The Agency of Acquaintances at Clint Roenisch Gallery, Toronto

I’d already decided to riff on the idea of the group exhibition as a dinner party (instead of a recipe or smorgasbord) when I finally got around to reading curator Catherine Dean’s statement that The Agency of Acquaintances, currently on view at Clint Roenisch Gallery, is comparable to a gathering of people who are acquainted with each other but not necessarily close friends. For an introvert like me, such social situations are fraught with anxiety and inevitably lead to definitive judgments about who I gravitate to and to whom I do not. Coincidentally enough, I feel the same way about ensembles of disparate artists collected together for any number of reasons – shared media, nationality, age, blood type, whatever (e.g., Jenifer Papararo’s 2002 The Jennifer Show at Oakville Galleries) – picking and sticking with my favourites for most of my visit. This would make me a bad host, but that’s Dean’s job; I’m here for edification, not diplomacy.



Lili Huston-Herterich, A Curtain For Clint (to funnel the sun), 2015, cyanotype print on cotton silk blend

If I had to limit myself to one interaction, I’d happily spend the entire evening with Lili Huston-Herterich’s A Curtain for Clint since it is both smart and beautiful, not to mention evocative and mysterious. But if I had to mingle, I’d get better acquainted with Nadia Belerique, who is clever and intriguing (as well as all over the place this summer including an exhibition at The Power Plant with Huston-Herterich and Laurie Kang), and Diane Borsato, who is contemplative and drily funny (plus her video is about bees and anything about bees is fascinating). I’d definitely avoid Marvin Luvualu Antonio, because he cops too much attitude and lacks substance, and Brian Rideout, because I get the feeling his paintings are making fun of me. Brad Tinmouth, with his art/life-blurring functional constructions, is the life of this party, which reminds me of parties I used to go to ten or fifteen years ago when relational aesthetes were the cool kids. As for Karen Kraven and Abby McGuane, I’ll need to cross paths with them at a couple more parties to know how I feel (though Kraven’s pretty/ugly gymnastic leotards at Mercer Union haven’t helped me reach any conclusions).


Clint Roenisch Gallery: http://clintroenisch.com/
The Agency of Acquaintances continues until July 18.


Terence Dick is a freelance writer living in Toronto. His art criticism has appeared in Canadian Art, BorderCrossings, Prefix Photo, Camera Austria, Fuse, Mix, C Magazine, Azure, and The Globe and Mail. He is the editor of Akimblog. You can follow his quickie reviews and art news announcements on Twitter @TerenceDick.