Letitia Fraser: This is My Fabric

Letitia Fraser, Auntie’s Boy, mixed media on quilt, 2023

Letitia Fraser: This is My Fabric

The Portrait Gallery of Canada proudly presents Letitia Fraser: This is My Fabric, on view at Art Toronto, Booth A4, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, October 26 – 29, 2023, and online at portraitcanada.ca starting October 26, 2023.

Letitia Fraser is an emerging interdisciplinary artist from Halifax who uses collage, quilting, and figurative painting to create portraits of family members and of her extended community. She explores archives, biography, memory, representation, and affiliation from her perspective as a Black Nova Scotian woman and a proud descendant of North Preston. Her work addresses what it means to be from a particular place with a distinct history, and sets out to document, preserve, and make known that collective past.

This exhibition, This is My Fabric, features portraits by Letitia Fraser that incorporate hand-appliqué fabric, drawing inspiration from quilting traditions within her family and community. Fraser’s intimate and vibrant portraits trace and extend a long and distinguished heritage of Black artists who have reconsidered and widened notions of representation, memory and collective history. Her portraits make visible the strength and fearlessness with which she asserts the presence and strength of her subjects in their own local community.

Letitia Fraser: This is My Fabric is curated by Johanna Mizgala, one of Canada’s most respected curatorial voices, with an extensive background of exhibitions, cultural programing, and art criticism. She is currently the Curator of the House of Commons, and has held senior roles at the Library and Archives Canada and the National Gallery of Canada.

A short film by acclaimed film director David Hartman will accompany the exhibition and explore Fraser’s stories, her practice, the people, and places from which she draws inspiration.

Letitia Fraser, Silent Warrior for God, acrylic on quilt, 2021

The Portrait Gallery of Canada is committed to identity, showcasing, and disseminating work by emerging Canadian and indigenous artists. It seeks work that pushes multiple narratives and promotes critical thinking about representation and identity.

“As an institution that cannot avoid the history and legacies of traditional British and European portraiture, and in particular, issues related to intersectionality of class, gender, race, and sexuality, it is critical to create and hold space for artists who engage directly with this complex terrain head on, and to enable meaningful conversations about who we are collectively, and as individuals.” – Johanna Mizgala, Curator

The exhibition is supported by The Stonecroft Foundation.

Letitia Fraser, Civil Boom, acrylic on quilt, 2021

About the Portrait Gallery of Canada (PGC)
The Portrait Gallery of Canada is a new kind of museum for Canada, one that presents the stories of individuals and groups from all walks of life who make up Canada – in their communities and online. The Portrait Gallery of Canada is generously supported by its Founding Partner, Telus.

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