City: Woodbridge

John Scott: Firestorm presents the work of the late Canadian artist John Scott (1950–2022), gathering paintings, drawings, and sculptures made by Scott from the 1980s through the 2010s.

The exhibition focusses on works that explore machine imagery, conflict, violence, and surveillance. Growing up on the Canadian/American border in Windsor, Ontario, in the 1950s and 1960s, Scott developed an acute awareness of American politics and militarism. Depictions of stealth bombers, firearms, and tanks were used by Scott to comment on human vulnerability and the threat of nuclear arms, violence, and the threat of tyranny – all subjects expressed in his raw and urgent graphic style.

Firestorm is guest curated by Dr. John O’Brian, who has undertaken new research to position Scott’s accomplishment within a global context. The exhibition celebrates a unique and singular voice in the history of Canadian art, one grappling with the acute threats to humanity in our times.

This solo exhibition highlights a recent body of work by the leading Toronto-based conceptual artist Derek Sullivan. The works were inspired by Sullivan’s twelve-month site-study of Shift, a landart work by the American sculptor Richard Serra long-hidden in a field in King, Ontario.

The exhibition features a series of Sullivan’s signature large-scale drawings responding to this important site of international modernism in rural Ontario, not far from where the artist grew up. For Sullivan, walking around the site was central to his research, as was note-taking, taking pictures, collecting stones, and researching in archival collections. His thoughtful drawings consider the history of Serra’s work, and the present context in which it exists.

“I used Serra’s Shift 1970 as an orienting device for me to consider networks of interconnection encountered in this location (colonial expropriation of land, agricultural impacts, property development, tactics of preservation, trespassing, community use, imported artistry), but it also drew forth my own tangled histories in this region,” says Sullivan. “The project aimed to put Serra in his place, so to speak, whilst better understanding my own.”

The recent digitization of the Kinngait Drawings Archive—89,000 works strong and held by the McMichael for more than three decades—has allowed unprecedented curatorial access to the origins of this now world-renowned graphic tradition.
Curated by Emily Laurent Henderson, Associate Curator, Indigenous Arts and Culture at McMichael, this once-in-a-generation exhibition of more than 200 works will foreground the cultural continuities of life in Kinngait in the face of dramatic societal change over more than five decades. The adaptability and resilience of this unique community has been documented in works that depict intergenerational knowledge transfer, community building, and boundless imagination.

This exhibition will reveal overlooked bodies of work by some of the country’s most beloved artists including Kenojuak Ashevak, Pitseolak Ashoona, Kananginak Pootoogook, and Pudlo Pudlat as well as introduce audiences to hitherto unknown artists whose work was suppressed by the aims of the print program that prioritized the tastes of settler markets in the South.

Since the 1990 transfer of 90,000 works on paper from the West Baffin Eskimo Co-operative to the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, new generations of Kinngait artists have emerged onto the contemporary art scene, capturing visions of their community into the new millennium.

From the exacting, illustrative style of artists such as Itee Pootoogook and Tim Pitsiulak, to the dreamscapes of Ooloosie Saila and Shuvinai Ashoona, Kinngait artists have continued to innovate with drawing as a medium unto itself—moving beyond its role as a preparatory step in the printmaking process. In the 2000s, artistic practice shifted with the introduction of large-scale works on paper and an embrace of candid, often humorous depictions of contemporary Inuit life. Prefabricated houses, snow machines, and trips to the co-op store mark the established way of life in the hamlet today, but the values of cooperation and care remain the same.

Curated by Emily Laurent Henderson, Associate Curator, Indigenous Arts and Culture at McMichael, this exhibition is presented in dialogue with Worlds on Paper: Drawings from Kinngait.

John Scott: Firestorm presents the work of the late Canadian artist John Scott (1950–2022), gathering paintings, drawings, and sculptures made by Scott from the 1980s through the 2010s.

The exhibition focusses on works that explore machine imagery, conflict, violence, and surveillance. Growing up on the Canadian/American border in Windsor, Ontario, in the 1950s and 1960s, Scott developed an acute awareness of American politics and militarism. Depictions of stealth bombers, firearms, and tanks were used by Scott to comment on human vulnerability and the threat of nuclear arms, violence, and the threat of tyranny – all subjects expressed in his raw and urgent graphic style.

