Talks/Panels

Crash Course: Discussions in Contemporary Art > April 18th

with Laura Vickerson

Continuing this new informal lecture series presented monthly over the course of our current exhibition, guest speakers present on different aspects of contemporary art and practice. Join Laura Vickerson for a discussion on contemporary fibre practice. String was one of the earliest forms of technology. Textiles have since become an intimate material made and used across cultures and civilizations. Recently, they have become a material of choice in the larger art world, revealing fibre’s enduring capacity to tell stories. Laura Vickerson is a Calgary-based installation artist and educator. She is a Professor at the Alberta College of Art & Design. Her art production varies from the intimate to the expansive. Watch out for more Discussions in Contemporary Art lectures in spring/summer.

Crash Course: Discussions in Contemporary Art > March 21st

Craig Fahner

Continuing this new informal lecture series presented monthly over the course of our current exhibitions, guest speakers present on different aspects of contemporary art and practice. With the introduction of electronic and computational tools in the 20th century, contemporary artists seized on new aesthetic opportunities afforded by emerging technologies. In particular, artists found new ways to incorporate audience participation into their work using cameras, sensors and other interactive techniques. This lecture will examine artworks from the 20th and 21st century that not only make use of new interactive technologies, but serve as significant technological innovations in themselves. Craig Fahner is an artist and musician currently based in Toronto, Ontario. His electronic, video and sound-based works reimagine electronic systems, generating experiences that reflect on the role of technology in our culture. Registration essential. Attendance is limited to 20 participants per class.

Crash Course: Discussions in Contemporary Art – Everything Looks Better in a Vitrine > February 21st

Micah Lexier

Continuing this new informal lecture series presented monthly over the course of our current exhibitions, guest speakers present on different aspects of contemporary art and practice. Artist Micah Lexier will present the lecture Everything Looks Better in a Vitrine, as he describes: “In the fall of 2005 I made my first artwork utilizing a vitrine as the presentation vehicle. Since then I have made numerous vitrine projects, culminating in 2013 with a massive exhibition at Toronto’s Power Plant Art Gallery, featuring 221 artworks and objects housed in 30 custom-designed vitrines. This gesture, of placing objects in relation to each other under a dome of acrylic, is the subject of my talk, generously illustrated with images of my many vitrine projects.” – Micah Lexier Micah Lexier is a Winnipeg-born, Toronto-based artist whose activities include making, collecting, and organizing. He has a deep interest in measurement, increment, found imagery, and display structures. He has presented over 100 solo exhibitions, participated in more than 200 group exhibitions and has produced a dozen permanent public commissions, including his most recent for Brookfield Place, Calgary. In 2015 Lexier was awarded the Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts. Lexier’s work is in numerous public and corporate collections including The British Museum, London; Contemporary Art Gallery, Sydney; The Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto; and The National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa. For an entertaining glimpse into his collecting, making and presenting practice please visit his Instagram page: @micahlexier. Registration essential. Attendance is limited to 20 participants per class.

Artist Talk > February 9th

Glenna Cardinal

In conjunction with her exhibition in the Project Space, mourning home, Glenna Cardinal will discuss her work as an exploration of her deep connection to the loss of her childhood home on the Tsuut’ina Nation to the Southwest Calgary Ring Road. Through her practice, she works to shed her “colonial identity” as an Indigenous woman, while responding to her forced displacement from HOME; a place that was once safe, but is now a land wiped clean of her maternal existence, and returned to the same people that put First Nations on reserves. Reception to follow.   Presented in partnership with TRUCK Contemporary Art. Registration recommended

Sweaty Zuckerberg and Cool Computing > February 7th

Dr. Mél Hogan

In 2010 Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s CEO, was on stage at D8: All Things Digital Conference being asked about Facebook’s privacy policies. The topic proved difficult for Zuckerberg, who quickly broke out into a terrible sweat. That image is the focus of this presentation: a drenched Zuckerberg under the media spotlight, espousing the benefits of an open world connected by cool computing. Reception to follow. Presented in collaboration with the Department of Communication, Media and Film at the University of Calgary.

Neil Campbell and Jeremy Shaw in Conversation with Naomi Potter > January 26th

Director/Curator Naomi Potter and artists Neil Campbell and Jeremy Shaw discussed their exhibitions and the relationships between their work; the rhythmic and harmonic qualities of the human form, spatial perception, altered states and what it means to be alive.

Artist Talk: Potemkin Village Embassy > November 16th

Cedric Bomford

Join us for an artist talk by Esker alumni exhibiting artist Cedric Bomford. Cedric will discuss his recent project Potemkin Village Embassy on view at the Canadian Museum of Making, and his multi-disciplinary practice. Thanks to the Canadian Museum of Making. All welcome, registration is not required.

