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conceptual leGacieSA guide to Canadian art schools thinking outside the box.

1-3_school sup_W16_16TS.indd 49 11/12/15 3:07 PM

50 C a n a d i a n a r t • w i n t e r 2 01 6

CloCkwise from top left:

1. UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA susanna Barlow Pause Ready Enter 2014

2. SHERIDAN COLLEGE Jon sasaki A Clock Set to 24 Hours into

the Future 2014 –15

3. UNIVERSITY OF REGINA edward (Ned) Bartlett 34 C18 Saucer 2013

4. UNIVERSITY OF GUELpH paul mcintyre Painted Blue Deck 2014

5. wESTERN UNIVERSITY ronnie Clarke Self-Control 2014

6. UNIVERSITY OF REGINA Amber phelps Bondaroff Situate 2014

7. CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY swintak Artist Contract Outfits 2014

8. ALBERTA COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN Natural real supreme

(sean michael taal and sara rennie) Water Arch 2014

9. NSCAD UNIVERSITY kelly Zwicker No Discipline 2015

2

9

1

MANY wORkS IN THIS GUIDE ARE THE RESULT OF ASSIGNMENTS COMpLETED BY CURRENT STUDENTS AND RECENT GRADUATES.

s p e c i a l s e c t i o n a r t s c h o o l s m A r t g u i d e

conceptual-art teachings reverberate in the halls of 21st-century art schools.

The Conceptual art movement coalesced in the mid-1960s and profoundly challenged the way art is made, encountered and considered. The movement regards art as a thinking process rather than a means of creating tangible objects, and its implications can be found in disciplines ranging from established, material-based practices, such as painting, photography and sculpture, to non-traditional fields such as installation, sound, performance and digital art. Since the beginnings of the movement, art schools in Canada have been vital sites of action for such art to operate within. Many of the major players in the scene are still very much active, working as instructors and curators, and it is largely due to them that the effects of the Conceptual legacy continue to reverberate in programs and courses offered at schools across the country. Students exposed to the tenets of Conceptual art pedagogy are taught to confront social issues, question conventional hierarchies, disrupt institutional frameworks and destabilize the status quo. Upon graduation, these students will enter artistic, sociological, political, economic, industrial and other realms equipped with the creative problem-solving and lateral-thinking skills that will help them become the next generation of leaders.

conceptual legacies



CloCkwise from top left:

1. UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA susanna Barlow Pause Ready Enter 2014

2. SHERIDAN COLLEGE Jon sasaki A Clock Set to 24 Hours into

the Future 2014 –15

3. UNIVERSITY OF REGINA edward (Ned) Bartlett 34 C18 Saucer 2013

4. UNIVERSITY OF GUELpH paul mcintyre Painted Blue Deck 2014

5. wESTERN UNIVERSITY ronnie Clarke Self-Control 2014

6. UNIVERSITY OF REGINA Amber phelps Bondaroff Situate 2014

7. CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY swintak Artist Contract Outfits 2014

8. ALBERTA COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN Natural real supreme

(sean michael taal and sara rennie) Water Arch 2014

9. NSCAD UNIVERSITY kelly Zwicker No Discipline 2015

2

9

1

MANY wORkS IN THIS GUIDE ARE THE RESULT OF ASSIGNMENTS COMpLETED BY CURRENT STUDENTS AND RECENT GRADUATES.

s p e c i a l s e c t i o n a r t s c h o o l s m A r t g u i d e

conceptual-art teachings reverberate in the halls of 21st-century art schools.

The Conceptual art movement coalesced in the mid-1960s and profoundly challenged the way art is made, encountered and considered. The movement regards art as a thinking process rather than a means of creating tangible objects, and its implications can be found in disciplines ranging from established, material-based practices, such as painting, photography and sculpture, to non-traditional fields such as installation, sound, performance and digital art. Since the beginnings of the movement, art schools in Canada have been vital sites of action for such art to operate within. Many of the major players in the scene are still very much active, working as instructors and curators, and it is largely due to them that the effects of the Conceptual legacy continue to reverberate in programs and courses offered at schools across the country. Students exposed to the tenets of Conceptual art pedagogy are taught to confront social issues, question conventional hierarchies, disrupt institutional frameworks and destabilize the status quo. Upon graduation, these students will enter artistic, sociological, political, economic, industrial and other realms equipped with the creative problem-solving and lateral-thinking skills that will help them become the next generation of leaders.

conceptual legacies


s m a r t G u i d e • c a n a d i a n a r t . c a 51

Craig Leonard NSCAD UNiverSity

“An idea isn’t a medium, but the non-fixed part of both form and material that together determine medium. As part of form, it places limits on the

work’s existence. As material, its presence is gauged by what seems excluded. Idea and limit are one and the same. This understanding holds equally for my art practice and approach to teaching.”

