Category: Arts

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Arts

Happening in and around the white cube this week…

Three years ago the white cube began as a list of art happenings in and around Montreal. Last year, the column took a turn into my own art thoughts and experiences. When the pandemic hit, and Lorenza Mezzapelle took over as arts editor, the column ceased. But now that exhibitions are back, so is the white cube. Here’s to hoping they don’t shut down these cultural institutions any time soon *wine glass emoji*.

Happening in and around the white cube this week… 

Galleries

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Leonard and Bina Ellen Art Gallery: Concordia LB Building – Bishop Street entrance.
Edith Brunette and François Lemieux, Going to, Making Do, Passing Just the Same. Until March 27.

Galerie Nicolas Robert: 10 King St.
Carl Trahan, La nuit est aussi un soleil and Ghazaleh Avarzamani Particular Good Game for Self Punishment. Until March 13.

McClure Gallery: 350 Victoria Ave.
Marie-Eve Martel (Concordia Alumni), Hétérotrophies. Until Feb. 27

OBORO: 4001 Berri St., #301
Christof Migone, Press Record. Until March 20.

Art Mûr: 5826 St. Hubert St.
Group exhibition for Art Mûr’s 25th anniversary, Terra Nova | Looking at the present and the future. Until April 24.

Bradley Ertaskiran: 3550 Saint-Antoine W.

Marie-Michelle Deschamps, Oasis, and Celia Perrin Sidarous, Flotsam. Until March 13.

Blouin Division: 2020 William St.
Group Exhibition, Quarante. Until Feb. 27

ELLEPHANT: 1201 Saint-Dominique
Group exhibition, Floating Paper. Until April 3.

VOX: 2 Sainte-Catherine E, #401
Sky Hopinka, Dislocation Blues. Until May 29.

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New galleries

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Somewhere Gallery:  Visits by appointment. 6830 Ave. du Parc #358. Alternative gallery space set up in an office building, owned and curated by recent Concordia Fine Arts graduate, Katherine Parthimos.

  • Digital Daydream, Feb. 20-27. Featuring five emerging artists and recent Concordia graduates.
  • Upcoming VAV Gallery collaboration, yet to be announced, date set for March 17-24.

Gallery Jano Lapin: 3819 Wellington St. Exhibition space and artist studios for rent.

  • Ribboned Rainbow until March 12. Celebrated creativity during the pandemic, curated by gallery owner, Anne Janody and visual artist/recent Concordia Fine Arts graduate, Jose Garcia.
  • Upcoming: My Magic Reality. From March 28, featuring over twenty local artists. Curated by Marilyne Bissonnette
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Museums

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Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA):  By reservation only.

    • Manuel Mathieu, Survivance. Until March 28.
    • Yehouda Chaki, Mi Makir. À la recherche des disparus. Until March 14.
    • Group exhibition, GRAFIK! Until July 3. 
    • Riopelle : à la rencontre des territoires nordiques et des cultures autochtones. Until Sept. 12.

Museum of Contemporary Art (MAC): By reservation only.

  • John Akomfrah, Vertigo Sea. Until April 4.
  • Recent acquisitions, Des horizons d’attente. Until Sept. 19.
  • Group exhibition, La machine qui enseignait des airs aux oiseaux. Until April 25.

Canadian Centre for Architecture: By reservation only. 

  • Main galleries: The Things Around Us: 51N4E and Rural Urban Framework. Until Sept. 19.
  • Octagonal gallery: Eye Camera Window: Takashi Homma on Le Corbusier. Until Aug.15.

McCord Museum: Reservation recommended.

  • Christian Dior. Until May 2.
  • Robert Walker, Griffintown – Evolving Montreal. Walking exhibition. Until March 7.

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Warehouse studio hubs and artist-run-centres

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Fonderie Darling: 745 Ottawa St.

Belgo: 372 Ste. Catherine W

*More but potentially out of date information about the many individual galleries within the Belgo building available here. I guess you’ll just have to go and see for yourself! 

5445 & 5455  de Gaspé Ave:

Never Apart: 7049 St-Urbain

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Other

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Place Publique, Fonderie Darling: 745 Ottawa St. Until April 11.  Everything Merges, Emerges, then Fades Again: Selected works from artists-in-residence at the Fonderie Darling over the course of the pandemic to date.

Cinematheque québécoise: 355 De Maisonneuve E.
Jamais seul. Until April 4. Free entry to view video installation by Stéphane and Philémon Crête.
Catherine Ocelot, une année à la Cinémathèque. Until April 11. Culminating work from Ocelot’s artist residency.
Exhibition: Excursion dans les collections : l’image à la maison. Until May 23.

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Vitrine exhibitions

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La Centrale galerie Powerhouse: 4296 St-Laurent Blvd.
B.G- Osborne, A Thousand Cuts. Until March 21.

Pierre-François Ouellette: 963 Rachel E.
Ed Pien, Somnambulists and Luc Courchesne,  Anamorphosis. Until March 13.

Articule: 262 Fairmount W.
tīná gúyáńí (Deer Road), k’ō-dī īyínáts’īdìsh (new agency). Closed Feb. 21. Upcoming programming available here.

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Upcoming Exhibitions and Festivals

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Fondation PHI pour l’art contemporain: 451 & 465 Saint-Jean
Lee Bae, UNION. From Feb. 24 until June 20. By reservation only.

Centre Phi: 315 Saint-Paul W.
Multiple exhibitions and virtual experiences. Reopening in-person on Feb. 24. 

Projet Pangée: 1305 Pine Ave. W
Group exhibition, The ideal place is an open field. Feb. 25 until April 3.

