Joanne Tod (b.1953) is a renowned Canadian artist and a master of figurative painting.

Tod has depicted a wide-range of subjects throughout her illustrious career. The human figure, pattern and interiors have been reoccurring and essential elements of Tod's oeuvre.

However over the last ten years, portraiture has become a significant part of her output, both high-profile commissions as well as more idiosyncratic self-initiated portraits, such as her recent installation of "head-shots" paintings of the entire Toronto Raptors team.

This is one of the few erotic images in Tod's oeuvre. While 2020 has been a trying and tiring year around the world, for artists such as Joanne Tod, it has been an incredibly fruitful period. For most of the year Tod experimented with watercolor. This unforgiving medium enabled the artist to be more spontaneous without compromising the technical mastery she is known for. 

This untitled work (aka 'Make Out') showcases Tod's delicate, deliberate hand as we see a couple in the throes of a kissing embrace. Soft light bathes the bodies' with a dreamy, luminous quality enhancing it's sensuality and its reference to a snapshot. In many of Tod's most cherished artworks (her series of carpet runners comes to mind) the artist's meticulous rendering of the subjects' shape, texture and form becomes so intriguing and sublime that the source material becomes secondary. 

Joanne Tod's works can be found in many public institutions across Canada including the National Gallery of Canada, the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), and the Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal. 

Questions about this piece?  or call 1.416.704.1720

Untitled ("Make out")

Canada, 2020

Watercolor on paper

Signed and dated on verso

12"H 19"W (work)

Excellent condition