Kim Tomczak and Lisa Steele UNiverSity of toroNto

“When we start a new project, we always submerge ourselves into the research, and as collaborators, we talk and argue a lot. Concentrating

on the concepts being investigated —rather than obsessing about the materiality—helps refine the finished work. In our teaching, sometimes we have to teach a technical process, but the quicker we can move to the idea being mobilized, the better it is.”

Trevor Gould CoNCorDiA UNiverSity

“It makes no sense to interpret contemporary sculpture through material means alone—we need new ways of conceiving the meaning of sculpture in

a ‘post-disciplinary’ world. Thinking about the medium as a concept opens up this possibility to engage with all manners of interdisciplinarity in contemporary art.”

Miruna Dragan AlbertA College of Art

AND DeSigN“I am most influenced by the overlooked aspects of Conceptual art—the intuitive, poetic, emotional and philosophically

contemplative. Through a sensualist approach to materials and experiences, my site-responsive works also align with ideas explored in land art; they are a grounding of my own identity through the identification of sites laden with pregnant histories.”

Instructors from coast to coast define their practices

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MB-SK_UofRegina_Situate-loft - Amber Phelps Bondaroff 2014 .jpg


s p e c i a l s e c t i o n a r t s c h o o l s m a r t g u i d e


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conceptual legacies



58 C a n a d i a n a r t • w i n t e r 2 01 658 C a n a d i a n a r t • w i n t e r 2 01 6

AtlanticNSCAD uNiverSity

In June 1967, the Nova Scotia College of Art in Halifax hired artist Garry Neill Kennedy as its first president, and in doing so altered the course of art history. At what would soon

be renamed the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, a spirit of experimentation over structure changed the means and methods of art education and, arguably, the definition of art itself. The school became an international art hub, attracting visiting artists and faculty members such as Joseph Beuys, Lucy Lippard, Sol LeWitt, Jenny Holzer and Yvonne Rainer, and the NSCAD Press and Lithography Workshop produced prints and publications by contemporary-art masters. A commitment to cutting-edge, idea-based learning still rules across the now-expanded university’s three campuses. Among these is the 70,000-square-foot Port Campus, which boasts a wood shop, metal shop, foundry, sculpture studios and ceramics complex. NSCAD University offers four-year bachelor’s degrees in Fine Art, Design and Art History, which can include exchanges to any of 15 countries, as well as one-year master’s degrees in Fine Art (either Craft or Fine and Media Arts) and Design. Students can choose to remain on an interdisciplinary path or specialize in one field of advanced study.

NEW bruNsWick collEgE of craft aNd dEsigNLocated in downtown Fredericton, the New Brunswick College of Craft and Design offers a one-year Foundation visual Arts certificate; two-year diplomas in Aboriginal visual Arts, Fine Craft (Ceramics or Jewellery and Metal Arts), Digital Media, Graphic Design, Fashion Design, Photography, and textile Design; a one-year Graduate Studies certificate; and a Bachelor of Applied Arts, an articulated degree with the university of New Brunswick. All courses of study provide students with the framework to refine their studio practices and entrepreneurial skills in pursuit of professional careers in fine craft and design.

mEmorial uNivErsityMemorial university, in Newfoundland and Labrador, offers a BFA in visual Arts at its Grenfell Campus in Corner Brook, which boasts an on-campus gallery, digital lab and printshop, as well as drawing, sculpture, photography and painting studios. there are opportunities for residencies for students at the Bonne Bay Marine Station at Gros Morne National Park (a World Heritage Site) and co-op experiences at St. Michael’s Printshop in St. John’s. unique to the school is its intensive 12-week art history course, offered every other year at Memorial’s permanent campus in Old Harlow, england.

