The Canada Collection in Forestburg

July 6 – August 10, 2013
The Forestburg and District Museum
An Off-Site Project
Reception: July 6, 2 – 5 pm

Curator: David Smith
Artist: Arianna Richardson

Investigations into the construction and propagation of national, provincial and regional identity drive my practice. I am interested in theories of semiotics and hyperreality and how, through the souvenir and tourism industries, they are put to use to build national identity. Signs of Canada are of particular interest because of the unique and fast-paced construction of nationalism that came with the 1967 Centennial, occurring simultaneously with the permeating introduction of television and mass culture in 1960s North America. Because of the firm grip of hyperreality on the Canadian image, it’s orchestrated nature can be discovered writhing beneath a superficial, often humorous veneer.

The Hobbyist project is an ongoing document of investigations into this specific period in Canada’s history and many Hobbyist products appropriate the imagery of discarded items found in thrift stores and garage sales that are reminiscent of the period. In utilizing this particular aesthetic, I aim to question the relevance of the items and the ideas they represent in our increasingly digital and fast-paced society.

As craft and mass production represent another major avenue of interest, The Hobbyist has been working towards the creation of a mail-order catalogue offering DIY craft kits (eg- paint by numbers, embroidery kits, knitting patterns), a variety of Canadian souvenirs, (toques, personalized cigarette holders, flags, apparel, etc.), topical essays, varied sundries and photo-books. All of these items are handmade in a pseudo-mass produced manner and are intended to provoke the viewer out of passivity, engaging them in the active development of a new sort of consumer market aimed at promoting human interaction, creativity and critical thinking.

The series, Frontier, consists of 27 snapshots taken from across Alberta and Saskatchewan in the Summer of 2012. The particularly mythical ideals that are represented by these recreational vehicles: the rugged, wild frontier of the west and the freedom of the wilderness-braving Canadian, reveal themselves as signs made irrelevant by the passage of time. In various states of use and abandonment, these vehicles and their faded facades hearken back to a time not long past when the propagation of identity through consumerism was readily apparent. The series prompts inquiry into current projections of Canadian nationalism, heightening awareness and opening up a critical discourse when it comes to the meaning of contemporary Canadian-ness in a time of utmost ambiguity in the matter.

The Forestburg and District Museum

In My Room: Interior Environments

July 4 – August 15, 2013
Main Gallery
Reception: July 4, 4 – 6 pm
Curator: Jane Edmundson

Works from the UofL Art Collection

There’s a world where I can go
And tell my secrets to
In my room
In my room

In this world I lock out
All my worries and my fears
In my room
In my room

Do my dreaming and my scheming, lie awake and pray
Do my crying and my sighing, laugh at yesterday

Now it’s dark and I’m alone
But I won’t be afraid
In my room
In my room

- Brian Wilson/Gary Usher

The border between public and private space is one that each of us traverses daily. Navigating the codes of conduct required of us by peers and strangers alike requires a performance of sorts, where we act to conform to the expectations of our “public” selves – characters that we play in the production of our external, social lives. Through pressures applied from without and within, the construction of public personhood is an ever-changing, yet inevitable constant of interpersonal reciprocity. Given the amount of effort this endless maneuvering requires, the private sphere becomes, for many of us, a space of refuge, relaxation, and quiet. Our fortresses of solitude, the inner rooms of our homes, are where we can temporarily lay down the mantle of public responsibilities, and exist without pretension or posturing. In this way, our private environments mimic our bodies’ interiors; there can be comfort and protection in being contained inside one’s intimate space. Conversely, while the strain of social norms is relaxed when we are at rest from our public lives, isolation and the opportunity for obsessive interior thoughts can reconfigure private rooms as sinister sites of imprisonment for some.

The artworks selected for In My Room depict rooms where we are often solitary – bathrooms, bedrooms, studios. In most of these representations, the spaces are starkly empty, suggesting they were formed via the artists’ personal, private experiences with seclusion. The few works that do offer peopled environments vacillate from warm, intimate scenes of domesticity (Chamber’s Diego Drawing and Smith’s Woman in Tub) to symbolic examinations of the ominous aspects of psychological withdrawl (evident in Hudson’s Shark diptych, where the secluded figure has only the glow of his televised portrait to fend off the menacing creatures in the dark). The mood here is quiet, introspective, and perhaps reflective of the hushed tones and careful movements we, as viewers, employ in the public-yet-sequestered interior environment of the gallery.

