Event Info
Don’t miss the last stop of this landmark exhibition on the final stop on its cross-Canada tour.: Gypsy Rovers
Join us at our big Summer Season Opening in celebration of the landmark exhibiti...
4:00pm - 10:00pm Doors at: 8:00pm
Free
Event Description
Join us at our big Summer Season Opening in celebration of the landmark exhibition, William Kurelek: the Messenger. Having spent a great deal of his career in Winnipeg immersed in & being inspired by the Ukrainian-Canadian community there, we have invited the local Gypsy Rovers to help set the tone for the evening. Their set will start between 7:30 and 7:45pm.
Gallery Members are invited to an exclusive preview at 7pm, featuring “In Conversation” with curators Mary Jo Hughes (Art Gallery of Greater Victoria), Tobi Bruce (Art Gallery of Hamilton), and Andrew Kear (Winnipeg Art Gallery). Our public reception continues at the advertised time, 8pm.
Throughout a career that spanned from mid-1950s until his death, William Kurelek (1927-1977) and his art have meant many different things to many people. The Alberta-born, Manitoba-raised artist was a painter of innocence and fun, his scenes reminiscences of a simpler and timeless past. He was also a chronicler of the experiences of various cultural groups in Canada, devoting entire series to Ukrainian, Jewish, Polish, Irish, French Canadian, and Inuit peoples. Then there is Kurelek the anguished prophet of a modern apocalypse, his art an indictment of the secular age and a testament to unwavering faith.
An important and unique aspect of this exhibition for Canadian audiences will be the inclusion of several works from Kurelek's highly formative period in England from 1952 to 1959. During this time the young artist underwent psychiatric treatment and converted to Roman Catholicism, which profoundly altered his subsequent approach to life and art making. It is in consideration of these early works that the exhibition reveals Kurelek's complex psyche and the central role it played in everything he produced.
A gorgeous limited edition catalogue accompanies the exhibition, as well as an interactive website: www.kurelek.ca
Watch our events calendar for affiliated programming for a chance to delve into the history, themes and stories behind this exhibition. www.aggv.ca/calendar
As with all our openings, this event is FREE and open to the public.
Venue
1040 Moss street
Open / Operational
In-Person Event
Fri. May 25th 2012 + Add to Calendar
Art Gallery Of Greater Victoria