1. Christina Bosowec

Dodge Spirit 2015

COurteSy ANNA

LeONOWeNS GALLery

PHOtO JOrDAN BLACKBurN

2. Sarah Whiffen

This Is It 2015

3. NBCCD digital media

students working

on a project PHOtO

ANDreA PAvLOviCH

1

2

3

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Quebec concordia university

Situated in the heart of downtown Montreal, Concordia grants BFAs, MFAs, MAs and PhDs in a wide range of fine-arts programs, and operates within a supportive network of active, accomplished

faculty members. “Our five active student groups self-formed around subjects of particular interest, such as Aboriginal art, ethnocultural art histories and the design and politics of the built environment,” says Cynthia Hammond, chair of the Art History department. “Their activities are exciting evidence of how learning is an active process that students take into their own hands, as the next generation of historians, curators, critics and cultural workers.” In concert with a faculty member, gallery or art institution, Art History majors can develop independent-study or internship course plans that allow them to gain in-depth, professional experience while earning course credit. The critically acclaimed Leonard and Bina Ellen Gallery and FOFA Gallery serve as invaluable resources for students and faculty alike, and Studio Arts students benefit from cutting-edge, purpose-built facilities. Faculty of Fine Arts dean Rebecca Duclos highlights the most potent aspect of Concordia’s curriculum: “We maintain room for experimentation, and hope to activate and animate the politics and poetics that inflected previous movements and eras within the present moment through new material, scholarly and performative work across the faculty.”

1. chloe Lum and

yannick desranleau

The Face Stayed East

The Mouth Went West

(production still) 2014

2. catherine Lescarbeau

Le département des

plantes de bureau 2014

PHoto PaveL PavLov

3. installation view

of exhibition at

the Foreman art Gallery

at Bishop’s university

UNIVERSITÉ DU QUÉBEC À MONTRÉAL“uQaM’s École des arts visuels et médiatiques provides a unique educational environment that directly draws on multiple intellectual heritages, where the question of art’s social functions is always inflected through Montreal’s rich and contradictory urban culture,” says instructor david tomas. research units such as the Heritage institute and Hexagram uQaM encourage graduate students and faculty from different departments to share resources and collaborate.

BIShOp’S UNIVERSITyBishop’s, located in sherbrooke, offers bachelor of arts degrees with a concentration in art History and theory, Fine arts, or Liberal arts. these versatile programs teach students skills that are transferable to careers within the arts and beyond. the Foreman art Gallery researches and presents innovative artistic and curatorial practices year-round, and mounts an annual show of work by graduating students.

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OCAD University At OCAD U’s downtown campus, three comprehensive faculties—Art, Design and Liberal

Arts and Sciences—offer a wealth of options for prospective undergraduate and graduate students. OCAD U encourages students to be technological and cultural innovators who

strategically plan and develop an improved future for the world. The school stands on the ancestral and traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the New Credit, the Haudenosaunee, the Anishnabe and the Huron-Wendat, and its unique Indigenous Visual Culture program examines the visual, cultural, social and political history of Indigenous peoples with an aim to engage students in contemporary discourses on the subject. Other programs of note are Integrated Media, Criticism and Curatorial Practice and Design for Health (available starting September 2016 at the graduate level). The forward-thinking school serves as a hotbed for cross-disciplinary creative experimentation while occupying a firm foothold in studio-based practices such as drawing and painting, sculpture and installation, photography and printmaking, billing itself as “Canada’s university of the imagination.”

york University york’s school of the Arts, Media, Performance and Design grants BFAs and MFAs. Among its top-tier facilities are labs for digital arts and cinematic innovation, the Art Gallery of york University, studios, soundstages, cinemas, concert halls, libraries, the Joan Goldfarb study Centre, a historic farm, a large multi-faculty interdisciplinary Organized research Unit, celebrated lecture series and $1 million in awards available to students pursing interdisciplinary arts research.

University of toronto “visual studies at the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design is the only program in the country that combines art and architecture for a BA Honours degree, resulting in a prestigious degree that opens a lot of doors beyond the traditional BFA,” says program director Charles stankievech. visual studies also offers a two-year master’s degree in studio Art or Curatorial studies, which includes an internship placement. the program’s accomplished faculty includes artists and curators active in the toronto art scene.

1. view of OCAD

University studio

PHOtO CLAUDiA HUnG

2. Jenny Laiwint

Crawl to Stand 2013

3. Alvin Luong

36 Cyprigene Sum (After

Carl Andre) 2014

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Toronto


conceptual legacies




University of gUelph “The establishment of the Extended Practices area in Studio Art

has provided a locus for research and production at the undergraduate level,” says Martin Pearce, associate professor in Studio Art. “Social

practices and collaborative projects are specifically taught as part of the curriculum.” Guelph offers BAs in Studio Art, Art History and Music and, at the graduate level, an MA in Art History and Visual Culture and an MFA in Studio Art. “Rigorous interdisciplinary studio courses involve students in the technical and conceptual aspects of contemporary artmaking, and balance making with research and thinking,” says Pearce. The Visiting Artists and Speakers Program, as well as the Shenkman Lecture series, have brought in a host of distinguished individuals, and exchange programs with HFK Bremen in Germany and the Eastern Normal University in Shanghai further expose students to international Conceptualism. An on-campus gallery, as well as the off-site G Gallery in Toronto and BHG in Guelph, provide exhibition opportunities for students.

