The Orillia Museum of Art & History (OMAH) is preparing for its annual juried landscape exhibition, now in its 22nd year. This exhibition was created in recognition of landscape artist and Group of Seven member, Franklin Carmichael, who was born in Orillia. The call for submissions, which is open to artists across the country, invites work that reimagines the Canadian landscape through the artist’s chosen medium, including but not limited to drawing, painting, sculpture, photography and media arts. The exhibition is a great opportunity to see new approaches to landscape art.
Jurors Amy Bagshaw, Coordinator of the Museum and Gallery Studies Program and Director of the Campus Gallery at Georgian College and Sue A. Miller, who curated a small group exhibition at OMAH entitled Primordial Waters in 2018, selected 47 artists from 193 submissions.
The artists accepted into this year’s exhibition are:
Lori Ryerson
Chloe Serenko
Krista Pain
Julie Cosgrove
Sonja Ng
Gayle Dempsey
Martha Klein Henrickson
Mike Callaghan
Kathy Melanson
Monique Martin
Nick Peterson
Claudia Mandler McKnight
Elayne Windsor
Diane Blunt
Lulu Galway
Taimi Poldmaa
Luci Dilkus
Ben Benedict
Frank Myers
Tuncel Mustafa
Samantha Vessios
Carole Milon
Lori Harrison
- E. Glazer
Anita Granger
Hugh Alcock
Sheree-Lee Olson
Hafsa Murtaza
Tammy McClennan
Peter Fyfe
Emily Conlon
Heidi Leverty
Jennifer Lantz
Diana Hillman
Anton Pickard
Amy Thompson
Janine Wheeler
Peter Cheung
Douglas Stratford
Wendy Wingfelder
Margaret Wasiuta
John Notten
Janet Read
Rhoda Payne
Pauline Sutherland
Dani Madger
Gita Karklins
The jurors were tasked with reviewing each submission, keeping in mind that the vast and varied Canadian landscape, while it can be a source of national pride, is also going through many challenges such as climate change, land claims, and loss of natural habitats. Juror Amy Bagshaw said, “It was an inspiring experience to view many talented artists who consider the land and our impact on it through their varied creative practices. A difficult selection process with much conversation has resulted in 2023’s Tradition Transformed exhibition and I look forward to celebrating with the artists.”
The exhibition will open on Saturday, October 14 with a special reception starting at 1pm. The exhibition will then be on view until January, 13, 2024.
OMAH is open Tuesday to Saturday from 11am to 4pm and until 7pm on Thursdays.