Icelandic Black Church, 2017
Ann Leese: The Sublime: Unbounded and Limitless
Twist Gallery
May 3 – 26, 2018
Opening Reception: Thursday, May 3, 2018, 7PM – 9PM
EXHIBITION DESCRIPTION
A roaring sky, shafts of broken light, solemn clouds and a terrifying beauty haunt the photographs in Ann Leese’s series The Sublime: Unbounded and Limitless. Leese’s first solo exhibition in Toronto consists of recent photographs that possess reverence and deep appreciation for the wild landscapes of Iceland and the Arctic. Her images often explore the awe-inspiring beauty of nature and the diminutive role we often play amongst it. Humanity is small and impotent in front of raging rivers, dizzying cliffs and canyons, ferocious animals, and violent storms; as if to show our inability to comprehend something so great and vast that the world around us seems inconceivable.
It is through photography that we can capture our sense of wonder and take notice of small moments where the light changes and casts a highlight over something that otherwise might be unremarkable. Leese shoots in the moment, instinctually experiencing the tranquil moments behind the camera as she feels the bone chilling cold, contorting her body into positions to experience the moment; often risking herself and her own equipment over the edge of a cliff. This exhibition focuses on the interactions with the unbounded and limitless expanses of nature as forms of catharsis or spiritual connection. Within the mountains, the rushing water and swaying thick grass we are overcome with the feeling of heaven and earth coexisting.