1. erika Dueck

Towers 2015

2. lindsay Davies Cold

Hard Truth (detail) 2014

3. Jon sasaki A Clock Set

to 24 Hours into

the Future 2014–15

1

3

2

Ontario

s p e c i a l s e c t i o n a r t s c h o o l s m a r t g U i D e

sheridan college oakville’s sheridan College puts tremendous emphasis on providing leading-edge resources that reflect industry standards. “We offer a number of fine-art studio programs in disciplines such as installation, performance, sound and video art; art and art history, a four-year hBa degree joint with University of toronto, mississauga; as well as visual and Creative arts, a three-year diploma. most programs, however, focus on a broad range of arts practices in industry. that drives in large part our educational mandate,” says ronni rosenberg, dean of the faculty of animation, arts and Design. “students are taught to strive to engage an audience, client or user through imaginative narrative, creative innovation and technical excellence. Craft, design and fine art tend to cross-fertilize.”

University of waterloolocated within a large university, the University of Waterloo’s faculty of fine arts enjoys a feeling of community within a comprehensive research environment. students can earn degrees in studio arts, art history and visual Culture, or film studies and visual Culture. “in line with our move toward contemporary critical/theoretical/conceptual approaches, in studio work and in art theory and history,” says associate professor lois andison, who teaches sculpture and digital media, “we have reorganized our curriculum and created an open-studio program that accommodates a multidisciplinary approach to artmaking.” the two-year mfa in studio arts has a pedagogical component, and culminates in a solo exhibition at the University of Waterloo art gallery.


conceptual legacies




University of windsor Small studio classes and professors who pay close, personal attention

to students’ development make the University of Windsor stand out. IAIN BAXTER&, one of Canada’s premier Conceptual artists, is

professor emeritus at the school. Karen Engle, director of the School of Creative Arts, details some of the programs and top-notch facilities available: “We have Canada’s first BioArt Lab, and the media necessary for inter-media work, film production and sonic arts. Full digital and analog photography facilities are available, and for sculpture students, we have both traditional and 3-D technologies. Our BFA VABE is a unique program, offering students a chance to study at two universities (Windsor and Detroit Mercy) and graduate with a BFA in Visual Arts and a BSc in Architecture.” Students can also pursue a combined BA in Media Art Histories and Visual Culture. The MFA program is long established, and a new MFA in Film and Media Arts was established in 2015.

brock university in september 2015, Brock University in st. Catharines unveiled its brand new Marilyn i. walker school of fine and Performing Arts, which brings together the departments of dramatic Arts, Music and visual Arts, as well as the Centre for studies in Arts and Culture, in one exciting facility. visual Arts and studies in Arts and Culture students can work towards earning a four-year BA Honours, a three-year BA Pass or a six-year BA/Bed in Concurrent education. the rodman Hall Art Centre provides the unique prospect for fourth-year Honours students to work in their own professional-level studios, culminating in an exhibition opportunity.

western university western University in London offers degrees at three levels: earn a BfA in studio Arts; BA in Art History and Criticism, visual Arts or Museum and Curatorial studies; MfA in visual Art; MA in Art History; or Phd in Art and visual Culture. Housed in the John Labatt visual Art Centre, visual Arts encourages collaboration with other departments, such as Mit and film studies, as well with as the local community, at institutions such as Museum London and forest City Gallery. there are on-campus exhibition opportunities for students at Artlab Gallery.

1. Patricia Coates

PROPAGATION 2014

2. Quintin teszeri Tug

2015 © dePArtMent of visUAL

Arts, western University

3. Katie Mazi O.P.S.

(Objects of a Purpleless

Society) 2015

PHoto dAnny CUstodio

1

2

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Ontario

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ManitobaUniversity of manitoba

“Faculty play a critical role in the development of students, demonstrating within the classroom and in their individual artistic practices the necessity of continually challenging assumptions

about art, media and expression,” says Mary Ann Steggles, associate director of the University of Manitoba’s School of Art in Winnipeg, which grants both BFAs and MFAs. From their first days in the classroom, students are taught to be active and critical viewers of art. They learn how to talk, analyze and write about art through direct observation during field trips to museums and art galleries in Canada and the US. The school itself, located in the state-of-the-art ARTlab building, houses the renowned School of Art Gallery as well as the comprehensive MAClab digital-production facility, where students can work on video production and editing, graphic design and professional-quality large-format printing on multiple materials.

