. http://sarahfebbraro.com/home.html
Exhibition opening and artist talk at 7 pm on July 17th 2015. Artist Sarah Febbraro will be in attendance and will give a talk about the exhibition. 
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Storied Waters
Renée Anne Bouffard-McManus
April 30th - July 6th, 2015
Renée Anne Bouffard-McManus
April 30th - July 6th, 2015
Renée Anne Bouffard-McManus
The Storm is Over watercolour on paper, 2015 23″ x 20″ |
The collection of watercolour waterscapes by artist Renée Anne Bouffard-McManus told a story of varied emotions, moments and memories associated with the presence of water and was meant to evoke such moments and memories in the viewer. The pieces were all influenced by the artist’s ongoing experience with water in and around Northern Ontario, which began when she was a child. The artist challenged herself creatively by painting pieces much larger than her past work, in order that the viewer become immersed in "storied waters."
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Colour Manipulation
January 10 - April 11, 2015
January 10 - April 11, 2015
Harold Feist
Bond, 1989 mixed media on canvas Collection of the Art Gallery of Algoma; Gift of the Artist |
It’s all about colour. Colour Manipulation was an exhibition that explored colour theory and how colour influences us physically and emotionally in our day to day lives. Works by artists such as William Ronald and Harold Feist were explored as they use colour in a calculated way to convey a message or provoke a response.
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58th NOAA Touring Exhibition
December 2, 2014 - January 4, 2015
December 2, 2014 - January 4, 2015
Livio Ubald
Superior's Weathered Wonders Oil on Canvas 16 x 20 inches |
The 58th Northern Ontario Art Association (NOAA) Annual Touring Exhibition exhibited of 39 paintings including six by members of the Algoma Art Society.
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Imagery from the Canadian North
May 30 - September 28, 2014
May 30 - September 28, 2014
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In the intimate space of the Project Room, the AGA was pleased to present Imagery from the Canadian North, a selection of works from the gallery’s Permanent Collection. These works, by artists from locations such as Cape Dorset, Baker Lake, and Arctic Quebec, are part of a collection that has been years in the making.
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Gabriela Benitez – En Plen Air and Beyond
March 8th - May 25th, 2014
March 8th - May 25th, 2014
Gabriela Benitez
Rojo y blanco, 2013 Acrylic on canvas Collection of the Artist |
Gabriela Benitez is an Argentinean artist who now is living and working in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. This exhibition showed paintings that are vital records of the artist’s relationship and experiences within these open spaces, and they show how those surroundings impacted upon the artist's artistic process while painting, both in terms of her technical execution and her state of mind. This process of working, according to the artist, helped to access and outwardly express essential elements of her inner self; in turn these colourful, playful works energized the Project Room, bringing the outside in.
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Sarah Fortais – Uniforms for Everyday Rituals
December 20, 2013 - March 1, 2014
December 20, 2013 - March 1, 2014
Still from video entitled Walking the Dog
Sarah Fortais, 2011 |
Uniforms for Everyday Rituals presented 8 videos of a single character performing banal tasks in eccentric and cumbersome sculptural garments. The uniforms intentionally required the character to navigate and complete activities while consciously working with the uniforms. The repeated and comprehensive incorporation of strange uniforms into everyday life presents the possibility of performance as life.
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Ellen Van Laar – Spirit of Here
September 12 - December 15, 2013
September 12 - December 15, 2013
Ellen Van Laar
Old Woman Bay, 2012 Acrylic on Canvas 152.4 cm x 91.44 cm |
Ellen Van Laar is a prolific local artist who belongs to the Batchawana Bay Arts Guild. She holds a Masters degree in Design and teaching degrees in Music and Art. Her body of work includes both large and small scale paintings of the area, as was seen in this exhibition.
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Noni and Brian Boyle – Eau Canada
May 30th - August 25th, 2013
May 30th - August 25th, 2013
Brian Boyle, Archetype, 2012 Photograph
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This exhibition by siblings Noni and Brian Boyle in the AGA Project Room showcases work that attempts to convey a sense of place by focusing on the elements of the world around them. Brian is a photographer and Noni is a visual artist working in various media. In this exhibition the Boyles take a look at our 'home and native land' through the lens of its rivers, ponds, lakes and oceans.
