February 2021: Nostaliga by Botros Durra
From the moment I came to Toronto, 6 months ago, I was fascinated by its diversity and inclusiveness. Its people’s care and warmth have reminded me of my home country, the way I like to remember it, before the war. It was the place where I studied Performing Arts, and where I shaped my perception and aesthetic sense.
Now, Toronto is enriching my experience and opening new doors that I have never thought existed; even when I am not holding a brush or in front of a canvas, the city keeps me imagining and painting. My paintings for this exhibition are dedicated to everyone who can relate to “nostalgia”.
This time with myself reminded me of another kind of love … self-love. In the busyness of everyday life, we sometimes forget to pay attention to ourselves. This time of tranquillity ignited feelings that I did not pay attention to earlier, but suddenly there blossomed within me a thousand flowers
To purchase, please contact Botros Durra directly by email. (20% of sales will go to First Unitarian.)
Sunderland Hall
Our main worship space is an ideal place for showing artwork. The large skylight and high ceilings enhance the room while the gallery space has its own lighting to allow the works to be shown to their best advantage.
We also have a smaller display area in our library, where art from our members is displayed for up to two months.
The artists who display their work in these spaces often offer some pieces for sale, with a small percentage of the price going to the congregation. Please contact the artist if you are interested in purchasing a work.
Artists interested in exhibiting their work in our Sunderland Hall gallery are invited to contact the Arts Committee chair by email.
(During the time of Covid-19 restrictions, we are unable to host art shows in Sunderland Hall, but we will be posting Virtual Art Shows.)
This Year’s Shows
The following shows were planned for Sunderland Hall in 2020:
| Month | Artist | Show Dates | Reception (12 pm) |
Learn More |
|
January & February |
Shirley Dawson, Valerie Prideaux, Sandra Sarner |
Jan 12 – Feb 23 | January 12 | |
| March | Members and friends of First | March 1-29 | March 1 | |
| April | York Artists Guild | April 5-26 | yorkartistsguild.weebly.com | |
| May | Helena Wehrstein | May 3-21 | helenawehrstein.com | |
| June | Helen Kong and Sorlie Madox | June 7-28 | ||
| July & August | Avenue Road Arts School | July 1 – Sept 9 | AvenueRoadArtsSchool.com | |
| September | Carol Harrison | Sept 13-27 | carolharrisonart.com | |
| Ocotober | Peggy Bell | peggybellartist.com | ||
| November | Pat Dumas-Hudecki | dumas-hudecki.com/paintings | ||
| December | Indigenous artist Diane Montreuil | Diane’s Art Connection |
Previous Years’ Shows
The following shows were held in Sunderland Hall in 2019:
| Month | Artist | Show Dates | Reception (12 pm) |
Learn More |
| January | Willowdale Artists Group | Jan 6-27 | January 6 | willowdaleartists.com |
| February | Sheryl Keen | Feb 3-24 | February 3 | sherylkeen.com |
| March | Members and friends of First | March 3-31 | March 3 | |
| April | York Artists Guild | April 7-28 | April 7 | yorkartistsguild.weebly.com |
| May | Bill Ross and Randall Brown | May 5-26 | May 5 | |
| June | Rama Fayaz | June 2 – July 14 | June 9 | Rama Painting |
| July & August | Avenue Road Arts School | July 16 – Sept 4 | AvenueRoadArtsSchool.com | |
| September | Jeff Mann | Sept 8 – 29 | Sept 8 | jeffmannart.com |
| October | Phyllis Gordon | Oct 6-27 | October 20 | phyllisgordonart.com |
| November | Sereen Aziz | Nov 3 – Dec 1 | November 3 | instagram.com/sereenscape |
| December | Indigenous artist Debra Vincent | Dec 8 – Jan 5 | December 8 | debravincent.com |
The following shows were held in Sunderland Hall in 2018:
| Month | Artist | Show Dates | Reception (12 pm) |
Learn More |
| January | Escarpment Biosphere Conservancy | Jan 7-28 | January 14 (Fundraiser) | escarpment.ca |
| February | Ato Seitu | Feb 4-25 | February 4 | inkphy.com/tag/atoseit |
| March | Members and friends of First | March 4-25 | March 4 | Arts@nullfirstunitariantoronto.org |
| April | York Artists Guild | April 8-29 | April 8 | YorkArtistsGuild.ca |
| May | Joanna Strong | May 6-27 | May 6 | joannastrong.ca |
| June | Lucinda Vandenieuwegiessen Colin van Zwijndregt |
June 3-24 | June 3 | saatchiart.com/vandenieuwegiessen |
| July & August | Avenue Road Arts School | June 28-Sept 3 | AvenueRoadArtsSchool.com | |
| September | Susanne Clark | September 9 | susanneclark.com | |
| October | Susan L. Brown | October 7 | ||
| November | Martin Myers | November 4 | martinmyers.ca | |
| December | Métis artist Louise Lefebvre | December 9 | mountaindrummer.wixsite.com/spiritcougarlefebvre |
The following shows were held in Sunderland Hall in 2017:
| Month | Artist | Learn More |
| January | Michael Battenberg | MichaelBattenberg.com |
| February | Jordan Clarke | JordanClarke.ca |
| March | Members and friends of First | |
| April | York Artists Guild | YorkArtistsGuild.ca |
| May | Nancy Bennett | NancyBennett.ca |
| June | Irene Sakata | IreneSakataArts.com |
| July & August | Avenue Road Arts School | AvenueRoadArtsSchool.com |
| September | Carmel Bouzanne | CarmelBouzanne.com |
| October | Barbara de Beaupré | |
| November | Nick Biagini | DigitalConsciousness.com/galleries/NickBiagini |
| December | Joseph Sagaj Keitha Keeshig-Tobias |
muskratmagazine.com/joseph-sagaj bizindam.com |
The following shows were held in 2016:
| Month | Artist | Learn More |
| January | Palette Expressions Group | |
| February | Clayton King, Indigenous artist | WhiteBearArt.com |
| March | Members and Friends of First | |
| April | York Artists’ Guild | YorkArtistsGuild.ca |
| May | John Visser | JohnVisserArt.com |
| June | Susan Farquhar | susanfarquhar5.wordpress.com www.SusanFarquhar.ca |
| July & August | Artists’ Network | |
| September | Steve Rose | SteveRose.ca |
| October | Shir Libeynu | ShirLibeynu.ca |
| November | Jean Galt, Wendy Ounpuu & Wendy Dines | |
| December | Aboriginal Art |
The following shows were held in 2015:
| Month | Artist | Learn More |
| January | Michael Battenberg | MichaelBattenberg.com |
| February | Judith Donoahue, Carol Harrison | |
| March | Members and Friends of First | |
| April | York Artists’ Guild | YorkArtistsGuild.ca |
| May | D.D. Gadjanski | ddgadjanski.com |
| June | Randall Brown | |
| July & August | 10 Artists from the Don Valley Art Club | www.donvalleyartclub.com |
| September | Shir Libeynu | Shirlibeynu.ca |
| October | Barbara de Beaupré | |
| November | David Connolly | |
| December | Amnesty International: In/visible Scars | Amnesty.ca |