Saskatchewan University of regina

“our programs are designed to address the needs and challenges of artists as social innovators, critical thinkers, community leaders and promoters of art and culture,” says rae staseson, dean of the newly renamed faculty of media, art, Performance (maP). the school’s many creative workspaces include printmaking, painting, sculpture and ceramics studios, digital media and photography labs, two theatres, music and recording studios and an interactive media performance lab. a strong legacy of community engagement and a well-regarded internship program prepare students for professional life.

u University of winnipegUniversity of Winnipeg students can work towards earning a ba with either a major or minor in History of art, or specialize in Curatorial Practices within the ma in Cultural studies. the History of art program is interdisciplinary, and courses are offered through the History, Classics, Philosophy and english departments, with a foundation in art history and experiential learning. students can engage first-hand with valuable resources such as the university’s extensive art collection, curated programming at Gallery 1C03 and world-class exhibitions at the Winnipeg art Gallery and Plug in iCa, both of which are located across the street from campus. in 2015, the WaG and UW joined forces to hire Julie nagram as Chair in the History of indigenous arts in north america.

1. nicolette nuytten

Technicolour Static Box

2014

2. amber Phelps

bondaroff Rag-Rug 2015

3. natasha Peterson

Untitled 2013

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conceptual legacies


Sheridan is Canada’s largest art school, with a reputation for excellence and innovation. As a student, you will learn from talented, committed faculty who will pass on their expertise and passion; as a graduate, you’ll have a rare combination of artistic talent, professionalism and technical sophistication. You’ll be poised for success - and prepared to make your creativity a force for change.

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University of SaskatchewanDepartment of Art & Art History

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Studio Art | BA, BFA, MFAArt History | BA, MA Special Case

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conceptual legacies




AlbertaUniversity of AlbertA

The Department of Art and Design at the University of Alberta offers students a broad range of experiences that include training in the history of Conceptual art as well as

in more traditional media-based practices. The department’s studio area is a flexible practice-program that offers students opportunities to develop a media-specific practice, as well as to work across multiple media through its intermedia area. The structure of the BFA program encourages students to diversify their courses across media rather than choosing a specialization, although that also remains possible. At the senior undergraduate and MFA level, the program provides students with the chance to work with faculty versed in artistic-research methodologies as well as access to interdisciplinary experiences and expertise from across the university. A good example of this exchange across disciplines put into practice is Aaron Veldstra’s thesis exhibition, a performance-based installation that considered the ecological implications of Alberta’s oil industry (see our review on page 152).

University of lethbridge“our students are encouraged to see art as participatory, through projects and critiques that extend beyond the studio classroom,” says professor Annie Martin, chair of lethbridge’s Art Department. “We encourage direct engagement with the community and environment through exhibition, performance and intervention.” studio programs are rounded out by courses in art history, museum studies, art theory and a liberal education requirement. Art now, the school’s visiting-artist program, provides further opportunity for active critical engagement.

1. toby reid O Precious

Symbolism 2015

2. Aaron veldstra

Our Anaerobic Future

(installation view) 2015

3. Courtney Holmes

Patience in the Blind 2015

4. roy Caussy Erratic 2015

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yUkon school of visUal artsovA offers a unique foundation-year program that features a full range of undergraduate-level studio and humanities courses, accredited through yukon College, in the culturally vibrant atmosphere of Dawson City. the curriculum includes painting, sculpture, installation, performance and video art within Western conceptual frameworks alongside art history and theory courses that embrace Aboriginal cultural values. students enjoy generous studio spaces in a re-furnished early 20th-century building and have easy access to excellent digital and manual equipment.

