Opening on Friday, September 20, 2013, One, and Two, and More Than Two is an exhibition that brings together an important selection of recent work by Toronto-based artist Micah Lexier to celebrate the idea of artistic community and its role in contemporary art practice. This survey includes four solo large-scale pieces, three collaborations, and one ambitious curatorial project, which presents more than 200 new artworks and other art-related objects by 101 artists/duos/collectives in and around Toronto.
One, and Two, and More Than Two represents Lexier at all levels of his practice: working individually (One), in a collaborative process (Two), and working as curator to show how other artists in his community influence and inform one another (More Than Two).
The Power Plant opens the exhibition with a free opening party for all on Friday, September 20, 2013 from 8:00 to 11:00pm. Enjoy this outdoor lakeside celebration with music by Kikileaks. A cash bar will be available all evening.
United by Lexier’s interests in temporal and graphic systems of organization and measurement, One, and Two, and More Than Two encompasses all gallery spaces to reflect the artist’s diverse and dynamic practice around themes such as collecting and classification. “It is not every season when we can dedicate the entire gallery to several projects by one artist, and we do so for many reasons,” explains Director of The Power Plant Gaëtane Verna. “Not only does the exhibition represent the importance of artistic collaboration and its role in contemporary art practice, which is a hot topic around the globe at the moment and will be explored in much of our programming, but this project also continues a tradition of artist curated shows as part of the artist-centric institutional history of The Power Plant.”
The exhibition is presented in three parts. (One) features Lexier’s personal projects. For example, Lexier pairs Self-Portrait as a Wall Text (1998), a self-descriptive artwork he produced at the age of 37, with an updated version made specifically for The Power Plant, where both works are presented together for the first time. Additionally, the gallery presents Lexier’s new video installation entitled This One, That One, which explores the concepts of collecting and ordering that run throughout the exhibition. (Two) is the portion of this exhibition devoted to Lexier’s collaborations with writers. For example, 1334 Words for 1334 Students (2008) is a project the artist made with writer Colm Tóibín, who wrote a short story as many words long as there were students in Mississauga’s Cawthra Park Secondary School. (More Than Two) is Lexier’s personal take on a wide-ranging, multi-generational and robust Toronto art community. It presents more than 200 new and recently created artworks and objects by 101 artists/duos/collectives at various stages of their careers. Combined by Lexier, this assemblage of objects is not only the artist’s most recent curatorial project but also his latest portrait – a representation of his beloved community.
The Power Plant celebrates the work of Micah Lexier and the networks of creative production that surround it. One, and Two, and More Than Two continues through January 5, 2014. This exhibition is curated by Gaëtane Verna.
Micah Lexier (born Winnipeg, Manitoba, 1960) is an artist and curator living and working in Toronto. Over the last 30 years, Lexier has participated in international and national solo exhibitions and group exhibitions, and has produced several local public commissions. His work is found in various collections, including: The British Museum, London; the Contemporary Art Gallery, Sydney; The National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa; and the Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto. He is represented by Birch Contemporary, Toronto.
Additionally, enjoy the exclusive opportunity to hear Micah Lexier speak about his work and the exhibition on Thursday, September 26, 2013 at 7:30pm.
Accompanying this exhibition are two new publications – an artist book and an exhibition catalogue – published by The Power Plant and designed by Lexier and Jeff Khonsary. And Lexier, working with fashion designer Jeremy Laing, created Puzzle Dot Scarf, an artwork in four parts, a limited edition produced by and available at Drake General Store and The Power Plant.
For more information, please visit http://www.thepowerplant.org/Exhibitions/2013/Fall/Micah-Lexier.aspx