If Times Get Tough Or Even If They Don't
August 10th - September 1st, 2012
Brad Tinmouth
For more info about this show:
Tuesday, 14 August 2012
OPENING RECEPTIONS continued...
XBASE
If Times Get Tough Or Even If They Don't
August 10th - September 1st, 2012
Brad Tinmouth
If Times Get Tough Or Even If They Don't
August 10th - September 1st, 2012
Brad Tinmouth
OPENING RECEPTIONS...
Main Space
nostalgia for postmodernists (after modernism)
August 10th - September 1st, 2012
Tobias Williams
Aryen Hoekstra
Julian Higuerey Nunez
Curated by: Amber Landgraff
nostalgia for postmodernists (after modernism)
August 10th - September 1st, 2012
Tobias Williams
Aryen Hoekstra
Julian Higuerey Nunez
Curated by: Amber Landgraff
For more info about this show:
Thursday, 9 August 2012
Omar Elkharadly - "Allegory"
Omar Elkharadly answered a few questions for me regarding his work, Allegory, currently on display in the 12th Annual Emerging Artist Exhibition, CORPUS LUCIDA at InterAccess.
Jessica Cappuccitti: Where and when did you get the idea for this piece and how has it evolved since its first conception?
Omar Elkharadly: The work you saw at InterAccess, titled Allegory is from a larger body of work that was most recently shown in Guelph. You can see installation shots and a small write-up from that show here:
As you may have read in Farah Yusuf's write-up, the title is a reference to Plato's Allegory of the Cave, where fundamental questions about reality, perception, form, representation, and truth are addressed. Initially, the work focused primarily on the mechanisms of perception by demonstrating what shouldn't be possible - a three dimensional shadow on a two dimensional surface - what you see isn't what you get. The mechanism by which this is achieved is almost poetically simple and is in no way concealed from the viewer.
The current incarnation of Allegory at InterAccess is part of a body of light-based photo installations that seek to achieve a material self-awareness in the form of visual tautology. For example, a slide projector containing a photograph of a light bulb that when projected against a surface actually serves to illuminate the surrounding space.
The work Light Switch (2011) consisted of a slide projector wired to a pull-chain light switch. The viewer is invited to pull the chain that can turn on and off the slide projector containing an image of a light bulb.
Where Light Switch can be seen in terms of tautology, Allegory can be seen in terms of paradox. I like to think of a paradox as a tautology with a twist. Allegory's pull chain, rather than switching on a projection of light, functions to switch on a projection of shadow, (which, interestingly enough, is what all transparency-based photographs actually are!)
Going back to Plato's Allegory, shadows are what we cave-dwellers see; subordinate to the forms they are being cast from. In the case of our present Allegory, the age-old hierarchy of form and representation is complicated by the decision to paint the lampshade black. As a result, the shade becomes a representation of its own shadow. I like to think of it as the kind of proposition Captain Kirk would pose to a 23rd Century Plato-droid in order to cause its head to explode in a most climactic fashion.
JC: Is
this something that you plan to build on/keep going with? If so, where do you see it going?
OE: I've learned a lot about my practice in the last couple of years. The main thing being that, while I do have a studio, it is more accurate to call it a workshop or lab (the messy kind). I develop the bare-bones technical means to execute an idea, and then I shelf it until I have the opportunity to create it for a space and install it. As a result, my work does not exist until I have the opportunity to show it, and until I have the opportunity to show it, I cannot truly see it for myself. This is one of the reasons that Allegory has continued to evolve since its inception, and with each iteration it grows into its own. My goal as an artist is to make intelligent, self-aware work.
Allegory will cease to exist a few weeks from the time of this writing, and that makes me pretty sad. Every time it has come back though, it has adapted to its new environment in some way that I was not able to predict.
