Laura Lewis: The In-Between
September 12 - November 8, 2024
Reception: September 12, 4:00 - 6:30 pm
Gallery 1C03 is pleased to present The In-Between, an exhibition by local artist Laura Lewis.
Laura Lewis paints larger-than-life portraits of her queer artist friends to explore psychosexuality, gender, vulnerability, melancholy and identity. Her subject-collaborators are comfortable in their bodies -- they command our attention, looking back at us with confidence and poise. Through presentation of The In-Between, the gallery space is given over to queer folx in a tangible way, rendering a diversity of 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals and challenging antiquated, cis-heteronormative notions of figurative painting. Informed by Lewis’s technical understanding of colour theory, these sensuous works oscillate between broad gestural brushstrokes and finely rendered detail which are metaphors for the construction of identity, conveying a sense of figurative fluctuation or “in-betweenness”.
The planned exhibit program furthers the spirit of collaboration in which Lewis creates her paintings and Gallery 1C03’s intention to offer a safe space in which to affirm and empower 2SLGBTQIA+ artists and build community connections. Featured artists Shaneela Boodoo, Mahlet Cuff, Christina Hajjar, Jessie Jannuska, Julian K. and Malaikah Rang’inya will write brief responses to Lewis’s paintings of them and the artists will participate in a public conversation as it relates to representations of queerness and their own creative practices in the local arts community.
In a time when 2SLGBTQIA+ rights are constantly under threat, it is vital that institutions such as university art galleries boldly assert the integral presence of diverse gender identities and expressions in our society and explore the nuance of varied perspectives offered by queer folx. “The In-Between” responds to campus-wide efforts to commit to actions that help foster a university community that is not only inclusive but anti-oppressive.
ABOUT LAURA LEWIS
Laura Lewis is a queer visual artist originally from Kjipuktuk (Halifax, Nova Scotia) currently based in Treaty 1 Territory (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada). Her conceptual figurative painting practice explores philosophical questions concerning psychosexuality, the multiplicities of self, and nuances of the human condition. Lewis graduated in 2018 with a combined degree from NSCAD and the School of Art, University of Manitoba BFA Honours program. She is the founder and facilitator of Critical Painting Perspectives, presented by Mentoring Artists for Women’s Art (MAWA). She has participated in artist residencies at the Banff Centre for the Arts and Creativity, and in Civita Castellana, Italy. She was featured in the 2023 Painting issue of Border Crossings Magazine (interview by Robert Enright). In 2024 her work will be exhibited at various institutions across Canada including Modern Fuel, MAWA, aceartinc. and Gallery 1C03 at the University of Winnipeg.
RESOURCES
Exhibition brochure and study guide coming soon.
EXHIBITION HOURS
Monday - Friday between 12:00 and 4:00 pm from September 12 – November 8, 2024 (closed September 30 and October 14).
AFFILIATED EVENTS
Workshop
Queering the Figure: Reinterpreting Realism Through Abstraction with Laura Lewis and Julian K.
Tuesday, October 1, 2:00 - 4:00 pm
greenhouse artlab, University of Winnipeg Library
For 2SLGBTQIA+ people
Pre-registratation required. Registration details coming soon.
Discussion with the artists
Thursday, November 7, 4:00 - 5:15 pm
Additional details coming soon.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Gallery 1C03 is located on Treaty One Territory, heartland of the Red River Métis, and ancestral lands of the Anishinaabe, Ininew, Anishininew, Dakota Oyate, and Denesuline. We acknowledge that our water is sourced from Shoal Lake 40 First Nation.
We wish to acknowledge financial assistance provided by the Manitoba Arts Council. We also wish to express our appreciation to the greenhouse feminist artlab and the Women’s and Gender Studies Department of the University of Winnipeg for their support.
GETTING HERE AND ACCESSIBILITY
Maps of The University of Winnipeg campus, including accessibility and parking maps, can be found at https://www.uwinnipeg.ca/maps/. The Gallery is located on the main floor of Centennial Hall at 515 Portage Avenue. Accessible, street level visitor entrances with auto door openers and ramps are via Portage Avenue, Ellice Avenue and Spence Street. The gallery doors are equipped with auto-openers. There is a gender-neutral, accessible washroom less than 100 feet from the Gallery entrance. Our exhibitions and affiliated events are free to everyone.