February 7 – March 29, 2009
The Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art is pleased to present Une fois de trop (One time too many), the first solo exhibition in Toronto by Montréal artist Valérie Blass. Working in diverse media such as sculpture, video and “sculptural painting,” Blass explores relationships and tensions between form, figure and material. Often using everyday objects, as well as animal figures as a starting point, she re-imagines new contexts and new worlds.
For her exhibition in the Project Room at MOCCA, Blass presents a selection of sculptural works that reference physical characteristics of the human body in ways that create friction between abjection and transformation. Fabricated from cement, porcelain, paint, fabric and other odd bits and materials scavenged from her studio, the figures are hybrids that simultaneously evoke primitive states and futuristic possibilities. The unexpected results are often humourous and ironic, tinged with both melancholy and affection. Blass’s work can be contextualized within current contemporary sculptural practices, such as those recently featured in the New Museum’s (New York, NY) landmark exhibition, Unmonumental, that equate the human condition with the deflated modernism of our environment and of our times.
About the artist
Valérie Blass obtained her BFA in Media Arts from the Université du Québec à Montréal. She has had solo exhibitions in Montréal at Galerie Circa, Galerie B-312, Galerie Dare-Dare, Parisian Laundry, and in Québec at L’Œil de Poisson. Her work has also been featured in group exhibitions at Galerie de l’UQAM, Le centre CLARK, and in the first Québec Triennial at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal. Valérie Blass is represented by Parisian Laundry in Montréal.
Installation Shots
Opening Reception
Saturday February 7, 2 – 5 pm
