Michael Belmore at the Ottawa Art Gallery: ArtsFile
MICHAEL BELMORE is paired with the legendary painter A.J. Casson in Confluences and Tributaries — or, as the title is given in Belmore’s Anishinaabe language, “Nkweshkdaadiimgak Miinwaa Bakeziibiisan.” The pairing launches the Firestone Reverb series, in which contemporary artists respond to works from the gallery’s permanent collection of Canadian art.
A single room (the Glenn and Barb McInness Family Gallery) houses the exhibition, and when I visited it had just been overtaken by a large tour group. People stood as thick as trees in the forest as curator Michelle Gewurtz talked about the work of Casson, immortalized in Canadian art history as a member of the Group of Seven, and the contrasts with the recent work of Belmore. The famous paintings lined the walls, while Belmore’s works in metal rested among the feet of the tourists, like natural features on the forest floor.
I couldn’t see much more, but it was uplifting indeed to see so many people out to look at art in the city’s new gallery.
Confluences and Tributaries continues to March 10.