Nomads

Ottawa - April 16, 2009

An exhibition that explores different interpretations of nomadism
through the work of Vancouver-based artists

At the National Gallery of Canada from April 17 to August 30, 2009

The National Gallery of Canada (NGC) is proud to display the works of five innovative Vancouver-based artists - Geoffrey Farmer, Hadley+Maxwell, Myfanwy MacLeod, Gareth Moore, and Althea Thauberger - in its exhibition Nomads. On view until August 30, 2009 in the Contemporary Art galleries, this exhibition organized in conjunction with the BC Scene programming is presented by the National Arts Centre. For more information, visit the website at www.gallery.ca/nomads.

"Nomads highlights the National Gallery of Canada's ongoing commitment to contemporary art of our country," said NGC Director Marc Mayer "We are thrilled that our visitors will discover the recent productions of these brilliant young Canadian artists."

Five installations by these artists manifest different interpretations of nomadism, a way of life that takes place in a non-structured environment where movement is paramount. At times, it is the artists' practice that is nomadic - they travel specifically to gather materials and to create event-based projects in collaboration with a particular community, and document interventions made along the way. In other cases, the objects themselves are nomadic, becoming staged sets or kits that adapt to their specific context of display.

"When I first started considering the concept of nomads for an exhibition, my thinking was based on the idea of the artist as a traveller or wanderer and how art objects become nomadic themselves through their constant reconfiguration in different displays," explained the exhibition curator, Josée Drouin-Brisebois. "I was interested in exploring how artists deal with new forms of site-specificity through their engagement with particular communities in the creation of ephemeral events of collaborative works. These extensions of the term nomadism are all at play in the works of the artists."

From inserting contemporary artworks into historical galleries, transforming found materials into art, and presenting exchanges between individuals and communities to giving life to inanimate objects, the works displayed in Nomads aim to shift the viewer's expectations of the traditional art object, and accompany the viewer in his own journey. Through their engagement with the social space of the everyday, ephemeral materials, as well as strategies of staging and performance, the pieces question notions of authorship, authenticity and, ultimately, the exhibition as a finished product.

Catalogue
A catalogue, available in English and in French, accompanies the exhibition. This 88-page publication, published thanks to the generous support of the RBC Foundation, includes an essay by the exhibition curator, Josée Drouin-Brisebois; approximately 40 colour plates; and the artists' biographies. On sale for $22 at the National Gallery of Canada Bookstore or at the Gallery's virtual boutique.

Curator of the exhibition
Josée Drouin-Brisebois is the National Gallery of Canada's Contemporary Art Curator and curator of the exhibition Nomads. She has been with the Gallery since 1994 and has extensive experience particularly within the field of contemporary art. In July 2007, she was appointed Curator of Contemporary and in this position she is responsible for the collections of Canadian and International Contemporary Art including Media Arts. Since 2002, Ms. Drouin-Brisebois has organized a number of important exhibitions and has published a number of NGC exhibition catalogues, including Caught in the Act: The Viewer as Performer (2008), Dé-con-structions (2007), and Christopher Pratt (2005).

About the National Gallery of Canada
The National Gallery of Canada is home to the most important collections of historical and contemporary Canadian art in the world. In addition, it has pre-eminent collections of Indigenous, Western and European Art from the 14th to the 21st century, American and Asian Art as well as drawings and photography. Created in 1880, it is among the oldest of Canada's national, cultural institutions. As part of its mandate to make Canadian art accessible across the country, the NGC has one of the largest touring exhibition programs in the world.

- 30 -