CATALYST Spring 2009 / Issue No. 1 Alberta College of Art + Design 2554623 Publication Notes Catalyst is published by the Alberta College of Art + Design, designed by Combine Design and Communications, and printed in Canada. Articles may be reprinted in whole or in part with written permission. Contact 1407 – 14th Avenue N.W. Calgary, Alberta T2N 4R3 403.284.7600 www.acad.ca Profile: ACAD Faculty Charles Lewton Brain has the kind of career path that is as intricate as one of his very own creations. page 11 Exhibiting Canada’s Most Exciting Emerging Artists A collection of works by Canada’s finest emerging artists and designers opened to the public at the 2009 ACAD Grad Show. page 7 Bringing Innovation and Creativity to Our Community Two words: Innovation and Creativity. You’ll not only hear them on the ACAD campus – you’ll see them too. page 2 Profile: ACAD Alumni ACAD alumni designs his success here in Calgary. page 10 Contents 30 years, helping to build Canada’s international reputation in performance and installation art, and acting as a mentor and a source of inspiration for countless students and emerging artists. ■ n March 25, 2009, ACAD faculty member Rita McKeough became one of nine recipients of the 2009 Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts. The Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts, are Canada’s foremost distinctions for excellence in these artistic disciplines. This prestigious award was presented by Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaelle Jean, Governor General, to Ms. McKeough for her work in performance and installation art at a ceremony in Ottawa. O CULTURAL LEADERSHIP Photography Bill Eakin / Rita McKeough The prizes are awarded annually to visual and media artists for distinguished career achievement in visual arts, architecture, independent film and video, or audio and new media. Each prize is valued at $25,000. “It’s a remarkable moment for me to have this kind of support from my peers. It gives me courage to work harder, it makes me feel encouraged to continue to take risks, it’s a push,” stated McKeough in an interview. As a faculty member at ACAD, and a member of the Calgary arts community, McKeough is positive about all the “amazing young artists right now.” McKeough’s work has been shown across Canada, and her complex and layered installations and performances touch on issues such as displacement, demolition of neighbourhoods, domestic violence and ecological damage. As she has explained, “As soon as you stop the chaos, you experience the subversive power of silence. Dialogue and listening are politically and socially the most powerful tools for change.” Her work often draws on chaos, using multi-tracked layers of sound, and physical strength. McKeough has exhibited as an interdisciplinary artist for the past 1, 2 The Long Haul (2006) Performance / installation PlugIn Institute of Contemporary Art, Winnipeg ACAD artist and faculty member Rita McKeough awarded the 2009 Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts. IT GIVES ME THE COURAGE TO WORK HARDER, IT MAKES ME FEEL ENCOURAGED TO CONTINUE TO TAKE RISKS. Faculty Member Wins Governor General’s Award 1 2
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
CATALYSTSpring 2009 / Issue No. 1Alberta College of Art + Design
2554623
Publication Notes
Catalyst is published by the Alberta
College of Art + Design, designed by
Combine Design and Communications,
and printed in Canada. Articles may
be reprinted in whole or in part with
written permission.
Contact1407 – 14th Avenue N.W.
Calgary, Alberta T2N 4R3
403.284.7600
www.acad.ca
Profile: ACAD FacultyCharles Lewton
Brain has the
kind of career
path that is as
intricate as one of his very
own creations.
page 11
Exhibiting Canada’s Most Exciting Emerging Artists A collection
of works by Canada’s finest
emerging artists and designers
opened to the public at the
2009 ACAD Grad Show. page 7
Bringing Innovation and Creativity to Our CommunityTwo words:
Innovation and Creativity.
You’ll not only hear them on
the ACAD campus – you’ll see
them too.page 2
Profile: ACAD AlumniACAD alumni
designs his
success here
in Calgary.
page 10
Contents
30 years, helping to build Canada’s
international reputation in performance
and installation art, and acting as a mentor
and a source of inspiration for countless
students and emerging artists. ■
n March 25,
2009, ACAD
faculty member
Rita McKeough
became one of
nine recipients of
the 2009 Governor
General’s Awards
in Visual and Media Arts. The Governor
General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts,
are Canada’s foremost distinctions
for excellence in these artistic disciplines.
This prestigious award was presented
by Her Excellency the Right Honourable
Michaelle Jean, Governor General, to
Ms. McKeough for her work in performance
and installation art at a ceremony in Ottawa.
OCuLTurAL
LeADerShIp
Photography
Bill Eakin /
Rita McKeough
The prizes are awarded annually
to visual and media artists for distinguished
career achievement in visual arts,
architecture, independent film and video,
or audio and new media. Each prize
is valued at $25,000.
“It’s a remarkable moment for me to
have this kind of support from my peers.
It gives me courage to work harder,
it makes me feel encouraged to continue
to take risks, it’s a push,” stated McKeough
in an interview. As a faculty member at
ACAD, and a member of the Calgary arts
community, McKeough is positive about
all the “amazing young artists right now.”
McKeough’s work has been shown across
Canada, and her complex and layered
installations and performances touch
on issues such as displacement, demolition
of neighbourhoods, domestic violence
and ecological damage.
As she has explained, “As soon as
you stop the chaos, you experience the
subversive power of silence. Dialogue
and listening are politically and socially
the most powerful tools for change.”