Firestorm is guest curated by Dr. John O’Brian, who has undertaken new research to position Scott’s accomplishment within a global context. The exhibition celebrates a unique and singular voice in the history of Canadian art, one grappling with the acute threats to humanity in our times.

This solo exhibition highlights a recent body of work by the leading Toronto-based conceptual artist Derek Sullivan. The works were inspired by Sullivan’s twelve-month site-study of Shift, a landart work by the American sculptor Richard Serra long-hidden in a field in King, Ontario.

The exhibition features a series of Sullivan’s signature large-scale drawings responding to this important site of international modernism in rural Ontario, not far from where the artist grew up. For Sullivan, walking around the site was central to his research, as was note-taking, taking pictures, collecting stones, and researching in archival collections. His thoughtful drawings consider the history of Serra’s work, and the present context in which it exists.

“I used Serra’s Shift 1970 as an orienting device for me to consider networks of interconnection encountered in this location (colonial expropriation of land, agricultural impacts, property development, tactics of preservation, trespassing, community use, imported artistry), but it also drew forth my own tangled histories in this region,” says Sullivan. “The project aimed to put Serra in his place, so to speak, whilst better understanding my own.”

The recent digitization of the Kinngait Drawings Archive—89,000 works strong and held by the McMichael for more than three decades—has allowed unprecedented curatorial access to the origins of this now world-renowned graphic tradition.
Curated by Emily Laurent Henderson, Associate Curator, Indigenous Arts and Culture at McMichael, this once-in-a-generation exhibition of more than 200 works will foreground the cultural continuities of life in Kinngait in the face of dramatic societal change over more than five decades. The adaptability and resilience of this unique community has been documented in works that depict intergenerational knowledge transfer, community building, and boundless imagination.

This exhibition will reveal overlooked bodies of work by some of the country’s most beloved artists including Kenojuak Ashevak, Pitseolak Ashoona, Kananginak Pootoogook, and Pudlo Pudlat as well as introduce audiences to hitherto unknown artists whose work was suppressed by the aims of the print program that prioritized the tastes of settler markets in the South.

Since the 1990 transfer of 90,000 works on paper from the West Baffin Eskimo Co-operative to the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, new generations of Kinngait artists have emerged onto the contemporary art scene, capturing visions of their community into the new millennium.

From the exacting, illustrative style of artists such as Itee Pootoogook and Tim Pitsiulak, to the dreamscapes of Ooloosie Saila and Shuvinai Ashoona, Kinngait artists have continued to innovate with drawing as a medium unto itself—moving beyond its role as a preparatory step in the printmaking process. In the 2000s, artistic practice shifted with the introduction of large-scale works on paper and an embrace of candid, often humorous depictions of contemporary Inuit life. Prefabricated houses, snow machines, and trips to the co-op store mark the established way of life in the hamlet today, but the values of cooperation and care remain the same.

Curated by Emily Laurent Henderson, Associate Curator, Indigenous Arts and Culture at McMichael, this exhibition is presented in dialogue with Worlds on Paper: Drawings from Kinngait.

On April 5, 2025 the McMichael will observe Slow Art Day, a day that encourages people to “discover for themselves the joy of looking at and loving art.”

On Slow Art Day the galleries will be as quiet as possible with lots of extra seating. There will be no public tours on Slow Art Day. All are welcome.

SELF-GUIDED ART ACTIVITY:
Look & Sketch
Time: 10:30 am in French, 11:30 am and 12:30 pm in English
Registration Required. Free with gallery admission

Wondering where to start? Join a 15-minute introduction to Slow Art Day grounded in a self-guided sketching activity that will allow participants to deeply engage with an artwork of their choosing. Sketching materials and stools will be provided.

Samedi, le 26 avril 2025 | 10 h à 12 h

Participez à une Matinée francophone spéciale en compagnie d’Anne-Marie Bouchard, ancienne conservatrice au Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec (MNBAQ) et commissaire de l’exposition Le Fleuve des rêves : l’impressionnisme et le Saint-Laurent. Cette activité intimiste vous donnera l’occasion de découvrir les artistes préférés de Mme Bouchard présentés dans l’exposition. Vous pourrez converser en français avec elle, dans une atmosphère décontractée, tout en dégustant croissants et café.
Activité gratuite à l’achat d’un billet d’entrée. Inscription requise.

