Column

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

Writer

Art Diasporas

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International

Obituary

The article presents an obituary for artist Bruce Conner.

Obituary: Bruce Conner, 1933-2008

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A letter to the editor is presented in response to the review of an exhibition featuring the works of contemporary artist Brice Marden, written by Sholem Krishtaka, published in a previous issue of “C: International Contemporary Art.”.

Letter to the Editor: Art Diasporas 

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Artch 1

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Federation of Canadian Artists 1

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Varley 1

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Editorial

The French philosopher Henri Bergson defines the present as “ungraspable … the past devouring the future .” It’s a conceptualization that suggests turmoil, flux and the idea of “a gap”; or maybe, not a gap so much as the impression of what we construct in place of not being able to “grasp” it.

If we exist between “then” and “when;’ the “now” each of us occupies is a space in time that, among other things, provides the perfect excuse to make a magazine.

Periodicals fill the gap between past and future, each one proposing to map, at regular intervals, its particular moment in time.

However imperfect in retrospect, a magazine fulfills the important function of creating a document of its era. If you look at a copy of this magazine from 20 years ago, the fashions and trends of its moment are as apparent-and seem as antique or vintage-as trends reported in this issue of C will seem 20 years from now. And this, of course, is appropriate.

The economics of print media are undergoing drastic revision, the advent of digital technologies has proven to be a prodigious agent of change and a wreaker of havoc. This is especially true for newspapers; magazines are faring better, art magazines in particular occupying a niche that is somewhat immune to the digital decimation seen elsewhere in the media industries.

The global growth of the art world is one reason for the relative health of the art magazines it publishes. If nothing else, it is a world that produces activities, events and spectacles-and even, on occasion, artworks-that need to be written about and given critical consideration.

How such activities in the art world are to be critically contextualized is a question that an art magazine, by definition, is made to answer. In this issue of C, the focus is on the bigger picture; art as an industry is the developing story. This is especially reflected in the art culture of Canada, a country where the amalgam of public versus private support for the arts favours the former over the latter, and where the view amongst art professionals about what form this state support should take is, arguably, in transition.

One example of the desire to formulate the debate about the future of public arts support in this country is found in Vancouver curator Reid Shier’s excellent text, “Do Artists Need Artist Run Centres?,” which appears in the book _Vancouver Art & Economies_, published by the artist run centre Artspeak and Arsenal Pulp Press last year. We need more provocations like it.

There is an argument to be made that the entire system of arts support in Canada needs a drastic overhaul, a view held by _Parachute_ editor Chantal Pontbriand. Writing about that magazine’s 2006 (still in effect, and undeniably controversial) suspension of publication, Tammer El-Sheikh brings historical perspective to the subject. Taking pains to thoroughly research the episode, El-Sheikh spoke with parties on all sides of the dispute. In Pontbriand’s view, alternatives to public funding for art publications are necessary, suggesting that a relaunch of the magazine is possible, but only on the condition that it be privately funded. As she notes, “The situation is not what it was in the 1970s … back then public funding was a necessity since collectors were not interested in contemporary art … but today … the market for contemporary art is thriving:’ How the Canadian art scene meets this challenge is the question of our time.

In a way, the theme of this issue, Art Diasporas, can be read as offering a subtext to these questions. In his article on the topic, “Global Canadians,” Earl Miller interviewed various far-flung expatriates about their experiences of living abroad-and the specific career motivators that took them there.

Ruminating on the subject, Miller gives a subtly nuanced articulation to the globalist condition of contemporary art:

_Given the current prominence of art world nomadism, the notion of diaspora, true to the original Greek meaning of “dispersion,” not its later connotation of “exile,” doesn’t indicate a dividing line between home country and abroad, a provincial “here” and a utopic “there.” Rather; it denotes an ever- shifting, definitively nomadic network._

Jacob Wren, writing about the work of Norwegian artist Lene Berg (in Wren’s words, “the artist I have been waiting for all of my life”), looks at the broader question of how artists make a living; or, more specifically, the compromises making a living in this way will necessarily entail. In the process, he makes a surprising connection between the CIA and globalism. As he puts it: “the world we live in is so utterly influenced by CIA thinking, strategies and money … “ that this fosters the notion of “the CIA as the first multinational.”

In her report on the IKT curators conference held in Montreal this May (which incidentally was organized by Chantal Pontbriand under the aegis of the Parachute “ brand”), National Gallery Assistant Curator Heather Anderson takes a deeper look at the effects globalism had not only on artists but also on the institutions meant to facilitate them. To quote her title, “an institution is defined by its ability to ask questions.” This is also true of art magazines.

A revision to Canada Council policy regarding its funding strategies for magazines means that this publication has recently experienced a reversal of its fortunes in the form of a substantial increase to its grant. It is a welcome development, a change from the Council’s previous practice of reducing its funding to magazines. For this, we thank the Council for its support.

