All My Friends Are Straight

Thursday, January 30, 2020 - 8:00pm to Friday, February 21, 2020 - 8:45pm

Lim is a Chinese-Canadian non-binary sapphic illustrator cartoonist whose work revolves around the themes of self-love, queerness, disability, and abuse. Through graphic memoirs and fictional stories grounded in the realities of today’s marginalized groups, Vincy produces work that emphasizes on loving yourself, healing, and the recovery process. 

Inspired by love, Lim describes the experiences of those outside the conventional mold. Lim portrays Queer, disabled, people of colour, and females that love each other and love themselves regardless of not fitting into society’s unrealistic standards of perfection and heterosexual normality.

Lim’s work is straightforward and personal, capturing singular moments of loving, loved and enduring love:

All My Friends Are Straight is a series of sapphic works that describes the experiences of those unlike the mold. Queer, disabled, people of colour, and females that love each other and love themselves regardless of whether or not they fit in to society’s standards of perfection and normality.

Knowing that you have survived past this singular moment, that there will be many others, in your life, and through the lives of your loved ones. That love will be passed down through the generations and continue to be passed onwards. A new day begins every day and your memories, dreams, and ambitions live on in the hearts of others who cherish and love you.

It is a statement of hope for intersectional queers, that we too can love and be loved. And we can continue being loved for the rest of time. It is the fact that our history which grounds us, our history that influences us, which create who we are today, is cherished and respected as we raise a generation of children who learn from love and respect. That we stand strong, that we stand bold, and ever mighty

Venue & Address: 
Learning Zone, 113 McCaul Street, Level 1. Also accessible from 122 St. Patrick Street.
Email: 
mchudolinska@ocadu.ca
Phone: 
416-977-6000 x2539
Cost: 
Free
Photograph of painting in colour with two females, one baby and two dogs sitting by the fire.

Food for Thought and Select Works

Tuesday, October 8, 2019 - 9:00am to Friday, November 8, 2019 - 6:15pm

This exhibition brings together a collection of oil paintings inspired by surrealist works with a contemporary exploration of meaning, intimacy and relationships. Ali Sheikh wrote:

This body of work sums up my first venture into oil portraiture. The series of three, inspired by surrealist works, explores the strange charm of a piece lacking context and the concept of finding meaning from nonsense, through dreamlike backdrops and hovering produce. Humidity aims to create an intimate, almost uncomfortable experience for the viewer, either provoking a sense of understanding with the subject or rather an awkward, claustrophobic feeling. The double portrait Affixed depicts two figures, partly converging, and is inspired by the relationship between how close one can be to another yet how little one may actually know about the other.

Venue & Address: 
Learning Zone, 113 McCaul Street, Level 1. Also accessible from 122 St. Patrick Street.
Email: 
mchudolinska@ocadu.ca
Phone: 
416-977-6000, ext. 2529
Cost: 
Free
Five portraits combined in one image

House of Oriental: Northern Style

Monday, May 13, 2019 - 10:30am to Monday, May 27, 2019 - 6:00pm

Natalie Mark and co-curators Yasmin Emery and Samiya Karim deliver a new flavour of an exhibition in the Learning Zone Gallery - House of Oriental: Northern Style on through May 27.

Emery describes House of Oriental: Northern Style, as an exhibition of works exploring pan-Asian Canadian foods: recipes developed from hybridity, alienation, assimilation, survival, and poverty. The works in this exhibition aim to explore not the most “authentic” or “real” ethnic foods, but to present the foods and experiences born out of the land’s rich (or poor) newcomer history. The exhibition includes works ranging from paintings to photography as well as a recipe book, compiling the foods behind the art.

Featuring artwork by:

Abbey Chong

Natalie Chuck

Tina Chu

Kai Lumbang

Mel Low

Natalie Mark

Loretta Miauw

Noelle Mok

Pauline Nguyen

Becky Wu

Venue & Address: 
Learning Zone, 113 McCaul Street, Level 1. Also accessible from 122 St. Patrick Street
Email: 
mchudolinska@ocadu.ca
Phone: 
416-977-6000, 2529
Cost: 
Free
House of Oriental: Northern Style Exhibiiton

TORO

An abstract watercolour monotype print titled Tuna by Donnie Nie
Friday, March 8, 2019 - 9:45am to Friday, March 29, 2019 - 6:00pm

This month, the Learning Zone Gallery presents TORO, a solo exhibition by Donny Nie showcasing recent paintings and prints. Donny Nie references the sensations and processes of consuming food, to embody the continuous, and subtle shaping of an individual through the accumulative effect of innocent routine.

