Our first stop was at the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art, just west of Shaw.  Mark Ashley gave us a warm welcome and compelling overview of MOCCA’s history, along with a tour through their “Pulp Fiction” exhibit.  Organized by Museum London,  the show focused in on Canada’s budding indie art scene in the early 90’s and featured some fascinating illustrations.  I was particularily fond of those by Marc Bell.

Second stop: Paul Petro Gallery to chat with Paul about prints, reproductions, originals and everything in between.  There’s often confusion over terms like artist’s proof’s, variable editions, and open editions so we received clarification on the terms and how they may be of value to art collectors.  (For anyone interested in clarification for this type of terminology, Open Studio has a fantastic section on their website.  Go to  www.openstudio.on.ca and click on “What is a print?”) 

Stephen Bulger was also very insightful regarding the world of prints.  He’s one of the leading experts on photography and board president for AIPAD.  It was interesting listening to him talk about what he looks for when viewing new work.  On top of quality and composition, he also seeks artists with a unique and constant vision, which is key to creating a cohesive portfolio.  He also noted the importance of artists that are lead by passion.  It’s far more exciting viewing the work of those that create for themselves rather than their audience, don’t you think?

Mary

Tags: Behind the Scenes, Toronto, Visual Art

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