Jeff Molloy

Jeff Molloy, born as Jeffrey Robert Stonehouse, was adopted by a hard drinking, hard smoking lower middle class couple living off the Danforth in Toronto in 1957 . As a young boy, Jeff took to art using it as an emotional and expressive outlet in an age when children were spoken to but seldom heard. Jeff already had a strong interest in art when he had the good fortune to meet celebrated artist, A.Y. Jackson, who was then the artist in residence at the Mc Michael Art Gallery in Kleinberg.

“We sat in the shade and chatted about art and life,” Molloy remembers. “At the time, I didn’t really know who he was, but I liked his kindness and generosity as he shared his stories about art. This made an indelible impression on me.”

Other early artistic influences were Vassily Kandinsky and Henry Moore, both of which he encountered at the Ontario Art Gallery. Molloy particularly loved the naturally lit Henry Moore wing and spent countless hours admiring Moores plaster maquettes. Jeff also remembers walking past a doorway catching a glimpse of his first Vassily Kandinsky painting, an experience he describes as “ feeling a wind ”. These early encounters set Molloy on a path from which he would never return.

At points in his life Jeff suppressed his creativity, wrestled with addictions and depression, his marriage suffered with Jeff always on the road working in the construction industry. Molloy refers to this time as the dark ages. In 1995 the Molloys moved to Victoria BC. This was a pivotal time for the entire family.

Jeff went on to study art at the Victoria College of Art where he graduated in 1999. Until attending Art College Molloy had never considered himself an artist or exhibiting his artwork publicly. Since graduating Jeff has won numerous awards, mounted many solo and group exhibitions as both an artist and a curator. Molloy, on occasion has teamed up with other artists to produce award winning collaborations while maintaining his solo practice. For nine years Jeff mentored countless upcoming artists through their first solo shows as the curator from 2000 to 2009 for the Gallery at the Mac in Victoria BC.

In 2007, Jeff and his solemate Kathryn, seeking a quieter life, moved to Gabriola Island where Jeff maintains a studio a stones throw away from a field of Sheep. On the solstice, June 2009, a seven hour surgery saved Molloy from a rare form of Cancer. August of the same year, not able to stand on his feet for more that a few minutes at a time, Molloy mounted a solo exhibition, titled In Search of Ritual at the Campbell River Art Gallery.

Other important exhibitions for Jeff were Fibre of a Nation (Toronto,ON -1999), Human Residue (Victoria/Nelson, BC - 2000), The Mattress Project (Vancouver/ Ft St John,BC - 2001), Venetian Vignettes (Victoria - 2006), A Canadian Portrait (Victoria/Gabriola - 2010) and Fachada Cubana (Victoria - 2011)

Canadian history and culture has been a recurring theme in Molloy's work.

My work tells the Canadian story through historical and cultural objects . ~ Jeff Molloy

Molloy’s latest show, Due North, at the Artscape Triangle Gallery in Toronto, has its roots in Canadian lore. Old canoe paddles, hockey sweaters, mixed media cabinets that portray Canadian legends, encaustic flags hanging from old farm fragments, and life-sized encaustic blankets tell Canada’s rugged northern story in compelling colour and dimensions.

(Molloy’s work)...focuses on the cultural symbols of Canada. The paintings are reminiscent of Gathie Falk’s early pictures of dresses and chairs set in gardens: familiar but slightly surreal, capricious yet vaguely unsettling. The rich surfaces of mixed media, including his use of encaustic, give the artworks an earthy, home-spun appearance. ~ Mia Johnson, Preview Magazine

Jeff Molloy’s work has been capturing the spirit of Canada long before the rest of the world caught on during the Olympics. He is one of this country’s leading editorial artists and one of the most original artists at work in Canada today. ~ Shelagh Rogers, Host on CBC Radio One

"Jeff Molloy's exquisite work is very powerful medicine it captures the spirit”

~ Gregory Scofield, Metis Poet/Author