Crash Course: Discussions in Contemporary Art > November 15th

Mark Clintberg

Continuing this new informal lecture series presented monthly over the course of our current exhibition, guest speakers present on different aspects of contemporary art and practice. Defining and locating “modernism” is one of the thorniest subjects of art history. Modernist art has been argued to be both deeply tied to site and social identity (as with national and regional schools of artistic practice), and completely non-contextual – or even universal – in its values and aesthetics. By referring to a limited set of examples, this talk will identify qualities that connect to pivotal iterations of modernism in different locations and moments of continuum. Mark Clintberg is an artist who works in the field of art history. He teaches the history of art at the Alberta College of Art + Design, where he is an Assistant Professor. Registration essential.

Artist Talk: I feel the air of another world > November 9th

Jen Reimer and Magnus Tiesenhausen

Collaborators Jen Reimer and Magnus Tiesenhausen spoke about their shared practice, tunnel. tunnel is a platform and methodology by which Reimer and Tiesenhausen interact with acoustic spaces and produce sound works. In this talk, the artists discussed their project’s formation and process, the aural agency of architectural spaces, science fiction, the mystical in music theory, archaeoacoustics, and resonance.

Discussion: The Growth of Weeds > October 20th

Alana Bartol & Mia Rushton + Eric Moschopedis

What is a weed? Why are they unwanted? What can we learn from them? Artists Alana Bartol, Eric Moschopedis, and Mia Ruston invite you to participate in conversations about the plants we call weeds. Over the course of an hour, participants will discuss various topics and questions through one-on-one conversations. This program will take place at Bea’s Eatery located inside Bite Grocer & Eatery on the main floor of the Atlantic Avenue Art Block building.  Registration essential. Throughout this program we will be serving dandelion tea provided by Light Cellar as well as weed inspired chamomile cookies made by Bite Grocer & Eatery.

Crash Course: Discussions in Contemporary Art > October 18th

Caitlind r.c. Brown

In this new informal lecture series presented monthly over the course of our current exhibitions, guest speakers will present on different aspects of contemporary art and practice. Tickling the Underbelly is a conversation with Caitlind r.c. Brown. Drawing from her experiences as a public artist, collaborator, and DIY-curator, Caitlind intends to explore the relationship between critical mass + critical discourse, public engagement + artistic autonomy, collaboration + individual focus. Audience members are invited to “choose their own adventure,” picking from a range of possible subjects, objects, and projects, and Caitlind will structure her presentation to their interests. Caitlind r.c. Brown is a Calgary-based artist creating intimate, immersive, and participatory installations for diverse publics. A serial collaborator, Caitlind is a co-curator with WRECK CITY and works frequently with Wayne Garrett, Lane Shordee, and a handful of other artists. Registration essential.

Artist Talk: Mapping the surface of emptiness > September 22nd

Sarah Stevenson

The works in Sarah Stevenson’s exhibition, Nothing Hidden, are hollow forms of wire and thread suspended in space so that they resemble three-dimensional line drawings. During this tour of the gallery the artist will talk about the development of this series and the themes of transparency and containment that have been ongoing throughout her artistic production. Registration recommended. Refreshments and snacks compliments of Sidewalk Citizen will be served following the talks on 22 September.  

Bruce Hugh Russell in conversation with Robert Feldman > September 22nd

In 1972, Robert Feldman, founder and publisher of Parasol Press, wrote a letter to Agnes Martin about the possibility of her creating a suite of prints. This letter initiated a conversation that eventually led to On a Clear Day (1973), Martin’s portfolio of 30 screenprints. This conversation between Feldman and Bruce Hugh Russell, co-curator of Agnes Martin: The mind knows what the eye has not seen, will detail the history of Martin’s print work, and the significance of the prints to Martin’s broader artistic practice. Registration recommended.  

Talk: Speaking Truth to Materials: Revisiting the Workshop, from Bauhaus to Womanhouse > August 10th

Dr. Erin Silver

This talk will extend in two directions, taking the contemporary practices of Vanessa Brown and Anna Torma as springboards not only for tracing genealogies of early-20th century avant-garde workshops, including Vkhutemas and the Bauhaus, to the feminist studio workshop initiatives of the 1970s, that fused preoccupations with craft, design, and art with social, political, and economic ideology, but also for testing out the possibilities afforded by transposing present-day theoretical and political vantage points onto historical ones for expanding canonical thinking and bringing lesser known histories (notably, those of women and racialized artists) to the fore. Dr. Silver is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory at the University of British Columbia  

Oyster Shells: Artist Talk and Tour > June 22nd

Vanessa Brown

Vanessa Brown will offer a talk and tour of her exhibition, The Witching Hour. In her talk, Brown will trace threads from her past work to her arrival at this present exhibition, while touching on the joys and pains of working with steel, the politics of scale, and the importance of fantasy in her work.  

