Month: February 2023

w h a t . h o m e in Gibsons, BC!

With huge thanks to the Gibsons Public Art Gallery and Canada Council for the Arts for putting their confidence in me, I can FINALLY announce that  w h a t . h o m e  is home in BC, where it all began. 

In 2017 I began interviewing residents of BC's west coast on the subject of 'home'. I had some idea of where the topics might go, but I was surprised again and again by the amazingly heart-full, extremely unexpected, and often challenging stories that emerged. I've discovered through this work and other interview-based projects I've done that in any cross-section of humanity there will be a deep exploration of belonging, and a desire to make the best of always surprising circumstances. This project puts this on display. 

However, the first iteration of this project was installed at Goleb in Amsterdam, as the culmination of my residency, there–a long way from home, you might say! But also not. I have family in the Netherlands, and began my art studies there, as well, so it is in fact a kind of displaced second home to me. I was invited to this residency by my friend and colleague, Igor Sevcuk, and received much support and feedback from him, his wonderful partner (and scientist and fellow artist) Go-Eun Im, other artists at Goleb, and of course my own partner, Markus Roemer. Not only did the project complete with this support, but also with visits and input from various Dutch friends and family of mine. The most amazing thing to me was that the stories and feelings from the West Coast of Canada translated perfectly to a Dutch audience. Amazing that we can take humanity from one side of the world, plop it down in another place, and we're still… human. With the same basic needs, and the same love.

Happily, though, now I get to bring the project back to where it began. And what a wonderful time we had putting up the dual-channel installation of
w h a t . h o m e !

OK maybe it was a little stressful given the tight timeline, but we made it, and pretty sure we've survived! Here's a little video compilation of the process of installing. You'll see me sitting on the floor doing a video-interview with Rohit Joseph for CBC Radio's weekend morning show, North by Northwest. Here's the fifteen-minute interview, if you'd like to hear it. It really was a joy to talk to Rohit, and a highlight of my career at this point.

Two artists in black pants and jackets sit on a bench of the Gibsons Public Art Gallery, framed by hanging projections of Emily van Lidth de Jeude's show, what dot home. The man on the left wears a colourful tam, and black-rimmed glasses, and has a long grey beard and hair. His grey walking cane rests between his hiking boots. The woman to his left wears a darker tam, has short grey hair, and holds a yellow purse in her lap. Both are looking thoughtfully at the projections on the hanging sheets, around them.

The opening was really incredible for me. Such a huge amount of support from my family, friends and community. I was totally blown away.

Seven white sheets are hanging in the middle of a gallery with concrete floors, covered with projections of a deciduous forest scene within which a woman sits on a chair ,talking. People are gathered in chairs and seated on the floor all around the exhibition, listening to the show.

Probably the biggest shock for me though was the unexpected appearance of a fabulous kid I once taught in the Netherlands. I haven't seen her in about thirty years, and she, her mother, and her kids now live on the Sunshine Coast, and came to the show!! AND she's an artist!!! What a wonderful surprise to connect again. Yet another thing that made me realize how grateful I am for the life I'm privileged to have. Here are a few photos from the opening. Thanks to my son Taliesin and brother Adrian for the photos. 🧡

Artist Emily van Lidth de Jeude stands half-hidden behind a hanging white sheet, upon which is projected the image of a young girl in a pink dress. Emily is wearing red pants, red shoes, and a dark grey sweater. A photographer stands on the right side of the frame, leaning back dramatically while taking a photo of Emily and the projected girl.

Also this guy!! Michael Gurney. What a fabulous reporter!! He came fully prepared, having already checked out the show and having a bunch of really good interesting questions about it. And his article shows he actually researched this quite thoroughly. I am truly honoured to have this show written about by him. He said some interesting things about it that even helped me understand it more, myself. Here's a link to the article he published: https://www.nsnews.com/local-arts/bowen-islanders-exhibition-at-gpag-is-homeward-bound-6574236

Two men are seated near a gallery wall, smiling pointing at sheets hanging in the middle of the room, which have landscape projections on them. In the distance, another woman is seated, wearing a black respiratory mask.
Two artists, Judi Gedye and Diane Buchanan, are framed by separate sections of the hanging white fabric of what dot home. Judi, on the left, is seated on a bench and wearing mostly black with a grey shawl-like coat and a white necklace. She has grey hair and black-rimmed glasses. Diane, standing on the right, wears red boots,a grey turtle neck, a green-grey jacket, and holds a green bag in front of her legs. She has long straight white hair, tied back. On the sheets, a projection of poet Jude Neale is shown. Jude is wearing a white and coloured summer dress, and has short white hair.

We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.
Nous remercions le Conseil des arts du Canada de son soutien.
https://canadacouncil.ca