John Scott: Firestorm presents the work of the late Canadian artist John Scott (1950–2022), gathering paintings, drawings, and sculptures made by Scott from the 1980s through the 2010s.

The exhibition focusses on works that explore machine imagery, conflict, violence, and surveillance. Growing up on the Canadian/American border in Windsor, Ontario, in the 1950s and 1960s, Scott developed an acute awareness of American politics and militarism. Depictions of stealth bombers, firearms, and tanks were used by Scott to comment on human vulnerability and the threat of nuclear arms, violence, and the threat of tyranny – all subjects expressed in his raw and urgent graphic style.

Firestorm is guest curated by Dr. John O’Brian, who has undertaken new research to position Scott’s accomplishment within a global context. The exhibition celebrates a unique and singular voice in the history of Canadian art, one grappling with the acute threats to humanity in our times.

This solo exhibition highlights a recent body of work by the leading Toronto-based conceptual artist Derek Sullivan. The works were inspired by Sullivan’s twelve-month site-study of Shift, a landart work by the American sculptor Richard Serra long-hidden in a field in King, Ontario.

The exhibition features a series of Sullivan’s signature large-scale drawings responding to this important site of international modernism in rural Ontario, not far from where the artist grew up. For Sullivan, walking around the site was central to his research, as was note-taking, taking pictures, collecting stones, and researching in archival collections. His thoughtful drawings consider the history of Serra’s work, and the present context in which it exists.

“I used Serra’s Shift 1970 as an orienting device for me to consider networks of interconnection encountered in this location (colonial expropriation of land, agricultural impacts, property development, tactics of preservation, trespassing, community use, imported artistry), but it also drew forth my own tangled histories in this region,” says Sullivan. “The project aimed to put Serra in his place, so to speak, whilst better understanding my own.”

The recent digitization of the Kinngait Drawings Archive—89,000 works strong and held by the McMichael for more than three decades—has allowed unprecedented curatorial access to the origins of this now world-renowned graphic tradition.
Curated by Emily Laurent Henderson, Associate Curator, Indigenous Arts and Culture at McMichael, this once-in-a-generation exhibition of more than 200 works will foreground the cultural continuities of life in Kinngait in the face of dramatic societal change over more than five decades. The adaptability and resilience of this unique community has been documented in works that depict intergenerational knowledge transfer, community building, and boundless imagination.

This exhibition will reveal overlooked bodies of work by some of the country’s most beloved artists including Kenojuak Ashevak, Pitseolak Ashoona, Kananginak Pootoogook, and Pudlo Pudlat as well as introduce audiences to hitherto unknown artists whose work was suppressed by the aims of the print program that prioritized the tastes of settler markets in the South.

Since the 1990 transfer of 90,000 works on paper from the West Baffin Eskimo Co-operative to the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, new generations of Kinngait artists have emerged onto the contemporary art scene, capturing visions of their community into the new millennium.

From the exacting, illustrative style of artists such as Itee Pootoogook and Tim Pitsiulak, to the dreamscapes of Ooloosie Saila and Shuvinai Ashoona, Kinngait artists have continued to innovate with drawing as a medium unto itself—moving beyond its role as a preparatory step in the printmaking process. In the 2000s, artistic practice shifted with the introduction of large-scale works on paper and an embrace of candid, often humorous depictions of contemporary Inuit life. Prefabricated houses, snow machines, and trips to the co-op store mark the established way of life in the hamlet today, but the values of cooperation and care remain the same.

Curated by Emily Laurent Henderson, Associate Curator, Indigenous Arts and Culture at McMichael, this exhibition is presented in dialogue with Worlds on Paper: Drawings from Kinngait.

This solo exhibition highlights a recent body of work by the leading Toronto-based conceptual artist Derek Sullivan. The works were inspired by Sullivan’s twelve-month site-study of Shift, a landart work by the American sculptor Richard Serra long-hidden in a field in King, Ontario.

The exhibition features a series of Sullivan’s signature large-scale drawings responding to this important site of international modernism in rural Ontario, not far from where the artist grew up. For Sullivan, walking around the site was central to his research, as was note-taking, taking pictures, collecting stones, and researching in archival collections. His thoughtful drawings consider the history of Serra’s work, and the present context in which it exists.

