IntoThis

In Episode #31 Marx has a conversation with Canadian artist David Elliott David Elliott is a staple of the Canadian community of painters, he has been associated with the late seventies and early eighties return to figuration. David was born in Niagara on the Lake and grew up in several towns in Ontario. In this interview he shares the story that he calls the “Eureka moment”, when he discovered a painting in the London (Ontario) library and everything happened in the arts after that. David moved to Montreal to pursue his BFA and MFA degrees at Concordia University where he also was part of the faculty until he retired recently. In this interview he describes his work and being a professor, he is able to elegantly place his work around many historical references including the music of the moment (Beetles, etc.) and also he shared a long list of artists both Canadian and international that played an important role in his artistic development. His work is collected in prestigious private and public collections around Canada I am very pleased to be able to share this conversation with David Elliott, it’s one of those that is packed with great insights and information that artists specifically may not want to miss. Thanks for listening!

In Episode #30 Yam Lau talks to Marx about his views on what is to be an artist. He also shared the incredible story of getting to meet his biological father during his 40s, this story involves a very enthusiastic group of young artists in china and the secret Chinese police! Yam Lau is a Toronto based artist, professor and community organizer. He was born in Hong Kong and moved to Canada when he was 15 years old. He completed his MFA at the university of Alberta in 1997 and then moved to Toronto where he has been working and living since then. He is represented by Christie contemporary in Toronto As an artist, Yam explores new expressions and qualities of space, time and the image through the application of painting, computer-animation and digital video. In this conversation he talks about the concept of trying to make the world lighter with his art, this comes through in his work as the space being one of the major characters in his pieces. Yam teaches at York University just north of Toronto in the department of visual art and art history, throughout this conversation we talk about his reading on how the relationship between students and art degrees have evolved and become more “professionalized” Finally Yam is also a community organizer, he leads an ongoing art space hosted in his home, he invites artists to create an exhibition responding to his house architecture and he sees this project as an empowering activity for himself and his artists friends given that it lays outside of any commercial endeavour. Another of his projects in collaboration with artist Michal Yuan was called Donkey Institute of Contemporary Arts, this project was realized in Beijing China around and the premise of adapt to the convention of the street peddler who meanders through Beijing neighbourhoods with a donkey selling products. In this case the donkey was dragging a cart with an retrofitted series of wooden modules or boxes that served as a mobile display in which the texts, works and videos displayed, were accessible to passers-by. Thanks for listening!

In Episode #29 artist Nicolas Fleming talks about his development as an artist and his continuous cross-pollination between his work as an artist and art installer. Nicolas Fleming is an artist who works and lives in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. He received his BFA in Studio Arts from Concordia University in Montreal, Canada and his Masters in Visual Arts from the University of Quebec in Montreal also in Montreal, Canada. Nicolas’s work relies on construction materials and building techniques developed in daily work, adapting construction site aesthetics to art-dedicated spaces. By diverting the primary functions of commercial building materials, especially drywall and plaster, he elevates these materials and techniques through the fine arts of sculpture and painting. He re-purposes construction materials to create compelling aesthetic combinations for the viewer to discover. Nicolas Fleming’s cross-disciplinary artistic practice spans over 15 years. Since 2018, Fleming has been instrumental in presenting ambitious exhibition projects notably at Evans Contemporary, Koffler Centre for the Arts, Art Gallery of Burlington, Patel Brown Gallery, Musée d’art de Joliette and Visual Arts Centre of Clarington. Rooted in his personal experience as an art handler, he attempts to expand the initiatives of contributors to these projects by asking them to not limit themselves to their initially attributed roles. This is an acknowledgment of his preference for the shared experience of multiple perspectives brought forth within these exhibitions. Nicolas Fleming’s work can be found in Patel-Brown Gallery’s website Thanks for listening!

In Episode #28 Brian Alfred shares with Marx his thoughts on being an artist, podcaster, curator and professor. Brian Alfred is originally from Pittsburgh PA, he grew up painting the buildings he could see from his porch and he is currently based in Brooklyn, NY. In this conversation, Brian shares his experiences in the art world as well as his many other interests and projects such as podcasting, teaching and making music. Brian Alfred has been showing his work for over 20 years. He graduated with a BFA from Pennsylvania State University and completed his MFA from Yale University. His paintings can be found in renowned collections such as the Guggenheim museum, the Whitney Museum among others. Find more information in Brian’s website. Brian Alfred is the host of Sound & Vision Podcast a show featuring conversations with Artists and musicians, you can find Sound & Vision wherever you listen to podcasts. Thanks for listening!

