TORONTO.- On Aug. 23, 2014, The Art Gallery of Ontario opens its definitive exhibition, Alex Colville, which will explore the ongoing impact of the renowned, late Canadian painter’s art through provocative pop culture pairings and collaboration with contemporary artists, writers and thinkers.

Curated by Andrew Hunter, the AGO’s Fredrik S. Eaton Curator, Canadian Art, Alex Colville marks the largest exhibition ever of the visionary artist’s work and features paintings from museums and private collections globally, including iconic works Horse and Train (1953), Elm Tree at Horton Landing (1956) and Target Pistol and Man (1980), as well as works that have never been on public view.

Visitors will explore Colville’s profound vision and significance through thematic pairings with the work of notable figures from popular contemporary culture — some of whom have been directly inspired by Colville — including filmmakers Sarah Polley, Stanley Kubrick, Wes Anderson and the Coen Brothers; artists Itee Pootoogook and Mary Pratt; and acclaimed author Alice Munro, among others.

A number of artists, writers and cultural leaders from across the country are also contributing to the exhibition by sharing their insights and interpretations of the overwhelming influence Colville had — and continues to have — on culture in Canada and around the world. Contributors include authors Ann-Marie McDonald and Amy Lavender Harris, electronic composer Tim Hecker, film critic Jesse Wente, photographer William Eakin, multi-media artist Xiong Gu and video artist Simone Jones.

The exhibition will also be accompanied by a fully illustrated art book, co-published by the Art Gallery of Ontario and Goose Lane Editions, featuring more than 100 reproductions of Colville’s work, and including a biographical Colville comic by Canadian cartoonist David Collier.

By generously loaning nine key paintings from its remarkable collection of Alex Colville works, the National Gallery of Canada (NGC) helped the AGO bring the exhibition Alex Colville to life. The AGO is pleased to confirm that the exhibition will travel to Ottawa to be shown at the NGC from April 25 to Sept. 7, 2015.

Born in Toronto in 1920, Colville was a painter, printmaker and veteran who drew his inspiration from the world around him, transforming the seemingly mundane figures and events of everyday life into archetypes of the modern condition. Known for painting decidedly personal subject matter, Colville’s painstakingly precise images depict an elusive tension, capturing moments perpetually on the edge of change and the unknown, often imbued with a deep sense of danger. Colville was made a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1982 and won a Governor General's Visual and Media Arts Award in 2003. The AGO has 89 works by Colville in its collection, including seven paintings currently on display. The Gallery last presented a retrospective of his works in 1983.