Category Archives: Exhibits

Coalition Gallery, TELUS Spark, and Northern Lights

Just returned after a short but exhausting trip to Calgary and Chicago. With all the connections between Calgary and Chicago and back, I ended up taking 6 flights in 6 days. However, it was good to be moving, and the trip turned out to be quite productive.

Midwestern Voices and Visions Exhibit at the Chicago Artists’ Coalition Gallery

On Friday, I attended the artist reception for the Midwestern Voices and Visions Exhibition, which was running as part of the Alliance of Artists Communities’ 2011 Annual Conference in Chicago. It was great to finally meet some of the other MVV artists in person, as well as to catch up with the wonderful people behind the Alliance and the staff from the Bemis Center.

If you didn’t get a chance to check out the exhibit at the Coalition Gallery, I’ve added the piece I presented, Roller Coaster, to my portfolio. Below is the actual video:

I had taken this series of photos during my residency at the Bemis, and if you look past the balloons, you can see what the rest of the studio looked like. I had been accepted on the basis of my balloon work, but for quite some time had been interested in exploring animation. During my time, I began to play around with both hand-drawn animation as well as stop-motion. The idea of turning one of my sculptures into a roller coaster ride just popped into my head one evening, and with the help of a fellow resident artist and a ladder we found on the floor, we made this short film. I didn’t get around to mixing and editing it until about a year and a half afterwards though.

While in Chicago, I also had the chance to catch up with an old friend, Annie Peacenik, a tap dancer and historian. Two years ago, Annie and I had gone on a small tour to New Orleans, combining tap dancing with balloon twisting.

TELUS Spark VIP Opening & Shadow Rock ‘Behind the Scenes’

The next day, I took a 7 AM flight back to Calgary to attend the opening of Calgary’s new science center, now named TELUS Spark, along with the Aesthetec crew. While there, I also got to capture footage of Shadow Rock being installed and people interacting with the exhibit during opening night.

Northern Lights

During the flight back to Toronto from Calgary, the captain announced that the northern lights were actually visible from the windows. Thus began a game of musical chairs between myself and seat mates in the same row, standing in the hallway and climbing over each other to catch a glimpse of the phenomenon. It was definitely worth the havoc, and we saw shades of green as well as red. Unfortunately, I had forgotten to take any photographs, but I doubt that they would have properly captured the moment.

Midwestern Voices and Visions Exhibition 2011

I am one of seven artists included in the Midwestern Voices and Visions Exhibition, which opens today until October 29. The exhibit is curated by Elizabeth Chodos, and showcases the work of recipients of the Midwestern Voices and Visions Award, as presented by the Alliance of Artist Communities.

My work that’s included in the exhibit is a video piece titled Roller Coaster, which combines stop-motion animation and balloons. In many ways, the piece is a direct product of my time as a resident artist at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts. It was there that I first began to experiment with play and animation in my creative process, and Roller Coaster brings a lot of those ideas together in a finished artwork.

The exhibit is held at the Chicago Artists’ Coalition Gallery, located at:

217 N. Carpenter St.
Chicago, IL

The opening reception is tonight from 6 – 8 pm, and is free and open to the public.

The normal gallery hours are:

Oct 7 – 29
Mon-Thurs, 10am – 5pm
Fridays, 9am – 1pm
Saturdays, 12 – 6pm
By appointment, 312.491.8888

An artist reception will be held on Friday, October 21, from 6:30 – 9:00 pm. It will be a chance for the public to meet the artists, and there will be live performances from Ibrahima Kaba, Linda Rodriguez, and May Lee-Yan. The event is also free and open to the public. I will be in attendance.

Happiness Project: Gallery Dates & Hours

The Happiness Project was a hit during Nuit Blanche. An estimated 2,000 people visited the gallery over the course of the evening, and the exhibit was very well received.

For those of you who couldn’t make it on Saturday night, the exhibit will be open until October 15th. The exact dates and hours are:

Oct 5:   2pm – 7pm
Oct 6:   2pm – 7pm
Oct 7:   2pm – 7pm
Oct 8:   12pm – 5pm
Oct 9:   12pm – 5pm
Oct 12:   2pm – 7pm
Oct 14:   2pm – 7pm
Oct 15:   2pm – 5pm

The address of the gallery is:

Oz Studios
134 Ossington Avenue, Toronto ON
October 1, 2011  7 PM   – October 2, 2011 7 AM

The Happiness Project

In collaboration with Artist Bloc, I will be showcasing a new piece in the Happiness Project exhibit, as part of Toronto’s Nuit Blanche. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Nuit Blanche, it’s an all night art festival that takes place in Toronto’s downtown core, starting at 6:59 pm on Saturday October 1st, and continuing until 7 am the next day.

The exhibit is based on the concept album of the same name by Charles Spearin (Broken Social Scene, Do Make Say Think), and will showcase the work of a number of Toronto artists. Each artwork is inspired by one of the songs of the album, and as visitors wander through the gallery space, they will be able to interact with the various installations while listening to the accompanying soundtrack. The song my piece is is based on is Ondine. 

Needless to say, I’m very excited to be a part of this project. If you’re around the area during Nuit Blanche, please stop by and say hi! For more information and a list of all participating artists, you can check out the project’s website or visit the official Nuit Blanche listing.

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The Happiness Project

Oz Studios
134 Ossington Avenue, Toronto ON
October 1, 2011  7 PM   – October 2, 2011 7 AM

Timelapse Video of Balloon Sculpture in Millennium Park!

My friend Sarra Jahedi has created an awesome time lapse video of the balluminescence team setting up the balloon sculpture in Millennium Park for Science Chicago’s LabFest! back on August 22. Check it out, and remember to rate/favorite it!

Sarra’s a filmmaker who also went to the University of Chicago. She directed a documentary about chess in Hyde Park, and created a web series called Drexel and Drexel. Currently, she’s working on a new web series called Pushing 23.

The music is by Mucca Pazza – they’re an awesome post-apocalyptic circus punk marching band from Chicago. If you like what you hear in the video, check them out. They play a lot of shows in the Chicago area and their live shows are always a load of fun.