Jane Edmundson,
Preparator/Assistant Curator

Helen Christou Gallery Closed

June 5 – TBA
Flood Damage Repair

Due to the devastating flood of June 5th the Helen Christou Gallery sustained major damage to cabinets and walls. Luckily, none of the objects or art work currently on display were effected. However, the gallery is currently closed until further notice and repairs are complete.

Drawing the Canada-Wide Science Fair

Monday, May 13, 9am – 12pm
Thursday, May 16, 9am – 12pm
Friday, May 17, 9am – 12pm
U of L Centre for Sport and Wellness
Reception: May 16, 4 – 6 pm, Andy’s Place Terrace (AH100), U of L

Drawing the Canada-Wide Science Fair is a collective of fifteen artists who have come together to interpret and play with the spectacle of a national science fair through visual language. By drawing on-site during the Canada-Wide Science Fair, the artists will create and immediately broadcast drawings of selected projects on display. The idea is to expand the notion of drawing around science themes to include the potentials of visual priority, cross-disciplinary work, collaborative drawing, multi-perspectival drawing, non-precious drawing, interactions with people, live tweeting, 5-second-delay blogging, and other unexpected possibilities. #drawingscience #cwsf2013 #ulethimpact

For more information on the project and the participating artists, visit Search & Research.

For more information on the science fair visit Canada-Wide Science Fair.

Participating Artists:

Leila Armstrong
Cindy Baker – (U of L MFA Art Candidate)
Christine Clark – (U of L MFA New Media Candidate)
Kelaine Devine
Leanne Elias – (U of L New Media Instructor)
Mandy Espezel – (U of L MFA Art 2012)
Denton Fredrickson – (U of L, Art Instructor, BFA Multidisciplinary 2001)
David Hoffos – (U of L BFA 1994)
Emily Luce
Glen MacKinnon – (U of L Art instructor)
Petra Mala Miller
Mary-Anne McTrowe – (U of L Art Technician, BFA 1998)
Megan Mormon
Shanell Papp – (U of L BFA 2006)
Rod Sayers
Corinne Thiessen Hepher – (BFA 2009, MFA candidate)

Images of Drawings by participating artists:

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Images of Drawings by Visitors from Lethbridge Area Schools:

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The Cardiff/Miller House

Thursday, May 16, 9am – 6pm
Friday, May 17, 9am – 12pm
Andy’s Place Terrace
Reception: May 16, 4 – 6 pm, Andy’s Place Terrace (AH100), U of L

Artists: Emily Luce with Major Collaborators Rodney Sayers and Alan Maten

Featuring the work of:
Taylor Ackerman, Leila Armstrong, Cindy Baker, Victoria Baster, Karen Campbell, Christine Clark, Adrian Cooke, Dana Cooley, Jennifer Crane, Dagmar Dahle, Annelaure Djaballah, Chai Duncan, Jane Edmundson, Leanne Elias, Mandy Espezel, Denton Fredrickson, Don Gill, Marianne Gerlinger, Fred Greene, David Hoffos, Patricia Horrocks, Andrew Jensen, Emily Luce, Jared Klok, Glen MacKinnon, Petra Mala Miller, Billy McCarroll, Mary-Anne McTrowe, Greg Moody, Christopher Moore, Monica Nobert, Chad Patterson, Taras Polatiako, Beth Porter, Arianna Richardson, Catherine Ross, John Savill, Rodney Sayers, Jeff Spalding, Melinda Spooner, Corinne Thiessen Hepher

Domesticity in the Art World, Sustainable Architecture (and Living), Community/Collaborative Aspects, and the Pleasure of Tiny

The Cardiff/Miller House is a miniaturized but inhabitable replica on wheels of an infamous art house in Lethbridge Alberta. Exploring notions of domesticity in the art world, the line between the art life and art history, and sustainability and the tiny house movement, the house is a transitive portrait containing tiny work by over 40 artists who have ties to the house.