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Rosalie Favell – Wish You Were Here
February 28th - May 26th, 2013
February 28th - May 26th, 2013
Rosalie Favell, Red Poppies, Orange Dress, 2011
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This solo exhibition by Rosalie Favell in the AGA Project Room showcases her acclaimed photography. Favell, a celebrated artist, educator and curator of Métis heritage, is also the recipient of the 2012 Karsh Award, and the AGA is very pleased to host this exhibition. In Wish You Were Here Favell uses portraiture as a way to speak to her experiences as a contemporary Aboriginal woman. Favell describes family as one constant in her work as an Aboriginal artist. She explores her Métis heritage: the mixing of cultures, trying to pass and fit into the mainstream culture, and life around Lake Winnipeg.
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100 Years of Art in the Sault – Community Creative Project
December 6th, 2012 - February 17th, 2013
December 6th, 2012 - February 17th, 2013
Project Room installation of works created by local students for the 100 Years of Art in the Sault Community Creative Project
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For the exhibition, 100 Years of Art in the Sault, the AGA called to residents of Sault Ste. Marie to participate in the Community Creative Art Project. People of all ages were invited to discover their creative side and create either a group, collaborative art piece or their individual works of art that represent Sault Ste. Marie as they see their city and their community. These works were displayed in the AGA's Project Room, Education Studio and Lobby spaces.
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Elizabeth D'Agostino – Escape from the Land of the Wandering
October 4th - November 25th, 2012
October 4th - November 25th, 2012
Elizabeth D'Agostino
Nocturnal II, 2010, Monotype, etching & silkscreen Image credit: Brian Burnett |
I am currently working with the notions of longing, human interaction, acclimation, and how the environment begins to inform each of these. Also I am interested in how relationships in space and structure can be re-purposed to create new narratives, modified by their own characteristics and surroundings.
For several years, I have been in interested in human interaction and the adjustment by an organism to environmental and physical change. The areas of entomology and botany and elements or creatures such as birds, insects, and broken fragments of organic elements, remind me of familial sites and surroundings, both past and present. All these embody a sense of individual desire to recapture and restore memories and fragments of historical passages, which influence my daily life. I continue to document and display details of growth and many of these elements are drawn through the imagination, producing new oddities of growth, objects of curiosity and hybridized forms of nature. I am interested in human artifacts, human bodies, insects, vegetable and animal life, because they are all born out of nature, but are constantly being influenced and modified by culture, space, and environment. In my work, elements are displayed within complex settings as delicate curiosities where the natural world connects with the human-made world. Components that adhere to particular landscapes and specific facets of nature are interwoven into new settings and are repeated within each composition. These are often patterns that are affected by continual growth and change, and are frequently featured as backdrops or motifs printed onto paper. As well, these motifs are repeated, much as they would be in the landscape, and are used to adorn the surfaces of many objects, and are often collected, stored, displayed and passed on – like family heirlooms. My recent projects have evolved into installation and collaboration among print, physical space, digital, and video work. Simplified and symbolized objects reflect both a familiar and odd presence within the work as they reference a connection with the natural world, but also an unconnected relationship with one another. I wish to further my investigations into the transitional place, and the various stages that surround the transformations and adaptations of an object, along with the rooted structures that have formed its environment. |
Eileen Halfpenny – Mystery of the Locks and Rocks
July 26th - September 30th, 2012
July 26th - September 30th, 2012
Eileen Halfpenny, Small Lock Plant
2012, watercolour on paper |
Mystery of the Locks and Rocks is a special exhibition and sale organized by the AGA Gallery Shop, featuring the works of local artist Eileen Halfpenny and two series of work inspired by - and captured with - water.