Art Souterrain:
The 13th edition of the festival will feature the work of over 30 artists and performers, both online and in-person, from Feb. 20 to April 30. More information here.

Art Matters: More information and updates to come here

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Arts

Kicking off Out of Many with Antwaun Sargent and Yaniya Lee

Behind Jorian Charlton’s photography exhibition

As part of the online exhibition Out of Many, curator and art critic Antwaun Sargent, alongside writer and editor Yaniya Lee, hosted a conversation with Jorian Charlton. The talk, which took place online on Feb. 9, discussed the work behind Charlton’s photographs presented in the virtual exhibition.

Curated by Emilie Croning, Out of Many is presented by Wedge Curatorial Projects, a non-profit initiative promoting Black and diasporic culture, in collaboration with Gallery TPW, an artist-run centre that exhibits artistic and curatorial practices.

Antwaun Sargent is a writer who has contributed essays for museum publications and has been published by The New Yorker and The New York Times. Sargent is the author of The New Black Vanguard: Photography Between Art and Fashion, published in 2019, which addresses the role of Black people in fashion and art today.

Yaniya Lee is a Toronto-based writer interested in the ethics of aesthetics. Lee has written for publications such as Vogue, Canadian Art, C Magazine and more.

The conversation revolved around the work of Jorian Charlton, a Toronto-based portrait photographer whose work focuses on personal experiences and Jamaican-Canadian culture.

Charlton uses digital and film photography for her work. Her photographs depict storytelling and Black representation.

The virtual exhibition includes photographs that Charlton’s father Clayton Charlton gave her. Charlton and her father’s vintage 35mm slides complete each other as they create a dialogue about family albums in contemporary time.

Charlton’s father’s images depict the 1970s to the late 1980s in Jamaica, Toronto and New York.

Through these images, viewers can see a band playing music on a bright day or men and women posing in different environments. His pictures present the past, whereas Charlton’s are the present. Together, they create a chronological line of experiences.

Charlton doesn’t know much of her father’s past as he wouldn’t share too much. She would learn details of his life from her aunts. Her father’s photographs were a small peek into the past. She remembers having asked her father about the pictures, but he would simply reply by saying that they were only pictures.

Having seen the pictures that were given to her for preservation, she thought about creating an archive that she could pass down.

“After I had my daughter, I was sort of thinking about family album archives and wanting her to have an archive for the next generation,” said Charlton. “When you think about family albums or photos from the ’80s or the ’90s, it’s usually from an American perspective.”

That is when she created her own perspective with her photographic style. Her photographs are personal, accentuating beauty and intimacy.

She eloquently captures people in pictures. Couples, siblings, and single portraits can be seen. Each photograph is a story.

[blockquote align=”left” author=””]“I just want to have more representation of us and have that be normal,” said Charlton. “I want the next generation to see themselves.”[/blockquote]

Charlton has created an archive of Black people’s lives to be looked back on. Charlton portrays them in their authenticity. She seeks to demonstrate beauty in tender photographs by showing various personalities through her lens. “I see similarities between my father’s and my pictures even though it wasn’t made on purpose,” said Charlton.

When photographing her subjects, Charlton has little involvement when it comes to telling them how to pose. She is usually quiet when taking shots to let her subjects do their own thing. Charlton keeps it as natural as possible.

[blockquote align=”right” author=””]“I want these photographs to convey a person’s truth and essence,” said Charlton. “I don’t want to manipulate things too much, I keep it as simple as I can and I want my subjects to be comfortable when I’m photographing them.”[/blockquote]

Charlton speaks of individuality. She lets her subjects be free in her images through fashion and style to let them present their stories in their own way.

Just like her father’s photographs, Charlton was able to capture tender moments that will forever live on, shedding light on a new generation of people.

In her exhibition, Charlton quotes Bell Hooks, author of In Our Glory: Photography and Black Life”, in Art On My Mind: Visual Politics (1995): “Ultimately, these images, the world they recorded, could be hidden, to be discovered at another time.”

Out of Many by Jorian Charlton is presented online until April 17.

 

Photo courtesy of Jorian Charlton.

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Ar(t)chives Arts

A glimpse at John Kacere’s “body” of work

The artist painted larger-than-life depictions of the female midsection

Upon first glance, John Kacere’s paintings could be mistaken for some NSFW photos. A quick search of his name in the Google search bar yields dozens of photos of bare women’s midriffs and bottoms.

The American artist originally began his career as an abstract expressionist in the 1950s and ‘60s. Works such as Homage to Stuart Davis (1952) feature the same bold geometric shapes painted in primary colors that many artists of the same era, like Joan Miró, are recognized for. These pieces contrast many of his series from the same period, such as three works (1959-1963), which feature a collection of very minimal strokes and shapes on paper.

Kacere experimented with a variety of media, including pencil, graphite and collage, until the late 1960s, when he settled on the oil-on-canvas photorealistic style that he is known for today. One of his first works, Untitled (bikini) (1970), depicts a close-up of a woman’s bikini line. She wears white lingerie, and the shading is so detailed that it appears as though the painting is an enlarged photograph. The painting is nearly 50 inches wide and 40 inches tall — that is over three times “life size.”

The artist maintained this style for the rest of his career, assembling a collection of roughly 130 works, according to the Louis K. Meisel Gallery. Over the years, the New York City gallerist, Louis Meisel, has worked to collect them in order to offer a retrospective of Kacere’s career. Meisel is said to have discovered Kacere’s work via his wife, Susan Pear Meisel, who met Kacere in 1966 when she was a student at Parsons School of Design, where Kacere taught.