In Episode #27 Rebecca Davison-Mora shares with Marx her non-traditional path to arts management. Rebecca is an Arts Manager and emerging researcher with a focus on cultural relations and de colonial institutional practice. Interested in hybridity and crossing of boundaries/borders, her work originates from her interrogation of the self and position as a mixed researcher and arts worker. She holds a BA from York University and is currently completing her MA in Arts and Cultural Management at King’s College London. Previous positions include Gallery Manager at Patel Brown, and Director of Samuel J Zacks Gallery at York University, both in Toronto. She is currently based in London UK and is working on research using the British Museum’s archives and holdings of Mexican objects to reveal insights into constructions of Mexican national identity in the European context. Thanks for listening!

In Episode #26 Marx has a conversation with Carla Rojas. Carla Rojas is a Marketing and Communications professional specialized in developing strategies to promote Art & Entertainment. She has worked in multiple capacities for various films, festivals, live concerts and T.V. shows in Mexico and Canada, such as Canada's Walk of Fame, Banff World Media Festival, and the Canadian National Exhibition, alongside industry leaders and top talent from companies such as Netflix, NBC Universal, Bell Media, YouTube, Canada Media Fund, National Film Board of Canada and CBC, among others. In 2019 she launched Artifier.net, a platform created with the mission to help make art more accessible and to serve as a hub for the local art scene. In addition to running Artifier, she currently works as a social media manager and content strategist for documentary films. Thanks for listening!

In Episode #25 New York based artist David Kramer shares stories from New York City in the late 80’s and 90’s where he developed his career. David Kramer’s work draws from all-things America to create pieces influenced by the meme-era combining painting and hook-rug techniques to create aesthetics that seem suspended in the late 70’s or 80’s. His work has always been a conduit for sharing his take on contemporary culture. David Kramer lives and work in New York City, he has a BFA from George Washington University and an MFA from Pratt Institute. We meet up over zoom to have this great conversation where we dive into politics, family history, all-things art world, COVID and more. Thanks for listening!

In Episode #24 Marx has a conversation with abstract painting Trevor Kiernander. After about a one and a half years hiatus, IntoThis is back with a conversation with Trevor about his development as an artist from the time when he used to draw comics in high school to his masters in fine arts training at Goldsmiths University of London. We met in a cold night at the garage in Montreal where TAP Art Space used to be hosted to have this great personal conversation. In this conversation there is a lot of great food for thought for all members of the contemporary art from casual viewers to artists. Trevor is one of the main organizer of Pictura, a city-wide painting initiative happening in Montreal, Canada. For more information please visit the website picturamtl.com Thanks for listening!

In Episode 23 Marx has a conversation with artists Pier-Anne Mercier and David Bellemare about their latest exhibition at TAP Art Space in Montreal, Canada. Reflecting on their current state as post-BFA artists, Pier-Anne and David pose a question that delicately balances hopeful thoughts with realistic perspectives, where do we go from here? As a drafted response, they create an engaging painting-installation. Honouring his long-time held painting style, David Bellemare uses a single-large canvas as a base for his creations, rolling it along as the collage-painting evolves. His use of figurative and referential imagery creates his personal language; through this collage, the artist reveals humor, cynicism, fear, dreams, etc. allowing the viewer to dive into his psyche in a vulnerable-honest manner. The painting acquires a three-dimensional form via the intervention of Pier-Anne’s wood-based installation, occupying most of the wall area at TAP. Over this most-intimate conversation, the artists create space for reflection that can be as personal or as global as the viewer desires. Check out the photo documentation at www.tapmontreal.com Thanks for listening

In Episode 22 Marx has a conversation with BOSNY. He is a Montreal based graffiti artist and student of print media at Concordia University. In this conversation BOSNY talks about how he started in the graffiti community, the influence his parents had in his creativity explorations, the importance of getting an arts degree and a lot more. Graffiti is one of the artistic expressions that most people consume sometimes willingly and most of the time as part of the landscape. In Episode 22, BOSNY shares his experiences being part of the graffiti community in Montreal and how that feeds into his practice in the visual arts. It was a great pleasure to have had the chance to talk to BOSNY and we hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we have enjoyed producing it. Thanks for listening!

Archive RSS In Episode 22 Marx has a conversation with BOSNY. He is a Montreal based graffiti artist and student of print media at Concordia University. In this conversation BOSNY talks about how he started in the graffiti community, the influence his parents had in his creativity explorations, the importance of getting an arts degree and a lot more. Graffiti is one of the artistic expressions that most people consume sometimes willingly and most of the time as part of the landscape. In...

For our first episode of 2019 and overall Episode 21 Marx has a conversation with Roxanne Arsenault. She is the co-general and artistic coordinator, responsible for programming at the artist run center Clark, she also leads a music project called Donzelle and she is involved in many other cultural and artistic projects in the city of Montreal such as Pop Montreal. Roxanne was very generous and forthcoming with her answers not only about her personal development and her path to arrive where she is but also about genuinely difficult topics such as the responsibility of an artist run center in the current art climate and what type of risks are they willing to take to keep things fresh and not redundant which is something that happens often! In her musical pursues she shares the type of collaboration that make possible Donzelle and the sensibility and message behind this project. You can find her music all over on YouTube, Spotify or on Donzelle’s website: https://donzelle.ca It was a huge honor to have had the chance to talk to Roxanne and we hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we have enjoyed producing it. On a side note TAP Art Space is accepting project submissions until January 15th of 2019, check out the details in TAP’s website https://www.tapmontreal.com Thanks for listening!

