Feature: Contemporary Art Fair 2014

Toronto’s art scene is growing up in a hurry. With Art Toronto occupying the Convention Centre last weekend, it’s surprising to see another major art event taking place downtown at the Joey & Toby Tannenbaum Opera Centre at 227 Front Street East.

Feature: Contemporary Art Fair is a new initiative from AGAC, the Contemporary Art Galleries Association. Not surprisingly, considering that AGAC is headquartered in Montreal, a number of exceptional Quebec galleries are represented at Feature including Galerie Rene Blouin, Galerie Trois Points, Galerie Simon Blais and Galerie Graff. Toronto’s lively contemporary art scene is there in force, too, with such gallerists as Susan Hobbs, Jessica Bradley, Clint Roenisch and Stephen Bulger exhibiting work.

Photo: Pimental photography 

What’s delightful is that the two events can clearly exist together. Art Toronto is a behemoth, a vast gathering of work from international as well as Canadian galleries. Feature is smaller, tighter and more curated. Only Canadian galleries are on view (including Vancouver’s Monte Clark, for example, as well as numerous Montreal and Toronto institutions) and the emphasis is only on contemporary art.

Photo: Pimental photography

Each gallery is showing work by only three artists and the spaces for exhibition are divided equally. The work on hand is by turns gorgeous and challenging, ranging from quirky photos by French octogenarian Gilbert Garcin to playful pieces by thirty-something Canadian Julia Dault. There’s a video programme and a series of intriguingly intellectual talks.

Photo: Pimental photography

Zoomers would love Feature. There’s a feeling of “this is the best” from each gallery and the whole floor space is far easier to negotiate than the huge Convention Centre.

Feature: Contemporary Art Fair ran October 23-26th, 2014 at the Tannenbaum Opera Centre. For more information, check out www.featureartfair.com

Written by Marc Glassman
Adjunct Professor, Ryerson University
Director, Pages UnBound: the festival and series
Editor, POV Magazine
Editor, Montage Magazine
Film Critic, The New Classical 96.3 FM
Film programmer, Planet in Focus

Tune in to hear Marc Glassman’s Art Reviews
Friday’s at 9:07am on Good Day GTA.