In a statement on his gallery website, Meisel writes: “I might point out that Kacere’s work CAN be seen as all three parts of realist painting, portrait, still life AND landscape.”

This quote encompasses many of the aspects present in Kacere’s paintings. Some, like Meisel, have compared the works to landscapes, describing the curve of the womens’ hips as “[building] a terrain across each canvas.” Others, like Melt, have observed the classical resemblance and quality of his work which “could be attributed to the luxurious materials and skin on display.”

While his focus on the beauty of the nude body was recognizably influenced by classical sculptures, it is also interesting to note his displays of female fashions, which make the paintings resemble still lifes. In each work, the depicted woman is clad in a new, intricate and luxurious set of lingerie, and sprawled against luscious patterned silks and satins. The fabrics are shown in a similar manner to the way most still lifes depict ceramic vases or ripe fruit.

His work has, unsurprisingly, been described as erotic and provocative. There is no doubt Kacere was fascinated with the female figure, which, of course, has raised questions regarding objectification. According to Fad, Kacere once stated that “Woman is the source of all life, the source of regeneration. My work praises that aspect of womanhood,” in reply to criticism about his chosen subject matter.

The verdict is still out among art writers and critics on whether Kacere’s work is, in fact, problematic or not. However, his “body” of work makes it clear that he redefined the way we perceive the modern female nude.

 

Graphic by Taylor Reddam.

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Arts

Behind the scenes of Mephisto Bates’ universe

Creating universes with primary colours

As part of its second artistic residency, Aussenwelt.co, a community of multidisciplinary artists that showcase the works of various creators, is presenting the works of Montreal-based artist Mephisto Bates.

Created in 2018, Aussenwelt.co is a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to bring together all types of artists from the Montreal art scene. The organization aims to provide a sense of support for artists to exhibit their works in an innovative way.

Fragments colossaux: Hommage à Riopelle by interdisciplinary artist Mephisto Bates is hosted at Deneb.es, a multidisciplinary space, located at 22 Duluth Street E.

Bates studied Visual Arts at Cegep du Vieux Montréal a few years ago. It’s now been five years since he took his paintbrush and started working more profoundly on his artistic skills.

While admiring his canvases, it is easy enough to see that the palette is repetitive as Bates works with primary colours such as red, yellow and blue. Bates also uses orange and pink in his works.

To be honest, I dislike mixing colours, it annoys me,” said Bates. “I really like primary colours and with pastel alternatives, it gives my canvases a childish vibe.”

Bates works with acrylic paint and oil pastels. Depending on where he is, he will also use spray paint for his canvas.

In front of the multidisciplinary space’s window, five small paintings are showcased which is his study series. One of the canvases is a remake of a renaissance painting he used to create his own version.

“I find it interesting of reappropriating myself of artworks that already exist and are from another era. That way, I remake the artwork, but in my way,” said Bates.

Bates painted the inspired renaissance canvas with his left hand, even though he’s right-handed. He uses this technique to exaggerate his subjects on paint, giving them disproportionate bodies.

If the result is not exaggerated enough while using his left hand, Bates will simply blindfold himself to create more exaggeration in his work. 

“Before covering my eyes, I prepare my colours. Then, I get lost, I don’t know what colour I am using,” said Bates. “I start my canvas like that to create a composition over which I have as little control as possible.”

The pandemic seems to have brought him luck as he is feeling more creative than ever. This has given him the opportunity to develop his skills and experiment more as he is already doing.

One particular canvas that sheds light on Bates’ unique style is La vierge pi des enfants pi toute (madonna) (2021) This is in reference to Madonna, a representation of the Virgin Mary.

This specific painting depicts a woman with a child on her knee, pointing at another child at her feet. The subjects are faceless, the bodies are disproportionate, but they make the canvas look simple.

The presence of white and black makes the vivid colours of the canvas burst, which emphasizes the light colours in depth.

His works are also a tribute to Jean-Paul Riopelle, a Montreal-based artist who was known for his abstract style of painting and mosaic works in the 1950s. Riopelle is an inspiration for Bates as he created powerful atmospheres on large canvases.

“I paint with colours that anyone could use. I like the idea that primary colours are the base of paint,” said Bates. “It’s like a paint kit for kids: I directly use the paint without having to mix it with another colour.”

The exhibition is presented behind windows, attracting the eyes of the public who can take a glance at the artwork presented in the locale.

Fragments colossaux: Hommage à Riopelle by Mephisto Bates is on display until Feb. 23.

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Arts

Former Concordia student Karaline Alessia releases debut poetry collection

Love & Other Anxieties offers an intimate glimpse into the author’s emotions

The lockdown has shuttered many of us indoors, lending more time to catch up on some leisure reading. Montreal based poet and former Concordia student Karaline Alessia recently released her debut poetry book Love & Other Anxieties.

The book centres on the themes of love, feelings of anxiety, and women empowerment, with Alessia writing her poems as an open journal to the world. This collection offers an intimate glimpse into the poet’s emotions as she navigates through both difficult and triumphant moments.

It can be difficult to reflect on certain parts of your life,” said Alessia. “My poetry is all about my experience, and it was hard to think back on times in my life that I would have rather forgotten.”

When not writing poetry, Alessia works as a public school teacher at Westmount’s Roslyn Elementary School. In addition to this, the author runs the Caterpillar Club, a literacy centre that aims to help students who struggle with reading, writing and phonics.

Despite her busy schedule, Alessia dedicates as much time as possible to writing, whether she is scrawling ideas into a notebook, or her Notes app while on the go. 

“I had most of the book written as I had previously self published a version of it before,” she explains. “With my publisher, we decided that we wanted to republish it as an even better version.”