Nie’s paintings and prints in Toro underline the exhaustion and exuberance, of the overwhelming possibilities in mundane, with anxious or curious surfaces.

On through March 29

Venue & Address: 
Learning Zone, 113 McCaul Street, Level 1. Also accessible from 122 St. Patrick Street.
Email: 
mchudolinska@ocadu.ca
Phone: 
416-977-6000, ext. 2529
Cost: 
Free

Monsters and Clothing

Tuesday, February 19, 2019 - 10:00pm to Saturday, March 2, 2019 - 6:00pm

Come and see the unique character designs from the imagination of two OCAD illustration students, Eunice Lai and Becky Wu. Enter their world of wonderful monsters and creatures, and an array of extravagant and modern outfits. This exhibition also features a collaborative four piece painting of two giant monsters!

On at the Learnig Zone Gallery until March 2

Venue & Address: 
Learning Zone, 113 McCaul Street, Level 1. Also accessible from 122 St. Patrick Street
Email: 
mchudolinska@ocadu.ca
Phone: 
416-977-6000, ext 2529
Cost: 
Free
Photograph of acrylic painting called Portrait of Monsters by Eunice Lai and Becky Wu

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"[click here to edit]" Exhibition poster with a screen shot image of text edited in a design application
Monday, January 14, 2019 - 11:15pm to Saturday, February 2, 2019 - 5:45pm

Every artist has that work that they've lost inspiration for or simply ran out of time to do and never finished; this exhibition aims to shine a light on those neglected pieces. It's a sort of ode to the constantly-travelling, fickle mind of the artist; the unconventional processes; the abandoned. The exhibition also aims to explore the true concept of "finished", and it's finality-how does one decide that? Is an artist's "unfinished" another viewer's "finished"?

Featuring: Petra Alexson, Gregorio, HollyJo, Jazmin Cordon-Ibanez, Salisa Jatuweerapong, Eunice Lai, Par Nair, Moira Ness, Em Ratkovsky, Mikhail SK, Janet Tran, Aghavni Vardanyan, Emilia Wilson, Maryam Zaraimajin.

On until February 2

Reception

January 17, 2019

6:30 - 8:00 pm.

Venue & Address: 
Learning Zone, 113 McCaul Street, Level 1. Also accessible from 122 St. Patrick Street
Email: 
mchudolinska@ocadu.ca
Phone: 
416-977-6000, ext. 2529
Cost: 
Free

Proud At OCAD U Art Show

Tuesday, June 5, 2018 - 6:00pm to Friday, June 29, 2018 - 6:00pm

Proud at OCAD U coordinators, Casey Helm and Teddy Schaub curated this exhibition and here is their perspective on this art show:

The PROUD at OCAD U Exhibition features the work of LGBTQ+ identifying students here at OCAD. Art Exhibition spaces can be inaccessible spaces, especially for those whose identities intersect in different ways. The theme is simple: there is none! The participants were encouraged to bring in work they felt like showing off. PROUD is a community space and focuses on claiming our own space here at OCAD. Copies of the PROUD Community Zine are also available for free in the Learning Zone!

Participants list:

Casey Helm

Jazmin Cordon-Ibanez

Rachel Finlay

J. Lee Bertram-French

Heidi Ku

Vincy Lim

Rachel McCormick

Emily Saunders

Teddy Schaub

Matt Xie

On until June 29

Venue & Address: 
Learning Zone, 113 McCaul Street, Level 1. Also accessible from 122 St. Patrick Street.
Website: 
https://www.facebook.com/proud.ocadu/
Email: 
proud.ocadu@gmail.com
Cost: 
Free
Proud At OCAD U Art Show poster

Perspectives

Painting with abstract forms highlited in orange.
Thursday, March 1, 2018 - 7:30pm to Saturday, March 17, 2018 - 6:00pm

The Learning Zone Gallery presents a group exhibition called Perspectives.

