With this in mind, the John B. Aird Gallery invited Montreal-based gallerists André Laroche and Louis Joncas to adjudicate submissions received from contemporary artists worldwide who utilize historical or contemporary art technologies to comment on our present moment while concurrently curating exhibits for their Quebec and Nova Scotian projects spaces.

The Aird Gallery loosely defined WILDLIFE as a broad description of the natural world (flora and fauna) and a source of wonder and inspiration partly because of its mystery and aesthetic value.

Inasmuch, artists were invited to submit works that depict WILDLIFE as a complex natural resource, render the beauty of individual animal species, and represent a fluid perception of sexuality through the lens of wildness by exploring how art objects, similar to natural objects, can be more or less wild.

Together, the jurors, Laroche and Joncas, selected pieces by seventy artists that, in concert, depict current notions of WILDLIFE.

The contributing artists include: Maria-Bida Albulet, Todd Babensee, Lawrence Beck, Maureen Bradshaw, Valerie Carew, Alyson Champ, Linda Chen, Damon Couto-Hill, Celine J. Dallaire, Cheryl Daniells, Fanny Desroches, Sherry Dube, Joanne Duklas, Francisca Duran, Marie Finkelstein, Rhonda Franks, Sue Gamble, Eldon Garnet, Steve Giasson,  Anne-Marie Giroux,  Angellos Glaros, Tom Goldsmith, Livia Gombor, Josie Greco, Dante Guthrie, Julia Hacker, David Hills, Tim Hough, Phil Irish, Nancy Kembry, David Kempton, Steven Kenny, Gillian Lahav, Sabrina Leeder, Carolanne MacLean, Nola McConnan, Mary Ann McGee, Laurel Mcleod, Kelly McNeil, Lynda Moffatt, Susan Munderich, Brenda Nieves, Solange Paquette, Margaret Pardy, Marie A Prospero, Eugene Radewych, Dale M Reid, Phyllis Rohrbacher, Laura Santini, Brandy Saturley,  Kaija Savinainen, Rubie Scott, Barry Smylie, Melissa Steben,  Freddie Towe,  Ann Towell, Will Urspung, Evan Van Zeumeren Dana Veelan, Alexander Victoria, Kenneth Vincent, and Don Woodiwiss.

Some artists the Montreal gallerists selected express a profound appreciation for the natural world. But many of the pieces André Laroche & Louis Joncas selected transcend scientific representation, operating on what might be described as a supernatural level.

Organized into three succinct sections, air, water, and earth, by the WILDLIFE designer Kate Parkinson, the online project can be read as a science fantasy in what’s left of the worldwide woods or a contemporary version of Noah’s Ark.

BIOGRAPHIES

ANDRÉ LAROCHE  studied Art and Communications at McGill University, then moved to New York City in 1982 to complete a BFA in Cinema Studies from New York University TISCH of the Arts. After returning to Montréal, he was a painter for 15 years before starting a gallery in Montréal.

He is the first/principal co-owner of Galerie Laroche/Joncas, established in October 2005 under Projex-Mtl, a two-artist venture by André Laroche and Louis Joncas. In September 2010, the gallery changed its name to Galerie Laroche/Joncas.

In July 2023, the gallery decided to move from the Belgo to their apartment to rethink the dynamics of their gallery space experience and present art in a more intimate context, working with fewer artists with a more personalized and modest approach. See more here.

Their contemporary art gallery was located for 15 years amongst many of the most vibrant Montreal Galleries in the Belgo Building and is renowned for representing influential artists such as Jana Sterbak, Lynne Cohen, Stephen Lack, and Anna Torma.

The gallery also presented numerous exhibitions with emerging artists and plans to continue supporting emerging artists along with established ones.

LOUIS JONCAS is a conceptual photo-based artist born in 1959. He holds a BFA from the University of Ottawa and an MFA in photography from Concordia University in Montréal.

He is known for utilizing common detritus to create still-life/nature morte tableaux, incorporating advertising lighting and product placement techniques. His photographic Vanitas has been exhibited in Quebec, at the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Canada, New Orleans, and in Aix-en-Provence during France’s Rencontres de Arles photo festival.

His work can be found in institutional collections such as the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, the New Orleans Museum of Art, and numerous private collections. Joncas shares his time between Montreal and Gabarus, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, where the gallery has a project space called La Shed, which presents seasonal exhibitions while co-directing Galerie Laroche/Joncas.

In addition to this exhibition, we prepared a playlist of songs to accompany this year’s online juried exhibition.