About the Exhibition Language is a universal and abstract system of sounds and symbols. Yet, the social, political and cultural contexts in which a language is spoken greatly affects its development and usages. In ever increasingly globalized societies, our sociolinguistic identity is not often singular. The language we speak at home or learned as a […]
About the Exhibition Colour—a visual language that must be experienced and felt—comprehended not just by the mind, but with the heart and soul. The Varley Art Gallery launches its 20th anniversary with a solo exhibition by senior Canadian artist Paul Fournier. With a career spanning more than 50 years, Fournier’s creative production has evolved through a […]
About the Exhibition The Frederick Horsman Varley Art Gallery of Markham opened its doors on May 31, 1997. Our first exhibition, Varley: A Celebration sought to pay tribute to F.H. Varley’s creative spirit and his role as a pioneering figure of Canadian art. For the last twenty years, the gallery has pursued the mandate of collecting […]
About the Exhibition Susana Reisman’s photographic and sculptural practice investigates the reasoning and decision making behind the ‘shape’ of things. She is interested in the natural environment and how it adapts (or is adapted) to the urban landscape. The two bodies of work on view, Standardizing Nature and On Technology (in the Collections Gallery) continue the artist’s exploration […]
About the Exhibition Innovative Spirit gathers seventeen works on paper by Pudlo Pudlat (1916–1992) from the collection of Peter Milligan and Dorene MacAulay. These works, a series of promised gifts to the Varley Art Gallery’s permanent collection, explore Pudlo’s rich and varied engagement with mark making. Ranging from early graphite drawings of silhouetted figures, to imagery […]
About the Exhibition Artists: Franklin Carmichael (1890–1945), A. J. Casson (1898–1992), L. L. Fitzgerald (1890–1956), A. Y. Jackson (1882–1974), F. H. Johnston (1888–1949), Arthur Lismer (1885–1969), J.E.H. MacDonald (1873–1932), Albert H. Robinson (1881–1956), F. H. Varley (1881–1969). As we near the 100th anniversary of their first exhibition at the then Art Gallery of Toronto, the […]
About the Exhibition Jeff Nye’s paintings are physical explorations of loss and memory. His work reflects upon the ways in which time and emotion distort our relationship to the built environment. The artwork featured in Recovery Rooms depicts abstracted elements of both domestic and institutional spaces, settings of particular significance to the artist. Architectural details, such as […]
About the Exhibition The On Your Mark series is the catalyst for a study of the products and processes of mark making, a thematic thread which is woven throughout our 2016 exhibition programming. From both a historic and contemporary perspective, our exhibitions explore how artists use marks as both a means to an end, and as ends […]
About the Exhibition Ottawa-based artist Alma Duncan spent her entire life creating, interpreting, observing, and rendering. With pen in hand, she travelled the world recording the beauties of the land and the stories of her models, transcending the lines between modern interpreter and visual activist. Inherently interdisciplinary, from painting and drawing to film, her varied […]
About the Exhibition Artists: Pitseolak Ashoona (1904–1983), Michel Daigneault, Chun Hua Catherine Dong, Janet Jones, Kiakshuk (1886–1966), William Noah (1943–2020), Pudlo Pudlat (1916–1992), John Reeves (1938–2016), Katherine Takpannie, F. H. Varley (1881–1969), Xuan Ye, Lan Florence Yee. A butterfly flaps its wings delves into the idea that artists are not isolated creators but are deeply influenced […]