Editor

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Publishing

Diaspora

Canadian

The article discusses reports within this issue of “C:International Contemporary Art,” including “Global Canadians,” which interviewed Canadian expatriates about their experiences of living abroad. The editor also discusses the economics of print media amid new technologies and the global growth of contemporary art.

Feature

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Politics

Government

The article discusses the secret funding of the Congress for Cultural Freedom (CCF) by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the role of Michael Josselson, founder and head of the CCF as a CIA agent. This story about Josselson and the CIA was discussed in “Gentlemen & Arseholes,” an artist's book by Lene Berg. It relates how Diana Josselson, the widow of Michael, defended her husband's work for his work in the CIA in “The Man in the Background,” a 2006 video by Berg. It discusses how the discovery of the link between CIA and the CCF ruined the life of Josselson.

Glad the CIA is Immoral

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Curatorial practice

The article discusses the highlights of the 2008 International Association of Curators of Contemporary Art (1KT) Congress held in Montréal, Québec in May 2008\. 1KT was established by the late Harald Szeeman in order to stimulate innovation and debate within art curatorial practice. “Economy and the Visual Arts,” served as the topic for the 2008 panel discussion. Attendees' activities include members' forum, visits to exhibition spaces in Montreal and a day trip to exhibitions in Québec City.

An Institution is defined by its Ability to Ask Questions: A Report on the 2008 IKT Congress in Montreal

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Factoring in Brancusi, Cioran and Celan, Romanian artists have had an outsized influence on the modern world. Counting herself a member if this diaspora, Toronto curator Mona Filip refects on the newest chapter of this history. The author reflects on the decision of some people in Romania to leave the country and to defect to the U.S. or other European countries. The author describes the subversive nature of the radio programs “Voice of America” or “Free Europe,” to which she listened to every night as a teenager in Bucharest during the 1980s. She lists examples of intellectual expatriates from Romania, including Andrei Codrescu and Nina Cassian. The author shares the reasons for the decision of some Romanians to leave their country and live in a foreign country. The author discusses the improvements in artistic production in Romania.

Between Home and Elsewhere

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

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Migration

The article discusses the growing number of Canadian artists who do not live in Canada permanently. It relates that the mobility of Canadian artists have started hundred of years ago. For example, post-Impressionist artist J. W. Morrice moved to Europe from Montreal, Quebec in 1890 and relocated permanently to France. Another Canadian artist, David Milne moved to New York in 1903\. Information is presented on the internationalism of artists. It describes the move of art dialogue from bars and restaurants to e-mails, blogs and Web sites.

Global Canadians

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The article discusses the coincidence of the international success of “Parachute,” a contemporary art magazine from Quebec in Canada, and the suspension of its publication. According to Chantal Pontbriand, the magazine's editor, “Parachute” was founded in 1975 to provide a critical language for the contemporary art sector. It discusses the developments of “Parachute” as a bilingual magazine. The suspension of the magazine's publication was due to lack of funds, according to its board of directors. Information is presented on the funding sources of the magazine and the amount of its deficit.

From Montreal to the World: Parachute Magazine - 1975-2006?

Anne Low is based in Montréal, Canada. Her practice includes sculpture, installation, textiles and printmaking to investigate how particular expressive forms are able to unhinge themselves from historical contingency and speak to contemporary subjects such as the domestic, the decorative, utility and taste. Her works speak to wider narratives around the impulse to individuate object and self and how the impulse to decorate is a desire that extends through history. Recent solo exhibitions include Bletting, Franz Kaka, Toronto (2019), Chair for a woman, Contemporary Art Gallery, Vancouver (2019), Paperstainer, Mercer Union, Toronto (2018); A wall as a table with candlestick legs, Tensta Konstall, Stockholm (2018) and Witch with Comb, Artspeak, Vancouver (2017). Recent group exhibitions include Art Encounters Biennial, Timisoara (2019), Sobey Art Award, Art Gallery of Alberta, Edmonton (2019); Soon Enough – Art in Action, Tensta Konsthall, Stockholm (2018); Separation Penetrates, Mercer Union, Toronto (2017); Dream Islands, Nanaimo Art Gallery (2017); Ambivalent Pleasures, Vancouver Art Gallery (2016) and Reading the Line, The Western Front, Vancouver (2015). Her collaboration with Evan Calder Williams, The Fine Line of Deviation, has been exhibited at Mercer Union, Toronto (2018) and Issue Project Room, New York (2016). 

