 Hi, art lovers! | | |  | (Jonathan Busch/CBC Arts) | | | | Pride month is here, and CBC Arts is celebrating with an expansive digital tribute to the Canadian artists, authors and performers who’ve proudly made their mark on culture while uplifting the 2SLGBTQ+ community. Introducing Super Queeroes 101! It’s a new and improved edition of our award-winning digital project from 2019, because over the last six years, this country’s seen an explosion of talent — and that called for a refresh. We’ve added 32 luminaries, including Mae Martin, Kaytranada and Devery Jacobs. There are original essays and video tributes, including a love letter to Sort Of creator Bilal Baig (care of the show’s Amanda Cordner). Plus Edmonton illustrator Jonathan Busch has contributed more original artist portraits. (This one might be my fave. What’s yours?) As producer Peter Knegt writes, Super Queeroes 101 is meant to be “an introductory course, both to the work of the people featured in this project and to the history of great Canadian queer artists as a whole.” Get scrolling. | | | | | Because we promised you eye candy ... | | | | |  | Frankie Elouise | | This painting by Frankie Elouise (Queens of the Midway) will welcome visitors to the Bows for the next few months. The Calgary artist-run centre is featuring the piece on its outdoor billboard, and yes, corn dogs and summer fun were a major influence. But as a lifelong Albertan and trans artist, Frankie is also working through her complicated relationship with the Calgary Stampede. Read more here. | | | | |  | Artwork: Erica Rutherford; Photo: Collection of the Rutherford family | | Erica Rutherford: Her Lives and Works opens this week at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, and the exhibition features more than 100 works by the late artist, including this painting from 1997, The Reunion. Born in Edinburgh in 1923, Erica called Prince Edward Island home, and she’s one of Canada’s first openly trans artists. The show will be on through Oct. 13. | | | | |  | Alison Postma | | It’s been a minute since we last checked in with Alison Postma, who has a new solo exhibition at Xpace Cultural Centre in Toronto until July 5. There’s an interactive element to the show, and according to the Xpace website, it aims to answer this surreal question: “What does your body feel like in a dream?” | | | | |  | Laura Kay Keeling | | Elsewhere in Ontario, Contemporary Art Forum Kitchener + Area’s biennial — CAFKA.25 — launched this weekend, and newsletter reader Laura Kay Keeling is among the participating artists. This piece is from her project, Untitled Portals, Variations. More on that here. | | | | |  | Abdullah Bailey | | | | | Thaw is an eight-hour aerial spectacle, which doubles as a call to action for the planet. (In Toronto today? Luminato Festival is presenting it for free at Sankofa Square.) | | | | |  | Luke Waddington | | | | | Another Luminato highlight for you! As part of the festival, sharply dressed dancers will be performing at venues throughout the GTA. The show’s called Dandyism, and it’s a tribute to a fashion-forward subculture, which has captivated choreographer Ziza Patrick since he was growing up in Rwanda. | | | | |  | Bria Fernandes, Denis Gutiérrez-Ogrinc, Jalani Morgan, Billie Jean Gabriel, B. Brookbank, Tarralik Duffy | | | | | | | The shortlist is here. Get to know this year’s honourees. | | |  | Pascale Jean | | Pascale’s our featured artist for June, and there’s a lot going on in her illustration of the CBC Arts logo. She’s included nods to Pride and National Indigenous History Month, plus the CBC’s broadcasting history. And on top of all that, there’s a personal story behind the piece. Pascale told us she sees the work as a final symbolic collab with a friend, the late artist Preston Buffalo. Read more in this Q&A. | | | | | Share this newsletter | | or subscribe if this was
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I’m Leah Collins, senior writer at CBC Arts. Until next time! | | | | | |
