Daniel Hughes: A Rising Star

When British Art Dealer Jill George saw Daniel Hughes' work at the Toronto International Art Fair, she not only invited him to show at her London gallery, but she included his work in the upcoming London Contemporary Art Fair. At the age of 32, with solo shows at major galleries in Toronto and western Canada, Daniel is about to break onto the world stage.

Daniel knew that he wanted to be a painter by the age of 12. He finished high school in Kingston by 16 and then attended St. Lawrence Community College where he studied painting and drawing. From there it was a short hop to the Ontario College of Art and Design. A longer jump took him to Florence as part of Ontario College of Art and Design's Off-Campus program. On his return from Italy, he found himself painting 13 or 14 hours a day and barely took the time to attend his fourth year classes. Painting was his passion and obsession and for two years following his graduation he painted continuously.

His training in figurative art was greatly enhanced by his two-year stint at the New York Academy of Art where he graduated cum laude with an M.F.A. in 1995. That same year he had his first solo show at the Edward Day Gallery in Kingston where most of his paintings were sold. This October, Daniel had a successful show at the Edward Day Gallery in Toronto where many of the paintings combined portrait and landscape in ways one seldom sees – sometimes on one canvas, sometimes in diptychs or triptychs.

Daniel's desire, when painting, is to document what exists around him and what he experiences. He describes his portraits as "naked": "I'm not trying to romanticize anything. I just want to make the subjects as human as possible." He tries to notice as much as he can and to "find the most truth." Uncompromising in his technique, Daniel refuses to cut corners and this is clear in all of his work.

He finds that the mindset of painting a landscape provides a helpful balance to documenting a human subject. "When I'm working on a portrait, the space is confined, the focus is on the internal. With landscape, it's open and free and can be a relief from an intense inner focus that can become emotionally draining."

Daniel enjoys teaching at the Avenue Road Arts School and is especially gratified to see the enormous progress his students have made in a relatively short time.

Singer/actor Jennifer Gould, who teaches two classes at the Avenue Road Arts School, is playing the role of Viola in the National Arts Centre production of Twelfth Night in Ottawa from December 8 to December 30.

Jennifer taught at the School in the early nineties before joining the Stratford Shakespearean Company where she acted for many years. Since September she has been teaching Musical Theatre to Grades 4-8 on Fridays 4:15-5:45 pm and Let's Make Music to children 9 months to 2 years, with their parents or care givers, on Monday mornings. In response to a large number of requests, Jennifer has agreed to teach an additional music class for parents and children, aged 3 and 4 on Tuesday mornings from 9:15-10:00 am. These classes will take place at the Bradgate Arms, across the street from the school, beginning in January.

Jennifer's Musical Theatre class will offer a special performance for the seniors who live at the Bradgate Arms. Performances of You're a Good Man Charlie Brown will take place on Thursday, January 24 at the Bradgate Arms, 54 Foxbar Road and Friday, January 25 at the First Unitarian Church, 175 St. Clair Ave. West. Both performances will begin at 5:00 pm.

Artist/Instructor Sadko Hadzihasanovic has an upcoming exhibit entitled Modern Life. The exhibit, runs February 2-March 2, 2002, with an opening reception on February 2, from 2-5 pm. Viewings are Wednesday-Saturday, 11-5 pm. For more information call Paul Petro Contemporary Art, 980 Queen Street West, 416-979-7874.