Artist Statement:
I live in a suite in a house owned by the artists Janet Cardiff and George Burres-Miller in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. At one time, they lived here, as have a slew of other Canadian artists who invited people in, made their work, and were a part of the arts community over the years. Throughout the house one can find a collection of ‘artist repairs,’ slightly left of center solutions to problems. The storage spaces are goldmines, collections of discarded art projects, furniture finds from the thrift store (mostly broken, alot orange,) and usable, random art supplies. The house has started to establish somewhat of a mythic quality for itself. Locals are curious about who is living in the suites; everyone has an opinion about how it should be repaired. It’s a place that’s right on the brink of a certain history—someday it could become a significant art site. Then again, it could be sold and renovated by someone who wants to take advantage of its large footprint and strategic location.

I am interested in this tipping point. Through the construction of a miniature portrait of the Cardiff-Miller house, I aim to explore the qualities of this building in the present moment, and its domestic presence in Canadian art history.

The work presented is an 8 x 16′ replica on a trailer of the Cardiff/Miller House. Inside, the house is furnished with tiny works by over 40 artists with ties to the house, in addition to a sleeping loft, a tiny kitchen area, and a waterless bathroom. Both interior and exterior architectural details refer to the original house, creating a miniature, interactive portrait of the complex life of an art house.

The Cardiff-Miller House is the first stage in a multi-part project to develop tiny but inhabitable replicas of significant art houses across Canada. Future houses in the series include the Agnes Martin Family Homestead, located in Macklin, Saskatchewan, the Emily Carr House in Victoria, BC, and the Maud Lewis House in Halifax/Digby, Nova Scotia.

With Assistance From:
Jeld-Wen Windows and Doors, Storage Town, Savill Group Architects, Duane’s Drywall, The Nikkei Cultural Society of Lethbridge, Davis GMC Buick, The Alberta Foundation for the Arts, The Canada Council for the Arts
 

Drawing the Canada-Wide Science Fair

Monday, May 13, 9am – 12pm
Thursday, May 16, 9am – 12pm
Friday, May 17, 9am – 12pm
U of L Centre for Sport and Wellness
Reception: May 16, 4 – 6 pm, Andy’s Place Terrace (AH100), U of L

Drawing the Canada-Wide Science Fair is a collective of fifteen artists who have come together to interpret and play with the spectacle of a national science fair through visual language. By drawing on-site during the Canada-Wide Science Fair, the artists will create and immediately broadcast drawings of selected projects on display. The idea is to expand the notion of drawing around science themes to include the potentials of visual priority, cross-disciplinary work, collaborative drawing, multi-perspectival drawing, non-precious drawing, interactions with people, live tweeting, 5-second-delay blogging, and other unexpected possibilities. #drawingscience #cwsf2013 #ulethimpact

For more information on the project and the participating artists, visit Search & Research.

For more information on the science fair visit Canada-Wide Science Fair.

Participating Artists:

Leila Armstrong
Cindy Baker – (U of L MFA Art Candidate)
Christine Clark – (U of L MFA New Media Candidate)
Kelaine Devine
Leanne Elias – (U of L New Media Instructor)
Mandy Espezel – (U of L MFA Art 2012)
Denton Fredrickson – (U of L, Art Instructor, BFA Multidisciplinary 2001)
David Hoffos – (U of L BFA 1994)
Emily Luce
Glen MacKinnon – (U of L Art instructor)
Petra Mala Miller
Mary-Anne McTrowe – (U of L Art Technician, BFA 1998)
Megan Mormon
Shanell Papp – (U of L BFA 2006)
Rod Sayers
Corinne Thiessen Hepher – (BFA 2009, MFA candidate)

Images of Drawings by participating artists:

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Images of Drawings by Visitors from Lethbridge Area Schools:

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Nicholas de Grandmaison: Recent Acquisitions

May 2 – June 27, 2013
Main Gallery
Reception: May 2, 6 – 8 pm
Extended viewing hours: Saturdays 10 am – 5 pm

Information concerning the de Grandmaison Oral History Project.

Curator: Josephine Mills

Drawn from the 67 artworks donated by BMO Financial Group, this exhibition features 28 pastel portraits that provide a range of the Aboriginal subjects represented in the gift. The works demonstrate de Grandmaison’s deep respect for the people whom he painted and his exceptional skill at capturing the individual character of his sitters. The exhibition will include a resource area focused on a newly launched oral history project. The U of L Art Gallery and the University Archives are partnering to gather stories on the artist and on the subjects of his paintings. These oral histories will be added to the existing research holdings of archival material on the artist and will help provide context for future audiences attending exhibitions of his works. Information on the oral history project will be provided and people can contact the research team if they wish to participate.

