Column

Writer

All-Interview Issue: Immersion

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Canadian

Video

Obituary

The article presents an obituary of digital video artist, David Askevold.

Obituary: DAVID ASKEVOLD, 1940-2008

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Editorial

“_Subjectivity is contagious_“   
\- Hadley+ Maxwell

“Immersion” is the term I am using to describe the work of the artists showcased in this issue. It’s not a perfect moniker for the practices it’s meant to encompass, but it works.

In the art of Vancouver-based Quebecois artist Samuel Roy-Bois, immersion is a literal quality derived from his frequent use of light in his sculptural installations. Roy-Bois comments that working with light almost feels “opportunistic, but before anything else, it helps me to create a welcoming spirit:’ Roy-Bois uses light to transport audiences into his world; combined with a base quotient of minimalism, his work provides a platform for projection into an experience of immateriality.

Thinking about light as the medium that defines our era-physically, because of fibre- optic cable and, metaphorically, due to the speed of communication it makes possible- leads to suppositions about how art-making has been affected by the Internet, itself a real-world corollary for the concept of immersion. Among others, the French critic Nicolas Bourriaud has theorized a connection between the Internet and certain artworks, which provide evidence of the “changing mental space” the Internet opens up (_Postproduction_ \[2000 \]).

Immersion gets at the idea of being inside or engulfed by something, most specifically, for present purposes, a universe of iconic images. Artists in this issue share in common an un-self-conscious and intensely curious attitude towards this universe. An interest in iconic figures from art and music becomes the subject matter for their art. The investigations and artworks that result are, notably, free of irony.

Sincerity and a lack of recourse to the get-out-clause qualifications associated with irony or pastiche distinguishes this work from that of an earlier generation. As well, the strategy of appropriation, unsettling fixed ideas about authorship, appears to be of little concern to artists today. This lack of emphasis on the slaying of predecessors suggests an acceptance of their eternal life instead; a kind of absolute contemporaneity of everything, if within shifting spheres of relevance.

Within the concept of light as a metaphor is an explanation for the prevalence of immersive art practices. This is an idea borne out by a ubiquity and sheer availability of sources, and the material pliability that digital technologies allow.

For Austrian artist Kerstin Cmelka, basic techniques of image manipulation are the starting point for a subtle inquiry into the affective contents of certain iconic images, such as the documentation photographs of the performance works of Viennese Actionist VALIE EXPORT. Starting with her own, sometimes longstanding, cathetic response to certain images, Cmelka steps back to ask simple but important questions: “Why do these images exist, \[and\] how are they regarded as part of a collective knowledge?” These are questions that also inform the collaborative practices of Hadley+ Maxwell, and lain Forsyth and Jane Pollard.

Focusing on popular music, London’s Forsyth and Pollard investigate and, in their words, “borrow from … the ways music operates and connects with an audience.” Initially, the pair pursued this interest through the staging of re-enactments, most painstakingly in _A Rock ‘N’ Roll Suicide_ (1998), which recreated David Bowie’s final performance as Ziggy Stardust, 25 years to the day after Bowie’s original show at the at Hammersmith Odeon in London.

Subsequently, they rejected the use of reenactment, taking a less purist approach that continues to explore and make use of the iconic power of the work done by their precursors in music and art, often by combining instances of the two – such as a Kiss cover band and Bruce Nauman- in unexpected ways.

Speaking with Rodney LaTourelle in this issue, Vancouver’s Hadley+ Maxwell talk about using “immersive art forms, like installation and music … as a way to gain the trust of\[their\] audience,” In the duo’s _Decor Project_ (2001-ongoing), they improvise installations in the homes of art-world professionals, conceived in part in response to a questionnaire that the artists’ send to the participants about their personal tastes. Making an installation out of the decor and artworks they find in their subjects’ homes, and often adding maquettes they make that summarize these elements in some way, they then photograph the results. In this way, the familiar becomes configured “as itself,” immersion here being employed as a kind of mirroring.

In Hadley+ Maxwell’s words, this process allows them to investigate “the way media, in the broad sense of the term, figure and frame human experiences.” It is a felicitous phrase, one that encapsulates nicely what may be the larger purpose of immersive art practices: to see our wider culture reflected within the context of art practices in order to see the self.

In this issue of _C_, we are happy to welcome a new associate publisher, Ari Berger, previously of the cultural studies journal _Public_; and Chris Lee, our new designer. Chris takes over from Brian Morgan and Antonio DeLuca, who initiated a clean, sophisticated look for _C_ (thanks guys!)-one that he is already doing a fine job of tweaking and refining.

Editor

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International

The article discusses various reports published within the issue including features on the lives and works of several artists such as Québécois artist, Samuel Roy-Bois, Austrian artist Kerstin Cmelka and Vancouver’s Hadley+Maxwell.

Immersion

Feature

Amy Fung is a writer and organizer of multifarious exhibitions and events. She is Toronto-based, not raised. 

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Collaboration

The article offers information on the art and culture-related project of the artists in Saskatchewan titled “Beginning of the End—End of the Beginning.” This will take place in Sakatchewan's three largest cities as well as rural sites throughout the province. This was the brainchild of Felipe Diaz, executive director of the Saskatchewan Filmpool Co-operative and interdisciplinary artist, Kim Morgan. According to the article, this project stems from the organizers' graduate days at the University of Regina. They say that this will not only be an international exhibit but a sustainable project for Saskatchewan that is being offered to the global art scene.

