Profile: MARY GRISEY artist Last Update:March 8, 2016

Mary Grisey is an American sculptural installation artist currently based in Toronto, Ontario. She received an MFA in the Visual Arts program at York University in Toronto, a BFA in Fiber and Material Studies from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and a BA in Painting and Drawing from Marist College. She has exhibited her work in New York, Chicago, Kentucky, San Francisco and Toronto.

She was recently awarded the Windgate full fellowship to the Vermont Studio Center for the Spring of 2016. Select solo exhibitions include Of Becoming at York University (2014), Sung From the Mouth of Cumae at The Art Gallery of Mississauga (2015) and Cloth Dripping at Xpace Gallery (2016). Select group exhibitions include Refined Linen at Katzman Contemporary (2014), Long Winter at The Great Hall (2015) and Escape Plans at YTB Gallery (2015).

Selected Work

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How do we understand, connect with and react to traces of the metaphysical? My work is about becoming, a process that encompasses both doing and undoing; energy goes into my materials and then there is a natural or simulated process of destruction. Transformation is central to my practice: a metamorphosis that reveals the ruin and beauty of both the body and the psyche. With the intention of revealing layers and residual deterioration, I unravel, scratch, burn and peel parts of the work. I use many natural materials in my practice—particularly linen, sisal rope and dye—which exude a distinct smell and permeate the senses before the demanding visuality commands attention. This address to the olfactory helps to create an active environment rather than a static installation. I am fascinated by the connection between the physical and metaphysical, and, in this vein, I take ancient mythology, metamorphosis, ruination and entropy as inspirations in my work. Like ruins, my works are only remnants of what was once whole; they are inscribed with traces of their previous life, death endured and the hereafter. My works embody these remnants that prefigure thought and feeling.

Venison Magazine Interview: http://www.venisonmagazine.com/mary-grisey.html Steadfast Arte Magazine: Interview http://www.steadfastarte.com/#/interview-mary-grisey/ Mississauga News: http://www.mississauga.com/whatson-story/5943050-mythology-and-landscapes-come-to-life-as-agm-unveils-new-exhibits/ The Medium: http://themedium.ca/arts/agm-rocks-the-boat-of-canadian-art Sung From the Mouth of Cumae, Curatorial Statement by Kendra Ainsworth: http://www.artgalleryofmississauga.com/digital_archive/Brochures/MaryGriseyBrochure.pdf Here & There Magazine Interview: http://hereandtheremag.com/mary-grisey.html NOW Toronto: https://nowtoronto.com/art-and-books/art/love-art-fair-fun-unpretentious-affordable/ Drain Magazine, Ruin Issue: http://drainmag.com/of-becoming/ World of Threads Interview: http://www.worldofthreadsfestival.com/artist_interviews/134-mary-grisey-15.html

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