[annelow.ca](http://annelow.ca/)

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Painting

Film

The article profiles Joyce Wieland, a Canadian experimental filmmaker and mixed media artist. In 1962 Wieland and her then husband, Michael Snow moved to New York. It relates the characteristics of the avant-garde film scene in New York which attracted Wieland to try filmmaking. She made a total of 13 films in New York. It offers a description of her solo exhibition in 1971 at the National Gallery of Canada, entitled “True Patriot Love/Véritable Amour Patriotique.” It relates how Wieland's technique of unfolding an action over a series of frames in her paintings and assemblage works influenced her filmmaking.

Otherwise Unexplained Fires: Joyce Weiland and the Experimental Film Scene in 1960s New York

Interview

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An interview with Hou Hanru, Chinese curator and the director of exhibitions and public programs and chair of the Exhibitions and Museum Studies program at the San Francisco Art Institute in San Francisco, California, is presented. He states the reasons for his decision to move from Bejing, China to Paris, France in 1990\. He describes how his experiences as an immigrant inform his curatorial practice. He discusses a few of the more than 50 exhibitions he has done so far.

From Beijing to Paris to San Francisco: Hou Hanru in Conversation

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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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Mapping

This centrefold presents an artist project by Antonia Hirsch titled United Nations, ISO 216 (2008).

Artist Centrefold: United Nations ISO 216

Review

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The article reviews the exhibition “Cinema Vernis,” featuring paintings by John Abrams, presented at McMaster Museum of Art in Hamilton, Ontario.

John Abrams: Cinema Vernis

Julian Jason Haladyn is an art historian, cultural theorist, and Assistant Professor at OCAD University.

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Representation

Cultural Studies

The article reviews the exhibition “Orientalism and Ephemera,” curated by Jamelie Hassan featuring cultural objects and ephemera, presented at Art Metropole in Toronto, Ontario, at the Art Gallery of Windsor in Windsor, Ontario, at Centre A in Vancouver, British Columbia and the Ottawa Art Gallery in Ottawa, Ontario.

Orientalism and Ephemera

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Installation

The article reviews two exhibitions presented at Witte de With in Rotterdam, Netherlands, including “Forgetting Air,” featuring works by Geoffrey Farmer, and “As Wild Boar Passes Water,” featuring works by Gareth Moore.

Geoffrey Farmer: Forgetting Air/Gareth Moore: As A Wild Boar Passes Water

Jesse McKee is a curator and writer in Vancouver, where he works as Head of Strategy at 221A. Previously he was the Curator of Banff Centre’s Walter Phillips Gallery and a curatorial resident with tranzit, Romania and Things that can happen, Hong Kong. 

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The article reviews the exhibition “Martian Museum of Terrestrial Art,” fat the Barbican Art Gallery in London, England, curated by Lydia Yee & Francesco Manacorda, featuring works by Marina Abramovic, Jennifer Allora & Guillermo Calzadilla, John Bock, Chris Burden, Spartacus Chetwynd, Christo & Jean-Claude, Barbra Hepworth, Luis Jacob, Brian Jungen, Mike Kelley, Piero Manzoni, Andy Warhol, among other artists.

Martian Museum of Terrestrial Art

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Sculpture

The article reviews the exhibition “Take Your Time,” featuring the sculptures and installations by Olafur Eliasson, presented at the Museum of Modern Art and PSI Contemporary Art Center in New York.

Take Your Time: Olafur Eliasson

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The article reviews the exhibition of the installation “The Mystics and the Passions,” by Kevin Rodgers at Goodwater Gallery in Toronto, Ontario.

Kevin Rodgers: The Mystics and the Passions

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Photography

Video

The article reviews the exhibition “The Dad Tapes/The Mom Photographs,” featuring the photography and video installations by Kim Waldron presented at the Werner Whitman Gallery in Montréal, Quebec.

The Dad Tapes/The Mom Photographs: Kim Waldron

Header

C Mag

Issue 99

Art Diasporas

Credits

Editorial

Art Diasporas

Features

Glad the CIA is Immoral

An Institution is defined by its Ability to Ask Questions: A Report on the 2008 IKT Congress in Montreal

Between Home and Elsewhere

Global Canadians

From Montreal to the World: Parachute Magazine - 1975-2006?

Otherwise Unexplained Fires: Joyce Weiland and the Experimental Film Scene in 1960s New York

Artist Projects

Artist Centrefold: United Nations ISO 216

Columns

Obituary: Bruce Conner, 1933-2008

Letter to the Editor: Art Diasporas

Reviews

John Abrams: Cinema Vernis

Orientalism and Ephemera

Geoffrey Farmer: Forgetting Air/Gareth Moore: As A Wild Boar Passes Water

Martian Museum of Terrestrial Art

Take Your Time: Olafur Eliasson

Kevin Rodgers: The Mystics and the Passions

The Dad Tapes/The Mom Photographs: Kim Waldron

Interviews

From Beijing to Paris to San Francisco: Hou Hanru in Conversation