R.M. Vaughn's Review of the Exhibitions of Martha Eleen and Mary Catherine Newcomb at Loop Gallery

The Great Hare by Mary Catherine Newcomb

Globe & Mail art critic R.M. Vaughn reviewed Martha Eleen and Mary Catherine Newcomb's exhibitions at loop Gallery, suggesting that the show which may at first "appear dissonant" actually reveals underlying tensions and subliminal commonalities that make the artists a "good team". Read the full text of the review called The Zen of Post-conceptual Art here.

Opening at Loop Gallery January 7, 2011

Paintings by Martha Eleen

Michele Harney and Martha Eleen's dad

The gallery is open today from noon to 5 pm and on Sunday from 1 to 4 pm. Photos shown above are from last weekend's opening. Martha Eleen will be giving an artist talk at Toronto School of Art on Wednesday, January 18th at 6 pm.

Artist Talk: Martha Eleen will headline at Toronto School of Art

 AS IS  oil on wood, 30 x 30, 2011 by Martha Eleen

Loop member Martha Eleen will be the "headline" speaker at an evening of artist talks at the Toronto School of Art on Wednesday, January 18, 2012. The evening begins at 6 pm with a talk by artist Judith Snow and  Martha's talk will follow.

Martha Eleen teaches painting and drawing at the Toronto School of Art and is an honours graduate of Emily Carr College of Art, Vancouver, Canada. Her artistic practice engages the ideas of cultural landscape, the construction of society, and the politics of space through painting. Her work has been exhibited in public galleries in Canada, the United States, Japan, and Mexico. 

Martha will be talking about her current  exhibition at loop Gallery. I, Huck maps the domestic space framing the artist’s relationship with her son Gabe, who is vulnerable and requires constant support. This is an inside view of a dynamic person whose natural gifts of sharp wit, emanating love, and disarming honesty are often obscured by disability bias. The titles used in the work are quotes from Gabe. Fascinated by analog audio technology, Gabe listens to several recorded versions of Huckleberry Finn and likes to call himself ‘Huck.’ He thinks the “n” word is “neighbour”.

This program is free and seating is first come, first serve.  Donations are welcome. Toronto School of Art is located just east of Spadina on the north side of Adelaide at 410 Adelaide Street West, third floor.

Martha Eleen's show continues at loop Gallery until January 29, 2011.

Ingrid Mida in Conversation with Lyla Rye

All is Vanity by Ingrid Mida
Digital C-print 2010

There will be a Question and Answer session with Ingrid Mida at Loop Gallery on Saturday, January 29th, 2011 at 3 pm. She will speak about her series All is Vanity which is currently on display at Loop as well as answer questions from the audience and moderator Lyla Rye.


Ingrid Mida discovered photography at age 10 and thereafter spent many hours in the darkroom with her father and older brother. Initially pursuing studies in architecture, she graduated with a BA (Economics) as well as a masters degree from the University of Waterloo (1985). She had a career in finance and publishing before going back to her true passions as an artist. She obtained a Fine Arts Diploma from the Toronto School of Art and also completed the Independent Studies Program there.

Ingrid has exhibited her work in Toronto galleries since 2003. Embracing a variety of mediums including drawing, sculpture, installation and photography in her practice, her work explores the intersection of fashion, art and life. Ingrid also works part-time as an assistant to a curator of fashion and textiles and is author of the widely read blog Fashion is my muse!


Lyla Rye is an installation artist who received a BFA from York University in 1989 and a MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 1994. She has exhibited nationally & internationally in video festivals and screenings, art galleries, museums and off-site venues including a bathroom, an elevator, a women's prison, warehouse basements and storefront windows. She recently created a permanent installation as part of Harbourfront’s Artist Garden Series in Toronto. She teaches at Sheridan College, University of Toronto at Mississauga and OCAD University, and was the founding co-ordinator of the Independent Studio Program at the Toronto School of Art. Lyla was Ingrid's advisor during her time in the ISP program at TSA.