January 18 – July 27, 2025
Level 2 in Irving & Sylvia Ungerman and Jennings Young Galleries, AGO
The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) is proud to present Louise Noguchi: Selected Works, 1986-2000, an exhibition running from January 18, 2025, showcasing the distinguished Toronto artist’s contributions to video and sculpture.
This exhibition brings together three significant works from the AGO collection, each exemplifying Noguchi’s exploration of identity, perception, and reality.
- Crack (2000): A three-minute looping video where Noguchi performs as an assistant in a wild-west act, holding flowers that are abruptly severed mid-air by the lash of a whip. The piece reverberates with sound, creating a visceral experience that challenges viewers’ perceptions of danger and control.
- Fruits of Belief: The Grand Landscape (1986): This large sculptural installation combines a head, a cornucopia, and a photographic reproduction of Thomas Gainsborough’s 1770s painting, A Grand Landscape. The work examines humanity’s complex relationship with nature, blurring the lines between reality and artifice.
- Eden (1990–91): A mirror sculpture addressing themes of surveillance and freedom. It prompts viewers to question whether they are approaching paradise or withdrawing from it, reflecting on the duality of observation and participation.
About Louise Noguchi
Born in Toronto in 1958, Louise Noguchi has had a prolific career spanning over five decades, working primarily in sculpture, installation, photography, and video. She graduated from the Ontario College of Art in 1981 and later received her MFA from the University of Windsor in 2000. Noguchi has also contributed to the academic field as a professor in the Art and Art History Program at the University of Toronto Mississauga and Sheridan College.
Her works have been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions across Canada and internationally, including:
- Louise Lawler, Louise Noguchi, Beauty Supply, Toronto (2023)
- Contemporary Photographic Art In Canada: The Space of Making, a circulating exhibition co-produced with Neuer Berliner Kuntsverein, Berlin, and VOX, Montreal (2005)
- document (solo exhibition), Dazibao, Montreal (2004)
- The Language of the Rope, New Gallery, Calgary (2004)
- In Light, Art Gallery of Ontario (2002)
Noguchi’s work consistently delves into the construction of identity, shaped by events, beliefs, and circumstances, inviting viewers to reflect on their own perceptions and experiences.
Public Opening Event
To celebrate the opening of Louise Noguchi: Selected Works, 1986-2000, the AGO will host a public event on January 18, 2025, at 2 p.m. The event will feature remarks by Louise Noguchi and Renée van der Avoird, Associate Curator of Canadian Art at the AGO. This event is free with general admission.
Visit the Exhibition
Louise Noguchi: Selected Works, 1986-2000 is located on Level 2 in the Irving & Sylvia Ungerman (Gallery 230) and Jennings Young Galleries (Gallery 231) at the AGO. Admission is always free for AGO Members, AGO Annual Passholders, and Ontarians 25 and under. For more information and to plan your visit, please see the exhibition page.
