“Subtext” Work by AGB Curators
October 5 – 29, 2022
Opening reception:
Friday, October 7 | 7:30 pm
Sponsored by:
Molly Moldovan
A visual artist whose primary focus is abstraction, I have been living and working in North Kawartha since graduating OCA(D) with honours in fine art drawing and painting. Using acrylic and mixed media on various grounds, my art practice has explored such diverse themes as democracy, international politics, the AIDS pandemic, familial relationships and always, the abstract nature of our universe.
In Molly’s words
My work is an exploration of expressive, emotional abstractions. Rooted in the pristine landscape that surrounds me: lake, forest and uninterrupted skyscape become the foundation of every piece I paint. Natural phenomena -fall colour, northern lights, brilliant sunset, lunar eclipse, thunderstorm, a simple quality of light – all of these play within my work to express an idea, feeling or remembrance. On canvas or board, imperfect memory collides with the emotion of the observed. Here, colour implies the subtext, eliciting an emotional response where meaning is revealed. mollymoldovan.com
Kelly O’Neill
Kelly is an artist and curator living in Selwyn, ON. Having had an art practice throughout her life that often came second to other responsibilities, Kelly returned to school full-time and completed her BFA in Sculpture and Installation at OCAD University, Toronto, ON. (2018) Her work has been shown in galleries in Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and New York including J.B. Arid Gallery, Toronto; Pendulum Gallery, Vancouver; WKP Kennedy Gallery, North Bay; Art Mur, Montreal; Collarworks, Troy NY, and The Art Gallery of Peterborough.
In Kelly’s words
I am a multidisciplinary artist who enjoys the immediacy of dry materials in my drawing practice, and engaging with found objects, natural materials, video, projection, assemblage, and textile practices to create three-dimensional forms and installations. Rather than having a preferred choice of medium, I investigate various materials to express ideas, emotion and memory. Highly process-driven, my work is often more about the making than the outcome; ideas form and shift in relationship with materials and in the act of making. It is through this relationship, this conversation with materials that the subtext begins to rise and meaning is articulated. In this place I explore the fluidity and impermeability of human experience, seeks to learn about myself and the world around me and to discover the poetry in the every day.
Robin Tinney
In Robin’s words
In my artistic practices, almost everything has implied meaning or “subtext”. If someone takes the time to “read between the lines” in my artwork, they may be rewarded for their time and thoughtful consideration with a hidden meaning or a deeper perspective. Fully understanding my work usually requires an understanding of the symbolism inherent in the objects I carve. For example, certain animals are part of the Algonquin Clan System or they have commonly known characteristics/storylines within our cultural history, and so those attributes add another layer of meaning to the obvious. I also like to give people the space to think about what my work evokes within their own imagination, because sparking ideas and spreading the fires of creativity is part of what art is all about. robintinney.ca
Leilah Ward
Leilah is currently working with pastels, using photographs as reference. She is fascinated by light – especially light on water. She goes so deeply into these pastel paintings, that it feels like a moment of quiet and stillness carrying her away from the stresses of the world. Using the medium of pastels has helped Leilah to let go of the fear of drawing that she’s had, and also to let go of perfectionism, bringing her to a place of wonder as the image she’s working on comes into being.
In Leilah’s words
A self taught artist, I have been painting in oils since the early 1980s when I moved from Long Island to New York City. My inspiration has come from inner visions and from dreams. I moved to Canada in 2012 and have made my home in the Bancroft area. In recent years, I began to work with pastels. I particularly love the play of light in nature. Light delights and inspires me with whatever image I’m working on. So, now, I am working from photographs I take of the beautiful places I see in nature, in the woods and meadows where I walk with my dogs and on the water when I’m in my kayak.