The Sault Ste. Marie “Mystery of the Locks” series reveals the secrets found on the walls on the approach to the Sault Ste. Marie Locks. In the “Mysteries of the Rocks” series, Halfpenny depicts the images embedded within the rock cuts of the area, north of and around the city of Sault Ste Marie. Painting from her boat or the shore, she captures the land she sees as magically beautiful, wild and majestic. |
Taimi Poldmaa – Aspirations of the Soul
May 3rd - July 22nd, 2012
May 3rd - July 22nd, 2012
Taimi Poldmaa, F+MxA (Cottrel Cove)
2011, oil on canvas |
Like the blood in my veins, painting is part of who I am. A gift given that I am compelled to reveal - an inner momentum that moves me to walk closely with nature, exploring and studying, responding to the elemental soul and design of the landscape. I am intrigued by rock formations, the hues of woodland, skies and water. Each painting is a new adventure in expressing the language of art; relationships of shapes and colours, line, harmony, my insight and impressions. I offer the viewer a spiritual journey that transforms their experience to a deeper understanding and response. ‘Aspirations of the Soul,’ embodies the dynamic coastline of Lake Superior from Gros Cap to Michipicoten Bay, created from 2005-2012. I paint and sketch on location, to capture the essence of the scene, and later work out the painting on a larger canvas in my studio. Observation invokes a response to which I answer – painting what I see and feel from the land.
- Taimi Poldmaa |
John Keast – Learning from the Land
March 1st - April 29th, 2012
March 1st - April 29th, 2012
John Keast, Golden Autumn, undated, oil on canvas
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Learning from the Land is a special exhibition and sale to celebrate the works of Algoma artist John Keast, organized by the AGA Gallery Shop and displayed in the Project Room.
All proceeds from the sales of John's work will support the Algoma Residential Community Hospice (ARCH) and the Art Gallery of Algoma (AGA). |
Leslie Shaw – Light and Leaf
December 15th - February 26th, 2012
December 15th - February 26th, 2012
Leslie Shaw, Crabapple, 2011, acrylic on canvas
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Shaw's two-fold artistic practice involves the capture by camera of fleeting moments of beauty and the translation, by hand, of the resultant photograph onto canvas. Painting in a flat manner and exploding the photograph's scale, Shaw channels Tom Thomson's spatial habits: abstraction creeps into the work, while negative space becomes as important as the subject in the foreground. The final painting becomes an abstraction of the photograph, which in turn is simply one version of the original object.
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The Sault Potters Guild – Kiln City Explosion
October 12th - December 11th, 2011
October 12th - December 11th, 2011
Sault Potters Guild, Untitled, 2011, clay
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Kiln City Explosion is an exhibition of works produced by members of the Sault Potters Guild. Working within the theme of community, each artist has created a work inspired by an object or building one would expect to find within a peopled landscape. The medium of pottery - traditionally linked to vessels and the realm of craft - is taken to the walls and ceiling of the AGA Project Room, to expand the understanding of clay as a flexible, artistic medium and to draw attention to the notion that within a shared studio, each member contributes their own unique perspective, creating an artistic community.
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The Algoma Art Society – Northern Light
July 21st - October 2nd, 2011
July 21st - October 2nd, 2011
Eileen Halfpenny, Blue Light
2011, watercolour and ink on paper |
The Algoma Art Society (AAS) presents Northern Light, their second showing in the AGA's Project Room. Founded in 1948 with the mission to foster art in Sault Ste. Marie and area, the AAS is today a charter member of the Northern Ontario Art Association. This mixed-media exhibition strives to capture and convey the remarkable transformation of light throughout the seasons in the Algoma region, showcasing the talents of a number of their members.
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The Medicine Factory Studio, 2011.
Credit: Mister Tahti |
Formed in February 2010, the Medicine Factory Studio is based in the Bushplane Museum complex at 50 Pim Street. Recent Works from the Factory features artists Michael Bennardo, Annie Bradford, Chistopher Shoust, Patrick Hunter, Mister Tahti and Rihkee Strapp. Based on an idea of Strapp's, the Medicine Factory Studio is a place where art students and the art community are able to work together in a shared space where side-by-side conversation, critical discussion, and communal use of tools and equipment allow the group to grow together. This exhibition - which includes sculpture, assemblage, painting, drawing and collage-based practice is a feast for the eyes, showcasing emerging Algoma talent and creative ingenuity.
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Diana Blazek, Harley, 2010, Pastel on Canson pastel paper
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The Underground Group meets every Monday evening at Sault College to practice life drawing, a pursuit as old as western art. This exhibition features the works of 10 members of the group, all produced during evening sessions in the fall of 2010. The range of techniques and media creates a rich show and an excellent survey of the group’s activities, exposing the myriad possibilities present in the classical art of figure study.
