Tomorrow night (April 25) is the opening reception for Borderline at the Living Arts Centre, in the Gallery from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Admission is free!
About the Exhibition
Borderline brings together five artists whose works call attention to an always-shifting urban landscape. How we understand and familiarize ourselves with its makeup has become increasingly complex and is full of uncertainties and illusions. Boundaries (whether physical, social or mental) are uncovered as each artist takes a closer look at both public and private urban spaces and the transient behaviour of those who move through it. Through various art forms—photography, digital and mixed media collage, painting, sculpture and installation—the artists reflect upon and mimic urban scenarios, while offering insight and a platform for negotiating these contemporary states.
About the Artists
Tyler Armstrong is a self-taught painter and a Mississauga native. Drawing from influences of contemporary art, Armstrong’s pieces aim to reflect raw creative passion in abstract semi-figurative forms. His work is ambiguous in nature; identifiable forms are appropriated in unconventional ways. Various emotions are portrayed through the vibrancy and aggressive painterly techniques of Armstrong’s works. The ambiguity present in Armstrong’s pieces invites the viewer to employ close observation and analysis.
Working primarily with wood, Steve deBruyn brings an inventive and artistic approach to the construction of skateboard ramps. In producing ramps of varying sizes and shapes, deBruyn transforms a functional sports ground into a purely ornamental piece. His series includes wall-mounted and free-standing sculptures, as well as decorative wall paintings and mosaics. As if disassembling an extreme sport obstacle course, deBruyn’s works evoke a sense of whimsy and fantasy.
Sarah Febbraro is well familiarized with the Mississauga art scene, having exhibited works at both the Art Gallery of Mississauga, and Blackwood Gallery. Her practice includes a variety of media ranging from video installation to drawing. Much of Febbraro’s work deals with community and social engagement. Drawing from public interaction, Febbraro aims to blur the boundaries between popular culture, community engagement, art education and contemporary art.
Inspired by contemporary urban settings, Ryan Legassicke investigates the diminishing sense of community and togetherness of our urban surroundings. His current work makes connections between our shared aesthetic experience and the idea that we are becoming progressively more disconnected from ourselves, each other and the places that we inhabit. In this series, Legassicke emphasizes the removal of signs of culture and counterculture in the form of graffiti, from urban buildings, homes and infrastructure.
Mary Porter examines urban spaces in meticulous detail. Her flipbook series deals largely with condominiums in urban settings. Playing with the utopia imagery used in promotional billboards for such buildings, Porter’s flipbooks portray settings that are truly otherworldly. The flipbook allows the viewer to travel in and out of the buildings as an invisible ubiquitous force. Exploiting the theme of voyeurism beyond mere spectatorship, the flipbooks give the viewer an opportunity to become part of its space. To see a video of the flipbooks in action, go here.