“I used Serra’s Shift 1970 as an orienting device for me to consider networks of interconnection encountered in this location (colonial expropriation of land, agricultural impacts, property development, tactics of preservation, trespassing, community use, imported artistry), but it also drew forth my own tangled histories in this region,” says Sullivan. “The project aimed to put Serra in his place, so to speak, whilst better understanding my own.”

The recent digitization of the Kinngait Drawings Archive—89,000 works strong and held by the McMichael for more than three decades—has allowed unprecedented curatorial access to the origins of this now world-renowned graphic tradition.
Curated by Emily Laurent Henderson, Associate Curator, Indigenous Arts and Culture at McMichael, this once-in-a-generation exhibition of more than 200 works will foreground the cultural continuities of life in Kinngait in the face of dramatic societal change over more than five decades. The adaptability and resilience of this unique community has been documented in works that depict intergenerational knowledge transfer, community building, and boundless imagination.

This exhibition will reveal overlooked bodies of work by some of the country’s most beloved artists including Kenojuak Ashevak, Pitseolak Ashoona, Kananginak Pootoogook, and Pudlo Pudlat as well as introduce audiences to hitherto unknown artists whose work was suppressed by the aims of the print program that prioritized the tastes of settler markets in the South.

Since the 1990 transfer of 90,000 works on paper from the West Baffin Eskimo Co-operative to the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, new generations of Kinngait artists have emerged onto the contemporary art scene, capturing visions of their community into the new millennium.

From the exacting, illustrative style of artists such as Itee Pootoogook and Tim Pitsiulak, to the dreamscapes of Ooloosie Saila and Shuvinai Ashoona, Kinngait artists have continued to innovate with drawing as a medium unto itself—moving beyond its role as a preparatory step in the printmaking process. In the 2000s, artistic practice shifted with the introduction of large-scale works on paper and an embrace of candid, often humorous depictions of contemporary Inuit life. Prefabricated houses, snow machines, and trips to the co-op store mark the established way of life in the hamlet today, but the values of cooperation and care remain the same.

Curated by Emily Laurent Henderson, Associate Curator, Indigenous Arts and Culture at McMichael, this exhibition is presented in dialogue with Worlds on Paper: Drawings from Kinngait.

The recent digitization of the Kinngait Drawings Archive—89,000 works strong and held by the McMichael for more than three decades—has allowed unprecedented curatorial access to the origins of this now world-renowned graphic tradition.
Curated by Emily Laurent Henderson, Associate Curator, Indigenous Arts and Culture at McMichael, this once-in-a-generation exhibition of more than 200 works will foreground the cultural continuities of life in Kinngait in the face of dramatic societal change over more than five decades. The adaptability and resilience of this unique community has been documented in works that depict intergenerational knowledge transfer, community building, and boundless imagination.

This exhibition will reveal overlooked bodies of work by some of the country’s most beloved artists including Kenojuak Ashevak, Pitseolak Ashoona, Kananginak Pootoogook, and Pudlo Pudlat as well as introduce audiences to hitherto unknown artists whose work was suppressed by the aims of the print program that prioritized the tastes of settler markets in the South.

Since the 1990 transfer of 90,000 works on paper from the West Baffin Eskimo Co-operative to the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, new generations of Kinngait artists have emerged onto the contemporary art scene, capturing visions of their community into the new millennium.

From the exacting, illustrative style of artists such as Itee Pootoogook and Tim Pitsiulak, to the dreamscapes of Ooloosie Saila and Shuvinai Ashoona, Kinngait artists have continued to innovate with drawing as a medium unto itself—moving beyond its role as a preparatory step in the printmaking process. In the 2000s, artistic practice shifted with the introduction of large-scale works on paper and an embrace of candid, often humorous depictions of contemporary Inuit life. Prefabricated houses, snow machines, and trips to the co-op store mark the established way of life in the hamlet today, but the values of cooperation and care remain the same.

Curated by Emily Laurent Henderson, Associate Curator, Indigenous Arts and Culture at McMichael, this exhibition is presented in dialogue with Worlds on Paper: Drawings from Kinngait.