This Week at Agnes

Image War on Reality

Agnes is pleased to host a writing workshop facilitated by guest curator and Queen’s University graduate Yaniya Lee.

This workshop is aimed at students from any discipline who would like to sharpen their writing skills or explore new approaches to critical and creative writing inspired by moving image work. The prompt: how do moving images shift our assumptions about the meaning behind what we see?

The workshop will use a curated film screening as the starting point for creative writing exercises. Here, formal experimentation dissembles and reshapes the meaning of images. Placed side-by-side, films show us the ways in which representation can be at odds with reality. Haunted images. Found images. Images that hold back or show too much.

Registration includes both the 3 November film screening and the 4 November workshop. Register today!

This program is in partnership with Momenta and is supported by the Canada Council for the Arts.

Isabel and Alfred Bader Lecture in European Art

Agnes is thrilled to present Threads of Mystery. Dress Code in the Work of Rembrandt Pupil Monogrammist I.S. by Marieke de Winkel for this year’s Isabel and Alfred Bader Lecture in European Art.

A painter now only known by the initials “I.S.” produced a small but significant body of work in seventeenth-century Northern Europe. For the first time, an international research and exhibition project has now shed more light on this mysterious artist, who has long been linked to the Dutch artist Rembrandt van Rijn (1606–1669). Renowned specialist in the history of dress Dr. De Winkel discusses what clues can be found about the artist’s possible identity when carefully observing the clothing depicted in I.S.’s work.

Register for this free talk today! In-person and online options available.

This program is supported by the Bader Legacy Fund and presented in partnership with the Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts.

A Smile Split by the Stars

In collaboration with Modern Fuel Artist-Run Centre and Gallery 44 Centre for Contemporary Photography, Agnes presents  A Smile Split by the Stars: An Experiment by Katherine McKittrick.

Anchored to nourbeSe philip’s gorgeous poem,“Meditations on the Declension of Beauty by the Girl with the Flying Cheek-bones,” different interpretations and readings of this work are offered: in essay form, in conversation, through archival work and bookmaking, across photographic and textual narratives, in sounds, circuits and shared stories.

A Smile Split by the Stars opens on 15 November, with the opening reception on 22 November at 6pm. Connected programming events include an opening reception, a facilitated reading session, a writing workshop and a curatorial talk.

Exhibition and programs co-produced with Modern Fuel Artist-Run Centre, Gallery 44 Centre for Contemporary Photography, the Canada Research Chair in Black Studies at Queen’s University and the The Revolutionary Demand for Happiness Working Group. Co-presented with the Ban Righ Centre, Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts.

Winter Art Hive dates now live!

Join our weekly Art Hive that welcomes everyone as an artist!

Artmaking is a powerful way to relax, recharge, and improve your wellbeing. Whether you’re an experienced artist or a curious beginner, this is a space to explore, experiment, and play with creative expression. Open to folks 16+, this is a free program and all materials are provided. Arrive any time during the two-hour session and stay for a little or a long while.

Art Hive is not a structured art class; there’s no formal instruction, and you’re free to follow your own creative path. Facilitator Harper Johnston is onsite to offer support, encouragement, and optional weekly activities to spark your imagination. You’re also invited to share your skills, support others, and build connections through making art together.

Art Hive is supported by the Birks Family Foundation.

Printing for Giving with Lisa Leskien

Create meaningful, hand-printed gifts in this 4-week linocut printmaking class with artist Lisa Leskien.

Learn to design and carve your own soft blocks, then print your designs on a variety of giftable surfaces. By the end of the class, you’ll take home a printed set of cards, a roll of wrapping paper, four ornaments, and a small tote bag, along with the skills and inspiration to create endless hand-printed treasures.

Whether you’re making keepsakes for loved ones or exploring new ways to share your creativity, this workshop offers a playful and meaningful approach to printmaking.

No experience is necessary—just bring your creativity! All materials are provided. Register today!