KIDS THESE DAYS: THE AGE OF YOU AT MOCA

Exhibition Reviews | Mary Wallace 

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Toronto's Museum of Contemporary Art’s current show focuses on a very intimate and socially relevant topic: “You” or rather the concept of “you” in the face of the internet age. The Age of You examines what individuality means in an age where we have constant internet access and the internet has constant access to us. The show features work from over 70 artists in various mediums, curated by Shaman Basar, Douglas Copland and Hans Ulrich Obrist. Most of the show appears in the form of posters with images of art and related text; these posters are divided into thematic chapters. Many of my fellow editors and likely you reading this, have seen The Age of You and have probably formed a strong opinion of it. The show is divisive (I would guess intentionally so) which is why I was initially hesitant to write about it. I, personally, did not enjoy the show but I didn’t want to write a review that just amounted to venting. So after gaining some distance and taking some time to think about it, I am ready to share my opinion in my professional capacity as a critic.

I, personally, did not enjoy the show but I didn’t want to write a review that just amounted to venting.

(Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

Well maybe with a little venting.

What is this exhibition saying? What is its Big Idea? I was not able to figure this out. Of course, the job of art is not always to inform; asking a question is a perfectly valid driving force for a show. However, The Age of You does not ask a lot of questions, it prefers to make statements.

(Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

Lots of them.

(Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

Most of the exhibition’s text is written in the second person, as though speaking to “you” directly. The use of the second person creates a sense of urgency but it has the unintended side effect of making the writers’ assumptions about the reader very clear, especially when those assumptions are wrong. For instance, the exhibition presents a very specific notion of what individuality is (or used to be) and does consider other potential versions of “the self” in a serious way. A good example of these incorrect assumptions appears in the chapter labeled “The New Crowd”.

The centre text reads: "Do you feel safe in a crowd? Do you feel in danger in a crowd? Do you feel alone in a crowd? Do you form bonds in a crowd? When does a crowd become a mob? Is a social movement a global crowd? Is it hard to be an individual when being in a crowd has never been easier?" (Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

The text on the left reads: "What is the opposite of you? ...me? ...a crowd? ...a machine? ...some yet-unnamed entity?" (Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

At the very least this section asks questions of the viewer. I found the question "what is the opposite of you?" very compelling but I did feel the same way about the exhibition's answer. The Age of You is deeply nostalgic for a lost sense of “classic individuality”. Classic individuality in this case is presented as some kind of Golden Age of the self; one that I don’t think has ever existed. Was the opposite of “the self” ever “the crowd”, was the opposite of “man” ever “nature”? I would hope not. To consider the notion of individuality as simply being separate from the world around you and from other people, to me is a deeply cynical position. I myself find the prevalence of social media anxiety inducing, but to long for separation from everyone and everything is not a healthy response to that anxiety.

Was the opposite of “the self” ever “the crowd”, was the opposite of “man” ever “nature”? I would hope not.

There are also sections where the text is outright mean-spirited.

The small text reads: “Dating sounds as old fashioned as courting. Chaste, consequence-free messaging, communal laptopping, asexual cuddling and body contact negotiated through legalistic consent dialogs, all followed by ghosting. The relationship’s never over, because it never really started.” (Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

It sounds like this poster was written after a disappointing Tinder date or maybe the writer is upset that they had to do consent training at work. Once again, I could not relate to the exhibition’s nostalgia for a time when “consent dialogue” was not considered in the dating scene; I know very few people who would. Maybe if I knew what “communal laptopping” meant I could relate more.

The small text reads:"For a few centuries, smart people— who, being smart— more or less ran the world. The flattening effect of the internet has allowed the world to be run by people with an IQ of 100. It is the revenge of the bell curve." (Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

Similarly, I could not understand this poster's longing for a time when smart people "more or less ran the world". When was that exactly? I cannot think of a time, much less a few centuries, when intelligence was the only determining factor in running the world.

