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Art Toronto brought us together

Twelve artworks by 10 artists acquired at this year's art fair, which continues online through Nov. 7.

Art Toronto 2021

Scene from Art Toronto 2021 with works by Virgil Baruchel (Corkin Gallery), image courtesy Art Toronto.

Art Toronto returned to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre last weekend to the collective cheers of the many artists, curators, collectors and dealers who descended upon Toronto. Our hearty congratulations to the Art Toronto team for making this year’s fair such a dynamic, safe and joyful reunion with art. And much like the past 15 consecutive years, the AGO has purchased artwork at Art Toronto, and this year we acquired new and recent work by artists Emmanuel Osahor, Laurence Pilon and Howie Tsui in addition to a portfolio of works on paper, featuring etchings and a giclee print by Graham Gillmore, Angela Grossmann, Attila Richard Lukacs, Derek Root, Vikky Alexander, Rebecca Belmore and Dana Claxton. 

Department of Arts of Global Africa and the Diaspora 

The AGO’s Department of Arts of Global Africa and the Diaspora has acquired two paintings by the Nigerian-born artist Emmanuel Osahor. Osahor recently completed his MFA at The University of Guelph. These are the first works by Osahor to enter the AGO Collection. 

“I am thrilled that I had the opportunity to purchase Emmanuel Osahor's paintings at Art Toronto. These  paintings of lush gardens foreground notions of beauty, light and refuge,” says Julie Crooks, Curator, Arts of Global Africa and the Diaspora. “His work is indicative of the multiple approaches to artmaking by contemporary African artists in the diaspora.

Emmanuel Osahor. I Have Been Thinking of my Father’s Garden

Emmanuel Osahor. I Have Been Thinking of my Father’s Garden, 2021.Oil on unstretched canvas. 244 x 173 cm 

Emmanuel Osahor. I Have Been Thinking of my Father’s Garden
Emmanuel Osahor. I Have Been Thinking of my Mother’s Garden

Emmanuel Osahor. I Have Been Thinking of my Mother’s Garden, 2021. Oil on unstretched canvas. 244 x 173 cm

Emmanuel Osahor. I Have Been Thinking of my Mother’s Garden

Modern & Contemporary 

The AGO’s Department of Modern and Contemporary Art acquired three new works by two artists. Laurence Pilon’s large-scale painting, Hectic Pool (2021), is the first by the Tiohtià:ke-Mooniyang-Montreal artist to enter the Collection. From Vancouver-based, Hong Kong born artist Howie Tsui (Tsui Ho Yan / 徐浩恩) comes two recent works, a lenticular lightbox Parallax Neon (Peach Blossom Island) (2021), and a work on paper White Camel Mountain (scoundrelism) (2018). 

We are very excited to bring works by Laurence Pilon and Howie Tsui into the AGO Collection,” says Xiaoyu Weng, Carol and Morton Rapp Curator, Modern and Contemporary Art. “Both artists are new to our Collection and their work adds significance to the discussions around issues such as diasporic identity, migration, and our shifting relationship with nature. An emerging artist, Pilon’s recent paintings employ an abstract language to propose new perspectives and to destabilize our anthropocentric gaze on nature and landscape. Expressing a kind of diasporic experience grounded in self-organization, Tsui’s animation, drawing and installation practice references the tradition of martial arts fiction as a metaphor for anarchic imagination.”

Howie Tsui, Parallax Neon (Peach Blossom Island)

Howie Tsui, Parallax Neon (Peach Blossom Island), 2021. Kodak Professional Endura print on transparency film in lenticular lightbox, 52 x 42 inches. Edition 1 of 4 . Purchase, with funds from the Dr. Michael Braudo Canadian Contemporary Art Fund, 2021.

Howie Tsui, Parallax Neon (Peach Blossom Island)
Howie Tsui, White Camel Mountain (scoundrelism)

Howie Tsui, White Camel Mountain (scoundrelism), 2018. Paint pigment and acrylic ink on mulberry paper, 18½ x 25¼ in. Purchase, with funds from the Dr. Michael Braudo Canadian Contemporary Art Fund, 2021.

Howie Tsui, White Camel Mountain (scoundrelism)
Laurence Pilon, Hectic Pool

Laurence Pilon, Hectic Pool, 2021. Acrylic and oil on canvas, 72x60 inches. Purchase, with funds from the Dr. Michael Braudo Canadian Contemporary Art Fund, 2021.

Laurence Pilon, Hectic Pool

Prints & Drawings

Begun in 2000, the not-for-profit 85-5 Visual Arts Foundation has twice produced a limited-edition portfolio of prints, the sale of which supports emerging artists in British Columbia. The group was inspired by friend and mentor, the late artist Gordon Smith, who is celebrated for his many generous contributions to the art community. This year’s portfolio contains six copperplate etchings and one giclee print by seven artists: Angela Grossmann, Attila Richard Lukacs, Derek Root, Vikky Alexander, Rebecca Belmore and Dana Claxton.  These are the first works by Gilmore, Grossmann, Root, Alexander and Claxton to be added to the AGO Collection of prints and drawings.  The portfolio was acquired with funds from The Marjorie & Gerald Bronfman Works on Paper Endowment Fund, 2021.

This stunning portfolio of limited-edition prints was organized by a group of artists and proceeds from its sale support other emerging artists,” says Alexa Greist, Associate Curator and R. Fraser Elliott Chair, Prints & Drawings. “To see contemporary artists from so many fields explore printmaking as a medium is exciting. This purchase reflects the AGO’s ongoing commitment to support and collect artists from across the country.” 

 

Angela Grossman

Angela Grossmann, Gloves (2021). Copperplate etching, overall:21 1/4” by 17 1/8”

Angela Grossman
Attila Richard Lukacs

Attila Richard Lukacs, Shannon w. Tito and Birdie (2021). Copperplate etching, overall:21 1/4” by 17 1/8”

Attila Richard Lukacs
Dana Claxton

Dana Claxton, Let the Poem Limp (2021). Copperplate etching, overall:21 1/4” by 17 1/8”

Dana Claxton
Derek Root

Derek Root, Untitled (2021). Copperplate etching, overall:21 1/4” by 17 1/8”

Derek Root
Graham Gillmore

Graham Gillmore, St. Regis (2021). Copperplate etching, overall:21 1/4” by 17 1/8”

Graham Gillmore
Rebecca Belmore

Rebecca Belmore, I am the Artist (2021). Copperplate etching, verall: 21 1/4” by 17 1/8"

Rebecca Belmore
Vikky Alexander

Vikky Alexander, Red Sky (2021). Giclee print, overall: 21 1/4” by 17 1/8”

Vikky Alexander

Missed seeing Art Toronto in person? There’s still time to get your art fix. Art Toronto continues online until November 7. Don’t miss artworks from an additional 21 exhibitors and select talks, all available free online here.

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