Check the U of L Art Gallery’s website — ulag.ca – for details on a planned informal series of presentations “Conversations about Nicholas de Grandmaison”. These will occur on select Thursday evenings throughout the exhibition. As well, the gallery has extended hours for the run of the exhibition and is open every Saturday along with being open until 8:30 pm on Thursdays in addition to the regular 9 am – 4:30 weekday hours.

Closing Reception & Hoop Dance Performance
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Main Gallery

The closing reception featured a hoop dance performance as well as information about the U of L Art Gallery’s ongoing Nicholas de Grandmaison Oral History Project. Through this project we are collecting stories from First Nations people about their relatives portrayed in de Grandmaison’s work. The art gallery hopes to bring past and present generations together by discovering the story behind the subjects in the portraits. The hoop dance performance showed that First Nations’ cultures are still as proud and strong as they were when de Grandmaison first captured his visual documentation of the subjects.

Saving the World from Boredom

April 12 – May 31, 2013
Helen Christou Gallery

Curator: Bianca Elke, Museum Studies Intern
Works from the Galt Museum & Archives, Faculty of Fine Arts Theatre and Dramatic Arts Costume Collection and the U of L Art Collection

In conjunction with Historic Lethbridge Festival
May 3 – 10, 2013

During the 1960s, an inspiring and visible counterculture was born. Referring to themselves as hippies, this movement triggered dramatic cultural changes due to the rejection of conventional social norms from the 1940s and ‘50s as well as opposition to powerful institutions. The youth wanted to become more involved in decision making and were determined to speak up about social issues, such as supporting the civil rights movement and objecting to the war in Vietnam. This was an era when new forms of political activism appeared that included “love-ins” and other peaceful protests as well as harsh responses from government and police.

Along with taking a stand on political issues, people were exploring unconventional personal appearance, music, art, drugs and sexual liberation. New forms of music and festivals like Woodstock played a key role in spreading the counter cultural ideas and spirit. Communal living and other alternatives to Capitalist social structures were explored. Artists were moving away from traditional high art forms, such as painting and sculpture, and began producing a profusion of prints and other types of multiples. Influenced by the changes in society, artists drew their inspiration from Life magazine and other aspects of popular culture and embraced unexpected materials, performances and chance. The work shown in this exhibition contain elements of Pop Art, Fluxus, Postmodern and Abstract Expressionist art, movements that were all going on simultaneously during the 1960s.

Bianca Elke
Museum Studies Intern

(click on images to enlarge)

Bianca Elke

As a second year student, my main attention during the museum studies internship with the U of L Art Gallery will be directed towards curating my own exhibition in the Helen Christou gallery. This experience will provide the opportunity to select works from the U of L art collection as well as the Galt museum. I know that with curating my own exhibition and being allowed to select artwork for the gallery, I am given a lot of responsibility. Many students as well as professors are going to see what I have chosen to display and my evaluation will be based on these projects. I am excited to start this journey and work together with the Art Gallery staff. I aim to bring art closer to people who are not as involved through their classes or private interests in art, as well as trying to use the database to my advantage and to find hidden gems of art that have not been shown before.

Having grown up in Germany, I am also interested in learning about the day-to-day activities of a Canadian art gallery. I will be working with the collection, helping prepare work for travel to other galleries and participating in conservation projects. Besides assisting the Gallery with “hands on” operations, the Gallery also hosts functions that are designed to involve the community on many levels, in which I am also excited to be involved.

Andrea Kremenik
As a fourth year Art History/ Museums Studies major and a Management minor I have not only been interested in learning about art itself, but also the business of art institutions. For that reason I hope to gain insight into how the University of Lethbridge art gallery, as a collecting gallery within an academic setting, differs from that of a civic gallery. I hope to understand this by comparing the knowledge gained from this Museum Studies internship to that of my previous internship at the Southern Alberta Art Gallery. The Museum Studies internship will allow me to learn many skills, such as basic curatorial responsibilities by entrusting me to navigate the U of L art database and find works from the University’s acclaimed collection. For instance, I will have the opportunity to choose Inuit objects for display and will curate a small exhibit on John Clark plus write a feature on him for SAM magazine. Having these opportunities in comparison to my internship at the Southern Alberta Art Gallery, where I was able to gain insight into a non- collecting contemporary art gallery, will give me a well-rounded experience. These two opportunities will allow me to draw on theoretical knowledge within a hands-on environment which will give me an advantage when applying for potential jobs in the future.

