How can hegemonic structures and expectations be subverted? Varied answers to this question can be found in the artworks of Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night. With recent works by twenty-two graduating students of the University of Toronto Mississauga and Sheridan College joint Art & Art History Program, this exhibition presents a myriad of perspectives that motivate and inspire the artworks, including paintings, sculptures, photography, print media, drawing, design, and augmented reality.

The exhibition's title is taken from the poem of the same name (1951) by Welsh poet and writer Dylan Thomas (1914–1953). In it, Thomas urges the readers to never submit to death. Despite its inevitability, death should not be embraced but persisted against. The poem encourages readers to live the life they desire without fear of judgement, denial, or limitations. Similarly, this exhibition urges audiences to reflect on when they encounter ruling societal ideals. 

Across both galleries, the artists confront the inevitability of societal norms and expectations–both imposed on and upheld by the individual and the collective–offering dynamic perspectives on shared social and cultural experiences. 

In the Blackwood Gallery, artists welcome interpersonal connection through representations of the body as a site of vulnerability and self-expression. Each work explores ways of seeing, absorbing, and responding to life’s challenges.

At the centre of the space, sculptures reveal personal reflections on the body. Morgan McCracken and Emma Tanner expose the persistence and strength of physical and emotional pain. While Seline Rajkumar’s work embodies themes of love, creating a safe space for artists and audiences alike. Acceptance of one’s true self restores power to our experiences, something Meihan (Erin) Yang channels through printmaking.

Several works examine personal expression. Vicky Zhang contends with self-understanding others' perspectives of her and Sara Li navigates the complexities of personality, while Lisa Grierson seeks balance of identities despite societal norms.

The natural world, constantly in flux, shapes human experience. Huan Chen and Rica E. Facundo address cycles of modernization and decay through abstraction – though nature continues to flourish. Lourdes Duah and Peijia Huang use flowers to explore humanity’s deep connection to nature.

Building on these themes, artists transform personal recollections into a collective fight for acceptance, pushing against all that defines, confines, and restricts mutual connection.

Beyond the Blackwood Gallery, the e|gallery explores alternative representations of identity through technical skill, memory, interpersonal relationships, storytelling, cultural heritage, and self-worth. Do Not Go Gentle Into the Good Night unfolds across both gallery spaces, revealing how artists resist and redefine social and cultural forces.

In the e|gallery, visitors reckon with artworks that oppose preconceptions of identity imposed by social and cultural expectations. Intimate dialogues form between the works through expressions of technical skill, memory, relationships, skepticism, cultural heritage, and self-worth.

James Edwards emphasizes the labourious production process through repetition and quantity, while Milroy Stanislaus creates the illusion of three-dimensionality on a two-dimensional surface, channeling their identity by defying expectations of themselves and their mediums. Malak Aboelsaoud and Alex Denis explore the fluidity of memory. They encourage reflection on how memories fade, and how individual, unrelated memories connect to provoke a unified experience of recollection.

With colourful and nostalgic imagery, Meya Powell and Aubrey Pratama reflect on interpersonal relationships and the unsteady feeling of displacement, they subvert normative ideals of how personal sentiments can be expressed. In contrast, Amanpreet Chana uses black-and-white newspaper articles to the manipulation of information to fit ideological narratives and to challenge viewers to question the media they consume.

Meanwhile cultural heritage adapts across time and space. Beatriz Simas emulates images of her family, while Valentina Guzman-Martinez embodies historical Latin American women, both bringing the past into the present. These artists incorporate their identity through presenting how their cultural heritage has informed their sense of self.

Observing how systemic constructs impact self-worth, Treasure Fatile examines how personal perception is tied to religious expectations, while Sean Kehoe exposes how comparative beauty standards should uplift self-worth. 

No matter how different their methods, these artists collectively challenge the hegemonic, ideals that constrain individuality. Works found in the Blackwood Gallery explore identity through vulnerable representations of the body, the natural world, intimate notions of beauty, and confessional self-expression. Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night unravels across both gallery spaces to reveal how artists resist and redefine social and cultural forces. 

Please join us for the opening reception of the Art & Art History graduating students’ exhibition, Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night, on Wednesday, March 26, 2025 from 5–7pm at the Blackwood Gallery, University of Toronto Mississauga (Kaneff Centre 140).

This opening will include a tour where select exhibiting artists will offer insight into the ideas and creative process behind their works. Guests are invited to explore the exhibition, enjoy refreshments, and engage with the artists and contributors.

Wednesday, April 2, 2025, 12–2pm
Blackwood Gallery

Join Morgan McCracken as she answers participants’ questions on performative and mixed media art while wearing her work Autopsy. McCracken practices with a wide variety of materials and styles, and can offer advice for combining mediums in art. Her soft sculptures, like Autopsy, are wearable forms of art.

In addition to Morgan’s performance, participants will have the chance to build upon Seline Rajkumar’s confessional drawings. Visitors will receive a butterfly template that they can decorate, write on, and colour and are encouraged to attach it to the walls surrounding Metamorphosis. Whether you decide to contribute to Seline’s installation or take your small artwork home, explore the possibilities of interactive, mixed media artworks.

Both artists show how performance and collaboration can bring new meanings to artworks in different ways.

Snacks and refreshments will be served.

Wednesday, April 9, 2025, 12–2pm
Blackwood Gallery

Inspired by prints found in the exhibition, this hands-on workshop introduces participants to the fundamentals of linocut printmaking. Participants will have the opportunity to carve their own small linocut design, ink it, and create a series of prints. This activity teaches basic print media techniques and allows visitors to leave with a unique, self-made print. This workshop welcomes beginner and intermediate printmakers!

Snacks and refreshments will be served.

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