Mary Pratt

Renowned Newfoundland and Labrador artist Mary Pratt will be celebrated in a 50-year retrospective touring exhibition which opens at its first touring venue, the Art Gallery of Windsor.

Beginning in the mid-1960s, Mary Pratt became fascinated by light on the surfaces of everyday objects in her home. She began to create powerful oil paintings; the first in this genre, Supper Table (1969) will be in this exhibition. Other iconic works to be included are Jelly Shelf (1999), Eviscerated Chickens (1971) and Service Station (1978). Nuance of tone, brushstroke, angle and choice of subject leave viewers of Mary Pratt’s images with a sense of wonder and sometimes unease. Highly contemporary yet rooted in the traditions of art history, Mary Pratt’s work reveals the breadth of emotion, skill and maturity this artist brings to her practice.

The Mary Pratt exhibition is a project by The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery, St. John’s, NL, and The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax, NS, with support from the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage, Museums Assistance Program, and also from the Canada Council for the Arts and the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. The exhibition is co-presented in Windsor with the generous support of The Chandisherry Foundation and The Morris and Beverly Baker Foundation.

A multi-authored publication is available in both English and French recently released by Goose Lane Editions including an essay by AGW Director, Catharine Mastin. Copies can be purchased from AGW Visitor Services.

Curated by Mireille Eagan and Caroline Stone (The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery, St. John’s, NL) and Sarah Fillmore (the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax, NS).