Myfanwy Macleod facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Myfanwy Macleod
Myfanwy Macleod's The Birds (2010) sculpture
Born	1961 London, Ontario
Education	Concordia University
Alma mater	University of British Columbia
Known for	sculptor with exhibited work in Canada, the United States of America, and Europe
Notable work	Whole Lotta Love
Awards	La Fondation André Piolat (1995), VIVA award from the Doris and Jack Shadbolt Foundation

Myfanwy MacLeod (born 1961) is a Canadian artist. She lives and works in Vancouver, British Columbia. Her art has been shown in Canada, the United States, and Europe. Myfanwy has won awards like the La Fondation André Piolat (1995) and a VIVA award (1999). Her artwork is part of important collections. These include the National Art Gallery of Canada and the Vancouver Art Gallery.

Early Life and Artistic Style

Myfanwy MacLeod grew up in Oakville, Ontario, and London, Ontario. After high school, she traveled around Europe. She later studied film and then visual arts at Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec.

Myfanwy's art often uses humor and satire. She includes ideas from pop culture and old stories (folklore). She likes to show how an image or object can change its meaning. Since the 1990s, she has been known for mixing "high art" with popular entertainment. Recently, she has looked at how popular culture shows masculinity. Myfanwy works with many types of art. These include sculpture, drawing, painting, photography, video, and sound art. She has also written essays and an artist's book called “Whole Lotta Love” (2012). The Catriona Jeffries Gallery in Vancouver represents her work.

Education and Teaching

Myfanwy MacLeod earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts from Concordia University in 1990. She also studied at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France, in 1994. She completed her Master of Fine Arts at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver in 1995.

Myfanwy has also taught art. She taught at the University of British Columbia in 1995. From 2001 to 2006, she taught at Emily Carr University of Art and Design. She was also an assistant professor at the University of Western Ontario from 2007 to 2008.

Group Art Shows

Bounce (2002)

Myfanwy MacLeod was part of an art show called Bounce. It featured three new artists from Vancouver. The show was held at the Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery in Toronto. It mainly showed sculptures, along with sketches and drawings. Myfanwy's works in Bounce included The Tiny Kingdom (2001), Wood For The People (2002), and A Shady Place (2002). These pieces together hinted at the idea of a "hillbilly" from pop culture.

Hammertown (2002-2004)

Hammertown was a traveling art show. It was shown in Edinburgh, Scotland, Vancouver, and Winnipeg, Manitoba. Myfanwy's work was shown with other artists.

One of her works was Our Mutual Friend (2002). This was a large wooden sculpture. It showed her interest in satire and separate body parts. The sculpture was very big, showing her use of huge scale and simple design.

Art Project in Scotland

In 2005, Myfanwy spent three months in Scotland. She was part of the Glenfiddich Distilleries artist-in-residence program. During this time, she took photos, made sculptures, and drew. She recorded how buildings were falling apart around the distilleries. Myfanwy was the first Canadian artist invited to this program. Her art from this time was shown in 2006. The show was called Where I Have Lived and What I Have Lived For. It was at the Contemporary Art Gallery in Vancouver.

Solo Art Shows

Myfanwy MacLeod: A Brief Overview of Personology (2000)

This show was at the Charles H. Scott Gallery in Vancouver. It explored themes like self-help books, shopping, and comedy. Myfanwy used humor to make fun of these ideas. She took pictures from a self-help book and turned them into fine art. Her works included silkscreen prints called How To Make a Man Fall in Love With You (2000). She also showed a wood sculpture called One Week (2000). A video projection called The Greeter (2000) showed her acting as a store greeter.

The Tiny Kingdom (2001)

The Tiny Kingdom (2000) is a large sculpture made of wood. It is fourteen feet tall. It looks like an outhouse from the movie Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968). It was first shown in Vancouver in 2001. Myfanwy wanted it to be a quiet place for thinking. It also explores the connection between art and society. This sculpture is now part of the permanent collection at the National Art Gallery of Canada.

Where I Lived and What I Lived For (2006)

This exhibition showed the art Myfanwy made during her time in Scotland. It was presented at the Contemporary Art Gallery in Vancouver. This show included large photographs, drawings, sculptures, and installations. Photography was a new medium for her at the time. Myfanwy said her time in Scotland was a "voyage of discovery." It helped her approach her art in a new way.

Myfanwy MacLeod, or There and Back Again (2013-2014)

This was a big art show looking back at Myfanwy's work from the past ten years. It explored pop culture from the 1970s. The show's name hints at JRR Tolkien's book The Hobbit. It also refers to 1970s music like Led Zeppelin.

The show was held in two places. In 2013, it was at Museum London in Ontario. In 2014, it moved to the Vancouver Art Gallery in British Columbia. Myfanwy was born in London, Ontario, in 1961. She grew up with rock and roll music and cool cars. This show brought together her past and present. It was shown in her childhood hometown and in Vancouver, where she lives now.

At the Vancouver Art Gallery, Myfanwy also helped choose other artworks for a part of the show called Artist’s Choice Cock and Bull (2014). This part combined her art with pieces from the Vancouver Art Gallery's collection. She only included art made by men. This made people think about how art is displayed and what it means to be a feminist artist today.

The Vancouver show had three extra pieces not seen in London. These were Albert Walker (2014), Dragon (2014), and Presence (2013). Presence was a small sculpture on a dolly. It linked 1970s heavy metal music to simple art. Dragon was a large photo mural. Albert Walker was a sculpture that looked like an entertainment center. It had painted buds that changed color. The name Albert Walker also refers to a man who committed fraud.

Myfanwy often includes music, especially 1970s heavy metal, in her art. She refers to the band Led Zeppelin. Her artist book Whole Lotta Love (2012) is one example. Stack (2013) is an installation of screen prints that look like giant Marshall speakers. Some pieces in Myfanwy MacLeod, or There And Back Again are named after Led Zeppelin songs. These include Ramble On (2013), which is a 1977 Camaro Rally Sport. Another is Living, Loving Maid (She’s Just a Woman) (2013), a sculpture with a mannequin and beer cans.

Myfanwy also explores old folk traditions in her Hex series (2009). These are hand-painted signs based on patterns from Dutch culture in Pennsylvania. They are like traditional Hex signs found on barn doors. By showing these symbols in an art gallery, Myfanwy gives them a new meaning.

Commissioned Artworks

The Birds (2010)

The Birds was Myfanwy's first big public art project. It is in Vancouver, British Columbia. It was partly inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's film The Birds (1963). This large sculpture shows two house sparrows. These birds are not native to British Columbia. The artwork makes people think about what belongs in a place and what seems impossible.

Playtime (2016)

Playtime is a public art piece in Vancouver. It is located at the British Columbia (BC) Women's and Children's Hospital. Myfanwy MacLeod created it with artist Shannon Oksanen.

They used ideas from playground design. They made five "modernist play" sculptures. These are black and white and made of glass fiber and concrete. The sculptures have names like Two Figures in Orbit and The Magic Stones. Together, they are called Playtime. This art piece is interactive. It is part of the Wellness Walkway at the hospital.

Published Writings

• “Just Kidding: Kyla Mallett”, Canadian Art (Summer 2004)
• “WWJD (What Would Judd Do)” CJ Press (2008)
• “Whole Lotta Love”- Publication Studio, Vancouver. (2012)
• Master Rabbit I Saw, Capilano Review

Images for kids

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  Myfanwy Macleod's The Birds (2010) sculpture