Alessia published her book with Ace of Swords, a Montreal-based publishing house established in 2019 by four Concordia graduates.

“The publishing aspect also took several months, as there are many different parts to publishing a book. Writing takes a long time, and you have to be okay with that.”

Alessia began writing an array of unpublished children’s books, with many ideas arising during her work as a teacher. 

“As time went on, I decided to change up my style and take a try with poetry,” says Alessia.

The author notes that if you’re looking to write poetry, it’s important to spend a considerable amount of time reading poetry as well.

I read a lot of poetry before writing. I think it’s really important to read in the genre you write for inspiration and to learn.”

Alessia suggests studying writing techniques from established authors.

“Some people see this as copying for some reason, but it’s not. It’s about learning and teaching yourself.”

To purchase a copy of Love & Other Anxieties, visit the Ace of Swords website. Those looking to stay updated on Alessia’s work can follow her on Instagram.

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Arts

The Post Image Cluster presents oral historian and writer Aanchal Malhotra

Reconnecting history through material memory

The Post Image Cluster, a research centre at Concordia, had the pleasure to present its first speaker in their artist talk series, writer and oral historian Aanchal Malhotra.

Based in New Delhi, Malhotra graduated from the Ontario College of Art & Design (OCAD) with a BFA in Traditional Printmaking and Art History. Then, she graduated from Concordia University with an MFA in Studio Art.

She is the co-founder of the Museum of Material Memory, a digital repository of material culture of the Indian subcontinent, promoting the preservation of material memory through objects of antiquity.

Having enjoyed learning traditional print skills at OCAD, Malhotra decided to enroll at Concordia, as enrolling in grad school seemed like the most natural thing to do.

However, when she arrived at Concordia, she realized that the print program wasn’t as traditional as she had imagined. That was at a time when the program was moving away from the traditional methods of printmaking to digital printing, videos and print installations.

“I was lost for a long time and I didn’t know what to do. I was just drawing a little bit because there was all this talk about research and I didn’t know the meaning of research in art,” said Malhotra.

Malhotra was overwhelmed as she didn’t understand the way that research could be included in visual art.

“Maybe it was just me, but I was resisting the box that I was being put into in my program,” she said. “‘Indian artists should make Indian art’ is what I was being told.” 

Malhotra later realized she shouldn’t have felt that way as her work later revolved around India.

“I was resisting moving away from my traditional print media that I spent four years fortifying.”

Malhotra was able to find herself in her work as her art started to speak of her home. She started doing bookwork. More specifically, she made an installation of books she had made with traditional Japanese Washi paper. Her work started to include the skills she gained when she learned how to do paper and screen printing.

“I come from a family of booksellers, so books and readings were always in my blood, but writing was never included,” said Malhotra.

As part of the program requirements, she had to write a thesis. Malhotra didn’t know where to start. She decided to take a sabbatical year and returned to India. During this time, she worked at her family’s book shop, BahriSons Booksellers, which was set up in 1953 by her grandfather.

There, she encountered two objects that her great uncle showed her: These were the objects that his family migrated with during the Indian Partition of 1947.

This was the beginning of her research.

“I felt embarrassed since I was 22 at the time and didn’t know that much about the Partition of India and how it affected … my grandparents.” 

The Partition of India occurred in 1947, two years after WWII, when the British withdrew from India after 300 years of occupation, and the land was divided into two independent states. This forced Hindus and Sikhs to the eastside of India and Muslims to westward Pakistan. It is estimated that 14 million people were displaced and one million were killed during that time.

Malhotra went on an intensive journey. From India to Pakistan, and to England, she revisited the Partition through objects that refugees carried with them when they were displaced.

Her book Remnants of a Separation: A History of the Partition through Material Memory, published in 2017, tracks down history through various family stories that people shared with Malhotra. Through interviews, she traces human history.

Malhotra was able to trace human memory through photographs of family members, objects such as jewelry, passports, certificates, and many other materials that people were able to share with her.

A particular object that was odd, but very significant, was the lock to a man’s house that was carried by his family during the Partition.

“People would lock their houses in hopes of returning one day to their home,” said Malhotra.

Her research helped her understand a part of history that she was unaware of. It also allowed her to make connections between her family’s story and other people’s stories.

Malhotra’s work is of great importance as it serves as a remembrance of the past and honours the many unheard voices that lived in through the Partition.

At the moment, Malhotra is writing an oral history on the impact of the Partition.

 

Photo courtesy of the Milieux Institute for Arts, Culture, and Technology at Concordia.

 

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Arts

Decrypting crypto art: The new art movement on the block(chain)

How lucrative the rare pepe-making market is becoming

In November 2017, Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi was sold at Christie’s, the biggest auction house in the world, for US$450.3 million. In October 2020, Satoshi Nakamoto’s Block 21 was sold at Christie’s for $131,250.

The former is the most expensive piece of art in the world. The second is the first piece of crypto art to ever be sold at a major auction house.

Cryptocurrencies have been having their moment for a while, with the 2018 Bitcoin mania (which, by the way, was created by the person under the alias of  Satoshi Nakamoto) and the recent rumours that it could replace paper money once central banks inevitably crash due to the pandemic. And because, of course, it wouldn’t be the internet without the idiosyncratic evolution of an underground subculture, there’s now also an increasing presence of crypto art in the crypto community.

I hear you asking: “What the hell is crypto art?”

Crypto art is a new movement that allows people to create digital art while guaranteeing official ownership of the piece with what crypto fiends call an NFT.

