Footnotes is the first solo exhibition of work by Michelle Forsyth in Toronto. Her work is both material and conceptual, and includes: sculpture, weaving, writing, painting, in addition to printmaking, which she uses to examine her changing relationship to the objects in her home. Recent screenprinted photographs of bundled objects and screenprinted text passages that have been folded and photographed against patterned backgrounds will be included in this exhibition.

Michelle Forsyth employs a diverse array of material processes to create a taxonomy of objects in her home. She is a proponent of decorative repetition, she champions the power of colour to stir emotions, and she swoons over the use of florid language that elicits forgotten moments or evokes scenes just barely remembered. Tales of companionship and narratives describing human vulnerability often accompany her works. Whether embedded within the structure of the work itself, or included as a footnote to a piece, she uses these stories to express her gratitude for those with whom she has shared her life. Forsyth thinks of these stories when she works in the studio, and her process is focused on keeping her hands busy so she can think, mourn, and commemorate her past.

Michelle Forsyth holds an MFA from Rutgers University (New Brunswick, NJ); and a BFA from the University of Victoria (Victoria, BC). Her work has been included in exhibitions at venues such as: Mulherin + Pollard, (New York, NY); Zaum Projects (Lisbon, Portugal); The BRIC Arts Media House (Brooklyn, NY); Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar (Doha, Qatar); Pentimenti Gallery (Philadelphia, PA); Auxiliary Projects (Brooklyn, NY); The Hunterdon Museum of Art (Clinton, NJ); The Luminary Center for the Arts (St. Louis, MO); The Charleston Heights Arts Center (Las Vegas, NV); Deluge Contemporary Art (Victoria, BC); and Mercer Union (Toronto, ON). She has received grants from the Canada Council (Ottawa, ON), Artist Trust (Seattle, WA), and was awarded the Larry Sommers Memorial Fellowship (Seattle Print Arts, WA). She has participated in residencies at the Banff Centre (Banff, AB), and The Frans Masereel Centrum (Kasterlee, Belgium). Michelle Forsyth currently teaches at OCAD University (Toronto, ON).