If I Were You, no. 1

Shows to check out in your city.

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From east to west:

Sincerity Blanket
Michael Dumontier & Neil Farber [link]
Patel Brown [link]
29 May - 19 July, 2025 *opening soon*
I love these boys so much that I might just pop over to MTL to see this. If you’re familiar with David Shrigley, this artist duo works similarly with plants and animals, quirky captions, and a friendly graphic style, but their tone leans more earnest, less satire. Hence the show title. These trying times have made me soft; I am highly amenable to work that feels like a hug not a sneer.

BLØD // SOFT ['bløð']
Kristine Mandsberg [link]
Galerie Robertson Arès [link]
15 May - 14 June, 2025
Speaking of soft. Robertson Arès’ art program seems to unify around work that screams at you to reach out and touch it. If you like fuzzy blobs, you’ll find Mandsberg’s works very satisfying IRL.

Shoes, books, hands, buildings, and cars
Margaux Williamson [link]
MOCA [link]
17 April - 3 August, 2025
As Tatum Dooley of Art Forecast penned from her studio visit, Williamson is your favourite painter’s favourite painter. These large oil works are an ode to home and the artistic experimentation that occurs there. The interior scenes are full of easter eggs that tell a story but don’t beat you over the head. They are energetic depictions of quiet moments. And the perspectives are all fucky. Very compelling work.

MOCA is hosting an artist talk between Williamson and author Sheila Heti on June 12th at Paradise Theatre. The artists are close collaborators — Heti’s novel, How Should a Person Be?, is a portrait of their intertwined lives. You can buy tickets here. To those attending, I’d be happy to grab a drink after!

Fables
Sarah Avolio [link]
Towards [link]
15 May - 21 June, 2025
If you’re going to MOCA, don’t forget to drop by Towards across the street to see this small, stirring show. The scenes are intimate and wistful and the warm, brassy palettes are reminiscent of still life. The piece above evoked the many naps I took on my grandparent’s couch. A belly full of Indian food, a slightly-too-warm living room, CNN’s Fareed Zakaria blasting full volume...

Coast Mountains
Edward Burtynsky [link]
Paul Kuhn Gallery [link]
24 April - 30 May, 2025 *closing soon*
Sweeping landscape photography is not very me coded but these images had me dizzy. Enough so to inspire a dedicated letter (The Spectacle of Climate Change). I highly recommend and don’t be deterred by the gallery’s documentation / socials. It’s giving mom’s iPhone, kinda endearing in the age of the pristine install shot, but if I was the artist idk if I would be thrilled!

Mirthful Miscellanea
Chris Millar [link]
TrépanierBaer [link]
3 May - 7 June, 2025
With the caveat that I have never set foot in this gallery, the intricacy of these works would have me making my first trip if I were in Calgary. Also the whimsy of it all. I imagine these structures are impossible to do justice by photograph, which is always compelling. Worth a visit for the hoarding and tinkering types and I’d love to hear your thoughts if you make it.

roundabout
Marin Majić [link]
CICA [link]
26 April - 14 June, 2025
Dark, moody dreamscapes. I have the tingly feeling that if I were to see these works IRL I’d end up writing about them. So I’ll save thoughts for another day.

Arrange Your Face
Liz Magor
Catriona Jeffries [link]
26 April - 28 June, 2025
If you have a persuasion for art with a conceptual and possibly grotesque lean, let’s go see this together. I’ll be catching the tail end during a Vancouver visit at the end of June.

Best Canadian Stories 2026 [link]
Biblioasis
FOREVER
Shameless plug incoming. I was delighted to learn that my weird short story We Are Busy Being Alive was selected for Biblioasis Books’ Best Canadian Stories 2026 anthology. It’s an honour to be included alongside many literary legends!

The anthology will be released in the fall and can be pre-ordered here.

A big thanks to subTerrain for being the first to publish the story.

LOOK25 ART AUCTION [link]
Contemporary Calgary
1 May - 31 May, 2025 *ending soon*
A great opportunity to get discounted art from noteworthy Canadian artists. Proceeds from the live and silent auctions support the artists directly, as well as Contemporary Calgary’s programming.

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