NFT stands for Non-Fungible Token, which means something that is certified unique; it’s irreplaceable, which gives it a certain amount of intrinsic value. Since most online art can be replicated à volonté by just about anyone, making a piece of digital art an NFT, where the copyrights and ownership details would be stored on a cryptocurrency’s blockchain, would give it the same amount of rarity as a physical piece of art like da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi.

The art can still be replicated, but only the person who has the token — the artist’s cyber signature on the piece, essentially — really owns it.

NFTs can have many forms. They can be specific pieces of artwork just like they can be collectible characters and games, like CryptoPunks — a bunch of punk characters that you can buy using Ether, a cryptocurrency— and CryptoKitties, which is kind of like Nintendogs, but with a digital cat that has a unique NFT genetic code and that you can breed with other cats to make another unique kitty.

Another use for crypto art is what is called cold storage: some crypto art pieces are available as physical prints that feature a QR code, which Bitcoin users can then use to store their Bitcoin outside their crypto wallet. Since they’re transferring funds onto a physical, two-dimensional object — which therefore can’t be hacked into — the art print then acts like a safety deposit box at a bank.

For the most part, crypto artworks can run anywhere from $50 to $500,000. But it’s difficult to follow the value of these pieces because the value of cryptocurrencies changes so much, and there are so many sources claiming different values for the most expensive pieces of crypto art.

So far, a crypto photo of a rose, sold for $1 million, is said to be the most expensive piece of crypto art out there. As a fast-paced business, it’s estimated the crypto art market is worth well over $128 million, and it expanded by $8.2 million in December 2020 alone.

Some are seeing this as a counterculture movement against the traditional art world, which has come to embody elitism and luxury. Where museums, art buyers, and the like are deciding which types of art and which artists will be put under the spotlight, the internet is able to democratize the industry and give small artists the support and recognition they deserve. The web is also home to a wealth of different styles and themes of art.

Now crypto art is all fun and games, but this is the internet we’re talking about, and on the internet people just have to make things weird. Enter the Rare Pepe Directory.

The Directory is a panel of “experts” who work to verify and approve user-submitted Rare Pepe artworks (which act and look similar to trading cards). They have a list of specific criteria to consider any submission, like dimension specifications and how many shares it must have had, to confirm the Pepe before their eyes is indeed rare. If approved, the new Pepe can then be bought and traded as an NFT.

As far as I know, there aren’t really any practical uses to crypto art. But the concept has been questioned by many as just another way for internet users to launder money more effectively. After all, the world of fine art is already used as a way to clean dirty money and tax evade through under-the-table payments and over appraisals; creating an art industry based on decentralized, anonymous payments seems like an obvious next step for the elite of the blockchain.

The rise in popularity and value of intangible art starts an important conversation about the reasons why we care about art in the first place. Salvator Mundi’s exorbitant price denotes the scarcity of original Leonardo da Vinci pieces, but what difference does it make when it’s possible to scrutinize the piece and enjoy it just as much as a JPEG file? Are we about to see higher and higher price records from digital pieces?

Most importantly, crypto art, as a prediction of what the future of art looks like, is an indicator that the barriers of entry to the art world have reached a tipping point. Just as we’re seeing in the rest of the digital world, the 99 per cent is taking art back from those who have capitalized on its captivity.

 

Photo collage by Kit Mergaert

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Arts

What has the CUJAH been up to?

A glimpse at what the Concordia Undergraduate Journal of Art History has been working on

There’s no doubt that Zoom university makes it harder to engage in student life and feel like you’re a part of something. In an effort to make students feel more involved and aware of what student clubs are up to, we’ll be conducting a series of interviews with various student-run organizations.

The Concordia Undergraduate Journal of Art History (CUJAH) is a student-run association that aims to showcase the talents of Concordia’s Art History and Fine Arts students via the publishing of an annual journal and an art history conference.

CUJAH aims to provide students with opportunities, both professional and academic, by offering a variety of workshops.

“We also hold a variety of events throughout the year geared towards supporting students in their academic and professional development,” explained Kari Valmestad, CUJAH’s Editor-in-Chief.

Fortunately for the CUJAH, lockdown and work-from-home orders have not disrupted their process too much, seeing that most of their work is done digitally.

“A significant adjustment, and a crucial one, is that CUJAH implemented a board of directors for the first time in the student group’s history,” said Valmestad. “This was a very necessary amendment, and we are lucky to have a wonderful group of students who comprise our 2020-2021 board.”

Moreover, for the first time since it’s inaugural launch, their tenth annual edition of the conference will be held entirely online and their journal launch will not occur in-person.

“Although meeting in person is incomparable, there actually have been many advantages to having the conference virtually,” said Valmestad. “For example, Juliette Muth [CUJAH’s conference coordinator] has invited many speakers from outside of Montreal, whereby normally, we wouldn’t have the funding to fly out speakers to the city.”

Many scholars and artists will be joining from elsewhere, such as Dr. Sabrina Strings, an associate professor of sociology at the University of California, Irvine, whose research focuses on how race, sexuality, and class are “inscribed” in the body.

“Another pro to having the conference virtually is that anyone anywhere can attend,” said Valmestad.

Aside from their annual conference, CUJAH has been hosting a series of speaker events in collaboration with Concordia’s 4TH SPACE, a centre for research and experiential learning, and Yiara Magazine, an undergraduate feminist art publication based out of Concordia.

“Our first [event], which was on Jan. 13, was with the newly-hired art history professor Dr. Michelle McGeough who spoke about her research on Indigenous knowledge in art history and pushing beyond queering the art historical canon.”

The publication’s second webinar featured a conversation between artist and activist Esther Calixte-Bea and interdisciplinary artist Mahlet Cuff.

Viewers can watch recordings of both the first and second events on 4TH SPACE’s YouTube channel.

