McMichael gallery showcasing work of 2 Toronto contemporary artists

March 14, 2017
Yorkregion.com

A new exhibition at the woodsy McMichael gallery invites you to contemplate the playful juxtaposition of colourful Canadian wilderness landscapes with scenes from city life.

Size Matters: Steve Driscoll and Finn O’Hara features 16 of Driscoll’s large, luminous landscape paintings and 14 digital chromogenic (full-colour, photographic) prints by O’Hara, which capture his collaborator's paintings strategically erected in different urban settings.

For instance, a wooded portage route stands on a sidewalk in Toronto’s bustling Queen Street West neighbourhood and a glowing northern lights landscape sits before a graffiti-sprayed concrete wall.

“There’s a palpable buzz of excitement at the gallery with the introduction of these two contemporary Canadian artists, whose resulting union implores the viewer to discern their surroundings,” said McMichael chief curator Sarah Stanners who curated the show. “Driscoll and O’Hara both deploy a lighthearted approach that conveys their broad talent and understanding of the relationship between Canadian landscape painting and photography.”

The McMichael Canadian Art Collection in Kleinburg is the first public art gallery to exhibit the collaborative work of these two Toronto-based artists.

Size Matters, which runs until Aug. 20, is a primary exhibition for the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival.

For more information, visit mcmichael.com.