I paint images of semi urban residential environments. The settings are sometimes familiar but are usually imagined places. Colour is otherworldly, landscaping efforts seem redundant, and home decor sometimes pushes boundaries of taste. Manipulated and often distorted natural environments serve to contrast a presence of architectural order and solemnity. Implied narratives in the settings are intended to suggest a duality of control and disruption in Utopian pursuits.
Ian McLean is the recipient of multiple Ontario Arts Council Visual Artist Grants and was recently a contestant on the inaugural season of CBC’s “Landscape Artist of the Year: Canada”. His work is held in private and corporate collections across the country and internationally.
Solo Exhibitions
2017 - "Floor Plan", Artopia Gallery, Sarnia, Ontario
2016 - "Ian McLean: New Works", CFA Gallery, Toronto, Ontario (catalogue)
2013 - "Conditions", Loop Gallery, Toronto
"Easily Distracted", St. Thomas-Elgin Public Art Centre, St. Thomas, Ontario
2011 - "Here, Then and There", Forest City Gallery, London, Ontario
"Recreational Use", Loop Gallery, Toronto
Lola's Lounge, Sarnia
2009 - "New Work", Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
Aphex Imaging, Sarnia
2006 - "Excess", Transit Gallery, Hamilton, Ontario (in conjunction with Gary Michael Dault)
2005 - "Living Arrangements", Transit Gallery, Hamilton (in conjunction with Gary Michael Dault)
"Living Arrangements", Gallery Lambton, Sarnia (catalogue)
"Living Arrangements By Night", Artopia Gallery
2003 - "Comfort Zone", Transit Gallery, Hamilton
Lola's Lounge, Sarnia
"Turn The Lights On", Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
2000 - Red Tango, Sarnia
1999 - Gallery Lambton, Sarnia
1996 - Ambrosia Café, Sarnia
1995 - "New Paintings and Drawings", Gallery in the Grove, Bright's Grove, Ontario
1993 - "Ornaments", Kenneith Gallery, Sarnia
1991 - "New Paintings", Kenneith Gallery, Sarnia
1988 - Ingersoll Creative Arts Centre, Ingersoll, Ontario
McLaughlin Library, University of Guelph
Group Exhibitions
2021 "ART BUILDS 2021", Gallery 1313, Toronto
"VAM43", Visual Arts Mississauga, Mississauga, Ontario
2020 - "Presently", Art Gallery of Peterborough
"Connexions" Gallery in the Grove 40th Anniversary Exhibit
2019 - "The Same Things At The Same Time: Paula McLean and Ian McLean", Gallery in the Grove
2017 - "Elusive Utopia" (with Matthew Carver, Renee Van Halm,and Kevin Yates), Judith and Norman Alix Art Gallery, Sarnia
CFA Gallery, Toronto (catalogue)
Sopa Fine Arts, Kelowna, BC
Thames Art Gallery, curated by Kendra Ainsworth, Chatham, Ontario
2016 - "Summer Light", CFA Gallery, Toronto
"Informal Observations", Sopa Fine Arts, Kelowna
"Biennial Juried Exhibition", Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, Brantford, Ontario
2015 - "City of Art", Gallery 1313, curated by Phil Anderson, Toronto
"Out of the Deep Freeze: 15 Hot Painters to Watch in 2015", CFA Gallery, Toronto
"Those Who Inspire", Gallery in the Grove
2014 - "New Acquisitions: Contemporary Canadian Painting", Canadian Fine Arts, Toronto
"Canadian Contemporary Art Auction", Waddington's Auction House, Toronto
Love International Art Fair, represented by CFA Gallery, Toronto
"Summer Colours", Canadian Fine Arts, Toronto
2013 - "Weird", Harbourfront Centre, curated by Patrick Macaulay, Toronto
"JNAAG Juried Show", curated by Ivan Jurakic and John Kissick, Judith and Norman Alix Art Gallery, Sarnia
"Thames Art Gallery Juried Exhibition", curated by Sigi Torinus, Thames Art Gallery, Chatham
2012 -"Visual Elements", 54th annual juried show, Woodstock Art Gallery, Woodstock, Ontario
"Collective Vision", Loop Gallery, Toronto
Art Gems 12, Creative Works Studio Art Auction, Toronto
"The Promise of Painting" (3 person show), Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, Brantford
Handworks Gallery, Saint John, New Brunswick
2011 - Gallery Moos, Toronto
St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts, Parkdale Food Bank Art Auction, Toronto
Handworks Gallery, Saint John, New Brunswick
2010 - Handworks Gallery, Saint John, New Brunswick
Gallery Moos, Toronto, Ontario
Gallery Moos, Burroughes Building, Queen St. West, Toronto
"Forces of Nature", Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, Brantford
"Facades: Outside - In", Susan Kristjansson Gallery, Sarnia
