"The more courageous I am in destroying a partial success the more likely it is that I will get something alive and true." -Frank Auerbach

The twenty new paintings in From the studio rely on each other and the personal response of the viewer in creating a well shaped look at the unique features of being human.  The meaning of life, the search for gratification, change, growth, maturity and mortality face the viewer in beautiful tableaux built of paint and passion.  Rendered in a palette all his own, the new works of Daniel Hughes present an emphasis on the human figure in settings replete with life as a way to explore meaning in paint and in ourselves.

    I have spent the past 5 years de-constructing my work and re-evaluating what is important to me in my painting and as a painter. Not to say that I reject my past work; not at all.  I just came to a place where my work has naturally evolved allowing me to stay focused and engaged.

   Moving from a more traditional "Realist" genre to something more painterly and direct has been a struggle with many failed attempts and disappointments. The act of painting and destroying and re-painting is becoming much more of a natural instinctive process than it was in the past.

   For me, to create a good painting is for it to be about the "paint" itself. The marks made and the layers created through building up and breaking down of the paint. The central focus of the work can be as much about colour as it is about the form that inspires the work and its narrative. Sometimes finding a language that is representational and abstract at the same time.


Since graduating with honours from the New York Academy of Art M.F.A. program in 1995, Hughes has seen his work featured in solo shows throughout Canada and in London, England.  He has also shown in numerous International Art Fairs, as well as in exhibitions in New Jersey, New York, Florida and New Mexico.  Since 2000, Hughes has taught and lectured at art schools and universities in Canada and the US, including the Toronto School of Art, OCAD, and the University of Florida.

In April we open Cadillac Hotel.  As the exhibition title hints, Berman loves to travel.  Berman's ceaseless search for fresh people and places to inspire her work has seen her make more moves to new cities and studios in the last decade than most see in a lifetime.  Berman recently re-located from Toronto to the west coast.  While in Toronto Berman created some of the most memorable works of her career with the sales success to match.  As Berman lives to paint, she has been able to create a few small works while also setting up her new studio.  Cadillac Hotel will feature a small collection of these new works paired with distinguished Berman works from past cites, travels and series.

RYAN DINEEN
Reflection
May 8 - 24 . 2014

Please save the date to join Toronto artist Ryan Dineen at the gallery as we mark the opening of his solo exhibition on Thursday, May 8th (6pm-8pm).