Ian McLean explores the intersection of mid-century nostalgia and psychological tension. Based in Southern Ontario, Ian transforms domestic architecture into "suspended" moments using a palette of disruptive, otherworldly colour. His work navigates the blur between the constructed and the organic—where memory distorts the familiar into something mysterious and new. Ian is a recipient of multiple Ontario Arts Council Visual Artist Grants and is represented in private and public collections worldwide.
Solo Exhibitions
2027 | James Baird Gallery (forthcoming), Pouch Cove, NL
2017 | Floor Plan, Artopia Gallery, Sarnia, ON
2016 | New Works, CFA Gallery, Toronto, ON (Catalogue)
2013 | Conditions, Loop Gallery, Toronto, ON
2013 | Easily Distracted, St. Thomas-Elgin Public Art Centre, St. Thomas, ON
2011 | Here, Then and There, Forest City Gallery, London, ON
2011 | Recreational Use, Loop Gallery, Toronto, ON
2009 | New Work, Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
2009 | Aphex Imaging, Sarnia
2006 | Excess, Transit Gallery, Hamilton, ON (with Gary Michael Dault)
2005 | Living Arrangements, Gallery Lambton, Sarnia, ON (Catalogue)
2005 | Living Arrangements, Transit Gallery, Hamilton
2005 | Living Arrangements By Night, Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
2003 | Comfort Zone, Transit Gallery, Hamilton
2003 | Turn The Lights On, Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
2000 | Red Tango, Sarnia
1988-1995 | Gallery in the Grove (Brights Grove), Kenneith Gallery Sarnia), Ingersoll Creative Arts Centre (Ingersoll), McLaughlin Gallery, University of Guelph
Group Exhibitions (selected)
2026 | Pivot, Gallery in the Grove, Bright's Grove, ON
2025 | No Place Certain, Earlscourt Gallery, Hamilton, ON
2024 | Art Intelligence: The Near Future of Art in Canada, Gallery 1313, Toronto
2024 | ReView, Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery (JNAAG), Sarnia, ON
2024 | Summer Group Exhibition, The Gallery House, Bayfield, ON
2021 | VAM43, Visual Arts Mississauga, Mississauga, ON
2021 | Art Builds, Gallery 1313, Toronto, ON
2020 | Presently, Art Gallery of Peterborough, ON
2019 | The Same Things At The Same Time (with Paula McLean), Gallery in the Grove, Bright's Grove, ON
2018 | Sopa Fine Arts, Kelowna, BC
2017 | Elusive Utopia (with Matthew Carver, Renée Van Halm, and Kevin Yates), JNAAG, Sarnia, ON
2017 | Thames Art Gallery, Chatham, ON
2016 | Informal Observations, Sopa Fine Art, Kelowna, BC
2015 | Out of the Deep Freeze: 15 Hot Painters to Watch in 2015, CFA Gallery, Toronto
2014 | New Acquisitions, CFA Gallery, Toronto
2014 | Canadian Contemporary Art Auction, Waddington's, Toronto
2014 | Love Art Fair, Direct Energy Centre, Toronto
2014 | Summer Colours, CFA Gallery, Toronto
2014 | Handworks Gallery, Saint John, NB
2013 | Weird, Harbourfront Centre, Toronto, ON
2012 | The Promise of Painting (3 person), The Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, Brantford, Ontario
2011 | Gallery Moos, Toronto
2007 | Angell Gallery, Toronto
Representation
Skwirl Contemporary / Gallery House, Bayfield, ON
Partial Gallery, Toronto
Residencies
2026 (upcoming) Pouch Cove Foundation, Newfoundland
Selected Bibliography
John Kissick | Cruel Aspirations: Some Thoughts On "Elusive Utopia", July 2018
Lisa Daniels | Elusive Utopia (Catalogue Essay), JNAAG, 2017
R.M. Vaughan | The Exhibitionist: Ian McLean at Loop Gallery, The Globe and Mail, 2011
Gary Michael Dault | Art With Afterglow, The Globe and Mail, 2005
Eliza Griffiths | Living Arrangements: Sublimation, Decor, and The Pursuit of Happiness, catalogue, 2005
Professional Distinctions & Media
International Juror | Prisma Art Prize, Rome, Italy (2020–2025)
Film/Media | Featured artist in Motorheads (Amazon Prime, 2025)
Television | Contestant, Landscape Artist of the Year: Canada (CBC, 2020)
Juror | Gallery in the Grove Juried Exhibit (2026), Headwaters Arts Juried Show (2025), Paint Ontario (2016)
Awards | Ontario Arts Council, Best in Show (Woodstock Art Gallery), First Prize (Glenhyrst Art Gallery)
Collections
Public: Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery (Permanent Collection)
Corporate: Niman Zemans Gelgoot LLP (Toronto); Christen Seaton Barristers (Toronto); Aphex Technologies (Toronto).
