'Visionary' Canadian artist's career retrospective on at Museum London

Article content

Gathie Falk: Revelations – a retrospective of the acclaimed Canadian artist’s career over more than seven decades – is on at Museum London until May 7.

The exhibition was brought from Kleinberg’s McMichael Canadian Art Collection, which organized and circulated the shows, and spans three large galleries at Museum London.

In a statement, Falk, 95, is described as “one of Canada’s most visionary and experimental artists.”

“Gathie Falk has an absolute genius for making works of art that venerate the world of everyday things,” said Andrew Kear, senior curator and head of collections, exhibitions and programs at the museum. “It’s in what she paints and sculpts, and how she paints and sculpts.

“She represents cement sidewalks in the same way she paints the infinite night sky: with discernment and love. The way she renders shoe-leather in ceramic will take your breath away. Her piles of citrus are visually refreshing. The humour that runs throughout the exhibition is at once whimsical and matter of fact; it brings art down to earth and gives earthly things a transcendent glow.”

Falk has received many awards including the Audain Prize for Lifetime Achievement in Visual Arts (2013), the Order of British Columbia (2002), and the Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts (2003).

Bon in Manitoba and based in Vancouver, Falk has worked in various media, including performance, installation, ceramics, painting, drawing and papier-mâché.

She is represented in eastern Canada by London’s Michael Gibson Gallery, one of the sponsors of the exhibition.

jbelanger@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/JoeBatLFPress

IF YOU GO

What: Gathie Falk: Revelations, a retrospective organized and circulated by the McMichael Canadian Art Collection.

When: Until May 7.

Where: Museum London, 421 Ridout St. North.