Grant Cunningham

 

Grant Cunningham  

A self-taught artist, I have always been drawn towards the macabre.  Born a twin on Christmas Eve 1964, my twin died several months after birth.  This became a large influence in my creative process; isolation, detachment, duality, haunted visions coming from this astral being that I am forever tethered to.   

Art has always been my way to process and filter what I come across, what I am subjected to, or what I subject myself to each day; a way for me to exorcise the demons on my shoulder. The paintings are empathic, often inspired by the individual’s strength in the face of their own weakness. The common thread in all of my works is survival of self. 

If a viewer is made uncomfortable by my work, then I have done my job as an artist.  I have touched something within them that they are not comfortable with.  I want to elicit a visceral response but maintain a sense of the absurd, creating works that are both intensely horrifically personal and humourous.  

I am inspired by artists that have celebrated the grotesque: Otto Dix, Hieronymus Bosch, Joe Coleman and George Grosz.

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"The grotesque is a game with the absurd, in the sense that the grotesque artist plays, half laughingly, half horrified, with the deep absurdities of existence."- Wolfgang Kaysar

 Solo Shows 

  • 1997  Rave Café “Works by Grant Cunningham” solo show – Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 1998  ISART Gallery  -  “Visions of Insanity” solo show - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 1999  ISART Gallery  -  “My Inner Child is a Serial Killer” solo show – Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2000  Fetish Café  - “Works by Grant Cunningham” solo show - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2000  Red Spot Gallery – “Works by Grant Cunningham” Toronto, ON, Canada
  • 2001  Cheval Blanc – solo show – Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2004  Foufounes Electriques – “Art by Grant Cunningham” - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2004  Boite A Café  solo show, Montreal, QC Canada
  • 2004  Café Chaos solo show, Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2005  Quab Gallery – “Works by Grant Cunningham” solo show – Calgary, AB, Canada
  • 2006  Le Parking – “Works by Grant Cunningham” solo show - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2007  Mad Bar – solo show – Toronto, ON, Canada

Group Shows 

  • 1997  John F. Kennedy Art Gallery - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 1999  Black and Blue Festival - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2000  Black and Blue Festival - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2001  Festival des Arts de Village - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2002  Festival des Arts de Village - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2003  Michele Ange - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2004 – 2008 Quab Gallery – permanent exhibit, Calgary, AB, Canada
  • 2008  Gallerie 1040  “3” - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2009  Ctrllab “The Usual Suspects” - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2009  Gallerie 1040 - Montreal, QC, Canada
  • 2010  Ancient Arts Tattoos - Arcarta, CA, USA
  • 2010  Maison Kasini - Montreal, QC, Canada