Local Call

March 7 – 31, 2012
Opening : Friday,  March 9, 6–9 p.m.
TELEPHONE BOOTH GALLERY
3148 Dundas Street West
Toronto, Ontario M6P 2A1
(The Junction, Dundas at St. John’s Rd.)
T: 647.270.7903
E: sharlene@telephoneboothgallery.ca
www.telephoneboothgallery.ca
Hours: Tues by appt., Wed and Sat 11–6, Thurs and Fri 11–7

“Local Call is a group exhibition featuring established artists that live or work in The Junction/Junction Triangle neighbourhoods of Toronto.  The idea for this neighbourly exhibition stemmed from a conversation I had with two local artists that happened to pop into the gallery one Saturday afternoon.

Behind the curtains of storefronts, in back alleys, in spare rooms, industrial warehouses and above retail shops in The Junction, numerous artists are working on their craft.  Over the last year and a half, I have met many of these artists and I continue to learn about many others that have their studios nearby or live in the neighbourhood.  I thought that this would be a great opportunity to bring together the local arts community and exhibit some of the amazing talent in the area.  There is a wealth of creativity here and sharing in it is a great way to beat the winter blues.

Local Call also provides the opportunity to highlight this “small-town” community within the city.  The Junction is a bourgeoning west-end Toronto neighbourhood full of independent, eclectic shops and restaurants, and the community has had a strong artistic focus for many years.  The area is home to arts festivals, design events, art schools, galleries, art supply stores, teachers, designers, upcyclers and salvagers, creative retailers and craftspeople.  In my personal experience in opening a business here, the neighbourhood has been welcoming and the business owners supportive. It is wonderful place to call home”. Sharlene Rankin, Director

Artists:

Shelley Adler has been exhibiting her work for nearly 20 years, including solo and group exhibitions in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, New York, and London, U.K. Adler received her MFA from Boston University in 1987. She attended Edinburgh College of Art in Scotland in 1982 and graduated with a BFA from York University, Toronto, in 1983.  She is represented by Nicholas Metivier Gallery.

Marla Hlady is best known for the kinetic sculptures and sound pieces that brought her a nomination for the 2002 Sobey Award. Hlady also makes innovative brushed ink line drawings which render the emotional, physical and metaphorical properties of sound visible.  Her work was featured in a solo exhibition at the Power Plant, Toronto, in 2001. Her work has also been shown in several group shows in Canada as well as in London, New York and Imola, Italy.  She is represented by Jessica Bradley Art + Projects.

Katherine Knight is a York University Professor and is nationally recognized for her distinctive landscape-based photographic works. In 2000 Knight received the Duke and Duchess of York Prize in recognition of excellence in her work. In 2006 Knight co-founded with David Craig Site Media Inc., a film production company creating films focusing on Canadian artists. She is represented by Michael Gibson Gallery.

David Liss is the Artistic Director and Curator of the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art (MOCCA, www.mocca.ca) as well as a practicing artist.

Dyan Marie, AOCAD, MFA, is the founder of Cold City Gallery, ARTATWORK, DIG IN and Bloor Magazine. She also co-founded C Magazine, Urban Surface, BIG and a number of community and art festivals. She is the director of her project space, Dupont / Dyan Marie Projects; a board member of Toronto’s Art for Public Places Committee and Centennial College Academic Advisory Committee; and the Bloordale BIA creative director. Her urban leadership awards include Canadian Urban Institute’s City Soul, Government of Canada’s Community Builders Award, the Ontario Provincial Government Good Citizen Award and the City of Toronto Clean and Beautiful Award. She is represented by Wynick/Tuck Gallery.

David McClyment has been exhibiting professionally for 30 years, in the GTA, throughout Ontario and internationally. His paintings, which typically feature the use of hand-cut stencils, have been the focus of numerous, generous grants from the Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council and Toronto Arts Council. McClyment is the Fine Arts Studio Program Co-ordinator at Centennial College. He is represented by David Kaye Gallery.

Richard Mongiat has been exhibiting his paintings in public galleries, commercial spaces and collective exhibitions across Canada for over 25 years. He recently curated The “C” Word: A Look at the Role of Craft in Contemporary Art at the Doris McCarthy Gallery (on until April 4th).  He is currently working on a History of Toronto Artist Initiated Projects and Collectives from the late 1980’s to the Present for the Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art website (www.ccca.ca). For Nuit Blanche 2010, Mongiat designed the installation “Rail of Light” on the Wallace Ave. pedestrian bridge in west-end Toronto. In 2009, Mongiat completed part 2 of his “Underpass Project”—an 800 foot mural which encompasses both sides of the train underpass on Bloor St. west of Lansdowne Ave.  In 2000, he opened Loop Gallery with artist Catherine Beaudette in the Queen West Gallery District.  Mongiat also works in the theatre, specializing in painting backdrops and scenery for Opera Atelier, The National Ballet of Canada and the Canadian Opera Company and has taught scenic painting at Ryerson University.

Laura Moore is an international artist. She has an MFA from York University, a BFA from Nova Scotia College of Art and Design and a Diploma of Art from Fanshawe College. Laura has been exhibiting her work since 1998. She is a transient member of Studio Pescarella in Pietrasanta, Italy, where she spends periodic time carving stone. Moore teaches visual art at York University, Toronto School of Art and Thames Art Academy. She is represented by Peak Gallery.

Tim Whiten is a Professor Emeritus at York University and former Chair of the Department of Visual Arts. He is also an internationally renowned artist whose works are in many private, corporate and public collections, including Canada’s National Gallery and the Art Gallery of Ontario. His works have been exhibited in major exhibitions of drawing and sculpture throughout North America and Asia. He is represented by Olga Korper Gallery.

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