Ivan Eyre, Table Tower, 1992, acrylic on canvas. Collection of the School of Art Gallery, gift of the Artist.
Photo by Ivan Eyre, Table Tower, 1992, acrylic on canvas. Collection of the School of Art Gallery, gift of the Artist.

About the exhibition

This exhibition brings together works by former School of Art instructor Robert Nelson, his students, and several alumni who have been influenced by Manitoba’s regional surrealism. Nelson came from Chicago to Winnipeg in 1953 to teach at the School of Art. He was the only surrealist among a cohort of abstractionists, and was relatively close in age to his students. He became close friends with many of his students – they would babysit for him, and he would occasionally have to bail one of them out of jail. He took them to Chicago, giving many their first opportunity to see major artworks in person. Nelson was an influential figure in the artwork of Ivan Eyre, who went on to inspire another generation of surrealist artists at the School of Art. This exhibition, which features works by Robert Nelson, Ivan Eyre, Ernest Wilson, Kathleen Coburn-Donnelly, Kelly Clark, Esther Warkov, and Jack Sures, among others, sheds light on the impact a teacher can have on students – stylistically, and personally.

 

Curatorial Essay: Beginning a Surrealist Legacy

Exhibition Tour: Surrealist Suggestions

Adjunct Programming

Film Still from Hydro-Lévesque, By Mathew Rankin, Courtesy of the Winnipeg Film Group

A Snowstorm in My Heart: Surrealist Shorts from Winnipeg

Saturday, August 21, 2021
Curated by Lindsay Inglis
Presented in partnership with the Winnipeg Film Group.
FREE streaming at Cinematheque at Home.

Join us for an oddly intriguing, darkly humorous, and often sublime screening of surrealist short films from Drew Christie, Guy Maddin, Mike Maryniuk, Lasha Mowchun, Alan Pakarnyk, Matthew Rankin, Diana Thorneycroft, and Gwen Trutnau.

Film Still from My Winnipeg Directed by Guy Maddin, Courtesy of the Winnipeg Film Group

Guy Maddin: My Winnipeg

Saturday, August 28, 2021
Presented in partnership with the Winnipeg Film Group.
FREE streaming at Cinematheque at Home

In this feature-length “docu-fantasia,” Guy Maddin creates a portrait of his hometown that slips between realism and surrealism, incorporating archival footage, history, re-written memories, interviews, and dreams.

Lindsay Inglis

Surrealist Suggestions Curatorial Talk and Tour

Wednesday, September 15, 2021
On Zoom and livestreaming on the School of Art Gallery, University of Manitoba YouTube channel

Curator and art historian Lindsay Inglis will discuss her research on former School of Art professor and surrealist painter Robert Nelson. She will address Nelson’s long-lasting influence on Winnipeg artists, including School of Art alumni, including Ivan Eyre, Esther Warkov, and Marcel Dzama.

Visit the gallery

School of Art Gallery
255 ARTlab
180 Dafoe Road
University of Manitoba (Fort Garry campus)
Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2

204-474-9322
Monday-Friday, 9:00 am-5:00 pm
CLOSED all statutory holidays