"Artists Work", Gallery in the Grove, Bright's Grove
"Look '10", Gallery Lambton, Sarnia
Venus Gallery, Aurora, Ontario
2009 - Venus Gallery, Aurora
2007 - "A New Breed", Lovart Gallery
Angell Gallery, Toronto
2006 - "LOOK'06", Gallery Lambton, Sarnia
"art:50", Gallery in the Grove
2005 - "On A Whim", Tatar Gallery, Toronto
2004 - Canvas Gallery, Toronto
"LOOK'04", Gallery Lambton
2003 - Juried Exhibition, Thames Art Gallery, Chatham
"LOOK'03", Gallery Lambton
2002 - "In A Class of Their Own", Gallery Lambton
"LOOK '02", Gallery Lambton
2001 - "elements", Gallery in the Grove
"Platypus Collective", West Wing Art Space, Toronto
2001-03 - Art registry, Gallery Lambton
2000-2010 - Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
2000 - "Lambton-Kent Art Teachers Exhibit", Thames Art Gallery, Chatham
"Invitational 2000", Gallery in the Grove
1999 - "LOOK '99", Gallery Lambton
1998 - "3x3 Miniature Show", Gallery Lambton
1997 - "S.C.I.&T.S. 75th Anniversary Exhibition", Gallery Lambton
1996 - "LOOK '96", Gallery Lambton
1994 - "LOOK '94", Gallery Lambton
1992 - "LOOK '92", Gallery Lambton
1987-89 - Juried show, Bear Creek Studio, Petrolia
1988 - Juried show, University of Guelph
1987 - Oxford County Juried Show, Woodstock Public Art Gallery
Education
1989 - B.A. (Fine Art) - University of Guelph
1990 - B.Ed. - Western University, London
Awards, Honours, Talks
2023 - juror, Prisma Art Prize, Rome
2022 - juror, Prisma Art Prize, Rome
2021 - juror, Prisma Art Prize, Rome
2020 - contestant, "Landscape Artist of the Year Canada", Makeful TV / CBC TV/ CBC Gem
- juror, Prisma Art Prize, Rome
2019 - Ontario Arts Council Visual Artist Creation Project Grant
2018 - Mayor's Honour List, Sarnia
2017 - "Elusive Utopia", artist talk, Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery
2016 - semi-finalist, Bombay Sapphire Artisan Series
- first prize, "Biennial Juried Exhibition", Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant
- Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
- juror, Paint Ontario
2015 - Mid-Career Visual Artist Grant, Ontario Arts Council
- British Vogue Magazine (August)
- Dwell Magazine (November)
2014 - international art fair, Love Art, Toronto
- "Curiouser & Curiouser", artist talk, Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery, Sarnia
- catalogue, "Contemporary Canadian Art Auction", Waddington's, Toronto
2013 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
- finalist, Saatchi Art 'Showdown'
- "Best of 2013", Saatchi Art
2012 - Mid-Career Visual Artist Grant, Ontario Arts Council
- Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, artist talk , PechaKucha (with Shelley Niro)
- cover image, "Murder at the City Motor Hotel" by Sky Gilbert, Hamilton Arts & Letters, Samizdat Press
- portfolio inclusion, Hamilton Arts & Letters, issue 5, Samizdat Press
- Best in Show, "54th Annual Juried Show", Woodstock Art Gallery, Woodstock, Ontario
2011 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
2010 - Juror's Choice Award (first prize), "Forces of Nature", Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant
Second prize, LOOK 2010, Gallery Lambton, Sarnia
2009 - panel talk, "Connecting to Collections", Gallery Lambton
2004 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
2003 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
Second Prize, "LOOK'03", Gallery Lambton
2002 - Second Prize, "LOOK'02", Gallery Lambton
People's Choice Award, "LOOK'02", Gallery Lambton
1995 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
1993 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
1992 - Big Sisters Lottery Calendar
1991 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
1989 - London Semester Study, London, England (U. of Guelph)
1988 - Gordon Couling Award for Painting, Creative Arts Assn., Guelph
Collections
Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery permanent collection, Sarnia
Christen Seaton Barristers, Toronto
Aphex Technologies, Toronto
Niman Zemans Gelgoot LLP, Toronto
corporate collection, New York
private collections in Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Edmonton, Calgary, Saint John, Sarnia, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Atlanta, New Jersey, Minneapolis, London, Dubai, Melbourne, Oslo, Brussels
I would like to acknowledge support from the Ontario Arts Council, an agency of the Government of Ontario.
