Press Release - For Immediate Release

Works by G. Scott MacLeod at Kastella 5355 St. Laurent
514. 270. 2444 www.kastella.ca
Opening, June 10th, 2010 5:00 to 8:00 pm

Ancestral Homes - John K. Grande
http://www.macleod9.com/macleod_art/ancestral_homes/art_ancestral.php
Using a variety of archaeological and historical sources, adapting these into a variety of visual and painterly expressions, G. Scott MacLeod explores themes of Viking and Scottish heritage and ancestry. Artifacts and ancient technology are painted representationally in the early documentary works produced for this series and then evolved into semi-abstract motifs. Viking ships, their design and utility as vessels become painterly abstract compositions. By transforming this into a contemporary expression of identity, he has brought some new life and a variety of novel visual expressions and configurations of this search for identity into being.

Lachine Canal Past and Present - John K. Grande
http://www.macleod9.com/macleod_art/lachine_canal/art_canal.php
The paintings and sketches in this show range from a Railway Bridge to the Five Roses Flour Mill building. An old iron bridge becomes a sublime piece of sculpture while a 75-ton Floating Crane used to unload goods stands starkly against the sky. The Canadian Pacific Railway Bridge is pure beautiful engineering and in another work a boat sits in Lock No. 5 lit up by night-lights. Some subjects such as the Redpath Sugar, Northern Electric and Corticelli Buildings or “Jackknife Bridge” becomes panoramic paintings that recreate the feeling that the Lachine Canal with its coal derricks, Coleco Building, Canada Malting Building is a living museum of industrial building and marine artifacts. The majesty and industrial history of Canada is nowhere more evident than in the Lachine Canal. G. Scott MacLeod brings it to life. For its generous support of G.Scott MacLeod’s exhibition, and understanding of the proud heritage that the Lachine Canal and its architecture represent, Montreal’s McAuslan Brewery should be warmly thanked.

New York City - John K. Grande
http://www.macleod9.com/macleod_art/central_park/art_central_park.php
G. Scott MacLeod’s drawings are not derived from the observation of reality at all. Instead, they draw directly from the atmosphere and subject matter of New York photographer Jefferson Hayman. MacLeod’s drawings are resplendent with a sense of the captured moment. Each subject is brought to life with a delight. From Gothic arches, to bridge structures, to the tranquility of a Central Park pond, all MacLeod’s drawings are based on Hayman’s photographs. We would never have known this without having been informed of it. Using conté and water-soluble graphite, MacLeod has produced a remarkable series of lively drawings on Mylar sketches for this show. His ability to transcend the ordinary, and refabricate a sense of the mystery and beauty of a place is remarkable.

G. Scott MacLeod BIO Born in Red Deer, Alberta, in 1965, G. Scott MacLeod has a Bachelor of Fine Arts (specialization in Printmaking) from Concordia University (2003). He has been awarded two scholarships for the Banff Centre for the Arts, and is a fellow at The Helene Wurlitzer Foundation of New Mexico. He also sits on the Concordia University Fine Arts Advisory and Alumni Association. With over 150 exhibitions and performances, MacLeod`s work is in many private and corporate collections. He was artist in residence at the McAuslan Brewery from 2004 to 2008 where he founded the Centre St. Ambroise cultural centre. In 2009, he completed a film documentary After the the war with Hannelore – A Berliner war child’s testimony 1945 – 1989, with the support of the National Filmboard of Canada, Filmmakers Assistance Program. A founder of La Raza Group, MacLeod also lectures on art practices and is an accomplished musician. He lives and works in Montreal.