Their third and final event was moderated by Manitoba-based artist and curator Genevieve Farrell. The webinar featured curators and programmers from artist-run centres VIE D’ANGE, Groupe Intervention Vidéo, and the Biennale d’art contemporain autochtone (BACA).

Despite most of their content being digital this year, the publication still plans on producing a print issue for their tenth annual edition.

“Having a printed version, I consider to be really important, as not only do the essays, artwork, and graphic design work look so amazing in print, but we also want to have physical copies circulating and available to file in our own archives and those of Concordia and the BAnQ,” said Valmestad. “We will also have a digital version so that it is accessible to anyone interested in reading this year’s volume.”

Those interested in an executive team position at the Concordia Undergraduate Journal of Art History can expect callouts within the coming months. Editorial positions will be opening in the fall semester.

For more information about CUJAH’s upcoming annual conference on Feb. 20-21, or to know more about them follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

 

Photos courtesy of CUJAH.

Categories
Ar(t)chives Arts

My Wife’s (unlikely) Lovers

The amusing history of an 1891 painting of 42 cats

If you have not yet seen Carl Kahler’s My Wife’s Lovers, I urge you to do so.

Commissioned in 1891 by millionaire and philanthropist Kate Birdsall Johnson, the work features her 42 Persian and Angora cats. A mix of kittens and cats stand poised on Rococo furniture while others are sprawled against a lavish velvet curtain.

Painted by Austrian artist Carl Kahler, the work took three years to complete. According to the Portland Art Museum, this is supposedly because he spent months studying them in preparatory sketches and paintings.

The oil painting, which is 6 by 8.5 feet in size, and weighs roughly 227 pounds, depicts the cats to be larger-than-life. And yes, each and every one of the 42 cats, meticulously painted, belonged to Birdssall Johnson. Despite the Portland Art Museum claiming it to be a falsity, many sources such as Architectural Digest and Sotheby’s declare that the work depicts only 42 of the woman’s 350 cats.

According to an article in the New York Post, the elegant and collected cat that stands at the centre of the painting was a US $3,000 cat named Sultan which she bought during a trip to Paris.

According to many sources, such as the New York Post, it is rumoured that the painting was a gift from her husband, Robert C. Johnson, and that he chose the title My Wife’s Lovers. However, Dawson Carr, curator at the Portland Art Museum states that her husband, in fact, died two years prior but adds that it is a possibility he had used the phrase to refer to her collection of cats in the past and that Birdsall Johsnon simply deemed it fitting as a title for the monumental painting.

Birdsall Johnson reportedly paid approximately US $5,000 in 1891 for the work, which is equivalent to around US $143,000 in 2021.

The work was estimated at a value of $200,000 to US $300,000  by Sotheby’s in 2015 and sold at auction for nearly three times its estimate, at US $826,000  by an anonymous buyer in California.

If you didn’t think it was crazy enough that a lady paid over $140,000 for a painting of her cats, just think that someone paid over half a million for cats that didn’t even belong to them. Another rumour even states that she left her cats over US $500,000 in her will.

My Wife’s Lovers has ignited many rumours. Whether false or not, Birdsall Johnson has proven to be the ultimate crazy cat lady.

 

Graphic by Taylor Reddam.

Categories
Arts

Your Name Engraved Herein: a never ending love story

The highest-grossing LGBTQ+ movie in Taiwan gives audiences an emotionally charged experience

Directed by Kuang-Hui Liu, Your Name Engraved Herein is a coming of age movie that tells the story of two classmates, A-han (Edward Chen) and Birdy (Tseng Jing-Hua), who fall in love precisely when the martial law is lifted in Taiwan in 1987. Despite this, society doesn’t change overnight, and homophobia, family pressure, and social stigmas remain present.

It’s intimate and sensual, but heartbreaking at the same time.

The martial law lasted in Taiwan for 38 years, from 1949 to 1987. This period of time is known as the White Terror, when the Republic of China took control of Taiwan. Chiang Kai-shek, leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), decided to impose a martial law, a temporary imposition of military authority and control of civilian rule, on Taiwan to prevent the Communist Party, led by Mao Tse-tung, from winning the Civil War. Freedom of speech and human rights were declined. Civilians who opposed it would either be imprisoned, tortured or even executed.

In the film, Birdy is a new student at a strict all-boys Catholic high school that A-han attends. The two rapidly become friends and their bond grows stronger.

They take part in the school’s band, led by Father Olivier (Fabio Grangeon) from Montreal, who is also the school’s priest. Father Olivier always reminds his students, “Profiter du moment” (live in the moment). During one of their classes, he discusses the concept of youth and love with his students. While everyone is questioning the priest about his love life, A-han and Birdy glimpse at each other.

News of President Chiang Ching-kuo’s death surfaces at school. Students are encouraged to take a trip to Taipei to pay their respects to the deceased. In Taipei, A-han and Birdy take advantage of their stay in the capital to enjoy their time together. Still, they are resistant to their mutual affection.

The arrival of girls shifts the school’s dynamic. Birdy is noticed by Ban-Ban, who represents social acceptance, stability and heterosexual romance. A-han gets jealous as Birdy spends more time with Ban-Ban and A-han won’t let go of his affection towards Birdy. A series of confrontations and reconciliations follow as they part from each other. Finally, life brings them together a few years later, giving them an opportunity to reflect on their past.

Director Liu captures a period of time when many people suffered from discrimination due to social stigma, even after the removal of the martial law. Gradually, society was able to evolve as Taiwan became the first Asian country to legalize same-sex marriage in 2019.