This void emoji is calling to me, or maybe it's just the emergency exit. (Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace) 

I had a hard time determining the level of irony in this exhibition; whether I was supposed to agree with these statements or if they were meant to be like the inflammatory statements of an internet troll. If that is the case then this exhibition is brilliant. It perfectly captures the feeling of reading a rant on an internet forum. One of the reasons I was hesitant to write about The Age of You was because I didn’t want to prove the exhibition right by ranting about it on the internet (the very thing that is supposedly robbing me of my very soul) but what is the alternative? Letting an artwork dictate my internet usage? Not exactly the actions of a classic individual either.

But don't just take my word for it. The Age of You will be on at MOCA until January 5, 2020.  

IS NUIT BLANCHE WORTH IT?

Exhibition Reviews | Mary Wallace

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Transformation by Fezz Stenton and Daniel Lanois (Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

Full disclosure. I stopped going to Nuit Blanche a few years ago after a particularly poor experience and have not revisited it since. I found the crowded streets and party atmosphere more anxiety-inducing than enriching. However, for the sake of this review I thought I’d put the past behind me and give Nuit Blanche another chance. After all, how could hundreds of people spending their hard-earned Saturday night enjoying art be a bad thing? Here are some of the best and worst experiences Nuit Blanche 2019 had to offer.

Tile-Scape by Kevin Winn, Archer Pechawis and L.C.I. CyberARTS (Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

Tile-Scape.1555 Danforth Ave.

I began the evening by visiting one of the Danforth’s two listed works. Tile-Scape, a collaboration between Kevin Winn, Archer Pechawis and L.C.I. CyberARTS, consisted of a long table of interconnected scrabble boards interrupted by hand-made recreations of the forest floor. Each participant was given a small bag of letter tiles and set loose to create words in amongst the leaves and roots. The experience is meant to remind the participant to think about the mark they leave on the earth and in their community. I was delighted to find that my fellow participants had not left any rude messages but instead put in the effort to create some interesting words, highlights included “BOBA_TEA”, “PUTRID” and the surely not scrabble dictionary approved but none-the-less evocative, “BADPAIN”.

Tile-Scape detail (Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

Tile-Scape was a fun community art piece, that encouraged creative interaction between neighbours. While not as flashy as other installations, it had clear heart and effort behind it. This piece was definitely worth the visit.

Project GUNK. Bay and Albert St.

Project GUNK by Reza Nik and Matthew Davis (Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

In the shadow of the larger piece in Nathan Phillips Square, Reza Nik and Matthew Davis’s Project GUNK might have been easy to miss, but by the time I had reached it there was already a line to view the installation. Outdoor artworks in the Downtown area were almost universally surrounded by metal barricades with lines outside to enter, not unlike rides at the EX. Once I had gotten through the line, I was ushered into a small area filled with found object sculptures. I examined them, a little unsure of what to think, since I had not been able to read the accompanying text panel without leaving my place in line. Once I had left the barricade pen, I was able to circle back and read the text. The sculptures were made from roadside trash found in each of Toronto’s 25 wards, as a way to find use for the discarded items the city produces.

I enjoyed the idea of Project GUNK and will keep an eye out for their work in the future but the experience was hindered by the limitations of Nuit Blanche’s display methods. I could see this idea working if the sculptures were larger or had been manipulated by the artists more. As it was, even for a self-described art lover, waiting in line to see artfully stacked patio chairs was a hard sell.

Transformation. 661 University Ave. MaRS Discovery District.

Transformation by Fezz Stenton and Daniel Lanois (Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

Transformation by Fezz Stenton and Daniel Lanois was among the weaker pieces available at Nuit Blanche. Inside the building’s main lobby, mammoth blow up versions of plastic trash loomed over the crowd, all under the glow of a massive LED sun. The pieces were accompanied by video footage of activists and scientists explaining the reality of climate change and how important it is that we, the audience, take action. While I fundamentally agree with the idea of Transformation, standing next to large installations made of plastic, surrounded by hundreds of electric lights and LED screens, the message rang a little hollow.

The actual experience of Nuit Blanche as an event often undermines the enjoyment and understanding of the art. It’s hard to be inspired or moved by these heavy hitting topics when you are shuffling through a line as though you’re about to ride Space Mountain. The best way I can explain this feeling is through this photo I took in the MaRS building, in which futuristic glowing Lilly pads are plastered with hastily printed signs warning the crowd not to step on the art, lest it be ruined I suppose.

