Objekt: ett läsrum / a reading room / une salle de lecture was held at SUPERMARKET 2021: Stockholm Independent Art Fair, Stockholm, Sweden
Objekt: ett läsrum / a reading room / une salle de lecture (2021) SUPERMARKET: Stockholm Independent Art Fair, Stockholm, Sweden
The Royal Canadian Academy of Arts exhibition Objekt—ett läsrum / a reading room / une salle de lecture was curated by Robert Tombs for SUPERMARKET 2021: Stockholm Independent Art Fair, Stockholm, Sweden. Objekt was a space where art fair attendees could freely peruse book works by thirty-four contemporary Canadian artists, invited through an open call to members and selected 2018, 2019, and 2020 Passages artist-presenters’ works. Participants were Diane Bisson, Mary Anne Barkhouse, Deanna Bowen, Jane Buyers, Ginette Caron, Amanda Dawn Christie, Sorel Cohen, Christos Dikeakos, Josée Dubeau, Pnina C. Gagnon, Adrian Göllner, Jerry Grey, Wesley Harris, Lucy Hogg, Thaddeus Holownia, Geoffrey James, Peter Krausz, Guy Lavigueur, Naoko Matsubara, Gordon Monahan, Robert Murray, Marie-Jeanne Musiol, Leslie Reid, Marina Roy, John A. Schweitzer, Nick Shinn, Michael Snow, Alan Stein, Penelope Stewart, Robert Tombs, Henk van Assen, George Webber, Andrew Wright and Jinny Yu. The RCA additionally co-presented with Elektronmusikstudion EMS, the sound performance Boiling Water by the Canadian pianist, sculptor, and composer of experimental music, Gordon Monahan, while Robert Tombs delivered the talk “Death to Books.”
Marina Roy delivering Queuejumping, a presentation on her writing practice, at Passages II. Photo by Guy Lavigueur
PASSAGES 2.0 (2019) Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON
On October 26, 2019, the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (RCA) hosted its second symposium, PASSAGES II, which included Michael Belmore (Ottawa, ON), Deanna Bowen (Toronto, ON), Todd Colbourne (Kingston, ON), and Marina Roy (Vancouver, BC). Following the 2018 format, after the individual presentations were completed, there was a roundtable talk with all four artists taking questions from the audience, animated by co-curators Robert Tombs and Michael Davidge. Though ‘passages’ was the name of the event, it was merely a loose placeholder and there was no attempt made to have thematic unity amongst the presenters. Subjects included contemporary architecture, video, sculpture, painting, installation, and writing, sometimes within a consideration of race and gender.
Presenter Gordon Monahan answering a question during the roundtable discussion. Photo by Justin Wonnacott
PASSAGES (2018) Ottawa Art Gallery, Ottawa, ON
On May 19, 2018, the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (RCA) hosted its inaugural symposium, Passages, which included Rosalie Favell (Ottawa, ON); Mitch Hall (Toronto, ON); Gordon Monahan (Meaford, ON); Annie Thibault (Gatineau, QC); and Jinny Yu (Ottawa, ON). After the individual presentations were completed, there was a roundtable discussion with the four artists and one architect taking questions from the audience. This was one of the first public events at the Ottawa Art Gallery, which opened in April 2018.