Thunder Bay Art Gallery | June Newsletter
The energy of Summer is here, and we feel it here at the Gallery. The hot summer afternoons and cool breezy evenings bring relaxation, and rejuvenation. While we look back on everything we accomplished in June, we look forward with excitement at everything coming in July and beyond. Grab a summer-inspired drink (maybe with one of those tiny little umbrellas) and enjoy!
2023 Annual Members’ Meeting & Annual Report
2023 was a momentous year for the Thunder Bay Art Gallery on many fronts. We broke ground on a new gallery on Thunder Bay’s waterfront, received prestigious national and provincial acquisition awards that enabled us to platform and significantly support artists in our community, and we initiated a renewed capital campaign in support of realizing our vision for the waterfront and a gallery that rises to meet the needs of our community and region. We are a bustling hub of activity, inspired by art, artists and our surroundings in northern Ontario.
Check out our 2023 annual report for a detailed look at everything we did last year.
COMMUNITY EVENT | 2024 Garden Tour
Sunday July 28, 2024
10:00 am to 4:00 pm
Summer is officially here so now’s the time to grab tickets to one of Thunder Bay’s favourite events! The Garden Tour is a a great way to spend the day with your friends and family. Marvel at the flora and foliage as you venture from one side of our city to another – exploring gardens lovingly grown by our community, and hand picked by our Master Gardeners.
Tickets are available online, at the Thunder Bay Art Gallery, Landale Gardens, and Vaillant Florist.
OUT THERE | Panic At The Powwow by Bobby “Dues” Wilson
Be sure to drop by the Gallery to see the latest in our out there banner series: Panic At ThePowwow by actor, writer, poet, visual artist, and comedian, Bobby “Dues” Wilson.
About the work: “This is a portrait of activist and actor Dallas Goldtooth over skewed movement stripes. The incorporation of these stripes is rooted in historic Dakota imagery, showing up in a lot of bead and quillwork. As a kid I used to wonder what the deal was with that, but during my second hanblecha I was shown that the stripes are a depiction of the movement that exists in everything around us, even when stationary! (At least I think that’s what that was). To me, the look on his face is a panicked uncertainty in a world that’s skewed.” – Bobby “Dues” Wilson
UNDER THE SUN: SUMMER PARTY 2024
Saturday, June 22 saw the launch of our summer season – Under the Sun! This gathering helped kick off our summer exhibitions, Jim Oskineegish: Keep yourself Alive, how to write a poem: rhyme, rhythm, and repetition in the permanent collection, LOoooNLOOONLOONN: Owls, Loons, and Thunderbirds in the work of Norval Morrisseau and the latest in our Out There Banner Series: Panic At The Powwow by Bobby “Dues” Wilson.
The event began with a smudging and artist talk by Jim Oskineegish. Outside the festivities began, with a tie-dyeing station, snacks provided by Beefcakes Burger Factor, Eat Local Pizza, and the Minni Donut Shoppe – with live music provided by Wild Honey.
It was a great afternoon full of community, art, food and summer vibes under the sun.
The Gallery @ Canada Day 2024
To celebrate our nation’s 157th birthday, as part of the City of Thunder Bay’s Canada Day Celebrations, the Gallery set up tables inside the Baggage Arts Building, near our future home on the waterfront. These young artists were given the opportunity to write, illustrate and produce their very own Zine!
National Indigenous People’s Day 2024
Image: Punit (left) and Matthew (right) showing off their papercraft wiigwas basket skills.
Friday, June 21 was National Indigenous People’s Day. The Gallery brought some on-the-road programming to the waterfront, where participants made custom buttons with the Gallery’s button maker, as well as learned how to make papercraft wiigwas (birchbark) baskets.
CURRENT EXHIBITIONS
Jim Oskineegish | Keep Yourself Alive
Keep Yourself Alive is the debut exhibition by Jim Oskineegish, a second-generation Woodland Style artist from Eabametoong First Nation (Fort Hope). Curated by Caitlyn Bird, Jim’s paintings fuse personal stories with Woodland Style, Surrealism, and Pop Art. This exhibition of thirteen portraits is a love letter to his heroes.
how to write a poem: rhyme, rhythm, and repetition in the permanent collection
“how to write a poem” is an exhibition about finding poetry within artworks from our Permanent Collection. The work of Ahmoo Angeconeb, Benjamin Chee Chee, Jane Ash Poitras, Robert Houle, and Michael Belmore, among others, is brought together to explore the questions: how does one artwork “rhyme” with another? In what way does an exhibition demonstrate rhythm or beat? What compels an artist (or poet) to examine themes, images, or mediums over and over? This exhibition examines artwork through the lens of poetry and poetic terminology, viewing these visual works as if they were poems brought together in an anthology providing a new entry point to thinking about the artists’ intention and the stories they each seek to tell.
LOoooNLOOONLOONN: Owls, Loons, and Thunderbirds in the work of Norval Morrisseau
A selection of works from the Permanent Collection looking at birds as motif in the work of Norval Morrisseau. This exhibition was inspired by The Thunderbird Poems (2015) by poet and writer Armand Garnet Ruffo. This book is a formidable collection of poetry written in response to paintings by Ojibway artist Noval Morrisseau (1932- 2007) from Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek First Nation. In the gallery, a selection of poems is in new conversation with paintings, prints and drawings by Morrisseau from our Permanent Collection, one of the largest collections of works by the artist in the world. With a focus on loons, owls, and Thunderbirds, this exhibition observes bird imagery as a central motif in Morrisseau’s work. Also presented is a singular carving by the artist, a wooden goose decoy, on view for the first time.
PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS
TEEN SPIRIT: Secondary School Art Exhibition
We’ve tallied your votes and are excited to announce the People’s Choice award for TEEN SPIRIT: Secondary School Exhibition is Aimee Wang’s piece Mom.
Top Image: Aimee Wang (left) being presented her award by Lorraine Cull, co-owner of Painted Turtle (centre), and Thunder Bay Art Gallery Assistant Director Kamila Westerback (right). Bottom Images: Kamila, Aimee and Lorraine with Collections Manager, Meaghan Eley.
ART EDUCATION CORNER
Summer Art Camps Are Here
9 Weeks of Programming Running from July 2 – Aug 20, 2024
Ages 7 – 11 and 8 – 12
Summer Art Camps are underway! If you haven’t signed your young artist up for our spectacular programming, you still have a chance. The Gallery is offering 8 more weeks of programming filled to the brim with creative projects, arts education, and a lot of summer fun!
Members with a Family Level membership receive