Tag: Launch

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Arts Arts and Culture Community

ESSE’s 2023 Vendu/Sold catalogue launches in partnership with Aēsop

ESSE’s 2023 “Vendu/Sold” auction catalogue offered at the entrance of Mile End’s Aēsop store. Photo by Emma Bell/The Concordian.

The 14th annual edition of ESSE’s Vendu/Sold catalogue was launched in anticipation of their 2023 benefit auction and exhibition.

The warm and invitingly soothing atmosphere of the fragrant Aēsop boutique in Montréal’s Mile End was the perfect backdrop for this year’s launch of ESSE’s annual benefit auction catalogue. Founded in 1989, Éditions ESSE’s mission has been to give a bilingual platform to contemporary art from both Canadian and international artists working in all mediums. They are especially interested in the way art intertwines with its socio-cultural context. ESSE publishes three issues per year—each issue focused on a new and relevant theme that is explored by a panoply of artists and writers from all backgrounds. 

ESSE’s team warmly welcomed the public and introduced the catalogue titled “Vendu/Sold.” The hosts distributed food, drinks, party-favours with samples of Aēsop’s skincare products and copies of the catalogue to the attendees. A selection of the latest issues of Éditions ESSE’s Magazine, ESSE arts + opinions, including their most recent release, “Eau,” were available for purchase.

Copies of ESSE’s recent publications for sale at the Vendu/Sold launch event. Photo by Emma Bell / The Concordian.

Artist and Concordia MFA alumnus Jeanette Johns’ Plain Hunt on Four: 1234 was on display near the entrance of the space. The piece depicts several rows of shapes and motifs that are reminiscent of weaving while also optically challenging depth and space. John’s fascinating piece is one of 40 works made by 42 artists that will be auctioned off next month at Project Casa, an art gallery dedicated to underrepresented and local contemporary artists.

Jeannette Johns’ Plain Hunt on Four: 1234 (2023) exhibited at the “Vendu/Sold” catalogue launch. Photo by Dolores Gosselin.

This year’s auction includes works from artists of different backgrounds, which are reflected in their art. Among them are Lan “Florence” Yee’s oil painting Cantonese Still Life (2018) and Dominique Sirois’s La Femme de Nimes 1 (2021). Yee’s painting reappropriates a Eurocentric theme, the still life, to depict several Cantonese snacks from the artist’s childhood, bringing comfort and modesty to an iconography usually known to represent western colonial riches. Sirois’s piece is a sandstone sculpture using curves and relief to represent a pair of jeans, commenting on the history of the clothing material, both symbolic of the industrial era and the sexual liberation.

Each year, ESSE elects a selection committee consisting of artists and scholars to participate in the selection process for the benefit auction. This committee reaches out to artists and invites them to have their work featured. Artists that provide their work to ESSE receive a partial sum of their work’s final auction price. The remainder of the auction’s funds are used to support Éditions ESSE’s various publications. The 2023 “Vendu/Sold” selection will be exhibited at Project Casa from Nov. 9 to 19, with free admission.

Éditions ESSE also holds an annual competition for undergraduate and graduate university students in Canada. This year’s deadline will be May 10, 2024. Students may send a short essay on an art-related theme or event relevant to ESSE’s work for a chance to be published in the fall edition of the magazine. This is an opportunity for aspiring writers to not only be published, but also work with a professional and friendly team either as a first or new experience. Learn more at ESSE’s website here.

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Arts

Collective 4891 launches their inaugural zine

Making art accessible and inclusive for all

Founded by Concordia Communications students Hannah Jamet-Lange and Shin Ling Low, Collective 4891 aims to foster a safe space for artists to create, regardless of their artistic medium.

“Our goal was always to create a safe space for people to share their art in,” said Jamet-Lange, adding that they wanted to make room for people who perhaps didn’t yet have the confidence to sign up for open-mics or more professional performance settings. “We felt like everyone was doing so many cool things, so many cool art projects, and we really wanted to see it in a context outside of school.”

