Making / Monumental

Exhibition: October 5 – December 11, 2026

Creative Campus Gallery, Hazel McCallion Campus

What makes something monumental?

It may be its scale, the skill or effort required to create it, or the significance it gains over time. The term also evokes monuments: physical objects that commemorate people and events chosen for remembrance, or that are meant to prompt reflection. Despite their seeming permanence, they may be revisited, reimagined, or left to crumble as our understanding of history and what we value changes.

The commanding scale of several recently donated artworks, together with the care and labour they embody, served as a foundation for Making / Monumental. The exhibition extends the idea of monumentality beyond a work’s physical presence. It proposes that we are not passive audiences but active participants in what acquires this significance, through what we choose to spend time and effort on and draw attention to.

Often, what feels monumental to us is not what history exalts, but something seemingly ordinary that holds personal or communal meaning. This can emerge through small acts repeated over time, take shape through the transformation of commonplace materials, and endure through our commitment to caring for an artwork as part of a collection. Through our shared attention, we contribute to this meaning-making and ongoing dialogue.

Featured Artists:

---

All works in this exhibition were generously donated to the Sheridan Art Collection.
We thank our donors for their support.