Valeria
Rzianina //
Canada
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materials about the artist/artworks click
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For
artist interview click
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Thanks to mass media, pornography is
easily accessible and raunch culture is everywhere, leading me to question the
perceived hyper-sexuality of women (and men) in pornography. In a desire to
determine something relevant in today’s material culture and consumer society,
I explore pornography through painting. For me, painting and pornography go
hand in hand, especially since both appeal directly to the senses offering the
viewer sheer visual pleasure. Confused about my own feelings on smut, I suspect
pornography, similar to ancient erotic art, documents, as well as perpetuates,
certain myths and truths surrounding issues of sexuality, gender, and power
through depictions of love-making.
My paintings are very process oriented. I cut out images
from pornography magazines and collage them onto stretched canvas to create
intricate compositions of intertwined bodies. Then, layer by layer, I paint
over the collage, focusing on the shapes of the bodies and deleting the
majority of details, such as backgrounds and accessories. Using pornography as
a ground for my painting allows me to appropriate the material. In the act of
choosing certain images and not others, as well as keeping shapes but losing
details, I am acting like a consumer of pornography would – I keep what I like
and throw out the rest. Even though pornography is the starting point for me,
my paintings are not really pornographic but highly sexualized compositions
using sticky sweet colours to evoke the viewers own memories of a recent romp.
My finished paintings tend to be neither representational nor abstract, but the
flesh and candy colour palette used to morph the collaged bodies together into
an orgy of sex and body parts hints at a rather naughty narrative.
Education
2002 - 2007
Ontario
College of
Art
and Design Bachelor of Fine Art; Drawing and Painting
1998 - 2002
Michael Power/
St. Joseph
Catholic
High School Graduated
with Honours
Solo
Exhibitions
2009
A
Little Something, Good for Her,
Toronto,
Ontario
2007
Selected Works, Condom
Shack,
Toronto,
Ontario
2007
Selected Works, Jupiter,
Toronto,
Ontario
Group
Exhibitions
2010
The X and O Show, The
Bait Shop Gallery,
Toronto,
Ontario.
2010
The Sex Show, Gallery
1313,
Toronto,
Ontario.
2010
mmmm…Pop!, Hang Man
Gallery,
Toronto,
Ontario.
2009
Hi Libido 2, Gallery
1313,
Toronto,
Ontario.
2008
Sex & Erotica
Exhibition, Gallery 1313,
Toronto,
Ontario.
2008
The X and O Show, The
Bait Shop Gallery,
Toronto,
Ontario.
2008
Selected Works,
Adrenaline Tattoos,
Toronto,
Ontario.
2007
Freaks and Other Strange
Characters, Scratch Gallery,
Toronto,
Ontario.
2007
Big Dicks and Barbie
Dolls, Spin Gallery,
Toronto,
Ontario.
2007
With a Little Help from
My Friends, El Mocambo Tavern,
Toronto,
Ontario
2007
Tour de Force OCAD
annual Graduate Exhibition,
Toronto ,
Ontario
2007
Year End OCAD
Retrospective Show, The Great Hall,
Toronto,
Ontario
2006
A Day in the Life…,
Transit Space,
Toronto,
Ontario
2006
Bedroom Blues, XSPACE
Gallery,
Toronto,
Ontario
2006
Ontario
College of Art and Design Figurative
Art Show,
Toronto,
Ontario
2005
OCAD Whodunit? Mystery
Art Sale,
Toronto,
Ontario
2005
Powerful Visions Arts
& Technology Art Show,
Toronto,
Ontario
Scholarships/Awards
2005
David L. Stevenson &
Son Award and Scholarship
2002
Earla Alexander
Scholarship
2002
Etobicoke Art Group
Award & Scholarship
2002
Mario Gasparatto Visual
Arts Award and Scholarship
Other
2009
Boobalicious, featured artist at
fundraiser,
Toronto,
Ontario.
2009
Nuit Blanche, St. Vlad’s
Community Center,
Toronto,
Ontario.
2008
Valeria
Rzianina: Erotic Painter, featured on SexTV, episode 10-13.
2007
The
Everything to Do with Sex Show,
Exhibition
Place,
Toronto,
Ontario