Ian McLean is the recipient of multiple Ontario Arts Council Visual Artist Grants and was recently a contestant on the inaugural season of CBC’s “Landscape Artist of the Year: Canada”. His work is held in private and corporate collections across the country and internationally.
Solo Exhibitions
2017 - "Floor Plan", Artopia Gallery, Sarnia, Ontario
2016 - "Ian McLean: New Works", CFA Gallery, Toronto, Ontario (catalogue)
2013 - "Conditions", Loop Gallery, Toronto
"Easily Distracted", St. Thomas-Elgin Public Art Centre, St. Thomas, Ontario
2011 - "Here, Then and There", Forest City Gallery, London, Ontario
"Recreational Use", Loop Gallery, Toronto
Lola's Lounge, Sarnia
2009 - "New Work", Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
Aphex Imaging, Sarnia
2006 - "Excess", Transit Gallery, Hamilton, Ontario (in conjunction with Gary Michael Dault)
2005 - "Living Arrangements", Transit Gallery, Hamilton (in conjunction with Gary Michael Dault)
"Living Arrangements", Gallery Lambton, Sarnia (catalogue)
"Living Arrangements By Night", Artopia Gallery
2003 - "Comfort Zone", Transit Gallery, Hamilton
Lola's Lounge, Sarnia
"Turn The Lights On", Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
2000 - Red Tango, Sarnia
1999 - Gallery Lambton, Sarnia
1996 - Ambrosia Café, Sarnia
1995 - "New Paintings and Drawings", Gallery in the Grove, Bright's Grove, Ontario
1993 - "Ornaments", Kenneith Gallery, Sarnia
1991 - "New Paintings", Kenneith Gallery, Sarnia
1988 - Ingersoll Creative Arts Centre, Ingersoll, Ontario
McLaughlin Library, University of Guelph
Group Exhibitions
2021 "ART BUILDS 2021", Gallery 1313, Toronto
"VAM43", Visual Arts Mississauga, Mississauga, Ontario
2020 - "Presently", Art Gallery of Peterborough
"Connexions" Gallery in the Grove 40th Anniversary Exhibit
2019 - "The Same Things At The Same Time: Paula McLean and Ian McLean", Gallery in the Grove
2017 - "Elusive Utopia" (with Matthew Carver, Renee Van Halm,and Kevin Yates), Judith and Norman Alix Art Gallery, Sarnia
CFA Gallery, Toronto (catalogue)
Sopa Fine Arts, Kelowna, BC
Thames Art Gallery, curated by Kendra Ainsworth, Chatham, Ontario
2016 - "Summer Light", CFA Gallery, Toronto
"Informal Observations", Sopa Fine Arts, Kelowna
"Biennial Juried Exhibition", Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, Brantford, Ontario
2015 - "City of Art", Gallery 1313, curated by Phil Anderson, Toronto
"Out of the Deep Freeze: 15 Hot Painters to Watch in 2015", CFA Gallery, Toronto
"Those Who Inspire", Gallery in the Grove
2014 - "New Acquisitions: Contemporary Canadian Painting", Canadian Fine Arts, Toronto
"Canadian Contemporary Art Auction", Waddington's Auction House, Toronto
Love International Art Fair, represented by CFA Gallery, Toronto
"Summer Colours", Canadian Fine Arts, Toronto
2013 - "Weird", Harbourfront Centre, curated by Patrick Macaulay, Toronto
"JNAAG Juried Show", curated by Ivan Jurakic and John Kissick, Judith and Norman Alix Art Gallery, Sarnia
"Thames Art Gallery Juried Exhibition", curated by Sigi Torinus, Thames Art Gallery, Chatham
2012 -"Visual Elements", 54th annual juried show, Woodstock Art Gallery, Woodstock, Ontario
"Collective Vision", Loop Gallery, Toronto
Art Gems 12, Creative Works Studio Art Auction, Toronto
"The Promise of Painting" (3 person show), Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, Brantford
Handworks Gallery, Saint John, New Brunswick
2011 - Gallery Moos, Toronto
St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts, Parkdale Food Bank Art Auction, Toronto
Handworks Gallery, Saint John, New Brunswick
2010 - Handworks Gallery, Saint John, New Brunswick
Gallery Moos, Toronto, Ontario
Gallery Moos, Burroughes Building, Queen St. West, Toronto
"Forces of Nature", Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, Brantford
"Facades: Outside - In", Susan Kristjansson Gallery, Sarnia
"Artists Work", Gallery in the Grove, Bright's Grove
"Look '10", Gallery Lambton, Sarnia
Venus Gallery, Aurora, Ontario
2009 - Venus Gallery, Aurora
2007 - "A New Breed", Lovart Gallery
Angell Gallery, Toronto
2006 - "LOOK'06", Gallery Lambton, Sarnia
