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| Dinner For One 2008 mixed media on board 5.1 x 5.1 cm |
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| “After the Royal Art Lodge” at Toronto’s Division Gallery (2013) |
BIO & STEPS
Born:
The Royal Art Lodge was a collaborative group of artists
based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, founded in 1996 by Michael Dumontier,
Marcel Dzama, Neil Farber, Drue Langlois, Jon Pylypchuk, and Adrian Williams at
the University of Manitoba. Hollie Dzama and Myles Langlois also worked with
the group.
In the last few years, only three of the
original members remained, including Michael Dumontier, Marcel Dzama, and Neil
Farber — the most recognized line-up.
Nowadays:
Today, while Marcel Dzama has hit the big time in New
York, Dumontier and Farber remain in Winnipeg, where they continue to
collaborate as a duo, though no longer using The Royal Art Lodge name. Their
art has gained international recognition and is part of the reason why in 2011
Maclean’s named Winnipeg the hottest art scene in Canada — after Vancouver,
that is. Farber’s solo work is also in a collection at the Museum of Modern Art
in New York.
Education:
They came together in Winnipeg every Wednesday night
for years to make art. Then, in 2008, they split up.
Its alumni’s careers, however, hardly rolled over to die in the gutter –
the affiliation with one of Canada’s best-known collectives has proved
enduring. The collaboration between Dumontier and Farber, in fact, never really
stopped (it’s helpful both still live in Winnipeg)
Themes and
style:
At
times, their art is dark and alienated, though often there’s a cleverly absurd
juxtaposition of text and image that makes you wonder whether you’ve stumbled
upon some long lost pages of an impossible children’s book collaboration
between William Blake and Luis Bunuel, perhaps created while listening to
copious amounts of Captain Beefheart.
Techniques:
The majority of
the work produced by The Royal Art Lodge were small-scale drawings and
paintings which often incorporated text
Exhibitions
“After the Royal Art Lodge” at
Toronto’s Division Gallery (2013)
In their own words:
“Spontaneity is key to our process,” said
Farber. “Usually a painting will begin with an image, generally a character or
object, that is added to and talked about until a full idea is realized.”
Representative
Galleries:
Division Gallery
Galeries West
For
more Information:
http://www.frieze.com/issue/review/the_royal_art_lodge/