Big Hug Studio

8.11.24

Art Toronto 2024

It was a unique showing at this year's Art Toronto art fair. Artists hailed from around the world but hometown favourites displayed their talent impressively. Take for example, Canadian artist Edward Burtynsky. He is the closest thing to a household name and his Shipyard shows the beauty of industrial waste in China. Abandoned and left to its own devices Mr. Burtynsky shows us that his photography can capture just about anything and make it intriguing. American artist Craig Alan's Showstopper interplays between art and solitude. We are drawn to the Jeff Koons inspired balloon figure in the middle of pedestrian traffic. What's isolating is the art in the center and the populace on the outskirts who is almost completely ignored. It's an incredible work that shows his indelible talent. Vicki Smith, is a Canadian artist who we'll hear more of in the future. Her Engage rendering of a swimmer captures the spirit of the sport. There is freedom in movement here and Ms. Smith captures the euphoria of a day well spent. Emma Haworth is a British artist and one of my favourites to show here. Her landscape scenes are always enigmatic and full of intricate detail. Her Night Seasons show a night scene highlighted by a full moon. There is wildlife outside and they have little care about the time. They run carefree bound by the nature the surrounds them. It's just one of her many masterpieces. Please enjoy these and other artists as well.

1 Edward Burtynsky, Shipyard No. 13, Qili Port Zhejian Province, China, 2005, Canadian

2 Craig Alan, Showstopper 2024, American

3 Vicki Smith, Engage, 2024, Canadian

4 Edward Goss, Untitled, 2022, Canadian

5 Yigal Ozeri, Zuzanna, 2019, Israeli

6 Kathryn MacNaughton, Tempest, 2024, Canadian

7 Janna Watson, Dream a Sentence, 2024, Canadian

8 Lino Lago, Fake Abstract, 2024, Spanish

9 Emma Haworth, Night Seasons, 2024, British

10 Sage Barnes Las Flores 19, 2024, American

11 Sheila Kernan, Seasons for Change, 2024, Canadian

12 Darlene Cole, Paradise, 2024, Canadian

13 Erin Armstrong, Shove Down, 2024, Canadian

14 Joshua Jensen Nage, Fading Horizons 4, Sizes, 2024, American

15 Line Busch, Untitled, 2024, Danish

16 Jan Kuhlemeier, Evening Sky Above Sipura, 2024, Netherlandish

17 Russell Young, Bardot Cowgirl, 2023, British

18 Christian Hiadzi, The Levee has broken, 2023, Ghanaian and British

19 Catheris Mondombo, The Look, 2023

19.10.24

Art Basel Paris 2024

1 Piotr Uklanski, Konstancja dressed as Cleopatra, 2022, Polish

2 Philippe Cognee, Fire under the snow, 2024, French

4 Shirin Neshat, Stripped, 1995, Iranian

5 Anne Lise Coste, Viens, Viens, Viens, 2012, French

6 Herbert Brandl, Untitled, 2024, Austrian

7 Arjan Martins, Untitled, 2024, Brazilian

8 Valentine Hugo, Signes, 1945, French

10 Don Van Vliet, Untitled 13, 1994, American

11 Tyna Adebowale, Jand of Lagos, 2021, Nigerian

12 Pierre Knop, Untitled, 2024, German

13 Seraphine Louis, Fleurs or Bouquet de fleurs or Vase jaune circa 1929 to 30, French

14 Kevin Beasley, Garden Arches IV, 2024, American

15 Magnus Plessen, Doppelportrait Sarah und ich, 2024, German

16 Hayal Pozanti, Heart's Fragrance, 2024, Turkish

17 Mohamed Melehi, Untitled, 1963, Moroccan

18 Van Hanos, Y, 2024, American

19 Ulla von Brandenburg, Thoughts are Things 5, 2024, German

14.10.24

Frieze Art Fair 2024

These are my favourite picks from the Frieze Art Fair 2024. Please enjoy.

1 Sarah Crowner, Untitled, Hot Light, 2023 to 2024, American

2 Miranda Forrester, Just us, 2024, British

3 Umar Rashid, Frohawk Two Feathers, The Billie Jean Affair, 2024, American

4 Zaam Arif, I seek nothing, 2024, Pakistani

5 Sikelela Owen, Aaliyah, 2024, British

6 Tomasz Krecicki, Needle, 2024, Polish

7 Davide Balliano, Untitled 0302, 2024, Italian

8 Johnson Eziefula, From my own garden, 2021, Nigerian

9.10.24

Atlanta Art Fair 2024

The Atlanta Art Fair 2024 showcased artwork from Atlanta and from the American South as well as from other regions. It featured a wide array of artists and was a great success. The fair featured American photojournalist Steve Schapiro's photography and captured a profound moment in American history. In Mr. Schapiro's VOTE we see the struggle to fight for the right to vote for racial minorities. It was a struggle all too familiar and personal for Martin Luther King Jr. who featured in another of Mr. Schapiro's photograph. The civil rights leader's enigmatic and powerful image is iconic to this day. His vision is forever sealed around the world and Mr. Schapiro does a wonderful job of profiling him at his best. Captured in 1965 he vividly portrays Martin Luther King Jr. during the civil rights marches from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in his fight for justice and equality.

The Atlanta Art Fair displayed a diverse and rich group of artists many of whom were also from outside of the US. The aim of the fair highlights the inclusivity of the many ethnic groups we see here. Take for example Armenian artist Tigran Tsitoghdzyan's Black Mirror which reveals the intricacies of the pressure social media places on society. The double imagery beautifully captures the discord and appearance of harmony that results. The image of a young woman is distorted yet quietly reveals the dilemma we place on ourselves. She's a product of her own making yet we see the distance between reality and the end product which in turn is only a fantasy.

In Yulia Pinkusevich's, Sakha Air Spirit, we see a different artwork on display. Ms. Pinkusevich hails from Ukraine but now lives in the US. Her dream-like abstract work captures the sinuous lines and shapes that makes her work a pleasure to look at. She uses feminine contours to play with the viewer's sense of reality. The light above shines over the billowing shapes and we can revel in the work's abstraction.

Overall the art fair captured the zeitgeist of the artworld which aims to create conversations between history and contemporary life. It also sparked the careers of new artists in a new environment. Please enjoy these and other works.

1 Steve Schapiro, VOTE, Selma March, 1965, American