Going Out: Must-see art openings in Toronto in May
Every month, we select the city’s best art openings. In May, we suggest Richard Barnes’s new show at Bau-Xi Photo, Newfoundland artist Christopher Platt at the Mira Godard Gallery and Doug Ischar’s sampling of photography, installation art and experimental film at Gallery 44 and Vtape.
Richard Barnes
The celebrated New York photographer has a way of seeing things the rest of us overlook. His new show’s title, Murmur, short for murmuration, refers to a flock of starlings, his primary subject. Barnes’s images of the birds swarming over Rome are both poetic and a little frightening—it’s impossible not to think of Hitchcock’s The Birds. Artwork $3,000–$7,000. May 1 to 31. Bau-Xi Photo, 324 Dundas St. W., 416-977-0400, bau-xiphoto.com.
Christopher Pratt
This Newfoundland artist describes his work as essentially autobiographical, focusing as it does on the landscapes and social history of his home province. His art is often read as abstract, though these new oil paintings and watercolours feel entirely grounded in the quotidian. Artwork prices by request. May 4 to 25. Mira Godard Gallery, 22 Hazelton Ave., 416-964-8197, godardgallery.com.
Doug Ischar
Over the decades, the American artist has worked his way through photography, installation and experimental film while never losing sight of the perils and pleasures of queer masculinity in the age of AIDS. This show samples all three of those creative periods, plus recent video work. Artwork $1,000–$4,000. May 3 to June 1. Gallery 44 and Vtape, 401 Richmond St. W., 416-979-3941, gallery44.org.
![](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://torontolife.com/city/things-to-do-in-toronto-art/&title=Going Out: Must-see art openings in Toronto in May&picture=https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/going-out-art-toronto-may-2013-624x395.jpg&description=[caption id="attachment_211251" align="aligncenter" width="656"] (Image: courtesy of Richard Barnes)[/caption]
Every month, we select the city’s best art openings. In May, we suggest Richard Barnes’s new show at Bau-Xi Photo, Newfoundland artist Christopher Platt at the Mira Godard Gallery and Doug Ischar’s sampling of photography, installation art and experimental film at Gallery 44 and Vtape.
Richard Barnes
The celebrated New York photographer has a way of seeing things the rest of us overlook. His new show’s title, Murmur, short for murmuration, refers to a flock of starlings, his primary subject. Barnes’s images of the birds swarming over Rome are both poetic and a little frightening—it’s impossible not to think of Hitchcock’s The Birds. Artwork $3,000–$7,000. May 1 to 31. Bau-Xi Photo, 324 Dundas St. W., 416-977-0400, bau-xiphoto.com.
Christopher Pratt
This Newfoundland artist describes his work as essentially autobiographical, focusing as it does on the landscapes and social history of his home province. His art is often read as abstract, though these new oil paintings and watercolours feel entirely grounded in the quotidian. Artwork prices by request. May 4 to 25. Mira Godard Gallery, 22 Hazelton Ave., 416-964-8197, godardgallery.com.
Doug Ischar
Over the decades, the American artist has worked his way through photography, installation and experimental film while never losing sight of the perils and pleasures of queer masculinity in the age of AIDS. This show samples all three of those creative periods, plus recent video work. Artwork $1,000–$4,000. May 3 to June 1. Gallery 44 and Vtape, 401 Richmond St. W., 416-979-3941, gallery44.org.){kind=link}