The Dollhouse
Heather Benning

May 2 – June 2, 2012

Opening Reception: Saturday, May 5, 6 - 9pm   Artist Present
http://www.telephoneboothgallery.ca/dollhouse.html

Same night! Visit CONTACT Photography Festival openings throughout The Junction.
http://scotiabankcontactphoto.com/search/junction

The Dollhouse is a suite of photographs that present the transformation of an abandoned farmhouse in rural Manitoba into a life-sized dollhouse. The photographs reveal a degraded wooden house in a flat empty field. Around the back of the house, an entire wall has been replaced with Plexiglas, revealing rooms that have been fully restored and furnished with decor dating from around the time the house was abandoned in 1968. The contrast in the exterior and interior speak to themes surrounding the passage of time, childhood play, memory, reclamation and nostalgia. The Dollhouse delves deeply into exploring the act of dwelling and engaging with a deep sense of place.

Heather Benning created The Dollhouse while serving as artist-in-residence for Redvers, Saskatchewan, about 30 kilometres west of the house near Sinclair, Manitoba. The installation took nearly 18 months to complete.

Celebrating the 5th anniversary of the installation, this exhibition will feature selected works from the suite of 30 photographs as well as never before exhibited images documenting the creation of The Dollhouse.

Heather Benning was born in Humboldt, Saskatchewan in 1980 and now lives and works in rural Saskatchewan and Glasgow, Scotland. She began her formal studies in fine arts at the University of Regina, and completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Nova Scotia College of Art and Design in 2004, and a Master of Sculpture at Edinburgh College of Art in 2009. Between her degrees, Benning returned to Saskatchewan, where she completed several large-scale, site-specific installations. She has had numerous solo and group shows throughout Canada (Nova Scotia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan) and abroad (Germany, Scotland, England and France). Heather's work has been reviewed in Canadian Art magazine (Spring 2005, 2011), Sculpture magazine (Spring 2008), Galleries West (2009), Espace (Winter 2009/2010) and Uppercase Magazine (Issue 8). Benning recently received a Professional Development Grant from the Canada Council for the Arts (Summer 2009) and was nominated for the Sobey Art Award long list in 2010.




Upcoming Exhibitions

TEL-TALK: A group exhibition and publication launch regarding locating the public telephone booth. http://tel-talk.blogspot.ca/
June 13 - July 14, 2012
Reception: Friday, June 15, 6-9 pm

HOURS
Tues by appt.
Wednesday - Friday 11am - 6pm
Saturday 10am - 6pm




TELEPHONE BOOTH GALLERY
3148 Dundas Street West - Toronto - Ontario - M6P 2A1
(The Junction, Dundas at St. Johns Rd.)
T 647 270 7903
info@telephoneboothgallery.ca
www.telephoneboothgallery.ca

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The Dollhouse: Dusk #2 (20" x 30") Kodak Endura Digital C-print, 2007 (printed 2011) ed. 10 (detail)
The Dollhouse: Living Room Reflection (20" x 30") Kodak Endura Digital C-print, 2007 (printed 2011) ed. 10