Artist Talk > June 15th

Jolie Bird

In this talk, Bird will discuss 1597; Harmonious Frequencies, an ongoing performance-based installation in the Esker Project Space. Bird is interested in performing slow building techniques with simple to no tools over a long duration of time. Her work explores the physical and mental effects of carrying out a repetitive process, the perception of time, and artisanship. Registration recommended.

Launch of the publication: Peter von Tiesenhausen Songs for Pythagoras > June 8th

The Art Gallery of Alberta (AGA) and Esker Foundation are delighted to partner on a special event. Please join us to celebrate the Calgary launch of the publication Peter von Tiesenhausen Songs for Pythagoras. Published by the AGA, the publication accompanies Peter von Tiesenhausen’s recent exhibition Songs for Pythagoras. Artist Peter von Tiesenhausen will be in attendance, to discuss and sign the publications. Each publication features an inserted artwork, and a limited-edition flexi disk of a seven-minute outtake of audio from the installation Reservoir, produced in collaboration with Jen Reimer and Magnus Tiesenhausen. Registration recommended.

Life Stories through Stitched Cloths: Artist Talk and Tour > May 26th

Anna Torma

In this talk, Anna Torma discussed three of her major bodies of work, including: Red Fragments, an installation that focuses on the story of an immigrant artist cutting her heritage embroidery collection into pieces and reassembling them as a quilt alongside an elderly woman trying to reclaim the embroidery techniques of her youth; Carpet of many hands, a textile assemblage of collected and found textiles that have been collaged and recontextualized into a contemporary artwork; and Abandoned details, Torma’s latest series of hand embroideries, which reference a shift in her practice towards a more abstracted and open arrangement. Registration recommended.

Featured Talk: From Wheatfields to Future Libraries: This is also Public Art > April 20th

Ciara McKeown

How can we connect to artists’ ideas within the public realm that may not fit defined parameters? How can our understanding and expectations of public art evolve to reflect our contemporary context? This talk will question definitions and perceptions of public art by examining practices outside of the expected and monumental approach to reconsider ideas of place, the role of the artist, and to celebrate public art’s immense possibilities. Registration recommended. 

Environmental Psychology – What Buildings Do: Examples from Healthcare and Beyond > March 23rd

David Borkenhagen

This talk highlighted historic examples and contemporary applications of Environmental Psychology methods in the design and analysis of the built environment. Emphasis was given towards healthcare environments, where design can perform a life-critical function. Theory and tools for measuring human affect and behaviour in environments was also discussed.  

Talk: Unpleasant Design and its Discontents > March 2nd

Selena Savić

Unpleasant Design is a design phenomenon that promotes social control through discomfort, pain, and persuasion. It raises the value of urban space by preventing specific use scenarios such as sleeping on a park bench or loitering in a shopping mall. In this talk, Selena Savić showed some “stars” of unpleasant design and focused on patterns in the design of public space where these silent agents replace the need for supervision and condition our behaviour.

Artist Talk: Art, Science, History, and Hearsay > February 15th

DaveandJenn

The world of Calgary-based artists DaveandJenn, Jennifer Saleik and David Foy, merges history with hearsay, mythology with the everyday, and bronze with plastic. The artists will talk about making work in an information age and how their joint practice has evolved over the years from making highly detailed resin paintings to include intricate multi-medium sculptures and now, most recently, installation work. Registration recommended.

Curator’s Talk > February 4th

Nabila Abdel Nabi

Join The Power Plant’s Assistant Curator, Nabila Abdel Nabi, as she discusses the exhibition A wall is just a wall (and nothing more at all), which continues Kapwani Kiwanga’s engagement with disciplinary architecture and the ways in which we are confronted by spaces which shape and regulate our behaviour. She will explore how Kiwanga deconstructs the physical and psychological qualities of different built environments including schools, prisons, hospitals, and mental health facilities. Registration recommended.

Artist Talk > February 3rd

Kapwani Kiwanga

In this talk, artist Kapwani Kiwanga will discuss the research and interests behind her exhibition A wall is just a wall (and nothing more at all). Kiwanga’s work is often rooted in a period of research before bringing these concepts into the studio where they transform into various mediums: video, installation, performance, sound, and sculpture. Kiwanga’s recent work is often centered around historic archives, highlighting stories which have been overlooked or suppressed, and acts which are renegade and resist hegemonic erasure. Registration recommended.