Robert Therrien: Works 1975-1996

2 October -11 December 2016

Parasol Unit

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​Lacquered wood jutting from the wall it looks like a giant left the swinging barn doors ajar. How is this fixed to the wall? Next to it a small drawing of this door perhaps the plans before the actual thing came into being. It is a very simple drawing on a red card background. Everyday Objects, simple objects, very sophisticated. An enlarged keyhole sits just off the wall. Who would have thought to take the time to look at such a simple opening? This is an exhibition introducing over 40 works in the Oeuvre of Robert Thierren. His work is situated in minimalism, pop art, and painting in the extended field. A drawing of an oval with a frame hung over the paper. Not so it fits neatly inside the frame but in a way to call our attention to these formal geometric shapes at play on the page. Then you turn to see the 2d drawing has suddenly jumped out of that flat plane and into the extended plane. A relief with wood and encaustic wax with blue oil paint as its surface. The next room houses a large ruby red wall sculpture 2 wooden triangles pointing toward each other and lovingly coated with paint and wax. The drawing next to the sculpture confirms my suspicions this is a butterfly. There is so much poetry in these works. This exhibition is nostalgic it takes you on a journey. You ponder each vaguely familiar object until there is recognition. Each piece is personal and beautiful to look at. Experiencing each work is like listening to your favourite song. It gives you the sense of a moment, a place, or a special someone with just the right melody with the right combination of words.