Winnipeg gallery to feature exhibitions of works by Polataiko and Husar (09/30/01)

Winnipeg gallery to feature exhibitions of works by Polataiko and Husar

WINNIPEG - Forming a contemporary counterpoint to "The Phenomenon of the Ukrainian Avant-Garde, 1910-1935" exhibit at The Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG) are two exhibitions by artists of Ukrainian ancestry. Organized by the Art Gallery of Hamilton the exhibits are titled "Taras Polataiko" and "Natalka Husar: Blonde with Dark Roots."

A Ukrainian-born artist now living in Saskatoon, Mr. Polataiko studied art in Moscow in the 1980s and, upon emigrating to Canada, earned a master of fine arts degree from the University of Saskatchewan in 1993, specializing in painting, critical theory and performance art, Mr. Polataiko's work frequently refers to the history of modern painting and specifically to the development and dissemination of abstraction.

Selected in 1995 as one of "Ten Artists To Watch World-Wide" by the influential New York art magazine ARTnews, Mr. Polataiko, is represented by and has had solo exhibitions at leading galleries and museums of contemporary art in Canada and New York. His exhibitions are widely reviewed by leading national and international media. Since taking up residence in Canada, the 34-year-old artist has gained notoriety as a bad boy of contemporary Canadian art for his conceptual audacity.

The exhibit, which opened September 25, will be on view at the WAG until December 31.

A second-generation Ukrainian Canadian residing in Toronto, Ms. Husar is best known for intense paintings that critique immigrant culture. Since her 1992 visit to Ukraine, her art has addressed the disassociation people experience when they emigrate. In her work Ms. Husar explores the impact dual heritage has on the formation of identity.

Through the layering of images, she mimics the selective process of memory, blending Ukrainian iconography with personal, historical, and geographical references to that country. The results are surreal compositions that embody past, present and future.

Ms. Husar's work has been the subject of numerous articles and reviews in the Canadian press, as well as art and gallery publications. Her work is represented in many prestigious public collections. With an impressive list of solo and group exhibitions to her credit in Canada, she has also taken part in the "Absolut LA. International Biennial Art Invitational" in Santa Monica, Calif., and the group exhibit "The Urban and the Urbane," at the Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana in Mexico City.

"Natalka Husar: Blonde with Dark Roots" will be on view at the WAG from October 6 until December 31.

Both Ms. Husar and Mr. Polataiko will be present at the official openings of their respective exhibits as well as at the historic Ukrainian avant-garde exhibition to debut on October 10 in Winnipeg.

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