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Allison Huot, Res Ipsa Loquitur
2010, oil on canvas |
In All That Glitters, Allison Huot invites audiences to question their opinions about figurative painting. Continuing themes from her Burlesque series, Huot explores notions of beauty, mortality and popular imagery using the classical vehicle of the human form. Skillfully rendered figures, bold colours, large formats and a menacingly playful undertone beckon from the picture plane, inviting the viewer to take a closer look. Allison Huot graduated with a BFA from Algoma University in 2010. This is her first solo exhibition in a public gallery.
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Christopher Shoust, Untitled
2010, mixed media |
Examining themes of communication breakdown and mental illness, Communicating the Incommunicable spans the perimeter of the AGA Project Room in the fashion of a continuous narrative. Employing metaphorical imagery and cursive gesture, the resultant work speaks of the daily struggle and desire of those diagnosed with mental illness to be understood and accepted. Originally from Sault Ste. Marie, Chris Shoust is a recent graduate of Algoma University ís FINA program (2010) who has lived, studied and worked in Ontario, British Columbia and Saskatchewan. His work continues to be influenced by his interests in painting, drawing and writing.
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Claire Beauchamp, SnowBall
2010, Acrylic on Shaped wood |
Claire Beauchamp fills the AGA Project Room with Feathers Explode, a vibrant display of color, shape and energy inspired by summer time floral and fauna. This "2D vs. 3D" element show spills out of the picture plane and across the walls, welcoming the audience to become part of the mad, natural circus Beauchamp invents by combining electric color and organic lines with spontaneous application. Beauchamp, a graduate of Fine Arts Honors program at the University of Guelph (2006), blends design, paint, wood and installation in her artistic investigations. She has lived and worked in Sault Ste. Marie and abroad as a graphic designer, muralist, and commissioned artist under the name Clairebotron.
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Kyla Smith, A Taste for Suffering
2010, mixed media on plywood |
In her own words Kyla Smith was raised by unconventional parents, with extreme ideas, in extreme times, of peace, love and war. In this exhibition which showcases a body of work entitled No Strings Attached, Smith shares with her audience work which is experimental in nature formed by both a constructive and in contrast a destructive process. Each piece is the result of layers and layers of painting and collage using various mediums which are then scratched and sanded away ultimately exposing her chosen design. The result is a collection of rich original compositions which to Smith represent a documentation of time, one's thoughts, perceptions and attachment to place and space.
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Hilkka Pellikka, On the Golden Pond, acrylic Ink
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The Algoma Art Society's exhibition entitled Synesthesia, which is comprised of works selected by the AGA director Dr. Curtis Collins and curator Monica Vaes, marks the clubís 62nd year in operation. Synesthesia, the conceptual basis for this exhibition, is a condition triggered by a stimulus which in turn provokes an involuntary, seemingly real experience. Each composition in this show is a visual documentation of the artistís experience articulated through line, design and especially color. Though they may not observe this condition in themselves, this exhibition seeks to illustrate how the artist employs their respective medium to transcribe their experiences and perceptions.
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Stephen Lang, Pool
Multimedia Installation, 2010 |
Sault Ste. Marie artist Stephen Lang's most recent exhibit is a sound and video installation entitled Pool. With this work, Lang has created an immersive, multi-media environment in which the viewer/listener is presented with several sonic perspectives on a singular visual event. Through multiple video projections, non-linear narrative and various sound sources, this new media work seeks to encourage a range of emotional and allegorical responses. Lang says, this exhibit is all about interpretation and how one's own experiences inform and shape their understanding of the work.
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Alex Rousselle, Architechtonic Composition
2009, mixed media installation |
Alex Rousselle was born and raised in Sault Ste Marie and is a recent graduate from Ryerson University's Bachelor of Architectural Science program. His creation in the newly constructed Project Room is entitled Architectonic Composition. Rousselle describes his treatment of the space as follows: This project has a rhythm that shows structure and logic through the composition of the grid while giving a varying sense of depth and perspective with differing heights of vertical elements; showing the subjective potential of an underlying rational order.
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