As stated earlier, Allegory was developed as part of a larger body of work. That body of work explores the ontology of photography - the mediation of light. Allegory is in many ways integral to that exploration, and the mechanism which allows Allegory to exist is currently spread across my studio in the forms of projectors, bits of polarized plastic, stereoscopic slide photographs, and sheets of tin foil, some more crumpled than others.
The non-crazy answer: I feel as though Allegory covers very rich cognitive territory that I remain thoroughly engrossed in, and I see much that has yet to be explored here.
Omar Elkharadly, Allegory (2009 - ongoing)
Jessica Cappuccitti: Where and when did you get the idea for this piece and how has it evolved since its first conception?
Omar Elkharadly: The work you saw at InterAccess, titled Allegory is from a larger body of work that was most recently shown in Guelph. You can see installation shots and a small write-up from that show here:
The
first prototype installation of this work took place in 2008, which had the simple
setup of the reflective screen, projectors behind, and the viewer in-between.
The viewer(s) would interact with their own 3d shadow. (See sketch from when
the project was conceived below.)
Omar Elkharadly, photo courtesy of the artist
As you may have read in Farah Yusuf's write-up, the title is a reference to Plato's Allegory of the Cave, where fundamental questions about reality, perception, form, representation, and truth are addressed. Initially, the work focused primarily on the mechanisms of perception by demonstrating what shouldn't be possible - a three dimensional shadow on a two dimensional surface - what you see isn't what you get. The mechanism by which this is achieved is almost poetically simple and is in no way concealed from the viewer.
The current incarnation of Allegory at InterAccess is part of a body of light-based photo installations that seek to achieve a material self-awareness in the form of visual tautology. For example, a slide projector containing a photograph of a light bulb that when projected against a surface actually serves to illuminate the surrounding space.
The work Light Switch (2011) consisted of a slide projector wired to a pull-chain light switch. The viewer is invited to pull the chain that can turn on and off the slide projector containing an image of a light bulb.
Omar Elkharadly, Light Switch (2011), photo courtesy of the artist
Where Light Switch can be seen in terms of tautology, Allegory can be seen in terms of paradox. I like to think of a paradox as a tautology with a twist. Allegory's pull chain, rather than switching on a projection of light, functions to switch on a projection of shadow, (which, interestingly enough, is what all transparency-based photographs actually are!)
Going back to Plato's Allegory, shadows are what we cave-dwellers see; subordinate to the forms they are being cast from. In the case of our present Allegory, the age-old hierarchy of form and representation is complicated by the decision to paint the lampshade black. As a result, the shade becomes a representation of its own shadow. I like to think of it as the kind of proposition Captain Kirk would pose to a 23rd Century Plato-droid in order to cause its head to explode in a most climactic fashion.
OE: I've learned a lot about my practice in the last couple of years. The main thing being that, while I do have a studio, it is more accurate to call it a workshop or lab (the messy kind). I develop the bare-bones technical means to execute an idea, and then I shelf it until I have the opportunity to create it for a space and install it. As a result, my work does not exist until I have the opportunity to show it, and until I have the opportunity to show it, I cannot truly see it for myself. This is one of the reasons that Allegory has continued to evolve since its inception, and with each iteration it grows into its own. My goal as an artist is to make intelligent, self-aware work.
Allegory will cease to exist a few weeks from the time of this writing, and that makes me pretty sad. Every time it has come back though, it has adapted to its new environment in some way that I was not able to predict.
As stated earlier, Allegory was developed as part of a larger body of work. That body of work explores the ontology of photography - the mediation of light. Allegory is in many ways integral to that exploration, and the mechanism which allows Allegory to exist is currently spread across my studio in the forms of projectors, bits of polarized plastic, stereoscopic slide photographs, and sheets of tin foil, some more crumpled than others.
Allegory, Installation view, photo courtesy of the artist
The non-crazy answer: I feel as though Allegory covers very rich cognitive territory that I remain thoroughly engrossed in, and I see much that has yet to be explored here.
