Howard Podeswa: A Brief History

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toni_hafkenscheid

Howard Podeswa, "Heaven," 2015

oil on canvas, 2.74 x 4.57 m. Photo: Toni Hafkenscheid, courtesy of the Artist.

In recent years, as both world and personal events seemed to steer towards turmoil, Podeswa elected to reflect on the current state of the world.

A Brief History expresses an end-of-times cosmology inspired by artistic and scientific visions. Derived primarily from Dante’s allegories of the afterlife in the Divine Comedy and Stephen Hawking’s quantum theories, Podeswa’s poignant images also re-interpret iconic works by Pieter Breugel the Elder and Francisco Goya.

These compositions build upon intricate layers of personal memories and historical references, as well as recent news images of natural disasters and social upheavals, to convey a complex meditation on the human condition. The immersive scale of the works is intentional and powerful. Each visitor will determine their own contemplative journey by the direction they choose to take through the exhibition.

Curated by Mona Filip for the Koffler Gallery in Toronto in 2016, A Brief History is accompanied by a fully-illustrated catalogue with essays by Mona Filip, John Bentley Mays, and a conversation between artists Howard Podeswa and Stephen Andrews.

Howard Podeswa lives and works in Toronto, ON. Over the past 27 years he has exhibited his work in Canada, the U.S., Germany, and South Africa. His work often begins with personal history as a catalyst for meditations on art historical legacy, physics, theories of perception, and the state of the world.