Manif d’art 7 – May and June 2014
Curator : Vicky Chainey Gagnon
Theme : Resistance – And Then, We Built New Forms
Deadline : May 1, 2013

Manif d’art

Major biennial of contemporary visual arts on the Canadian scene, Manif d’art presents in Quebec City and its area the work of nearly 100 artists originating from every horizon. Approximately 30 cultural and artistic groups from Quebec City and worldwide collaborate in this must-see artistic manifestation held between May and June every two years. In addition to the exhibitions, the event offers a host of activities evolving around a central theme, unique to each edition. Manif d’art is meant for the initiated public as well as uninitiated visitors who enjoy a vast section dedicated to the discovery of contemporary art.

Theme
The guidelines of Manif d’art 7, as defined by curator Vicky Chainey Gagnon, will be deployed around the theme of resistance. The event will begin by a recognition of the critical role played by visual and media arts in the documentation of conflicts and of manifestations of resistance. As pointed out by the curator, their contribution to the expression of personal views on politics, war, social injustice and the human condition will also be examined : “Current events are marked by various disturbing trends such as extreme fundamentalism, the exhilaration of speculation and consumption, combined with rampant unemployment, through banking crises and the overheating of stock markets, not mentioning the ecological issue. Within the very recent context of a global economic collapse, it seems a favourable moment to take a look at contemporary artistic productions which bespeak the modes of expression of resistance today.”

The curator will detail the theme by approaching the numerous tactics and strategies which shape radical contemporary practices. In each case, it is the political function of art, of cinema, of video and of performance which will be scrutinized.

Curator
Vicky Chainey Gagnon is the director/curator of the Foreman Art Gallery, established at Bishop’s University in Sherbrooke, Quebec Province. She holds a bachelor’s degree in cinema and art history (Concordia University, Montreal, 1999) and a master’s in interdisciplinary studies (York University, Toronto, 2005). Until 2011, she pursued doctorate research on public museology at Concordia University’s Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies in Society and Culture.

Since 2005, Vicky Chainey Gagnon has organized numerous projects at the Foreman Art Gallery among which the series of international residencies How Does Art Teach? In 2009, she launched the Laboratoire communautaire d’art (community art laboratory), a special mediation project aimed at exploring pressing contemporary social questions from a creative point of view and the way they affect our communities directly. Her essays and other writings were published in ETC, in Curator: The Museum Journal and in works published by the Art Gallery of York University and the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia. She taught museology within the history and art theory curriculum at Bishop’s University and was member of many committees for the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, as well as the Canadian Council for the Arts.

Contents of the digital application file :

1. A letter of intent or project letter (250-word maximum) in Word or PDF format;
2. A two-page (max.) document explaining your artistic approach;
3. 10 pictures in PDF or JPG format (72 dpi) of a maximum of 500kb each, accompanied by a descriptive list including the title of the work, the medium, dimensions and date;
4. A link to your web page;
5. A curriculum vitae (5-page maximun) for each participant in Word or PDF format, including his/her contact details (postal address, date of birth, citizenship, telephone, e-mail).

Details :

• Send the digital application to appel_call@manifdart.org before May 1, 2013.