The AGB is celebrating the new exhibitions with the Fall Exhibition Opening Reception taking place on Saturday September 20 from 1 – 3:00 pm with the opening of a Russna Kaur’s massive painting installation, Gikinoo’amaatowin – This Is All Learning, featuring the work of Jean Marshall and Nicole Richmond, and a series of exhibitions with the AGB’s Community Generator program.
Been there twice, haven’t got there yet (the space behind a thin screen, and prying eyes) is a major solo exhibition by acclaimed Canadian painter Russna Kaur from September 20, 2025 – January 4, 2026. Known for pushing the boundaries of painting, Kaur transforms the gallery into a vibrant, immersive environment where canvases leap off the wall, slice through space, and envelop visitors in bold colour and texture.
Raised in Brampton and now based in Vancouver, Kaur returns to Ontario with a body of work that bridges both geographies. Drawing from pieces created since 2019 alongside new works produced at the Annandale Artist Residency in Prince Edward Island, she expands her practice into the architecture of the gallery itself. Paintings bleed onto walls, works hang like sculptural forms, and sightlines shift as visitors move around and through the installations.
Material experimentation is central to Kaur’s approach. Wood panels, bridal mesh, canvas, and aluminum are layered with hand-blended pigments made from sand, rice flour, dried petals, sawdust, and soil. These surfaces—by turns stitched, jagged, and fluid—embody her embrace of play, imperfection, and the complexity of relationships between people, places, and objects. At once exuberant and destabilizing, her work reveals the hidden scaffolding of painting while exploring façades—what they conceal, reveal, and allow to slip through.
Colour, for Kaur, is both seduction and disguise. References to sari stitching, festivals, and religious spaces vibrate across her surfaces, yet beneath the joy lie stories of grief, loss, and cultural negotiation. “Bright colours may appear playful—like confetti suspended in air—but can just as easily fall into chaos,” she explains. “Beneath these intense surfaces is the constant potential for rupture—for something unspoken to emerge.”
This exhibition reflects the AGB’s commitment to artists whose practices are deeply rooted in material traditions while pushing into new territory. Kaur’s paintings exist at the intersection of craft and contemporary art, their tactile processes resonating with textile histories while reimagining what painting can be.
In the spirit of expanding dialogue, the exhibition also brings local artists Par Nair, Rafia Shafiq, Vick Naresh, and Azadeh Elmizadeh, along with Farrukh Rafiq, Coordinator of South Asian Community Engagement at the ROM, into conversation with Kaur’s work. Two accompanying texts—an essay by artist-scholar Ara Osterweil and a personal reflection by chef-activist Joshna Maharaj—offer perspectives on abstraction, identity, and the shared languages of memory and creativity.
In the Perry Gallery, Gikinoo’amaatowin – This Is All Learning, is an exhibition celebrating the knowledge carried through the beadwork and regalia of Anishinaabe artists Jean Marshall and Nicole Richmond, curated by AGB’s TD Associate Curator, Albany Sutherland.
Marshall, from Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (Big Trout Lake) in Treaty 9, and Richmond, from Biiigtigong Nishnaabeg (Pic River) in Robinson-Superior Treaty territory, root their practices in the relationships between land, memory, and intergenerational teachings. Together, they invite audiences to consider how learning happens in movement, making, and community.
Richmond’s seven rainbow jingle dresses emerged from a vision of women dancing in unison. The jingle dress, originating as a form of healing and prayer, connects to the sacredness of water. When danced, its metallic cones evoke the sound of raindrops, offering collective healing. The rainbow colours speak to diversity and the shared strength of Indigenous women, while her beadwork draws from the Anishinaabe woodland tradition and mystical connections to the “star people.”
Marshall’s Gitigan series—circular felt works mirroring her beadwork style—features native plants, affirming the importance of Indigenous food sovereignty. Her message Don’t Forget to Love Yourself underscores themes of care and self-compassion embedded in her practice.
Through beadwork and regalia, Gikinoo’amaatowin honours ancestral artistry while creating new pathways for future generations. This exhibition reminds us that learning is an ongoing, relational process rooted in care, creativity, and connection.
The AGB’s Community Generator is a series of community art exhibitions and activations designed to connect more artists with more audiences. Presented in dedicated spaces throughout the gallery, the program fosters creativity, dialogue, and inclusivity by offering a platform for local artists, collectives, and community groups to share their work. From August 16 – November 2, 2025, we kick off the program with the work of Kamaldeep Kaur, Maha Mustafa, and Zorica Silverthorne. Each exhibition invites meaningful exchange, sparks inspiration, and opens space for new perspectives—celebrating the creativity and diversity that thrive within our community.
Acknowledgements
Been there twice, haven’t got there yet (the space behind a thin screen, and prying eyes) is sponsored by Shehla and Adil Giving for Arts (SAGA) Foundation. The TD Associate Curator position is supported by TD Ready Commitment. The Art Gallery of Burlington is supported by the City of Burlington and Ontario Arts Council. The 50th Anniversary Exhibitions are sponsored by the J.P. Bickell Foundation.