Black Rainbow - Summer exhibition

BLACK RAINBOW Galerie Youn has organized this summer’s group under the theme Black Rainbow in conjunction with the many events that punctuate LGBT pride month in Montreal. As a spin on the ubiquitous icon of gay pride (DIVERS/CITÉ), Black Rainbow presents a selection of works from sixteen artists. The show offers diversity: different mediums – from drawings to prints to photos to installations –, different sizes – from small dolls to large paintings –, artists with different social and national backgrounds. Some works are highly sexualized; some offer a new take on well-loved cultural icons. The show blends in with the Mile End’s diverse culture offering.

• Johan Jansson is a Swedish photographer living in Montreal who is branching out into famous icons floating like angels.
• Katherine Melançon recently returned from the U.K. to Montreal; she manipulates fruits and vegetables as abstract forms in her photos.
• Jamie Bradbury, born in Toronto, recently finished studies in the U.K. and does watercolours focusing on black-white relations in popular American culture.
• Cluca, from Toulouse (France) and residing in Montreal, is known for her swimmers; this time they include many men, often in nostalgic 1920s style.
• Jay Dart, from Port Perry (Ontario) uses graphite and watercolours to make drawings of child-like fantasies whose charm takes the breath away. He recently published his catalogue with Galerie Youn.
• Drew Simpson is a Berlin-based classically trained painter who uses animals in humorous narration with a dark twist.
• Bernice Lum is a Toronto-based artist known for kitschy installations and dolls, in this case inspired by Playboy: eye-popping and cute.
• Michael Toke is a Toronto-based visual/installation artist, highly imaginative and symbolic, full of expression and colours.
• Jonathan Savoie, a Canadian artist who recently moved to L.A. after 15 years in Tokyo, presents photographs of urban scenes, such as his fuchsia-treed Eiffel Tower.
• Juno Youn, a Canadian artist of Korean origin, presents dreamscapes: collage, painting and drawing in a tribute to René Magritte.
• Ron Loranger, Toronto-based, blends automatic drawing and carefully curated water blurbs in a colourful narrative.
• David Woodward, based in Port Perry (Ontario), is an emerging artist and Galerie Youn’s latest talent. His work uses carefully juxtaposed collages on paper with botanical gardens, insects and human bodies.
• B. Mad, Montreal based sketch artist draws inspiration from individual samples of human frailty. Depicting a modern day ‘hero’ with gritty truth, B.MAD suggests the brooding vigilante has become our knight in shining armour.
• Maryanna Hardy, Montreal-based illustrator who works with pen, ink and watercolour and reflects on identity and cultural issues.
• Kikooshi is a plastics technician born in Marseilles, he now lives in Montreal and is fascinated by Japan. His fish mild nutters sculptures are the synthesis of those three continents.
• Jessica Wee is a visual artist  of Korean origin currently based in Florence, Italy to continue her training in drawing and painting at the Angel Art Academy.