Greg Curnoe : life & stuff

Greg Curnoe (1936-1992) is said to have made no distinction between his life and his artistic production. Known for his dévotion to his family and friends, and admired for his intense régional loyalty to his hometown of London, Ontario, Curnoe claimed that art could only be valid if it reflected his lived expériences. His outgoing personality, distinctive work and willingness to engage in stimulating verbal debates with his large circle of friends and peers contributed to his réputation as a colourful and gregarious individual. Scornful

of art theory and disdainful of the daims of universality for

international styles of art, Curnoe became known for his matter-of-fact, down-to-earth attitude. The view of Curnoe as a common man whose cultural production was inseparably joined to his life devcloped very early in his career and continues to exert considérable authority with critics of his work. Curnoe’s

persona as an artistic “everyman” is sustained primarily through the insistent use of the biographical narrative, which effectively acts as a barrier to a more critical, theoretical reading of his work.

In the spring of 2001 the Art Gallery of Ontario organized

a large rétrospective exhibition of Curnoe’s work. The exhibition, Greg Curnoe: Life and Stuff