Yukon alberta college of art and design

ACAD, in Calgary, grants bfAs in nine areas of concentration, and a cross-disciplinary, studio-based MfA in Craft Media. students have access to world-class facilities, wood and metal shops and large studio spaces to accommodate their creative research. one program of note is Media Arts, led by rita McKeough, which includes digital art, sound, installation and performance art. twelve student-run galleries, as well as the renowned illingworth Kerr gallery, give students real-world exhibition experience and an insider’s view of the artworld.


conceptual legacies


INQUIRE

APPLY

[email protected]

www.queensu.ca/admission

Bachelor of Fine Art Program

C

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CMY

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Queens Ad WINTER 16.pdf 1 10/27/15 2:44 PM



British ColumbiaUNIVERSITY OF BRITISh cOlUmBIa

“In many respects, the history of Visual Art at UBC has been closely intertwined with Conceptual art practice from the 1970s through to the current day,” says Gareth James, associate professor in the Department

of Art History, Visual Art and Theory and Visual Art Graduate Advisor. “One thing that is often overlooked,” he says, “is the degree to which Conceptual art paid attention to the nuts and bolts of how art was made, and subsequently extrapolated arguments from this kind of technical minutiae. Our classes provide students with technical know-how in specific media, but students are encouraged to think about the broader art-historical and contemporary theoretical issues that formal issues entail.” Visual Arts is housed in the custom-built Audain Art Centre, which contains studio facilities for upper-level undergraduates and graduate students, smart classrooms and an entire floor devoted to printmaking facilities, as well as the department gallery, which exhibits work by students and curated exhibitions of more established artists. The department grants bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees, publishes undergraduate and graduate art-history journals and hosts exhibitions, conferences, symposia, artist talks and lecture series.

Simon FraSer UniverSityThe Visual arts program at SFU balances studio-based production with a strong theoretical component. BFa students are required to take core theory and interdisciplinary studio courses, as well as medium-specific, skill-based methods and concepts courses. The school’s alexander Studio hosts lectures and visiting-artist talks, and also houses individual studios for students pursuing mFas in Interdisciplinary Studies. In addition, there are opportunities to attend the Berlin Field School, exhibit in the audain Gallery, as well as interact with the renowned audain artist-in-Residence program.

1. Jamey Braden TO ____

AS IF ____. (The difference

between seeing and

believing, or, between

believing one sees and

seeing between.) 2015

PhOTO mIchaEl R. BaRRIcK

emily carr UniverSity oF art and deSign Ron Burnett, president and vice-chancellor of EcUaD, recalls a memorable conceptual art moment at the school: “In 1979, Ian Wallace invited chris Burden to visit. Instead of engaging with students in the classroom, Burden spent each day of his visit digging a trench from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.” The school’s storied conceptual legacy remains present in its current course offerings. Students can pursue BFas in critical and cultural Practice, Film, Video and Integrated media, Design, Illustration, Photography and Visual arts, or earn a master in applied arts or master of Design.

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S p e c i a l S e c t i o n a r t S c h o o l S m a R T G U I D E

2. Olivia Dunbar don’t

know enough 2014

cOURTESY SFU GallERIES

PhOTO BlaINE camPBEll

3. prOphecy sun Objects

Wrapped in Dreams

Wrapped in Objects 2015


conceptual legacies






conceptual legacies


For both sides of the brain. Brock University | Niagara | Canada

Canada’s newest centre of excellence for the artsClasses have commenced in the beautiful new home of Brock University’s

Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts.

Designed by world-renowned Diamond Schmitt Architects, the Walker School offers a full range of degrees that span the arts, from performance to production to

artisan support, and more.

The Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts offers an elite arts education that provides an exceptional learning experience, from the classroom to the studio to complete

immersion in the Niagara arts community. Our renowned faculty will ensure students discover their creative passions while connecting them with a thriving downtown arts and culture

scene, located adjacent to the new FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre.

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Schools Ad Page TEMP FINAL.indd 79 11/07/15 12:00 AM

conceptual legacies


For both sides of the brain. Brock University | Niagara | Canada

Canada’s newest centre of excellence for the artsClasses have commenced in the beautiful new home of Brock University’s

Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts.

Designed by world-renowned Diamond Schmitt Architects, the Walker School offers a full range of degrees that span the arts, from performance to production to

artisan support, and more.

The Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts offers an elite arts education that provides an exceptional learning experience, from the classroom to the studio to complete

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1. Abigail Auld: researcher, curator and organizer After completing a Bachelor of Design at OCAD University, I moved to pursue an MA in Cultural Studies from the University of Winnipeg. While at the UW, I developed a curatorial project that investigated the influence of the Hudson’s Bay Company on Winnipeg’s urban development. In summer 2014, I travelled by cargo container ship through the East China Sea to the depths of an open pit mine in Inner Mongolia to trace the journey of a smart phone. I now work at Martha Street Studio, and also pursue other activities ranging from research, writing and publishing to exhibition and event organizing. As my future takes shape, I hope to achieve a method of working that maintains complexity and provides ongoing opportunity for learning.