The group initially organized art events in Jamet-Lange’s apartment. In fact, the collective is named after their old apartment number. In order to provide a platform for emerging artists to expand their practice and experience, the collective often took photos and videos, giving the creators a chance to add to their portfolio. However, despite being titled a collective, the team only consists of Jamet-Lange and Low, both of whom do everything from hosting the events to assembling their zines.

“We would love to make the collective a more literal sense of ‘collective,’” said Low, adding that they are interested in expanding their team in order to continue producing and hosting community projects and events.

“During [the open-mics] people would oftentimes build confidence during the event, after hearing other people perform and then decide on the spot ‘Hey, I’m going to perform something after all,’” said Jamet-Lange. “If people have the confidence and want to perform something they should have the availability to be able to do so.”

However, when the pandemic hit, they had to restructure the format in which their events were delivered, all while staying in line with their mandate of making art accessible to all.

Therefore, they decided to start a zine. The Community Care Edition of the Collective 4891 Zine features the work of over 20 creatives. In addition to serving as an art project to showcase the work of emerging artists, the zine also doubles as a fundraiser for Black Lives Matter.

How so? In order to obtain a copy of the zine, those interested are encouraged to make a donation to the cause of their choice — going local is highly encouraged — and submit proof of their donation. In return, those interested will receive their order by mail.

The zine features everything from paintings to poetry, giving people a chance to display what would have otherwise been placed on a wall or performed at one of the collective’s open-mics.

To accompany the launch of their inaugural zine, the collective will be hosting a virtual artmaking event and launch at the end of April. Here, artists who contributed to the zine will be able to share their work, in an effort to allow people to connect with the art and artists who contributed.

For more information about Collective 4891 and their upcoming launch event, follow them on Instagram or Facebook. Those interested in receiving more details on obtaining a copy of the zine or donating to a cause, visit this website.

 

Photos by Matilda Cerone.

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Arts

A Q&A with Yiara Magazine

 A quick glance at what the arts publication has been up to this semester

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.

Yiara Magazine is a student-run, undergraduate feminist art publication based out of Concordia. In addition to publishing an annual print issue, they hold events such as workshops and panels. Past events have included a zine-making workshop with California-based artist Chantal Jung. Through their publication, online platform, and various events, they aim to make feminist art and art history accessible to all.

To learn more about what they’ve been up to, our arts editor spoke to Amelle Margaron and Sara Hashemi, the editors-in-chief of this year’s issue.

TC: Aside from pandemic-related changes, what is Yiara doing this year that is different from previous years?

Yiara: Lots and lots of collabs! We’ve really worked with so many different people from our creative community so far this year: artists, collectives, professors, curators, and other student organizations … Another major difference is that we’ve hired an official creative director, Stefania Bodea, who has been creating incredibly groovy graphics to promote our events and callouts, very fun and fresh.

TC: Do you still intend on producing a print issue, or will you be going the digital route?

Yiara: We’re still publishing a print issue! We’re still working out the details on how it’ll be distributed, but it’s such a big part of Yiara that we didn’t want to let that go this year.

TC: Considering the current socio-political climate, what are some adjustments and changes that Yiara is making or is planning on implementing for future years?

Yiara: Considering the evolving definition of feminism is at the center of Yiara’s mandate, it is an important part of our annual direction. As such, we make sure to feature writing and art from a diverse range of voices, in an effort to portray an accurate understanding of intersectional feminism.

TC: What are some upcoming events that readers should look forward to?

Yiara: Our virtual exhibition for Vol. 09 will launch on March 19, and we’re super excited about that! We’re also working with the art history department on a virtual exhibition that would be hosted on Artsteps throughout the summer, and will be posting a callout for that once we’ve wrapped up everything with the print issue.

TC: For anyone who might be interested in contributing or joining the team next year, when can they expect a callout?

Yiara: We usually post a callout at the beginning of the new school year, so folks coming back next year should keep an eye out for that!

Those interested in submitting written or visual work to be published on Yiara’s digital platform can submit to Yiara online via yiaraonline@gmail.com. Submissions are accepted on a rolling basis.

For more information about Yiara Magazine’s upcoming events and annual print issue, or to know more about them, follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

 

 

Feature image: Yiara Vol. 8 cover. Courtesy of Yiara Magazine

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