Thursday, October 4, 2012, 6:30 – 11 p.m.
ART GALLERY OF ONTARIO
On October 4th, 2012 the AGO started a new series called The First Thursday. Fron now on the 1st Thursday of each month, the AGO will open its doors to adults aged 19+ from 6:30 to 11 p.m. No two 1st Thursdays will be the same, with unique projects, activities and performances designed to make each evening memorable.
“Our aim is to be more than just a social destination,” said Kelly McKinley, the AGO’s executive director of education and public programming. “We want to give people the opportunity to see and make and do and hear as much art as they can every month.”
Evan Penny talks in his show Re Figured
On October 4th Evan Penny, Toronto based internationally acclaimed artist, presented Re Figured, his evolution over the past decade – realistic sculptures that are half object, half images. Some taking nearly 400 hours of work, Penny shared during his talk that his works are “not artificial, it’s real.” Although life-like, but also distortions of reality allowed a sort of voyeurism that caught the crowds’ curious eye.
Scott Murray in front his sculpture by Evan Penny: Murray Variation 3
He asked questions like ‘who am I?’ and ‘who are we?’ While the exhibit appears to be basic on print, the magnitude of the work is much more remarkable in person. The materials used include advancements in silicone processes that are used in film and medicine, human hair, fabric and resin. (Please also see our interview with Evan Penny at http://www.artoronto.ca/?p=14389)
Trevor Kruse is talking
Also at the AGO’s 1st Thursdays series, DesignTALKS lectures with Trevor Kruse, award winning designer and principal of Hudson Kruse Design, who has designed both residential, condominiums and corporate offices, including Trump Towers. Kruse shared that he finds space planning the most fun. He has worked on everything from private residential homes from scratch to modernizing Victorian homes to homes in Europe for people he has had a 15 year relationship with. The biggest challenge for him is time frame – what’s desired is not what’s expected given custom made requests, delays and other obstacles that can’t be controlled for in the design world.
Afie Jurvanen is playing
To close off the night Afie Jurvanen hailing from Barrie, Ontario, of the band, Bahamas performed an intimate set in Walker Court to a crowded room. A Juno and Polaris Prize nominee, it was quite a great night of all things aesthetically pleasing. His soulful electric guitar was captivating. I went for the art, and stayed for the band.
Text and photo: Salomeh Ahmadi