In Episode 20, Marx has a conversation with painter Erik Nieminen. Erik grew up in Ottawa as a member of a family in which being an artist was encouraged. In 2007 he obtained his BFA from the University of Ottawa and his MFA from Concordia University in 2010. After that he moved to Berlin where he worked for over 4 years, he returned to live and work to Montreal in 2016. His paintings walk on the intersection of abstraction and commonly known forms. In this interview he points out that in his work “the content always follows form”. This premise allows him to explore different aspects of a painting with freedom and honesty. Please visit Erik’s website to check out his paintings. His recent solo shows include “The Unreal” at the Albemarle Gallery in London England and earlier this year he presented “Above Below” at the Art Gallery of Outremont in Montreal. He has participated in several group shows in Berlin, Frankfurt, Montreal, and London. He was recently awarded with the Bombay Sapphire Artisan Series that granted him a ticket to the finals being held in Miami this winter. It was a really enjoyable conversation and we hope you enjoy it as much as we have. Thanks for listening!

In Episode 19, Marx talks to artists Guillaume Adjutor Provost and Shanie Tomassini about their collaborative show at TAP Art Space called A Witch is Born Out of the True Hungers of Her Time. This show will be the last show of 2018 at the current TAP Art Space location and it will be in view until October 19th of 2018, the programming will be back at the garage at the end of April of 2019. Keep your eyes and ears open for some upcoming exciting news.

In Episode 18 of IntoThis Podcast, Marx has a conversation with recently arrived Brooklyn-based painter Benjamin Klein. In this episode Ben shares his non-traditional trajectory to the visual arts, he was a martial artists for many years until he gave in to his strong desire to create paintings. After completing a BA in English Literature at Concordia University it was evident that he needed to change paths, he then made his way to arts school finishing his BFA at Concordia University in 2005, then after a period of time dedicated to the direction of commercial galleries in Montreal, he decided to pursue an MFA at University of Guelph. He was one of the RBC painting competition finalists in 2010 and he was represented by Joyce Yahouda Gallery until it's closure in 2016. In this generous conversation Ben shares his experiences as a painter, curator, the impact of being involved in the direction of a commercial gallery, what ideas and sensibilities are behind his paintings and a lot more. You can learn more about his work in his website

In Episode 17 of IntoThis Podcast, Marx has a conversation with Montreal-based visual artist Jeanie Riddle and Montreal-based blogger and instagrammer Dimitri Velasquez. The conversation is centered on the ocassion of the opening of the show Single Family Home For Sale at TAP Art Space in which they collaborated.

In Episode 16 of IntoThis Podcast, Marx has a very fun and interesting conversation with artists-couple-collective David and Jorden Doody. They are a British Columbia- based collective working mainly in sculpture and textiles. They are interested in the conversations between image and materiality, as they mentioned in this conversation they draw inspiration from a classic approach to sculpture yet being conscious of the screen-culture that social media and the internet era has delivered. They have a BFA from the University of British Columbia, an MFA from Concordia University and they are currently working in a second MFA at UBC. In this conversation they share their insights in being a couple working together as a collective, raising children while being practicing artists, emoji culture and a lot more.

This is a special edition of IntoThis Podcast, in episode #15 Marx has a conversation with Colombian-Canadian artist Laura Acosta and Mexican architect David Jaime about their collaboration in the show called Ser/Viniendo-Be/Coming-De/Venir presented TAP Art Space in view until July 21st of 2018. In this conversation they share many keys to access the show composed by a virtual reality piece and a performance-activated textile-based sculpture.

As Janet shares in this conversation, her work revolves around the idea of human figures. Even though her work is very close to what is usually described as a portrait, the characters in her paintings are usually invented and stem out of abstraction. In this conversation she shares where those portraits are most likely coming from and what does she think of them. A large part of Janet’s time is dedicated to teaching, she also shared with Marx the good, the bad and the okay of being a professor.

Informed by Neo-Marxist theories, this exhibition analyzes in a personal rather than cumulative manner the drastic changes in the concept of work observed in the past decade. Through a series of paintings based on the aesthetics of different massive communication systems and schematic representation of information, the artists scrutinize the effects on the creative work, knowledge-based economy as well as the constantly increasing gig economy. Even though the considerations proposed in this show are the intimate type, the pillow-talk kind of analysis, the same scrutiny could be extrapolated to a wider and more general statement.