Zachari Logan’s artist residency at the McMichael, and related artwork commissioned by the gallery, folds seamlessly into Passion Over Reason as a 21st-century complement to Tom Thomson’s subject matter and Joyce Wieland’s strategically ‘feminine’ approaches to art making. Like Thomson, Logan (b. 1980) has Scottish roots but was born in Canada. Logan’s pastel and paint celebrations of flora and fauna in dense configurations would make any naturalist swoon, and the tender treatments of the human body interwoven among them make us think twice about sexually suggestive flora which is commonly associated with women artists.

Inspired by a photo of Tom Thomson, Logan has created a large pastel on paper panel depicting a shoreline dense with Ontario-native plants and creatures. A mysterious shadow of a man is cast across the composition. This shadow acts as a symbol of absence (appropriate for the centennial of Thomson’s death) and as a reminder of how we cast our own ideas about Thomson across the Canadian landscapes of our minds.

Logan’s work addresses his own sexuality and alerts us to the social constructs of gender norms. Like Wieland, Logan provokes thoughts about the politics of his sex through his art. At work in Thomson’s Shack, Logan will activate this ‘sacred space’ of Canadian art and demonstrate the legacy of both Thomson and Wieland.

Starting on Saturday July 1st, Zachari Logan will have his studio open for visits with the public regularly; please inquire at our Admissions desk in the Grand Hall for scheduled dates and times. And on the final day of the residency – July 8th – Zachari will be in conversation with the McMichael’s Director of Curatorial and Collections, Sarah Stanners, about the project. Click here for more information, and to RSVP.