2. John Lowndes: photographic and mixed-media artistWhile my major at York University was in Studio Art, only a quarter of my credits were in studio-based practicum. Courses in film theory, urban studies and satire have all shaped the bodies of work that I create today. This year, through the Art Mentorship Project coordinated by the McMichael Canadian Art Collection and the York Region Arts Council, I got the opportunity to work with my mentor, Césan d’Ornellas Levine. We have treated the mentorship as a much more collaborative experience, acting as two equal artists genuinely interested in the creative process. In the future, I hope that I will have an opportunity to work in a university, helping the next generation of artists to expand their practices and think outside artistic conventions.

3. Janine Windolph: artist and filmmakerIn my BFA at the University of Regina, I took as many Indigenous studies courses as I could, and learned the alternate narrative of how Canada was formed. My master’s was in Interdisciplinary Media Production and Indian Fine Arts. After losing my unborn child in 2006, I wrote and directed an NFB film, LifeGivers: Honouring our Elders and Children, and in 2008 I became the president of mispon: Indigenous Film Festival. We keep storytelling alive in Saskatchewan with a focus on multimedia. I am now hard at work on my first micro-budget film: Land of Rock and Gold.

4. Kara Hansen: curatorial intern at Nanaimo Art GalleryAt the Emily Carr University of Art and Design, I completed a BFA with a major in Critical and Cultural Practices and a minor in Curatorial Studies. I took an elective summer course

My shift from design

to studying art-based

practices came from

a desire to engage

with an intellectual

community that

challenges and makes

space for resistance.

— Abigail Auld

Hot Jobs Art-school grads are moving on to great careers and making

their own jobs, too. Across media and across the country,

they’re defining the shape of art in the 21st century.

2. John Lowndes

s p e c i a l s e c t i o n a r t s c h o o l s M A r t g u i d e

1. Abigail Auld

3. Janine Windolph

school supp -wint16_HOT_12TS.indd 80 11/04/15 9:14 PM


1. Abigail Auld: researcher, curator and organizer After completing a Bachelor of Design at OCAD University, I moved to pursue an MA in Cultural Studies from the University of Winnipeg. While at the UW, I developed a curatorial project that investigated the influence of the Hudson’s Bay Company on Winnipeg’s urban development. In summer 2014, I travelled by cargo container ship through the East China Sea to the depths of an open pit mine in Inner Mongolia to trace the journey of a smart phone. I now work at Martha Street Studio, and also pursue other activities ranging from research, writing and publishing to exhibition and event organizing. As my future takes shape, I hope to achieve a method of working that maintains complexity and provides ongoing opportunity for learning.

2. John Lowndes: photographic and mixed-media artistWhile my major at York University was in Studio Art, only a quarter of my credits were in studio-based practicum. Courses in film theory, urban studies and satire have all shaped the bodies of work that I create today. This year, through the Art Mentorship Project coordinated by the McMichael Canadian Art Collection and the York Region Arts Council, I got the opportunity to work with my mentor, Césan d’Ornellas Levine. We have treated the mentorship as a much more collaborative experience, acting as two equal artists genuinely interested in the creative process. In the future, I hope that I will have an opportunity to work in a university, helping the next generation of artists to expand their practices and think outside artistic conventions.

3. Janine Windolph: artist and filmmakerIn my BFA at the University of Regina, I took as many Indigenous studies courses as I could, and learned the alternate narrative of how Canada was formed. My master’s was in Interdisciplinary Media Production and Indian Fine Arts. After losing my unborn child in 2006, I wrote and directed an NFB film, LifeGivers: Honouring our Elders and Children, and in 2008 I became the president of mispon: Indigenous Film Festival. We keep storytelling alive in Saskatchewan with a focus on multimedia. I am now hard at work on my first micro-budget film: Land of Rock and Gold.

4. Kara Hansen: curatorial intern at Nanaimo Art GalleryAt the Emily Carr University of Art and Design, I completed a BFA with a major in Critical and Cultural Practices and a minor in Curatorial Studies. I took an elective summer course

My shift from design

to studying art-based

practices came from

a desire to engage

with an intellectual

community that

challenges and makes

space for resistance.

— Abigail Auld

Hot Jobs Art-school grads are moving on to great careers and making

their own jobs, too. Across media and across the country,

they’re defining the shape of art in the 21st century.

