Bad Forgeries: The Exhibition

Bad Forgeries: The Exhibition

By Duncan Wildwood

This exhibit is a collection of paintings made from pictures of historical portrait paintings. They are not copies, but part approximation, part abstraction, using blatantly unhistorical tools: pencil crayon, acrylics and spray paint. Painting used to be a tool to capture the specificity of a distinct moment in time. As art has evolved painting has taken on a more interpretive tone and subjective flavor. In 5th century B.C.E. the pre-Socratic philosopher Empedocles divided the world into four elements, of which “nothing comes to be and nothing perishes.” This idea of a closed loop system, in which nothing new is added and nothing is taken away, has caught the imagination of scientists for millennia and is now consecrated as the law of the conservation of energy. Using this ethos as a foundation for this exhibit, no new materials or ideas were used to make these paintings, they are entirely recycled.

Opening: Friday March 3rd, 4-8:30pm

Show runs March 4 - 20 by appointment only.

Where: Phillips Showcase Gallery / 2010 Government St, Victoria, BC *beside the tasting room