The movie pays a tribute to known Taiwanese LGBTQ+ activist, Chi Chia-wei, who was imprisoned during the White Terror. The activist appears in one scene of the movie, where a protest is happening, holding a sign that says “Homosexuality is not a disease.”

At times, it is hard to watch since the story is beautiful, but also heartbreaking. In a particular scene, Birdy is injured in a scooter accident and A-han decides to help him shower. A-han and Birdy get intimate. When Birdy climaxes, he kisses A-han but rapidly apologizes. Then, both cry in each other’s arms, understanding each other’s pain, shame and love.

The title of the movie is in reference to the song “Your Name Engraved Herein” written by Hsu Yuan-Ting, Chia Wang and Chen Wen-Hua, and performed by Crowd Lu. In the film, A-han plays the song on the phone to confess his love to Birdy. By the end of this scene, both start sobbing as they listen carefully to the song, heartbroken.

In a Time interview, Liu mentioned that “The LGBT communities need a movie like this to tell them, ‘You are allowed to love, you are not guilty.’”

The movie sheds light on those who have lived in pain and frustration due to past trauma.

Although the film depicts a generation that was denied to celebrate their identities freely and are recognized in Taiwan today, it still demonstrates that the fight for LGBTQ+ rights is not over.

Your Name Engraved Herein sends a clear universal message that, regardless of sexual orientation, love is love and everyone deserves it.

Your Name Engraved Herein is available to watch on Netflix.

Categories
Arts

What books are on our shelves in 2021?

A glimpse at what The Concordian staff plans to read this year

 

Lorenza Mezzapelle, Arts Editor

Most of the books I plan on reading this year aren’t even new releases, but worth mentioning nonetheless. Danielle Ofri’s What Doctors Feel: How Emotions Affect the Practice of Medicine is high up on my list, along with Stephen Brusatte’s The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World. I tend to gravitate towards non-fiction and I’m hoping these two will satisfy my curiosity and craving for a good, informative, niche read.

After reading Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly, I look forward to getting my hands on A Cook’s Tour: Global Adventures in Extreme Cuisines for more of his crude, yet eloquent, accounts of his gastronomic adventures. Reading Kitchen Confidential was like watching a really long episode of No Reservations; I often found myself chuckling at his (mostly) inappropriate jokes, all while being entirely enthralled by what he was saying.

I also recently bought How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence by Michael Pollan, as well as The Body: A Guide for Occupants by Bill Bryson, both of which I’m super eager to read.

 

Chloë Lalonde, Creative Director

In all honesty, I’ve been on a reading-for-leisure hiatus for years. University and work has left me wanting to indulge in the immediacy of audio-visual media, rather than the whimsical written world. But recently, and by recent I mean summer/fall 2020, I finished Eva Holland’s Nerve and Marie-Hélène Larochelle’s Daniil & Vanya, for reviewing purposes. It was a great reintroduction to reading for fun, and I hope 2021 can be the year I relearn to love reading. My mom gave me her second copy of the Bridgerton Prequel, First Comes Scandal, and because of TikTok, I will be seeking House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. I cannot guarantee I will actually read these, but I really, really hope I do.   

 

Michelle Lam, Social Media Manager

I’ve also been on a reading-for-leisure hiatus for longer than I care to admit, but I’ve started getting back into it during the winter break! I read 101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think by Brianna Wiest over the break, and recommend it to everyone. I am currently reading The Defining Decade by Meg Jay and am pretty upset that my twenties are being spent during a pandemic.

Up next on my reading list is Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb and The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk. Maybe I’ll finally finish Homo Deus by Yuval Noah Harari, but don’t hold me to it.

I’m open to book recommendations if you have any!

 

Aviva Majerczyk, Commentary Editor

Since quarantine and my use of social media more broadly have zapped the attention-holding part of my brain, I find I often gravitate to books of essays over full-fledged novels. With that, as a female writer in her twenties, it seemed only right to start getting into Joan Didion, so I am currently reading Slouching Towards Bethlehem. Also on my bookshelf needing to be finished is the series of essays, Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby. Irby writes in a way that is hilariously self deprecating but not pitiful, I’d definitely recommend it.

Another book I plan on purchasing is Lightning Flowers: My Journey to Uncover the Cost of Saving a Life by Katherine E. Standefer. I had the privilege of seeing Standefer read an essay of hers at a conference I worked at in 2018, and her prose moved me to tears. I’m incredibly excited to read this memoir (and probably cry again).

Last on my list is Culture Warlords by Talia Lavin. The alt-right pipeline and online radicalization are major interests of mine and Lavin has been sounding the alarm on these issues for years now. So, I’m eager to read her take on the situation.

 

Katerina Barberio, Revenue Manager

I do not own a bookshelf nor do I ever plan on having one — who even has space for one anyway? Asking a person who does not own a bookshelf which books are on her 2021 book list is quite the tall task. So, I’ll admit: I asked my peers, friends, family and co-workers what they intend to read this year.

Think Like a Monk, Jay Shetty, suggested by Amelia Barberio

Greenlights, Matthew McConaughey, suggested by myself

Institute, Stephen King, suggested by Anthony Lepore

Atomic Habits, James Clear, suggested by Sabrina Badin

What I Know For Sure, Oprah Winfrey, suggested by Joanne Erimos

The Investment Zoo, Stephen A. Jarislowsky, suggested by Giovanni Barberio

Power of Now, Eckhart Tolle, suggested by Vicki De Paoli

The Answer is…, Alex Trebek, suggested by Andrew Trombino

Becoming, Michelle Obama, suggested by Louise Starnino

Americanah, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, suggested by Jessica Trombino

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, Holly Jackson, suggested by Alyssa Barberio

A Fine Balance, Rohinton Mistry, suggested by Caroline Chagnon

Home Body, Rupi Kaur, suggested by Julia Rinaldi

Elon Musk, Ashlee Vance, suggested by Frank Trombino

Bonus: Marc Richardson writes for Grailed, an online marketplace where you can buy and sell menswear. His style of writing takes some time to get accustomed to, however, once you do, you wish everyone wrote like him. I definitely intend to read most of his articles in 2021.

