If you happen to be a fan of Maclean‘s work, you’re in for a treat: he is currently exhibiting his artworks both at the Centre d’exposition Circa, as well as at Galerie Bellemare / Galerie Christian Lambert.
For his installation at Circa titled Drywall Planetarium : Où est rendu l’art the artist transformed the gallery’s small exhibition space into a giant star chart. Using a planetarium software, Maclean projected the exact position of the stars as they would appear on Saturday, April 14, 2012, the day of the show’s vernissage.
Fusing the minimalist aesthetics of astronomical charts with the materiality of construction supplies, Maclean drew the constellation maps directly onto the gallery’s walls, using wall plugs of various colours and sizes as well as simple drill holes to indicate the position of individual stars. Delicate chalk lines are snapped across the night sky like a celestial horizon, here and there a smudge of plaster may indicate a star cluster or a nebula. The constellations boundaries are blocked in with subtle greys and rusty reds, enhancing the abstract qualities of the work.
Alluding both to the ascend into the heavens and to the earthly act of creation, a metal fold-up ladder stands abandoned in a corner, surrounded by empty paint cans; a pair of paint-speckled cut-off shorts lies folded on the floor. Perched on the top rung sits an Earth globe, hand-painted in red and black, and for a moment I imagine myself shrinking down to its size, sitting on this model Earth and looking up into Maclean’s rendition of the galaxy.
“Why stars?” asks the artist?
The stars have been claimed both by astronomers and astrologers, by mystics and scientists. They are essential to the work of navigators, prophets, scientists, and philosophers. Maclean doesn’t support either side of the science versus spiritualism debate, rather he believes in the enchantment of nature itself, and in the artist’s mission of re-creating this enchantment as nature is slowly being destroyed.
Maclean exposes a paradox: the scientific investigation of nature’s inner workings is leading to the destruction of the nature around us. For example, today’s urban light pollution outshines the stars in the night sky. City-dwellers can no longer see the stars, but have to imagine travelling there, trading realism for fantasy, science for science fiction. However, says Maclean “…it is here, on terra firma that we must face all the problems and challenges of our own modernity. There is no escape.”
The challenges of progress and modernity are also expressed in Maclean’s works currently on show at Galerie Roger Bellemare / Galerie Christian Lambert. Ranging from large-format paintings to sculptural and printed works, the central theme is the modern automobile. On display are some earlier pieces, such as the paintings of road scenes like “I Waited for You” (2004) and his iconic modified road signs from 2005. His recent works feature the silhouette of a standard family sedan, sometimes cut out of art magazines as in “Canadian Art Stack” (2012), or stamped onto large sheets of paper, forming dystopian landscapes of looming mountains made of cars (“Untitled”, 2012).
Whether you’re travelling to the stars with your mind or planning your route with your car’s GPS, Maclean’s exhibitions will help you navigate your “collision course with the limits of Nature.”
Centre d’exposition Circa, space 444
Maclean
Drywall Planetarium : où est rendu l’art
April 14 – May 26, 2012
www.circa-art.com
Galerie Roger Bellemare / Galerie Christian Lambert, spaces 501 and 502
Maclean
Maclean, Jacques Marchand, Martha Townsend, Mathieu Gaudet
April 21 – May 19, 2012
ww.rogerbellemare.com
