The Big Foldy Painting of Death is an expansive artwork created on a large scroll of canvas that will span the circumference of the gallery space. A project initiated in 2011, Ian Forbes’ painting is a narrative of apocalyptic doom and ecstatic rebirth. Characters appear throughout the painting occasionally musing, via comic speech bubbles and scrawled text, on the process and practice of contemporary visual art or purposely shifting ideas and concepts into absurdity. This pragmatic approach wrestles with critical art practices through the inclusion of high and low art forms: a variety of techniques are employed to depict futuristic structures and psychedelic creatures emerging from planes of colours, abstraction and texture.
“I endeavour to make objects that reveal the magic space created by the imagination and push the limits of my abilities. My most recent work is a conversation between the tradition of painting and contemporary artistic practice: a bizarre confluence of technique, critique and personal expression generated by my ongoing investigations of narrative image creation… inspired by the Foldy Books of Death (FBoD).”
– Ian Forbes, Artist Statement.
The exhibition will run from June 21 – July 27, 2013. The artist will be in attendance at the opening reception on June 21 and an essay on this exhibition will be available.
Bio:
Ian Forbes graduated from the University of Alberta with an MFA in Painting. Born in Ontario and raised in Alberta, he currently resides in Vancouver, BC. Forbes teaches at Emily Carr University of Art and Design in the Continuing Studies program and at the Roundhouse Community Arts Centre. His work has been shown in Canada and Europe. www.ianforbes.ca
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