As some of you probably know, I do the publicity for the Reel Artists Film Festival, which is put on each year in Toronto by the Canadian Art Foundation.

Shooting the film Picture Start, showing artist Rodney Graham. Image: courtesy Helen Yagi.

This year, four days of films on art and artists take place at Toronto’s TIFF Bell Lightbox, and will feature some of the world’s greatest artists, including:

Sol Lewitt – Canadian premiere
William Kentridge – Canadian premiere
Wanda Koop – WORLD premiere
Carl Beam – Toronto premiere
Shuvinai Ashoona
Ai Weiwei – North American premiere
Pipilotti Rist – Canadian premiere
Jenny Holzer – Toronto premiere
Olafur Eliasson – Toronto premiere
Damian Ortega – Canadian premiere
Christian Boltanski – Toronto premiere
Nam June Paik – WORLD premiere
The Chinese art market – Toronto premiere
John Baldessari – Canadian premiere
The Vancouver School (Picture Start) – WORLD premiere
Andreas Gursky – Canadian premiere

Last night, I previewed William Kentridge: Anything is Possible, about the famous South African artist. It is a must-see for artists, particularly anyone interested in drawing, animation, theatre or opera.

The film offers incredible insight into Kentridge’s artistic process, which is complex and encompasses many different approaches and ways of working. He also describes how his childhood experiences and the history of South Africa have influenced his art.

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Art makes a great gift. People don’t always realize how inexpensive some books and multiples are, and isn’t it better to support local art scenes than buy from major corporations? I think so.

Here are my top picks for Canada’s best art shopping:

1. ART METROPOLE. Started by General Idea in 1974, Art Met continues to specialize in the sale of artist multiple, artist books, video and more. Much of it is very affordable and rather unusual. Gold-plated replica of Peaches’ teeth on a chain, anyone?

Peaches. Image: robotdancemusic.com

Peaches’ teeth, on a chain. Image: artmetropole.com

Check out the comprehensive website, HERE. It’s fun to browse.

2. CANADIAN MAGAZINES.

Support Magenta, a newish online publication, or buy a subscription to the excellent Vancouver journal Fillip, or to Toronto’s artist-run magazine Hunter & Cook.

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There’s a lot of movement in the Canadian art scene, with galleries opening (and closing) regularly in Toronto alone, so here are three from across Canada that I think are worth a visit.

One of Nicholas Galanin’s book sculptures. Image: nippertown.com

1. In Vancouver, Trench Gallery has recently opened – in the former Helen Pitt Gallery space – with a small, eclectic roster of artists: Jen Aitken, Nicholas Galanin, Dougal Graham (whose work I remember from Artcore in the early 2000s), Amy Mukai, Sara Robichaud, the late Vancouver painter Ron Stonier, Carrie Walker and Max Wyse.

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Three artists – all women – have been awarded prizes by the City of Montreal.

Alana Riley, At the Blackwatch, 2004-2007. Image: redbull381projects.com

Alana Riley is an artist whose work I’ve been keeping an eye on.  She has won the Prix Pierre-Ayot, which is presented by the city in collaboration with the Art Dealers Association (AGAC), to an artist under the age of 35.

Riley, who is represented by Joyce Yahouda Gallery, receives $5000, plus $500 to go toward an exhibition of her work, and the City of Montreal will acquire one of her works.

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You may not imagine too much of a happening art scene when you think of Calgary, Alberta…

Wednesday Lupypciw, Lucky Charmz Clubb (video still). Image: stride.ab.ca

…but you’d be wrong. There’s a good art scene in Cowtown, as you can tell by a quick browse of VoCA’s ‘Calgary’ link, on the category sidebar on the left of the screen.

Here’s some of what’s on this fall:

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I’m not going to Nuit Blanche this year – shocking, I know.

But as we were walking along Bloor street tonight (home from the awkwardly installed exhibition of excellent works by African artist El Anatsui at the ROM) we were enveloped with the sound of a beautiful song, ‘Smile’ written by Charlie Chaplin for Modern Times, emanating from enormous speakers.

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Curator William Huffman of the Toronto Arts Council has, in collaboration with the Art Dealers Association of Canada (ADAC) organized some 200-odd Canadian artworks to be displayed to foreign dignitaries during the G8 and G20 summits.

After the fake lake brouhaha, this comes as a better bit of G20 art news, as my fellow blogger Leah Sandals acknowledges in her post HERE.

Gershon Iskowitz, Midnight No. 3 (B244), 1986. Oil on canvas. All images courtesy of ADAC.
Image courtesy Miriam Shiell Fine Art and the Estate of the Artist.

The works, which include one of Brian Jungen’s hockey masks and a sculpture of bears – front and back – by Dean Drever hanging in the Prime Minister’s Office, have been specially chosen by Huffman and a crew of 12 people to represent the breadth of contemporary Canadian artistic practice. Also on display in the PMO will be 2 landscapes by Winnipeg painter Ivan Eyre. There will be a stunning Riopelle in the leader’s lounge, and work by legendary Quebecoise artist Francoise Sullivan. Alongside these will be works chosen by the Ontario Crafts Council.

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Ryan Van Der Hout, Slide 17, 2007, Chromogenic Print

I got a lovely email from a young artist Ryan Van Der Hout, a recent graduate of the Ryerson photography program in Toronto. He calls his phot-based work, which doesn’t involve the use of a camera, “photographic sketches that highlight the possibilities of the medium.”

He’s got an exhibition on at Toronto’s Lonsdale Gallery from May 26- June 27, 2010, with an artist’s reception this coming Saturday.

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From London, UK: A charity called Art of Giving is launching their National Art Competition in October 2010.

The Saatchi Gallery, London. Image: piclondon.co.uk

It’s an open competition for artists working in painting, drawing, sculpture and photography. Ten finalists in each category will be given the opportunity to exhibit their work at London’s Saatchi Gallery on October 7 – 9. How many categories? It’s unclear, but you can read more HERE and apply HERE.

The winners receive a cash reward, and lots of publicity, which in the U.K, means something.

Paintings on view at the Saatchi Gallery. Image:contemporaryartlinks.com

Artists are invited to submit up to five works of art. It costs 20 Pounds per work, which is $30, which is not bad for the incredible exposure that your work could receive. And Art of Giving will be donating a minimum of 10% of the proceeds from the competition entry fees to the Red Cross Disaster Fund.

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Now’s a good time to check out the Art Gallery of Ontario again.

Part of Barbara Kruger’s billboard on the facade of the AGO. Image: VoCA

You can take in Barbara Kruger‘s magnificent billboard that lines the front of the gallery, (done for CONTACT photography fest, which in on throughout May.) The billboard reads LOVE IT-SHOVE IT-PRAISE IT-PLEASE IT-DOUBT IT- SHAME IT-BLAME IT-KISS IT-BUY IT-BELIEVE IT.

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