Canadian Art in the Time of Coronavirus
How can contemporary art help us get through difficult times? The chief curator of the McMichael Canadian Art Collection looks at artworks that address contagion and fear, grief, isolation and time’s passing—themes at the heart of our experience of this slowest spring
Dream of a Common Language
"The assumption that the international art world has a centre is being fast eroded," wrote Sarah Milroy in our summer 2000 issue. In an era of increasing isolationism, Milroy's piece and the issues it raises remain relevant—and unresolved
John Bentley Mays: 1941–2016
Former Canadian Art editor Sarah Milroy remembers influential author and critic John Bentley Mays.
SITElines: Curator Candice Hopkins and SITE Santa Fe’s “Unsettled Landscapes”
Sarah Milroy reports from latest SITE Santa Fe biennial, which was co-curated by Canadian Candice Hopkins and offered a grounded approach to place.
William Kentridge a Toronto—And Soon, Calgary—Highlight
Barbara Edwards Contemporary, Toronto May 2 to June 28, 2014
Mike Nelson’s Mountain-Man Art Bridges UK and Canada
Power Plant, Toronto February 1 to May 19, 2014
Francine Savard’s Weather-Forecast Works Shine Bright
Diaz Contemporary, Toronto October 17 to November 16, 2013
MASS MoCA’s Oh, Canada Offers American Take on Canadian Art World
A feature from the Fall 2012 issue of Canadian Art
Michael Snow Sets New Sights At the AGO
Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto July 18 to December 9, 2012
Jeff Wall: A Pilgrim’s Notebook
Critic Sarah Milroy’s thoughtful cover story for our Summer 2012 issue focuses on Jeff Wall’s “The Crooked Path” show in Spain, where Wall paired his own works with those of some 60 historical and contemporary artists.
Michel de Broin: Bright Matter
Artist Michel de Broin reconfigures the material world in ways that happily transgress everyday expectations. With his first Toronto commercial show on view, Sarah Milroy mulls over de Broin’s work and its complex, but often comical, effects.
Oh, Canada: An Interview with Denise Markonish
Opening on May 27 at MASS MoCA in North Adams, Massachusetts, “Oh, Canada” will be the largest survey of Canadian contemporary art ever held on American soil. In this interview from our Spring 2012 magazine, critic Sarah Milroy talks about the show's development with MASS MoCA curator Denise Markonish.
Susanna Heller: Catastrophe as Muse
Known for addressing 9/11’s landscapes, Susanna Heller has made catastrophe her muse, and—as critic Sarah Milroy observes of her current Toronto show—she’s made peace with it. Heller’s recent works engage her husband’s bout with a flesh-eating disease.
The Wedding: Ydessa Hendeles’ New York Vow
Recently, noted Toronto collector and curator Ydessa Hendeles curated “The Wedding,” her first exhibition in New York. In this review, critic Sarah Milroy describes the show’s marriage of time frames, objects and sensibilities.
Painting Canada: Artistry in the UK
The Dulwich Picture Gallery’s recent Group of Seven show was one of the UK museum’s biggest hits ever, drawing 41,000 visitors. The attention was deserved, writes Sarah Milroy, as the exhibition offered new insights even to seasoned Canadian-art observers.
Micah Lexier: The Art of Choosing
It’s often said that art-making is about making choices—what medium to use, what scale to deploy, what iconography to draw on. Here, Sarah Milroy reviews Micah Lexier’s current Toronto show, detailing the many decisions made along the way.
Carol Wainio
Varley Art Gallery, Markham
Steven Shearer: Boy Trouble
In this cover story from the Summer 2011 issue of Canadian Art, critic Sarah Milroy visits with Vancouver artist Steven Shearer as he prepares to exhibit in the Canada Pavilion at the 54th Venice Biennale.
Brian Jungen: Work in Progress
Artist Brian Jungen, best known for his transformation of contemporary objects into Aboriginal motifs, has seen great success over the past decade. In this feature from our Spring 2011 issue, critic Sarah Milroy talks with the artist of his new work, and his longstanding ties with the reserve at Doig River First Nation north of Fort St. John, B.C.
Edward Burtynsky: Deepwater Blues
Edward Burtynsky documents America's greatest ecological disaster in this feature from the fall 2010 print issue of Canadian Art.
Eminent Victorian
One of the problems besetting painting over the past century or so has been this: when does a painting start being a sculpture? Pure opticality (painting’s purview) and somatic engagement (sculpture’s thing) would seem to be at odds, but some artists have a knack for bridging that gap and bringing it all together.
