Bonnie Devine, Third Battle of Ypres, Passchendaele Belgium, 2024. Oil on canvas, 182.9 x 121.9 cm. Courtesy of the artist.

Bonnie Devine: Land in War

September 28, 2024 – January 4, 2025
Opening Reception: September 28, 2 – 4 pm

Bonnie Devine is a cross-disciplinary artist, writer, and educator whose work is deeply immersed in the storytelling and image making traditions central to Anishinaabe culture.

In this exhibition, Devine reflects on land and how its possession and control are at the heart of warfare through the stories of eight pivotal figures: three Victoria Cross recipients interred in Owen Sound, four Indigenous warriors who fought on various North American battlegrounds, and her father, who served with the Canadian army in Belgium and Holland in 1944. The exhibition includes delicate charcoal portraits of these individuals, coupled with expansive landscape paintings inspired by their actions, and smaller monoprint studies of each battle site.

During a time marked by escalating global conflicts, Devine’s work prompts reflection on colonialism’s tendency to incite violent conflict and the devastation it causes to both people and the natural world. The exhibition asks that we consider not only the harm the land has suffered because of these conflicts, but also its enduring resilience and beauty.

Lydia Knox, View of West Hill, 2023. Oil on canvas, 40.6 x 50.8 cm. Courtesy of the artist.

Creative Pathways: Celebrating the Neurodivergent Community

September 21, 2024 – January 4, 2025
Opening Reception: September 28, 2 – 4 pm

Through a public call, the Tom Thomson Art Gallery, in partnership with the Reach Centre Grey Bruce, invited local artists who self-identify as neurodivergent to submit artwork in response to the concept of community. The call was an extension of the community quilt project that was completed in the fall of 2023, which saw over 100 artistic expressions on small sheets of paper that were stitched together into a large collaborative depiction of what community looks like. Four artists—Nancy Allan Hall, Lydia Knox, Emmitt Williams, and Kristofer Wist—were selected by the jury to participate in this exhibition, each offering their vibrant, individual interpretations of this topic.

At its heart, Creative Pathways celebrates artistic expression and community partnership while highlighting the immense talent and creative energy of neurodivergent artists in our region.

David B. Milne, Main Street, c. 1942. Ink on wove paper, edition 4/40. Tom Thomson Art Gallery Collection, Owen Sound. Bequest from the Douglas M. Duncan Collection, 1970.

The Mark of Community: Works from the Collection

September 21, 2024 – January 4, 2025
Opening Reception: September 28, 2 – 4 pm

A selection of artwork from the Tom Thomson Art Gallery’s Collection by Harold Klunder, Barbara Irvine, Robert Markle, David Milne, Janet Mitchell, Norval Morrisseau, Hanni Rothschild, and Jamasie Teevee, conveying the spirit of interconnection.

The Tom Thomson Art Gallery collection contains work which spans over 150 years and includes many different forms of art—paintings, works on paper, photographs, sculptures, textiles, installation pieces, and even a Kawasaki motorcycle.

Made up of over 2600 objects, the collection has grown and advanced throughout the Gallery’s history due to the hard work and dedication of staff, volunteers, donors, sponsors and members of the public. The collection continues to grow with the addition of both contemporary and historical works by regional and national artists.

For more information about our current exhibitions, please visit our website.

About Tom Thomson Art Gallery

The Tom Thomson Art Gallery develops exhibitions and programs that enrich the region and contribute to national visual arts discourse. We promote and support emerging and professional artists, advocate for the creative sector, and actively research, preserve, develop, and exhibit the collection to promote scholarship and to generate and explore new ideas. We are committed to welcoming and inspiring people of all representations, ages, backgrounds, and abilities.

Gallery Hours before October 12
Monday: 12:00am – 4:00pm
Tuesday to Saturday: 10:00am – 4:00pm
Sunday: Closed

Gallery Hours after October 12
Tuesday to Friday: 10:00am – 4:00pm
Saturday: 12:00pm – 4:00pm
Sunday: Closed
Monday: Closed

Tom Thomson Art Gallery
840 1st Avenue West
Owen Sound, ON N4K 4K4
www.tomthomson.org
ttag@tomthomson.org
519-376-1932

Facebook @tomthomsonartgallery
Instagram @tomthomsonartgallery

The Tom Thomson Art Gallery operates with generous support from the City of Owen Sound, Canada Council for the Arts, and the Ontario Arts Council.

Accessibility:
Tom Thomson Art Gallery is fully accessible. For more information, please visit our website.