Alysha Smith
The Art History and Museum Studies internship is giving me the opportunity to research, draft, compose and conduct programs for the GALT Museum and Archives. I will be creating these programs based on the exhibit themes at the museum which will include science, wind and religion. I also have the opportunity to get hands on experience by running some of these programs with children and adults.
As a future teacher I hope to gain more experience in lesson planning and teaching from creating these programs. Academically I hope to gain better research skills and applied knowledge on the above topics. I also hope to learn more about how museums utilize their resources and their community outreach efforts.

David Smith
Based on the positive experiences I have had in my five previously completed internships, I was eager to sign up for another! I can see how these opportunities have allowed me develop practical skills which have been reinforced by hands-on work. This semester I am building on the curatorial skills that I’ve been able to gain in my previous internships.

An area of personal interest that has arisen from my academic research is the subject of Canadian identity in art. Two curatorial projects have emerged from my investigation on the subject and are the basis for my current internship. The first, titled Glorious and Free, is an exhibition in the Helen Christou Gallery using works from the University of Lethbridge Art Gallery’s permanent collection. The second is a multi-venue exhibition taking place in the summer of 2013 featuring Lethbridge artist Arianna Richardson. Both of these projects allow me to build on the skills afforded to me through previous internships.

It is beneficial for me to get as much experience as possible before graduation so that I will be empowered to contribute meaningfully to the contemporary art discourse through my curatorial practice. I am very grateful to the University of Lethbridge Art Gallery for the opportunity to do so.

Lauren Glenn
Art History was not something that I had every envisioned myself majoring in when I first began my university degree, let alone enrolling in museum studies as well. However after my first year of general studies and having randomly chosen art history classes, I very quickly fell in love and knew this was the career I want to pursue. I am delighted to have the opportunity this semester to be working at the Galt Museum in the collections department, with Kevin Maclean. There is an immense amount of history here in Southern Alberta and the Galt discovers this knowledge through acquisitions from the community. In working with Kevin, I will be able to understand and learn the great detail and skill that is required when dealing with artefacts; this includes the handling, storage, photographing and preservation of these items. In addition I will have the opportunity to be taught documentation and research methods that are done for objects to further understand their history and how they relate to this part of the province.

Along with learning new information and skills, there are other goals that I want to achieve during my internship at the Galt. There are many ways I could further my education and I hope this work experience will help me to pin point where I would like to go after my undergraduate degree is complete. I look forward to investigating career opportunities that are available and how the information I have learned in my studies can be applied in the work field. To extend my knowledge, I want to learn how museums operate when it comes to acquisitions and dealing with donors as well as storage and preservation of artifacts. Having the community involved in the museum is an essential part of the Galt’s mission and I will be able to interact with its members through gathering information about donated objects. I have recently had the opportunity to sit in on an interview of a donor from the early 1990s when he was asked to come in and be interviewed more in-depth about the piece he donated. This was an eye opening experience for me and allowed me to understand how important gathering and documenting information about these artifacts can be and I wish to participate in more of these events. Most importantly I wish to understand the techniques to help preserve the vast history that is being housed in the Galt and to help acquire more information to further appreciate the pieces they hold.

Rachael Gough
Museums and galleries are critical in the maintenance and growth of the arts community. The future of museums and the arts as a whole rests in the hands of our up and coming generations. Young people possess a strong desire to learn and feel a constant thirst for knowledge. If we as a community wish to keep the arts alive and thriving, we must foster a love for the arts in the minds of young people. I believe a great way to get the upcoming generations interested in art is through public programming. As a third year studio major looking to get accepted into education, I have chosen a focus on public programming. Assisting with teaching classes at the Bowman Community Arts Center and helping with Culture Vulture Saturdays will give me insight into art education. My ultimate goal is to teach children and I believe art will always have a place in schools and in life. Therefore I believe gaining experience within the public programming spectrum will allow me to teach art effectively and instill it into the young children who will one day run the world in which we live. To further my education I have been learning several skills that will help me in both assisting with public programming, but also throughout my career, such as clay firing and clay recycling. I will also be assisting with the location change of the Bowman Community Arts Center in spring 2013. As well as a gaining a new, larger building, it will mean more classes, more options, and even more art experiences for children and the community as a whole.

