Tuesday, June 23, 2009

DIG IT SKID!



St. Catharines artist Melanie MacDonald's Skids

Call someone a ‘skid’ and you’re using a piece of Canadian slang that has an imprecise definition. For me, they were the kids I hung out with in the ‘smoke hole’ at my high school—located next to the tech wing.

Their character seemed to be defined by class and adolescent angst. There was self-defeating nihilism but it was balanced with an unwavering faith in partying. There were other hallmarks too: a love of heavy metal music, drugs and alcohol, and a ‘fuck-you attitude’ that was both playful and genuine.

I’ve made these paintings from found photographs. These aren’t people I know directly. Their portraits are a re-consideration and celebration of a distinctive coming of age, masculinity, rebellion, and the dubious difference between low and high brow.
This series of paintings takes as its title a scrawl of graffiti on a rock-cut along the Trans Canada Highway near Sudbury.

6 comments:

  1. Melanie MacDonald is an emerging artist to watch. She has an exhibition opening at A.K. Collings Gallery on July 5.I'm glad she has come to your attention!

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  2. These are great. Thanks!

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  3. I posted her "Dirty Dishes" a while ago: http://nagonthelake.blogspot.com/2008/09/melanie-macdonald.html

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  4. Aurelie, I think we've talked about her before. I like to support local artists when I can -and your gallery that showcases so many excellent artists.

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  5. These are great. I remember my children calling the troubled young couple next door "married skids". Yeah, that described the situation quite well.
    Also, for a later version of skids, I like the movie Fubar.

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  6. I hope I'm not a skid.

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