Ewan McNeil, A Bright and Shiny Future, n.d. Latex on board. Courtesy the artist.
Ewan McNeil: Peripheral Topographics
November 5, 2010 鈥� February 18, 2011
Teck Gallery
Ewan McNeil鈥檚 painting probes the nature of selected southern British Columbia interstitial spaces and structures, each endemically characteristic of this region as well as part of the process of 鈥済lobalization鈥�. McNeil transforms everyday places and spaces into film noir settings though his use of monochrome, with the result, as in cinema, that this series is not only peripheral but is also redolent with premonitions, where 鈥榮omething is about to happen,鈥� if it hasn鈥檛 already.
The disconcerting strangeness of this localized world-view results from a complex set of factors working in tandem. The choice of subject, the re-imagining of it in black and white, and the weirdness of the everyday all contrive to re-educate our eyes in relation to the conventional wisdom about 鈥淏eautiful British Columbia鈥�. The 鈥渂est place on earth鈥� resembles here a stage set for a 鈥渟trange place on earth鈥濃�攁s if the best is still yet to come. In addition, McNeil鈥檚 project is part of the global artistic exploration of the links between painting, photography, and cinema鈥揾ere given yet another twist, adding another layer of meaning to the term 鈥渘ew topographics鈥�.
Curated by Bill Jeffries.
Events
Opening Reception
Thursday, November 4, 2010, 7鈥�9pm
This exhibition is timed to coincide with the Robert Adams show at the Vancouver Art Gallery and the Edge of Town exhibition at the Equinox Gallery (ending on November 13).