The Anatomy and Etiquette of Social Change

March 18 – 22, 2013
Part of the Complex Social Change Series
Curator: Josephine Mills

A public engagement project with art/design duo DodoLab featured on the University of Lethbridge Art Gallery’s “Project Wall” outside the Main Gallery.

DodoLab: The Anatomy and Etiquette of Social Change

DodoLab is developing The Anatomy and Etiquette of Social Change creative research program with a focussed investigation of the University of Lethbridge with the goal of extending their investigation to additional institutions and communities as part of Complex Social Change (ULAG). The program begins by applying the framework (based on the story of the extinct dodo bird) of adaptation to an island environment to different situations. Dodos were adapted to their unique environment in a number of ways, including increased size, loss of the ability to fly and laying their eggs on the ground (all related to an abundance of easily accessible food and a predator free environment). Such adaptations proved fatal when significant introduced changes occurred within their environment.

The Anatomy and Etiquette of Social Change program will be launched at the University of Lethbridge in the spring of 2013 with the sharing of the dodo narrative. Told as a graphic/comic tale, this narrative will be presented on campus in various forms including an installation on the gallery’s new interactive wall, on line and in print. It will be the basis for a series of field research inquiries with students, staff and faculty, both in classes and informally around campus. Dodolab wants people to consider the risks their community or institution may face due to select adaptation strategies, moments of laying one’s eggs on the ground. Social and operational structures, planning and development methods, traditions and rituals, organizational arrangements and cultural attitudes, are some examples of adaptations. Over the coming months, the dodo narrative will evolve and be added to based on the feedback and so a unique dodo narrative will emerge that is specific to the University of Lethbridge. The goal is to document areas of concern within the institution and to highlight opportunities for considered change.

The Anatomy and Etiquette of Social Change is the second major project by DodoLab developed with the University of Lethbridge Art Gallery. It follows their Important Things To Know About Eating and Drinking (In Lethbridge) in 2011 and builds on their ongoing creative research work with institutions and communities across Canada and Internationally.

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DodoLab is an evolving collaborative program lead by artists Lisa Hirmer and Andrew Hunter engaged with provocative, experimental and creative approaches to research and community actions. Their work is critically playful and highly public, emphasizing open participation and exchange. The state of the natural world, adaptive challenges to communities and institutions, the built environment and cities in transition are their primary areas of interest. They employ creative interventions, surprise encounters, innovative publishing and design, and genuine collaborations to enhance and encourage public conversations, dialogue and knowledge sharing within and across cultures, generations, disciplines (and sometimes species). They are partially supported in their work by the Musagetes Foundation with whom they share a commitment to art as social catalyst. Their work is further supported by commissioned collaborations with individuals and organizations in Canada and Internationally (including universities, municipalities, social service organizations and the arts).

DodoLab uses the archetypal extinct species in its name/logo as a reminder that we need to consider the risks of isolated and narrowly defined adaptive strategies (the Dodo could not survive outside of its predator free island environment). Are we “Dead as a Dodo” or potentially “Going the way of the Dodo” if we do not learn to adapt, change and work together? The dodo reminds us that a lack of resiliency and a solo existence is a precarious strategy for survival. For generations, the Dodo has also been understood to have been a slow, lazy, glutinous bird with limited intelligence. It is now believed that this large flightless bird may have actually been reasonably intelligent and active and that the unflattering characteristics usually associated with the bird may have been the result of encounters with overfed, captive species – basically, specimens living in an artificial, human designed environment of overabundance. This is a reminder that sometimes the stories we tell become barriers to understanding and resolving the issues we face.

The Anatomy and Etiquette of Social Change: The Results

Have thoughts on this? Share them at: www.complexsocailchange.ca/anatomy_and_etiquette.

More info at dodolab.ca and Facebook and Twitter