This exhibition was organized by International Eyes, a student group which represents a community of students from culturally diverse backgrounds. It includes work in a variety of mediums, from painting to photography.

Contributors: Kalore Jingmei Cao, Raquel Gouvea Jose Felicia da Costa, Tim Hu, Nataly Kais, Ji Woo Lim, Kaylee Meyer, Tony Mulo, Ehiko Odeh, Michelle Scholz, Zhiyi Qian and Chenjun Zhu.

‘Perspectives’ is an exhibition showcasing the work of international students at OCAD U. While being international means different things to each student, it is oftentimes a big part of one’s identity. This is a small insight into the diverse body of work that international students are creating that highlights their abilities, personalities and passions.

On until March 17

Venue & Address: 
Learning Zone, 113 McCaul Street, Level 1. Also accessible from 122 St. Patrick Street
Website: 
https://www.facebook.com/events/302623076931747/
Email: 
mchudolinska@ocadu.ca
Phone: 
416-977-6000, ext. 2529
Cost: 
Free

Notes From The Wind

Images of the flower Chrysanthemums painted on wood.
Tuesday, February 6, 2018 - 6:00pm to Saturday, February 24, 2018 - 6:00pm

This month starts with a new exhibition at the Learning Zone Gallery called Notes From the Wind.  

Drawing and Painting: Digital Painting and Expanded Animation student, Kenny Tran and Drawing & Painting student, Emily Zhou curated this exhibition, highlighting artworks of 19 OCAD U students from the Drawing & Painting, Graphic Design, Illustration, Digital Futures, and Environmental Design programs. 

This exhibition aims to provide students with an opportunity to explore the interpretation and portrayal of ‘nature’ in a new lens—through black and white/greyscale artworks (including artworks with minimal colour). The de-emphasis of colour as the primary artistic medium promotes an examination of the subject matter based on the emphasis of form, design, and values seen in nature, while interpreting the perpetuity of black and white imagery in relation to current developments of the world within a collective context. 

Image credit: Woman in Chrysanthemum Forest Under Full Moon: Part 1 by Sohae Jeong

On until February 24

Participants:

Samaa Ahmed

Alyssa Mae Bernardo

Shelby Doerfler

Sara Dube

Melissa Eaton

Dave Foster

Sohae Jeong

Reyhane Khonsari

Shannon Leigh

Karen Joyce Li

Vincy Lim

Donny Nie

Cleopatria Peterson

Michelle Rosen

Mikhail Shchupak-Katsman

Ron Siu

Prateek Verma

Xulin Wang

Yina Wang

Venue & Address: 
Learning Zone, 113 McCaul Street, Level 1. Also accessible from 122 St. Patrick Street
Website: 
https://www.facebook.com/events/359485321194228/
Email: 
mchudolinska@ocadu.ca
Phone: 
416-977-6000 ext. 2529
Cost: 
Free

History of Textiles Since 1800s Exhibition

Photograph of dress with prominent sleeves that were in fashion. Sleeves are shown in indigo dyed hemp.
Friday, January 12, 2018 - 8:00am to Friday, January 26, 2018 - 6:00pm

This exhibit features research based textile works created by students of Lynne Heller's third year Materials Art and Design course called Textile History Since 1800s. Each of the textile pieces respond to historical processes, techniques, materials and fabrics or iconic fashion styles from the 19th to 21st centuries while "addressing the traditional and contemporary role of textiles in culture.

Using stitchwork, beading, dyeing, quilting and sewing techniques, the students were able to examine and incoroporate ideas on language, grief, identity or social conditions and cultural movements from the punk movement of the 70s to Abrstract Expressionism movement after World War ll.

Participating students are: Ayesha Babar, Molly Fletcher Berman, Stephanie Cloutier, Emma Enright, Elliot Grover, Shiemara Hogarth, Akash Inbakumar, Nomi Juhasz, Rajetha Kalatharan, Kendra Martyn, Rida Rajani, Saman Salman, Jenn Wingfield, Kye-Cha Yang and Ruitong Zhu.

Venue & Address: 
Learning Zone, Level 1, 113 McCaul Street. Also accessible from 122 St. Patrick Street.
Website: 
https://www.facebook.com/events/336394023510790/
Email: 
mchudolinska@ocadu.ca
Phone: 
416-977-6000, ext. 2529
Cost: 
Free