Ella Gonzales, detail of Threshold, Reflected Through (Loft), 2025, acrylic on piña silk, glass, and wooden support. Courtesy of the artist.
Dear atmosphere,
Ella Gonzales, Marlon Kroll, and Douglas Watt
Visual Arts Centre of Clarington
September 20 - December 7, 2025
Opening Reception:
Saturday, September 20th, 2 - 4 PM
Guest Curated by: Danica Pinteric
How does a room understand its purpose? What does a room remember?
In architectural philosophy, atmosphere refers to the affective qualities produced by a space. Akin to ambiance, atmosphere is a form of perceptive attunement that considers the social and historical conditions present in any room, lobby, or corridor we may encounter. ‘Dear atmosphere,’ presents recent works by Ella Gonzales, Marlon Kroll, and Douglas Watt, three artists addressing the intimate—often charged—histories of our built environment. The exhibition questions how the spaces we inhabit inform our emotional attunement, and considers the affective residue embedded in the walls from what has come before. By extension, ‘Dear atmosphere,’ grapples with the question: what form of consciousness do the buildings that surround us possess?
Each with their own distinct approach to the phenomenological, social, and even sensuous experiences of place, the artists complicate fixed representations of familiar locales. Drawing from both personal and collective memory, ‘Dear atmosphere,’ offers an attunement to the felt presence of what has come before us; although they may not be fully legible to us in the present, their emotional volume remains a palpable and influential force throughout the zones we inhabit.
Exhibition Programming
Opening Reception:
The VAC invites you to attend our Opening Reception on Saturday, September 20, 2025, from 2 - 4 PM.. Light refreshments will be provided.
About the Artists:
Ella Gonzales is a Filipina Canadian artist working between painting and Computer-Aided Design programs. She has recently exhibited at the Art Gallery of Mississauga, Mississauga (2025); YYZ Artists’ Outlet, Toronto (2025); Unit 17, Vancouver (2024); grunt gallery, Vancouver (2024); The Power Plant, Toronto (2023); Galerie Nicolas Robert, Toronto (2023); and the Southern Alberta Art Gallery, Lethbridge (2022). She was commissioned by Mercer Union’s SPACE billboard for its 2024–25 season to present a yearlong series titled Sleeve. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Western University and a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Guelph. Gonzales is represented by Unit 17 (Vancouver).
Marlon Kroll is a German Canadian artist living and working in Montréal. He holds a BFA in ceramics from Concordia University and was one of nine recipients of Fonderie Darling’s 2019–22 Montréal Studio Program. He also received the William and Meredith Saunderson Prize for Emerging Artists in 2020.
Selected recent exhibitions include Majestic Infinite Inner Choir, 12.26 (Los Angeles); All that we cannot see with Casey Callahan, Baader-Meinhof (Omaha); Cold Open, Unit 17 (Vancouver); The Kroll Show with Bryce Kroll, Gern En Regalia (New York) Lullaby, Management (New York); Map of Dusk, Afternoon Projects (Shanghai); Receiver, Galerie Acappella (Naples); Nesting, Fondation Phi (Montréal); Stress Tested, Public Gallery (London); A Chronique Fear, Marvin Gardens (New York); Rifts, hovels, a sighing tide, Afternoon Projects (Vancouver); La machine qui enseignait des airs aux oiseaux, Musée d’art Contemporain de Montréal; At the centre of my ironic faith, Cassandra Cassandra (Toronto); Red Sky at Morning, Interstate Projects (New York); and Thirsty Things, Clint Roenisch (Toronto).
Douglas Watt (b. 1990, St. Catharines) is an artist living and working in Vancouver. He holds a BA (Art History) from Carleton University, Ottawa, an MFA from Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, and was a visiting student in Criticism & Curatorial Practice at OCAD University, Toronto. He has presented solo exhibitions at Unit 17, Vancouver, Tara Downs, New York, and Pumice Raft, Toronto. He was long listed for the Sobey Art Award in 2023. His work has been featured in Artforum and BlackFlash Magazine. Watt co-edits the publication Porthole with Hamish Hardie.
About the Guest Curator:
Danica Pinteric is a curator and writer based in Toronto. She is the founder of Joys (est. 2022), an independent gallery dedicated to exploring the politics of vulnerability and embracing the poetic opportunities in exhibitionary making. Danica was recently an Exhibition Curator for Nuit Blanche Toronto 2024 and has worked at the Goldfarb Gallery (formerly the Art Gallery of York University), Vtape, and Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam. Her writing has been featured by a variety of galleries and publications, including C Mag, Stedelijk Studies, and Contemporary Art Galleries Association (AGAC).
Accessibility:
The VAC is not yet fully accessible, with stairwell access to our third-floor Loft Gallery. Please email us if you require additional accommodations so we can meet your needs or provide additional seating as required.
‘Dear atmosphere,’ is organized by the Visual Arts Centre of Clarington with support from the Canada Council for the Arts and the Ontario Arts Council. Thanks to Samantha Lance, Dionne Powlenzuk, Megan Kammerer, Kayla Ward, David Wigley, Unit 17, and Eli Kerr Gallery for their support and assistance with realizing the projects.
