Contemporary BC Artists. Through to May 3, 2009. With ahva MFA graduates Abbas Akhavan, Raymond Boisjoly, Kyla Mallett, Luanne Martineau, Marina Roy, Rhonda Weppler and Trevor Mahovsky.
Opening, February 6th, 7-10pm
How Soon Is Now is a selection of recent art from the province of British Columbia. Drawing on diverse formal, material and conceptual approaches, the exhibition brings together a dynamic group of artists who work in a range of media, with a mix of sculpture, painting, video, audio works, architectural interventions, site-specific projects and events. The title, taken from a song by The Smiths, evokes one characteristic of the work in the exhibition: a sense of immediacy that speaks to the present moment.
A number of recurring metaphors and motifs run throughout the exhibition: the recording studio, the rehearsal space, the devalued object, the space of social interaction, architecture, the unconscious, literature and narrative, and a sense of experimentation and risk. Artworks are situated inside and outside of the gallery space proper; on the grounds, at the entrance, in the windows, in the lobby and behind the gallery’s walls, inviting viewers to look awry and question the conventions of spectatorship.
How Soon Is Now is organized according to shared connections between works rather than a single theme. Bringing together divergent forms of art, the exhibition recognizes some of the important shifts in contemporary art that privilege event over object, process over product, interaction over contemplation. Gallery spaces become a venue for a range of experiences, be they transformative, social, sensory, introspective or political.
How Soon Is Now is organized by the Vancouver Art Gallery and curated by Kathleen Ritter, Assistant Curator. This exhibition is presented with Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad. Supported by the British Columbia Arts Council and the Province of British Columbia.
Jackson 2Bears
Abbas Akhavan
Sonny Assu
Noah Becker
Raymond Boisjoly
Cedric, Nathan and Jim Bomford
Aaron Carpenter
Hadley+Maxwell
Antonia Hirsch
Allison Hrabluik
Instant Coffee
Christian Kliegel
Germaine Koh
Laiwan
Kristi Malakoff
Kyla Mallett
Luanne Martineau
Damian Moppett
The Music Appreciation Society
Lucy Pullen
Marina Roy
Samuel Roy-Bois
Carol Sawyer
Kevin Schmidt
Kathy Slade
Ken Singer
Mark Soo
Erica Stocking
Dan Starling
Brendan Tang
Kara Uzelman
Holly Ward
Rhonda Weppler and Trevor Mahovsky
Paul Wong
