Monday, July 8, 2013

Joyce Wieland; "The Lovers, The Lovers #16"

Joyce Wieland (1931-1998) was a ground breaking artist and very important figure in Canadian Art History.  She was the first woman to show at the prestigious Isaacs Gallery in Toronto.  Her 1971 retrospective at the National Gallery was its first ever for a female artist.  Wieland was born in Toronto and lived and worked there until 1962 when she moved to New York with her husband, artist Michael Snow.  They were both very involved in the New York City art scene, particularly the underground film community.  She returned to Canada in 1970 where she worked into the nineties.  A self described "cultural activist", she is best known for celebrating Canadian national identity and bringing forward feminist issues within a very male dominated art world.
This pair of pencil on chalk drawings were first shown at the Isaacs Gallery in 1961.  There is another drawing from this series which was purchased by the National Gallery in 1970 and is in their permanent collection.  Framed, each drawing is 17" l., 13 1/2" w.  Canadian, c. 1961 SOLD