Transformation by Fezz Stenton and Daniel Lanois (Photograph courtesy of Mary Wallace)

Ultimately, the piece I enjoyed the most that evening was the smaller artwork in my own neighbourhood and I don’t think this is a coincidence. Nuit Blanche is at its best when it’s displaying accessible, community oriented art that gives audiences a new chance to engage with contemporary artists right in their own backyards. If you are considering going next year, my advice to you is the same advice I’d give for picking a restaurant: skip the major installations downtown and check out the independent projects in smaller neighbourhoods, where there are some hidden gems waiting to be found.

WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS

Exhibition Reviews | Maddy Howard

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The beginning of February saw the opening of a new exhibition at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM).

Being Japanese Canadian: Reflections on a Broken World  offers visitors a poignant, thought-provoking, and heartbreaking view into the injustices suffered by Japanese Canadians during the 1940s.

REIKO, ALBERTA 1945- Lillian Michiko Blakey. Photo courtesy of Maddy Howard.

Being Japanese Canadian features artworks from eight contemporary Japanese Canadian artists, whose works are interspersed throughout the Sigmund Samuel Gallery of Canada. These incredible artists are Lillian Michiko Blakey, David L. Hayashida, Emma Nishimura, Steven Nunoda, Laura Shintani, Norman Takeuchi, Marjene Matsunaga Turnbull, and Yvonne Wakabayashi.

These artists reflect on the exile, dispossession, and internment that 22,000 Japanese Canadians faced during the 1940s. From those who experienced the history first hand, to those who are still coming to grips with the experiences of their parents and grandparents, these installations provide visitors with an intensely emotional, and often overlooked, piece of Canadian history.

Ghostown & Ladder to the Moon- Steven Nunoda. Photo courtesy of Maddy Howard.

In a similar fashion to the Zodiac exhibition at the Gardiner Museum, Being Japanese Canadian is spread out within the Canadian gallery. This encourages visitors to confront these histories and stories within the larger narrative of Canadian history. Visitors can use a guide map that is on the entrance panel to find the artworks, or they can wander the gallery and find them on their own.

Interior Revisited- Norman Takeuchi. Photo courtesy of Maddy Howard. 

Located in the center of the gallery is a space where visitors can watch short video clips regarding the internment of Japanese Canadians, as well as flip through different books on the subject. I found this to be an excellent touch, as it gives visitors the chance to better educate themselves about the topic while in the space.

Also on display is the official acknowledgement from the Government of Canada to Japanese Canadians that the events of internment were wrong and unjust. Other objects from the 1940s, such as drawings, photographs, a cedar chest, and poetry are also on display to better articulate this awful piece of Canadian history.

The Reading Station. Photo courtesy of Maddy Howard.

The Enemy That Never Was. Photo courtesy of Maddy Howard.

And now time for a shameless plug-in. Laura Shintani and Lillian Michiko Blakey are also on display at my own exhibition at Campbell House Museum. This exhibition, as my capstone project for the Master of Museum Studies program, is entitled Redefining Home: A Story of Japanese Canadian Resettlement in Toronto. This project was put together by myself, Meghan Drascic-Gaudio and Hailey Graham.

This exhibition follows the story of Harold and Hana Kawasoe, a young Japanese Canadian couple who lived in the attic of Campbell House from 1948-1951. Redefining Home follows their story as they strove to make new lives in Toronto, and includes contemporary artwork from Lillian Michiko Blakey and Laura Shintani who reflect on their own experiences of being Japanese Canadian.

Redefining Home runs from March 1- April 1, 2019.

Original Artwork from Lillian Michiko Blakey. Photo courtesy of Maddy Howard.

Redefining Home. Photo courtesy of Maddy Howard. 

Being Japanese Canadian allows the artwork from these incredible artists to speak more than a thousand words. Each work speaks to a horrid history that is often overlooked, and encourages visitors to reflect on the generational ramifications that have come as a result of this great injustice. These artworks also ask visitors to reflect on what it means to be Canadian.

Being Japanese Canadian opened February 2, 2019 and is on display at the ROM until August 5, 2019.

Canadian Born, Alberta 1943- Lillian Michiko Blakey. Photo courtesy of Maddy Howard.