I admittedly already read Greenlights from McConaughey which was graciously given to me by my boyfriend. It’s a biography and a story at the same time. This quote summarizes the book: “We cannot fully appreciate the light without the shadows. We have to be thrown off balance to find our footing. It’s better to jump than fall. And here I am.” I mean… alright, alright, alright.

 

Lillian Roy, Editor-in-Chief 

After one two many nights scrolling endlessly through Tik Tok until 4 a.m., I figured it was finally time to ban phone use before bed. Instead, I took to reading before I go to sleep, a habit that I lost somewhere during my teenage years. So far, I’ve read Madeline Miller’s The Song of Achilles, a beautiful book that made me full-on weep, and Brit Bennet’s The Vanishing Half, another great book that I cannot recommend enough. Currently, I’m reading Naomi Novik’s A Deadly Education, which I haven’t been enjoying as much, but the cheesy enemies-to-friends-to-lovers plot is keeping me going.

I just ordered a bunch of new reading material, so I should be set for awhile. Here it is, with some brief descriptions:

Anthony Doerr’s All The Light We Cannot See: two children navigate the terrors of WWII

Madeline Miller’s Circe: an adaption of the story of Circe, an enchantress from Greek mythology

Adam Silvera’s They Both Die At The End: two characters find out they’re going to die by the end of the day and decide to go on one last adventure

Kate Elizabeth Russel’s My Dark Vanessa: a woman grapples with the inappropriate relationship she had with a teacher when she was a teenager

Ann Napolitano’s Dear Edward: the sole survivor of a plane crash tries to reconnect with himself after losing everything

If you can’t tell, I like to read books that make me cry. Here goes nothing!

 

Graphic by Lily Cowper.

Categories
Arts

Underdog: a space for sharing and promoting the works of POC artists

Instagram account aims to showcase the people that surround us

While the new year has arrived and COVID-19 is still around, this hasn’t stopped people from being creative and showcasing for themselves through art.

More than ever, it has become important to shed light on multicultural artists that take part in our surroundings. This is precisely what the Instagram platform Underdog aims to do: to display the many people that represent Tiohtià:ke/Montreal.

The initiative was created by multimedia artist Haein Oh in 2018. The idea of founding her initiative came when she submitted some of her work to an exhibition at her university and they weren’t accepted. She later saw the artists that were selected for the art show, which clearly showed a lack of diversity.

An underdog is someone who is expected to lose. Hence, Haein Oh took the word as the name of her initiative as a way to uplift those who are less represented.

That’s when I realized that I could do my own thing,” said Oh. “To become a curator and show the works of people that aren’t presented enough.”

Oh had the opportunity to curate her first exhibition at her parents’ restaurant, Sushi QnQ, last February.

Underdog is also curated by Montreal-based interdisciplinary artist Joliz Dela Peña, who is originally from the Philippines. Dela Peña presented her art performance last September at the exhibition the “i” word that was curated by Oh and Olivier Stainvil in collaboration with Boiling Point, a collective of BIPOC artists.  Stainvil is a graphic designer and photographer who also curates Underdog.

So far, the initiative has been well received. People on social media have been contributing in sharing their projects which gives them the opportunity to be seen.

Oh has been sharing a variety of content: from TikToks and Instagram stories of different people showing dances, cooking, sharing family stories.

I’m not very hungry for people to like me,” said Oh. “I’m more hungry for people to understand that there is a need for change.”

Despite Montreal being known for its diverse population, there is still a lack of representation from the mainstream media.

Oh wants to bring positivity to people. With how COVID-19 has impacted people in a meaningful way, she wishes to bring a sense of comfort.

“I don’t want Underdog to only address negative issues that are happening in our society,” she said. “Of course, it’s important. But I want to demonstrate that the Montreal community is filled with amazing people.”

Underdog also shares various fundraisers, such as an initiative that brings winter care packages to the homeless, created by Tessia Balenzano.

Recently, Oh has developed a new project calling out for people to share one or many recipes. This idea allows followers to discover new dishes to try and see the variety of food that is eaten in the city.

“Foodies call out” asks for the ingredients needed, a video demonstrating all the instructions to cook, and a picture of the final product, as well as an optional brief biography of the author with a short story that describes what is being cooked.

For instance, the first recipe was shared by Le, a student in Design at Concordia who shared a recipe for butter shrimp.

Another dish that was shared with the public was a rice congee, a type of rice porridge, added with radish kimchi, which was prepared by Montreal-based artist Banhmi.

“We have a few ideas for upcoming projects that we would like to create. We still have to see if they will be doable with COVID-19,” said Oh. “Overall, people have been very happy with the platform.”

In these future projects is the creation of a channel on Youtube (udd Tv) that will show a variety of people cooking.

The first video that has been uploaded is from Montreal-based artist Maruco who demonstrates how to prepare ram-don, a Korean noodle dish, inspired by Bong Joon-ho’s 2019 movie Parasite.

For the moment, Oh is focused on presenting the diversity that lives in the city.

Underdog is open for recipe submissions until Jan. 31 and can be sent by email to underdogmtl@gmail.com.

 

Photos courtesy of underdogmtl

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