Lanie Chalmers - "I Don't Owe You Anything"
Lanie Chalmers' work, I Don't Owe You Anything is currently on display in the 12th Annual Emerging Artist Exhibition, CORPUS LUCIDA at InterAccess (July 20th - August 18th).
Notions of the gaze are important to her work and below she answers a few questions regarding its role in this installation.
Jessica Cappuccitti: Tell me more about the idea of the artist's gaze. What does it mean to you to turn the gaze back on the viewer?
Lanie Chalmers: The gaze is intended here to destabilize the subject and object of the piece (that being the viewer and the work). The object (my face) establishes a position of power and agency by way of being the looker, instead of just being looked at. All said, my primary intention of this reversal is to position the viewer in an active role rather than that of the passive spectator. The viewer has to actively negotiate their own position in relation to the confronting images. And both images incite complicated relationships depending on each specific viewer and how they relate to a woman staring at them from above or below. Sex is inherent in both positions. Also, the mother figure can be felt while being looked down at - it all depends on the viewer.
JC: How important to you and or your work is the relationship between cinema/film and discourses on the gaze?
LC: The relationship between film/cinema and discourse around the gaze are certainly inherent in many of my works, if not all, to some degree. The acts of looking and being looked at are interesting positions to hold (and are ubiquitous outside the world of cinema) and can be activated or subverted to call attention to the subtle, yet deeply understood, established social systems.
JC: How important is it to the work and the concept behind the work that the images switch after a few minutes?
LC: The images switch after two minutes in order to destabilize the negotiations previously made by the viewer. Standing between the two confrontational images serves as unsteady ground but once they switch the viewer must start over in considering the space and how it is controlled, as well as how they relate (comfort/anxiety) to each image and standing in between them.
You can find Lanie's video online here: http://vimeo.com/42089428
Notions of the gaze are important to her work and below she answers a few questions regarding its role in this installation.
Lanie Chalmers, I Don't Owe You Anything (2012) Film Still
Jessica Cappuccitti: Tell me more about the idea of the artist's gaze. What does it mean to you to turn the gaze back on the viewer?
Lanie Chalmers: The gaze is intended here to destabilize the subject and object of the piece (that being the viewer and the work). The object (my face) establishes a position of power and agency by way of being the looker, instead of just being looked at. All said, my primary intention of this reversal is to position the viewer in an active role rather than that of the passive spectator. The viewer has to actively negotiate their own position in relation to the confronting images. And both images incite complicated relationships depending on each specific viewer and how they relate to a woman staring at them from above or below. Sex is inherent in both positions. Also, the mother figure can be felt while being looked down at - it all depends on the viewer.
JC: How important to you and or your work is the relationship between cinema/film and discourses on the gaze?
LC: The relationship between film/cinema and discourse around the gaze are certainly inherent in many of my works, if not all, to some degree. The acts of looking and being looked at are interesting positions to hold (and are ubiquitous outside the world of cinema) and can be activated or subverted to call attention to the subtle, yet deeply understood, established social systems.
JC: How important is it to the work and the concept behind the work that the images switch after a few minutes?
LC: The images switch after two minutes in order to destabilize the negotiations previously made by the viewer. Standing between the two confrontational images serves as unsteady ground but once they switch the viewer must start over in considering the space and how it is controlled, as well as how they relate (comfort/anxiety) to each image and standing in between them.
You can find Lanie's video online here: http://vimeo.com/42089428
Aamna Muzaffar - Sculpture / Installation Medal Winner
Check out the interview with this year's Sculpture / Installation Medal Winner, Aamna Muzaffar on the OCAD U website.
Muzaffar's work, 24 Jogs is currently on display in the exhibition, CORPUS LUCIDA as part of InterAccess' 12th Annual Emerging Artist Exhibition on until August 18, 2012.
Aamna Muzaffar. Photo: Christina Gapic.
Muzaffar's work, 24 Jogs is currently on display in the exhibition, CORPUS LUCIDA as part of InterAccess' 12th Annual Emerging Artist Exhibition on until August 18, 2012.
