Trucker

Paul Petro Contemporary Art is pleased to present Trucker, an exhibition of new work by Toronto-based artist Andrew Harwood. His last exhibition, Last Spike, followed Expo and The 88 Suite and concluded his Canadiana Trilogy. In each of these shows he drew on personal history and historical fact. In Last Spike he examined links between homosexuality and Canada’s railroad, creating a hybridized “memory”, that contained both fact and fiction.

Through Last Spike Harwood became interested in transportation:

"Trucker promotes the notion that, in North America, how one arrives is almost as important as one’s identity and sometimes travel even defines it. The demise of the trains (Last Spike) was due to cheaper and more efficient transport trucks. This shift in transportation in North America spawned a profusion of trucker films with sexy, working class male and female stars engaged in battles over territory, unions, babes, each other and ultimately shipping deadlines. The working class men celebrated in these 70’s trucker films may be considered the last and final hurrah for this macho institution.

Also, as a result of these films and interest in these characters, they helped to introduce to pop-consciousness a whole new lingo using the language of the citizen’s band radio. This fad created a craze for home c.b.s and meant that 'locals' could talk with the 'lonely' truckers traversing the local highways from 'away.'

The artworks for Trucker are comprised of images, video and objects. The colour images are drawn from pop trucking themes – all covered with sequins. I am also creating miniature trucks cast in rubber. Trucker will include large masonite cutouts of trucks covered with glitter and sequins and called Convoy. Convoy-Mobile will hang from the ceiling using the same materials. Portraits of Burt Reynolds, Clint Eastwood (and possibly the orangutan!), Jan-Michael Vincent and Kris Kristofersen are also adorned with sequins. The video Trucker will merge outtakes from Sam Pekinpaw’s Convoy with recent gay porn video Truckstop Daddy. I will also present works entitled C.B. Lingo with sayings spelled out in sequins on vintage denim and gingham grounds – 10-4 good buddy!

Trucker is part of a larger Transit Series devoted to the aesthetics and identities of those engaged in providing and making a living from transportation with future exhibitions including Sailor and Coach.”

-Andrew Harwood