Private: Work held in private collections in Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Edmonton, Calgary, Saint John, Sarnia, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Atlanta, New Jersey, Minneapolis, Denver, London, Oslo, Brussels, and Melbourne.
Solo Exhibitions
2027 | James Baird Gallery (forthcoming), Pouch Cove, NL
2017 | Floor Plan, Artopia Gallery, Sarnia, ON
2016 | New Works, CFA Gallery, Toronto, ON (Catalogue)
2013 | Conditions, Loop Gallery, Toronto, ON
2013 | Easily Distracted, St. Thomas-Elgin Public Art Centre, St. Thomas, ON
2011 | Here, Then and There, Forest City Gallery, London, ON
2011 | Recreational Use, Loop Gallery, Toronto, ON
2009 | New Work, Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
2009 | Aphex Imaging, Sarnia
2006 | Excess, Transit Gallery, Hamilton, ON (with Gary Michael Dault)
2005 | Living Arrangements, Gallery Lambton, Sarnia, ON (Catalogue)
2005 | Living Arrangements, Transit Gallery, Hamilton
2005 | Living Arrangements By Night, Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
2003 | Comfort Zone, Transit Gallery, Hamilton
2003 | Turn The Lights On, Artopia Gallery, Sarnia
2000 | Red Tango, Sarnia
1988-1995 | Gallery in the Grove (Brights Grove), Kenneith Gallery Sarnia), Ingersoll Creative Arts Centre (Ingersoll), McLaughlin Gallery, University of Guelph
Group Exhibitions (selected)
2026 | Pivot, Gallery in the Grove, Bright's Grove, ON
2025 | No Place Certain, Earlscourt Gallery, Hamilton, ON
2024 | Art Intelligence: The Near Future of Art in Canada, Gallery 1313, Toronto
2024 | ReView, Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery (JNAAG), Sarnia, ON
2024 | Summer Group Exhibition, The Gallery House, Bayfield, ON
2021 | VAM43, Visual Arts Mississauga, Mississauga, ON
2021 | Art Builds, Gallery 1313, Toronto, ON
2020 | Presently, Art Gallery of Peterborough, ON
2019 | The Same Things At The Same Time (with Paula McLean), Gallery in the Grove, Bright's Grove, ON
2018 | Sopa Fine Arts, Kelowna, BC
2017 | Elusive Utopia (with Matthew Carver, Renée Van Halm, and Kevin Yates), JNAAG, Sarnia, ON
2017 | Thames Art Gallery, Chatham, ON
2016 | Informal Observations, Sopa Fine Art, Kelowna, BC
2015 | Out of the Deep Freeze: 15 Hot Painters to Watch in 2015, CFA Gallery, Toronto
2014 | New Acquisitions, CFA Gallery, Toronto
2014 | Canadian Contemporary Art Auction, Waddington's, Toronto
2014 | Love Art Fair, Direct Energy Centre, Toronto
2014 | Summer Colours, CFA Gallery, Toronto
2014 | Handworks Gallery, Saint John, NB
2013 | Weird, Harbourfront Centre, Toronto, ON
2012 | The Promise of Painting (3 person), The Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant, Brantford, Ontario
2011 | Gallery Moos, Toronto
2007 | Angell Gallery, Toronto
Representation
Skwirl Contemporary / Gallery House, Bayfield, ON
Partial Gallery, Toronto
Residencies
2026 (upcoming) Pouch Cove Foundation, Newfoundland
Selected Bibliography
John Kissick | Cruel Aspirations: Some Thoughts On "Elusive Utopia", July 2018
Lisa Daniels | Elusive Utopia (Catalogue Essay), JNAAG, 2017
R.M. Vaughan | The Exhibitionist: Ian McLean at Loop Gallery, The Globe and Mail, 2011
Gary Michael Dault | Art With Afterglow, The Globe and Mail, 2005
Eliza Griffiths | Living Arrangements: Sublimation, Decor, and The Pursuit of Happiness, catalogue, 2005
Professional Distinctions & Media
International Juror | Prisma Art Prize, Rome, Italy (2020–2025)
Film/Media | Featured artist in Motorheads (Amazon Prime, 2025)
Television | Contestant, Landscape Artist of the Year: Canada (CBC, 2020)
Juror | Gallery in the Grove Juried Exhibit (2026), Headwaters Arts Juried Show (2025), Paint Ontario (2016)
Awards | Ontario Arts Council, Best in Show (Woodstock Art Gallery), First Prize (Glenhyrst Art Gallery)
Collections
Public: Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery (Permanent Collection)
Corporate: Niman Zemans Gelgoot LLP (Toronto); Christen Seaton Barristers (Toronto); Aphex Technologies (Toronto).
Private: Work held in private collections in Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Edmonton, Calgary, Saint John, Sarnia, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Atlanta, New Jersey, Minneapolis, Denver, London, Oslo, Brussels, and Melbourne.