Tuesday, 7 August 2012
CORPUS LUCIDA - 12TH Annual Emerging Artist Exhibition at InterAccess
July 20th - August 18th, 2012
InterAccess Electronic Media Arts Centre
9 Ossington Avenue
Lanie
Chalmers
Kyle
Duffield
Omar
Elkharadly
Aamna
Muzaffar
Xhensila
Zemblaku
Curated
by Farah Yusuf
InterAccess’s
12th Annual Emerging Artist Exhibition, CORPUS LUCIDA showcases the
work of 5 talented, emerging artists from in and around the Toronto area. The show presents work that approaches the
relationship between technology and the body through seeing rather than the
more common approach of interactivity. Corpus Lucida asks the viewer to turn
inward and allow technology to affect their perception of the work.
Optical illusions and the technology that creates them is an important aspect of this show. Curator, Farah Yusuf describes that, “there is a sense of wonder that I get from science and technology meeting art; which I get from knowing how it’s made or what the work is commenting about.” Omar Elkharadly’s work, Allegory (2009 - ongoing) whose title is a reference to Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, does this and more. Harkening back to the early 19th century stereoscope, the work presents an optical illusion while revealing its source. It is comprised of 2 slide projectors wired to a lampshade with a pull-chain that activates the projector to throw polarized light onto the lampshade which casts a stereoscopic shadow onto the wall behind. Wearing the 3D glasses provided, the viewer is able to see a 3D image of the shadow of the lampshade. Elkharadly describes the work and its inception stating that, “Initially, the work focused primarily on the mechanisms of perception by demonstrating what shouldn't be possible - a three dimensional shadow on a two dimensional surface. What you see isn't what you get. The mechanism by which this is achieved is almost poetically simple and is in no way concealed from the viewer.”
Another
work that revisits early 19th century optical devices is Xhensila
Zemblaku’s work, Daedalum (2012),
based on the zoetrope which is a device that creates the illusion of motion
through the use of static images.
Zemblaku’s work creates the illusion of a series of 3D heads endlessly doubling
back upon themselves. This mesmerizing
work is the ultimate optical illusion.
Xhensila Zemblaku, Daedalum (2012)
Kyle
Duffield’s work, Chromastrobe (2012) surrounds
the viewer and requires his or her body movements to activate the space. Flashing bands of red, green, and blue, cycled
at a rate of 60 frames per second are perceived by the viewer as a constant
field of white. That is until the viewer
creates movement using their body; holding a hand in front of the face creates
a pulsing sensation and residual trails of colour.
Aamna Muzzaffar’s rapid prototype sculptures, 24 Jogs are the ultimate combination between the physical body and technology. Using a smartphone training device for running and a 3D rendering application Muzzaffar pushed herself physically and mentally to test her own spontaneous creativity. The renderings created during the walking intervals of her runs were then printed in 3D and hand painted by the artist. When asked about the importance of the relationship of the body to technology, curator Farah Yusuf stated, “It’s very important I think. All of our media devices are kind of like prosthetics in a way; they all augment something that we might do naturally or that we can’t do at all. They help us to overcome the physical restraints of our body. They open up a new world to us and the body is always implicitly there. In a way, technology is there to serve us.” In the case of Muzzaffar’s work, technology serves physical goals and creative experimentation.
During her speech at the opening reception, Yusuf stated the importance of the aesthetic aspect of the new media works presented in this show. “I knew that I wanted to make a show that was pretty accessible. I find new media sometimes ghettoizes itself. It discusses things that the average viewer or even the art viewer may or may not be as interested in. I wanted an access point... When you start talking about affect and the visual, you return to the realm of the aesthetic and that aesthetic reaction to something is important to this show.” The works chosen were immediately aesthetically pleasing and successfully drew viewers into the work. Never have I experienced new media work that has been so accessible. Farah Yusuf has succeeded in making new media works attractive and engaging all viewers.
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