Opening Reception for Fables, Parables, and Apologues

The event is free and open to the public. All are welcome to attend and no advance registration is required. This exhibition will run from February 5 - March 1, 2025.

About the Exhibition

Seductive scenes and sartorial primates explode on canvases by four contemporary painters. These artists explore narrative through religious ideals, human condition and fallibility, and the kinship to and personification of animals. 

In exhibiting these works we challenge the traditional relationship the viewer has to morality scenes by highlighting the symbolic and stylistic play between the art of Anita Kunz, Daniela Astone, Eric Drummond, and Yana Litus.

The exhibition and related programs have been generously supported by Cambia Development Foundation.

About the Artists

ANITA KUNZ is an artist and illustrator living in Toronto. Her art has been published widely and shown in galleries and museums all over the world. Her socially and politically themed work has been printed in major publications such as Time, Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, GQ, The New York Times, Newsweek, Random House Publishing and many others. 

She has been honored with many prestigious awards and medals including the Order of Canada, Her Majesty the Queen’s Jubilee Medal of Honor, Society of Illustrators’ Museum of American Illustration Hall of Fame; and in 2018 Canada Post released a postage stamp honoring her work as a Canadian illustrator and artist. That same year The Ontario College of Art and Design gave her the “Alumni of Influence” award. Kunz is the author of “Another History of Art” (Fantagraphics Books, winner of Gerald Scarfe award), “Original Sisters: Portraits of Tenacity and Courage” (Pantheon Press), and “Striking a Pose; A Handy Guide to the Male Nude” (Fantagraphics).

For more about the artist and her work visit http://www.anitakunz.com

DANIELA ASTONE grew up in the sea-town of Porto Santo Stefano, Italy, and began studying art at the age of 14 in the High School of Arts in Grosseto. After graduating she moved to Florence to study Illustration at the International School of Comics and began independent work as an illustrator for several studios including Inklink Florenze.

She then changed direction to study drawing and painting at The Florence Academy of Art under the direction of Daniel Graves. Daniela began teaching younger students at the Academy in her second year, graduated with class honours and continued to work as a principal teacher for the Academy. In 2013 she became the Director of the intermediate program, a role she left in 2022 to dedicate more time to her studio practice.

Daniela had her first solo show at the Ann Long Fine Art Gallery in Charleston and has continued to exhibit and curate internationally. Her work is part of the permanent collection at MACS (Contemporary Art Museum) in Sicily.

For more about the artist and her work visit https://www.daniela-astone.com

ERIC DRUMMOND began drawing at a very early age copying various drawings of Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci from the books he received from his Grandfather. 

He studied art history at the University of Guelph before beginning studies in classical academic painting and drawing at The Florence Academy of Art in 2016. After graduating from the Academy, Eric returned to Canada and is now part of TAP Centre for Creativity’s Studio Residency program in London, Ontario, where he completes his studio work and teaches.

Eric has been awarded and featured by many international establishments including The Art Renewal Center, Sotheby’s, The Luxembourg Art Prize and the MEAM in Barcelona. He has worked as an instructor in Italy and in Canada, and exhibited internationally in Italy, Spain, United States and Canada. 

For more about the artist and his work visit  https://ericjdrummond.com/about

YANA LITUS  is an interior artist and decorator born in Ukraine and currently based in Canada (London, Ontario) who travels for art projects across North America. After graduating from art school, she finished Ukrainian National Technical University (Architectural department). She has experience in many creative industries such as: interior design, graphic design, painting, interior murals and as a main specialist in the architectural city department in Poltava city (Ukraine).

Yana uses different kinds of techniques and a wide collection of materials in her artworks on canvases and walls such as: acrylic, watercolour, oil paints, decorative plaster, gypsum and concrete materials. Not adverse to competition, she was a finalist in the 2023 Art Battle Canadian National Championship and winner in the London Art Battle 2024. 

For more about the artist and her work visit https://www.yanalitusart.com