The gallery is pleased to announce a public screening of the Barfoot Productions short film about Jaan Poldaas making the 4 large paintings: Passages as Endpoints and Pauses, acrylic on canvas, each panel 101 x 101 inches, 2014. One of the most significant commissions of Jaan’s career, for a Mies van der Rohe tower in Toronto at 222 Bay Street.

The film captures the ideas behind making the works and the artist's career long concerns with colour and composition.

Synopsis: Why would an artist choose to disappear at the height of their career? This is the question posed by director Patrick Barfoot. In Canada in 1998, minimalist and conceptual artist Jaan Poldaas enjoyed a reputation that rested on three decades of work. One year later, the artist vanished from the art world. In this short film rich in archival material, the director attempts to find answers from lessons on contemporary art and personal accounts from art professionals. A portrait of an enigmatic artist, Jaan Poldaas: New Work is also a shining homage.

  We hope you will join us and stay for the panel discussion and Q&A after the screening with:

Adam Lauder, Moderator - author and educator
Roald Nasgaard, author: Abstract Painting in Canada (2008)
Patrick Barfoot - filmmaker
Andrew Pel - film producer
Ihor Holubizky - curator, writer (Jaan Poldaas: 2018 / Colours not to be Toyed With, 2024)
Jessica Rose - Poldaas estate archivist, writer (Jaan Poldaas: The B Side, 2024)
Anthony Cooper - curator
Luis Jacob - artist, curator

  The second edition of Jaan Poldaas: 2018 will be available for purchase ($80)