"art:50", Gallery in the Grove
2005 - "On A Whim", Tatar Gallery, Toronto
2004 - Canvas Gallery, Toronto
"LOOK'04", Gallery Lambton
2003 - Juried Exhibition, Thames Art Gallery, Chatham
"LOOK'03", Gallery Lambton
2002 - "In A Class of Their Own", Gallery Lambton
"LOOK '02", Gallery Lambton
2001 - "elements", Gallery in the Grove
"Platypus Collective", West Wing Art Space, Toronto
2001-03 - Art registry, Gallery Lambton
2000-2010 - Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
2000 - "Lambton-Kent Art Teachers Exhibit", Thames Art Gallery, Chatham
"Invitational 2000", Gallery in the Grove
1999 - "LOOK '99", Gallery Lambton
1998 - "3x3 Miniature Show", Gallery Lambton
1997 - "S.C.I.&T.S. 75th Anniversary Exhibition", Gallery Lambton
1996 - "LOOK '96", Gallery Lambton
1994 - "LOOK '94", Gallery Lambton
1992 - "LOOK '92", Gallery Lambton
1987-89 - Juried show, Bear Creek Studio, Petrolia
1988 - Juried show, University of Guelph
1987 - Oxford County Juried Show, Woodstock Public Art Gallery
Education
1989 - B.A. (Fine Art) - University of Guelph
1990 - B.Ed. - Western University, London
Awards, Honours, Talks
2023 - juror, Prisma Art Prize, Rome
2022 - juror, Prisma Art Prize, Rome
2021 - juror, Prisma Art Prize, Rome
2020 - contestant, "Landscape Artist of the Year Canada", Makeful TV / CBC TV/ CBC Gem
- juror, Prisma Art Prize, Rome
2019 - Ontario Arts Council Visual Artist Creation Project Grant
2018 - Mayor's Honour List, Sarnia
2017 - "Elusive Utopia", artist talk, Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery
2016 - semi-finalist, Bombay Sapphire Artisan Series
- first prize, "Biennial Juried Exhibition", Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant
- Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
- juror, Paint Ontario
2015 - Mid-Career Visual Artist Grant, Ontario Arts Council
- British Vogue Magazine (August)
- Dwell Magazine (November)
2014 - international art fair, Love Art, Toronto
- "Curiouser & Curiouser", artist talk, Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery, Sarnia
- catalogue, "Contemporary Canadian Art Auction", Waddington's, Toronto
2013 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
- finalist, Saatchi Art 'Showdown'
- "Best of 2013", Saatchi Art
2012 - Mid-Career Visual Artist Grant, Ontario Arts Council
- Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, artist talk , PechaKucha (with Shelley Niro)
- cover image, "Murder at the City Motor Hotel" by Sky Gilbert, Hamilton Arts & Letters, Samizdat Press
- portfolio inclusion, Hamilton Arts & Letters, issue 5, Samizdat Press
- Best in Show, "54th Annual Juried Show", Woodstock Art Gallery, Woodstock, Ontario
2011 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
2010 - Juror's Choice Award (first prize), "Forces of Nature", Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant
Second prize, LOOK 2010, Gallery Lambton, Sarnia
2009 - panel talk, "Connecting to Collections", Gallery Lambton
2004 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
2003 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
Second Prize, "LOOK'03", Gallery Lambton
2002 - Second Prize, "LOOK'02", Gallery Lambton
People's Choice Award, "LOOK'02", Gallery Lambton
1995 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
1993 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
1992 - Big Sisters Lottery Calendar
1991 - Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Grant
1989 - London Semester Study, London, England (U. of Guelph)
1988 - Gordon Couling Award for Painting, Creative Arts Assn., Guelph
Collections
Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery permanent collection, Sarnia
Christen Seaton Barristers, Toronto
Aphex Technologies, Toronto
Niman Zemans Gelgoot LLP, Toronto
corporate collection, New York
private collections in Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Edmonton, Calgary, Saint John, Sarnia, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Atlanta, New Jersey, Minneapolis, London, Dubai, Melbourne, Oslo, Brussels
I would like to acknowledge support from the Ontario Arts Council, an agency of the Government of Ontario.