Guest Curator: Liz Park\,candidate in the CCST program .
OPENING: Friday May 18\, 8pm
Gallery Hours: Tuesday to Saturda
y\, 11:00 -18:00\, Sunday-Monday closed
SYMPOSIUM: Saturday May 26\, 1
4:00 to 17:00\, UBC Robson Square theatre
A group exhibition with wor ks by Dana Claxton\, Stan Douglas\, Laiwan\, Paul Lang and Zachary Longboy\, Ahasiw Maskegon-Iskwew\, Anne Ramsden\, Ruby Truly\, Henry Tsang\ , and Paul Wong.
In a country that has tout ed its multicultural policies\, the resurgence of racist attitudes after 9/ 11 prompts critical assessment of race issues today. In an effort to review race politics in the context of Canada's colonial and immigrant policies\, the exhibition Limits of Tolerance examines a period in recent history whe n cultural diversity became Canada's state policy with the 1988 Multicultur alism Act.
In the late 1980s\, an increasing number of artists explor ed and questioned their own identity based on race\, gender and sexuality\, as lobby efforts and activism of people of colour and aboriginal ancestry gained momentum. With the 1988 Multiculturalism Act demanding government ag encies to reform or invent equity policies\, the arts and culture sector in particular underwent a turbulent period in which comfort zones of liberal attitudes were challenged. The present exhibition Limits of Tolerance\, re- presents a selection of artworks produced in Vancouver in the late 1980s an d early 1990s when artists\, writers and academics engaged in intense debat es about identifications based on race\, gender\, and sexuality. This selec tion emphasizes the various and often contrasting ways in which artists dea l with issues of identity and critique social structures which inform their identity.
The artists featured in the exhibition use non-traditional visual media such as video\, performance\, and photo-installation to push the limits of art production at a time when the concept of a singular cultu re was under scrutiny. The artistic output from this period in the form of artworks\, group exhibitions\, and conferences challenged the very idea of artistic quality as prescribed by an artworld resistant to self reflection. In this context\, some artists actively identified their subjective positi oning and sought to speak from within communities defined by race\, gender\ , or sexuality\, while other artists deliberately avoided such self-identif ication or resisted being categorized under a homogenous group. The differi ng strategies deployed in dealing with the question of identity have insula ted discussions of certain artists' works from others. This exhibition brin gs together these works in renewed discussions of identity and reflects on the common place and time shared by each artist despite his/her distinct ex perience of race\, gender and sexuality.
Presented alongside the artw orks are archival materials from the cultural equity caucus for the former ssociation of National Non-Profit Artists' Centres (ANNPAC)\, Minquon Panc hayat (1992-1993)\, the film festival In Visible Colours (1989)\, and the e xhibitions Yellow Peril: Reconsidered (1990)\, Self Not Whole (1991)\, Racy Sexy (1993). The records of these cultural activities help reframe the pre sented art works in broader terms\, which include social and political hist ory of Canada\, and the changing questions of community in an increasingly globalized world. Revisiting this recent past sharpens a critical lens thro ugh which one can see how race politics is played out in art and the socioc ultural and political arenas today.
A symposium will be held on Satur day\, May 26\, 14:00 – 17:00 at the UBC Robson Square theatre\, featuring L aiwan\, Candice Hopkins\, and Keith Langergräber as speakers. The symposium will explore questions around issues of difference and marginality and ana lyze the present state of the arts and culture field in Canada.
C entre A gratefully acknowledges the generous support of its patrons\, spons ors\, members\, partners\, private foundations\, and government funding age ncies\, including the Canada Council for the Arts\, the British Columbia Ar ts Council\, and the City of Vancouver through the Office of Cultural Affai rs. This exhibition is presented with support from the Alvin Balkind Fund f or Student Curatorial Initiatives\, the Department of Art History\, Visual Art\, and Theory\, and the Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery at The Unive rsity of British Columbia.
For more Information\, please contact
Centre A:
Tel: 604-683-8326
Liz Park\, Guest Cu
rator: esrpark@gmail.com
Joni Low\, Public Relatio
ns: joni.low@centrea.org