Beginning of the End - End of the Beginning

Interview

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Medicine

Psychology

Spirituality

An interview with a former mental patient of Félix Guattari, who wishes to be anonymous, is presented. When asked how and when did she know Félix Guattari, she says that Félix was her psychoanalyst for a number of years and they became friends and saw each other outside of therapy on occasion. He describes Guattari as a very sensitive yet direct advisor, free-spirited and did not relate to all the formal structure of the medical system. She also shares that there was a time when she was able to share with him her faith and beliefs.

On the Other Side of the Couch

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An interview with contemporary artist, Samuel Roy-Bois is presented. When asked about how he started working with lighting, he says that it serves as a way for him to create a welcoming spirit because most of his works are too raw and having some light creates a counterpoint to roughness. He shares that he always tries to push his work as a visual artist, drawing on his perception of the performing arts and vice versa. He also comments on the idea of improvisation and randomness in art.

Light Magic

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Performance art

Photography

Film

An interview with Austrian artist, Kerstin Cmelka. Cmelka is a visual artist who works with photography, film and performance and when asked about her starting point, works and materials, she says that she mostly works on pictures that retain on her memories, and some images that reoccur in her head, She works with them in a more analytical way and the new work that comes out of them is decided afterwards. She also shares that a lot of materials often used are highly charged with emotion. She also explains cognitive psychology as used in art.

Re-Actionism

Earl Miller is an independent critic and curator residing in Toronto.

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Music

An interview with modern film and video artists, Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard is presented. When asked about how rock music affected their work, they say that music as a straightforward subject has never interested them but they borrow heavily from the way music operates and connects with an audience. They also explain that they were excited by music's potential to act as a psychological device, but they are more focused on the potential impact on one person's mind. They also share their favorite videos including one from Bob Dylan and The Streets.

To Be Immersed in the Experience of the Now

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An interview with Hadley Howes and Maxwell Stephens of the artist duo Hadley+Maxwell. When asked about what collaboration signifies in their practice, they say that collaboration for them is a product of sharing ideas and they make sense together first before presenting anything. In terms of exhibits, they say collaboration is a process of getting intimate with being subjective. In the process of making work, they say that they share ideas and sometimes, those ideas come back looking familiar but different, a product of a long partnership and friendship.

I+I-I on I+I-I

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Humour

An interview with artist Amy Lam is presented. When asked about her performance in Toronto, Ontario, she says that there are things that an artist should do in a stand-up comedy act. She shares that a comedian can release the audience from a joke if it does not work, which is a helpful way of avoiding unwanted reactions. She also adds that in performance art, there is a similar refusal to use theatrical tradition as there is in stand-up. She stresses that performance art and comedy are supposed to be spontaneous, without rules.

Comedy Central

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Chris Lee is a graphic designer and educator based in Buffalo, New York and Toronto. His research explores graphic design’s entanglement with power, standards and legitimacy. Chris is an Assistant Professor at the University at Buffalo SUNY.

Designer

Publisher

Artist Project

Artist

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Urban studies

The article presents photographs of the works created by artist Brent Wadden.

Artist Centrefold: Graffiti Removal Project

Review

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The article reviews the exhibition “The Image Screen,” featuring the works by Eoghan McTigue at the Kuttner Siebert Galerie in Berlin, Germany.

Eoghan McTigue: The Image Screen

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Painting

The article reviews the exhibition “The Painting of Modern Life,” featuring the works by Richard Artschwager, Vija Celmins, Merlene Dumas, Richard Hamilton, Everhard Havekost, David hockney, Johannes Kahr, Malcom Morley, Gerhard Richter, Andy Warhol, Gerhard Richter, and Peter Doig at the Hayward Gallery in London, England.

The Painting of Modern Life

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Installation

The article reviews the exhibition “Jumbo Spoons and Big Cake,” featuring works by Thomas Hirschhorn at the Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal in Montreal, Quebec.

Thomas Hirschhorn: Jumbo Spoons and Big Cake

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Exhibitions

The article reviews the exhibition “On Being an Exhibition,” featuring the works of various artists including BGL, Conrad Bakker, Isola&Norzi, Germaine Koh and Laurel Woodcock, curated by Joseph del Pesco at Artists Space in New York City.

On Being an Exhibition

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The article reviews the exhibition “A Psychic Vacuum,” sponsored by Creative Time featuring works by Mike Nelson at the Old Essex Street Market in New York City.

Mike Nelson: A Psychic Vacuum

Jon Davies is a Montreal-based curator and writer. He recently received his PhD in Art History from Stanford University.

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Sculpture

The article reviews the exhibition “One, Some, Many: 3 Shows by Carsten Höller,” featuring the works by Carsten Höller at the Shawinigan Space, Shwainigan, Quebec.

One, Some, Many: 3 Shows by Carsten Höller

Patricia Reed is an artist and writer based in Berlin. She has exhibited and lectured internationally at venues including Artists Space, Archive Kabinett, The House of World Cultures, Württembergischer Kunstverein and Witte de With (forthcoming). Texts have appeared with Fillip, Sternberg Press, 010 Publishing, Shifter Magazine and Art Papers, amongst others.

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The article reviews the exhibition “Überleben,” featuring the works by artists Bernadette Corporation, Karl Holmqvist, Elena Kovylina, Rebecca Kressley, Malte Lochstedt, Elke Marhofer, Curated – Sophie Hamacher and Louise Witthoft at Program, Berlin, Germany.

ÜBERleben

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Public art

The article reviews the exhibition of the works by Jenny Holzer at Parliament Street silos, Luminato Festival in Toronto, Ontario.

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C Mag

Issue 97