Me and Billy Bob at the Drake Hotel - Toronto Nov 2-29

Jillian Mcdonald
Me and Billy Bob at the Drake Hotel
November 2 - 29, 2004
The Drake Hotel / Toronto / 1150 Queen St W

Gallery TPW and Images Festival is proud to present Me and Billy Bob at the Drake Hotel, an off-site project by Jillian Mcdonald. Mcdonald’s funny, touching and at times absurd video, photography and performance exposes her romantic obsession with actor Billy Bob Thornton. Taking over the Drake Hotel on Toronto’s Queen Street West, with wit and poignancy Mcdonald’s media work speaks of desire, celebrity and misplaced intimacy.

With Me and Billy Bob Mcdonald has digitally inserted herself into existing film clips as the recurring object of Thornton’s affection. She has also ‘tattooed’ Billy Bob’s name on her skin daily, drawn his tattoos on her own body, and performed a drum solo for Thornton on his birthday. On November 25th you are invited to receive your own Temporary Billy Bob Tattoo from Mcdonald. Premiering on the Drake Hotel’s in-house TV channel will be two site-specific commercials - Mcdonald's personal congratulations to Billy Bob on the occasion of his Hollywood Star of fame, and her lament over his recent cosmetic surgery.

Jillian Mcdonald is a Canadian and Brooklyn-based artist. Her video and web works have been exhibited internationally. She first noticed Billy Bob during an in-flight screening of Bandits. Her work can be viewed on her fan site www.MeAndBillyBob.com

Jillian Mcdonald is presented in association with The Images Festival. The 18th annual Images Festival takes place April 7-16, 2005, for more information: www.imagesfestival.com

MEDIA CONTACT: Kim Simon, Gallery TPW Programming Coordinator [email protected]