2. John Lowndes

s p e c i a l s e c t i o n a r t s c h o o l s M A r t g u i d e

1. Abigail Auld

3. Janine Windolph



I hope that CK2, as

a gallery opened and

run independently

by two young women,

will inspire a proliferation

of safe, creative spaces

in the arts community.

— Jessica Kirsh

taught by Canadian Conceptual artist Germaine Koh on installation art, which focused on public art, intervention and site specificity. The best parts of working at the Nanaimo Art Gallery are the studio visits, corresponding with artists and seeing projects develop. I co-curated “Spirit Gum,” an exhibition on the expanded definition of performance, with the Nanaimo’s curator, Jesse Birch. I plan to go back to school for my master’s in Fine Art, and want to take courses in textiles, world literature and fashion history to cultivate both my interests and my artistic practice.

5. Tamara Himmelspach: Aboriginal liaison at ACADI graduated with a BFA in Sculpture from ACAD in May 2015, and received news in August that I had won the BMO 1st Art! Competition. One key objective within my practice is for audiences to experience my artworks in a visceral way. In 2014 I proposed to gather resources for ACAD’s Aboriginal students, which led to the construction of the Aboriginal Resource Centre. Choosing to venture out into the urban community and investigate existing supports, I now work closely with the Aboriginal Friendship Centre to put programming together for our new space.

6. William Robinson: metalsmith and jewellerGoing back to art school at age 59 was interesting. I wondered whether I would be able to cope with the workload, since it had been 36 years since I had graduated from NSCAD—that’s where I first came to the realization that I could make a living from creating art and design. In 2014, I won a national award for my jewellery after my instructor at the New Brunswick College of Craft and Design encouraged me to apply. I plan to expand my lines of jewellery designs, and to stage more solo shows at local and regional galleries in the Atlantic provinces.

7. Jessica Kirsh: director at CK2 GalleryMy time at Concordia was critical in fostering my academic and professional careers. I was given opportunities to publish my writing, speak at conferences and work as a teaching assistant, as well as acquire preliminary experience in curating and art administration. Equipped with literary and practical knowledge of the contemporary artworld, I opened CK2 Gallery with my business partner, Stephanie Creaghan, in November 2014. Since then, we have been curating solo and group exhibitions, video screenings, performances and artist talks. Our mandate is to showcase work by emerging to mid-career artists from the geographical triad of Montreal, Toronto and New York. ■

6. William Robinson

4. Kara Hansen

7. Jessica Kirsh

5. Tamara Himmelspach PHOTO NATALIA BARBERIS

conceptual legacies


conceptual legacies




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s p e c i a l s e c t i o n a r t s c h o o l S M A R T G U I D E

Alberta College of Art and Designacad.ca

Banff Centrebanffcentre.ca

Brock Universitybrocku.ca

Centre for Digital Mediathecdm.ca

Concordia Universityconcordia.ca

Emily Carr University of Art and Designecuad.ca

Haliburton School of the Artsflemingcollege.ca/school/haliburton-school-of-the-arts

Humber Collegehumber.ca

Loyalist Collegeloyalistcollege.com

MacEwan Universitymacewan.ca

McMaster Universitymcmaster.ca

Memorial Universitymun.ca

New Brunswick College of Craft and Designnbccd.ca

Nipissing Universitynipissingu.ca

NSCAD Universitynscad.ca

OCAD Universityocadu.ca

Ottawa School of Artartottawa.ca

Queen’s Universityqueensu.ca

Seneca Collegesenecacollege.ca

Sheridan Collegesheridancollege.ca

Sheridan College Art and Art Historyacademics.sheridancollege.ca/programs/art-and-art-history

Simon Fraser Universitysfu.ca

Toronto School of Arttsa-art.com

University of Albertaualberta.ca

University of British Columbiaubc.ca

University of British Columbia Okanaganok.ubc.ca

University of Calgaryucalgary.ca

University of the Fraser Valleyufv.ca

University of Guelphuoguelph.ca

University of Lethbridgeuleth.ca

University of Manitobaumanitoba.ca

University of Ottawauottawa.ca

University of Saskatchewanusask.ca

University of Torontoutoronto.ca

University of Victoriauvic.ca

University of Waterloouwaterloo.ca

University of Windsoruwindsor.ca

Western Universityuwo.ca

Yukon School of Visual Artsyukonsova.ca

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smart guide winter 2016

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