Her work often draws on chaos, using
multi-tracked layers of sound, and physical
strength. McKeough has exhibited as
an interdisciplinary artist for the past
1, 2 The Long Haul (2006)
Performance / installation
PlugIn Institute of
Contemporary Art, Winnipeg
ACAD artist and faculty member Rita McKeough awarded the 2009 Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts. IT gIveS me The CourAge
Bringing Innovation and Creativity to our Community
Text
Melanie Woytiuk
Photography
Dwayne Norman
W
Crack open any corporate brochure, annual report or business publication and right next to the words “sustainable” and “synergy” you’ll see two other words that are incredibly hot right now. Innovation and Creativity. While they may be popular buzz words, you’ll not only hear them on the ACAD campus—you’ll see them too.
as magazine art directors, teachers, curators,
business owners, film directors, as well
as book and clothing designers. ACAD
graduates are everywhere, impacting the
world of art and design - and business.
And they certainly bring a lot of creativity
and innovation with them.
Having passionate, inspired creative
thinkers like ACAD students naturally
helps spark the discussion around innovation
and creativity in our community. And
when other people in the community see
innovation and creativity, it inspires them
to be more creative in their own work.
But what about today’s economy?
Is there a need for innovative and creative
acts or should they be frozen like bonuses
and expense accounts? Though many
companies may react in fear, cutting back
on changes and taking the path of least
resistance, we know from history that now is
the time to push for innovation and demand
change. It’s time to put the thinking cap on,
pull everyone together and do something
we’ve never done before, even if it means
experimenting along the way. After all, you
can’t be innovative if you don’t even try. ■
1 Students and faculty participate in a print media demonstration.
1
opportunity to impact the world around
us, create change and encourage innovation
in fundamental ways.
As a group of problem solvers,
we are constantly looking for ways to
engage the community, whether it’s
through exhibits or lectures from influential
thinkers. One initiative we’re especially
proud of is Smart Night – a speaker series
that was launched in 2007 as a vehicle
to challenge ideas and stimulate dialogue.
This year's Smart Night speaker was
Tom Kelley. He is one of the world’s most
respected experts on managing innovation
and design in business and naturally a
wonderful guest to bring to our community.
Our Institute for the Creative Process
is another example of how ACAD is
stepping outside the realm of traditional
post-secondary thinking and creating
an opportunity to build innovation with
those around us. The Institute For Creative
Process (ICP) addresses the nature
of creative process and design thinking
through research. Our latest achievement
through the ICP is a series of research
or over 80 years, the Alberta College
of Art + Design has been creating
an environment that embraces, supports
and encourages a student body of artistic
thinkers. And while, we’ve experienced
some remarkable successes in the past,
I’m certain our greatest ones lie ahead.
While our programming is always
a priority, we are focusing on ways to
offer our students and our community
much more. As a catalyst for creative
and cultural development, ACAD has the
F
Message from the President
Issue No. 1 / page 3
we hope To INITIATe
our fIrST mASTer’S
Degree progrAm IN The
NexT eIghTeeN moNThS,
whICh IS AN exCITINg
fIrST for The CoLLege.
funding Innovation
n January
of this year,
Lance Carlson,
announced two
new and innovative
initiatives to be
made possible
at ACAD by the
Jill Rawlinson Fund: the Rawlinson Faculty
Exchange Program, and the Rawlinson
Visiting Faculty Program.
ACAD will begin these new initiatives
in 2009 as a result of the $1 million gift
by Jill Rawlinson in 2007.
Rawlinson Faculty Exchange Program
This program will support ACAD faculty
exchanges with faculty from other art
and design institutions nationally and
internationally over the next five years.
Two ACAD faculty exchanges will
be available per year, encouraging and
creating greater connections to the larger
external dialogue in the visual arts and
design fields.
Rawlinson Visiting Faculty Program
This program will also continue until
2014, and will fund five visiting faculty
positions per year at ACAD. Visiting faculty
appointments will each be one year long,
and each visiting faculty member will
teach courses and will devote studio time
to students, colleagues and our community.
By inviting visiting faculty into ACAD,
we further our goals of creating a laboratory
environment of experimentation, and we
continue to invest in our more important
resource: our people.
These Rawlinson Fund initiatives
will further ACAD’s mission to become
a preeminent institution for cultural
development locally, provincially, nationally,
and internationally, and will help to establish
ACAD’s role as an international leader
for innovation, research and excellence
in visual arts, design and emergent cultural
fields. These innovative ACAD projects and
initiatives will significantly and strategically
contribute to the ability of the institution
to assert its standing in the world of artist
and designer education as well as emergent
cultural fields and the capacity of the staff,
faculty, and students to understand and
express (as well as contribute to) their
own place and role within an increasingly
complex global environment.
The Jill Rawlinson Fund is dedicated
to the support of important original ACAD
projects and initiatives that advance the
capability of the faculty, staff, and students
of ACAD, as well as the institution itself,
to reach greater levels of influence and
distinction in the world. “I wanted to
support ACAD initiatives that significantly
contribute to the College’s ability to assert
its standing in the world of artist and
designer education because I have been
inspired by its potential impact on emerging
cultural fields,” stated Ms. Rawlinson upon
donating this significant gift to the college.
This gift is a testament to the increasing
recognition of the college as a force for
culture, art, and design, and underscores
the important history of the college as
well as the important work that ACAD
has begun and will continue to undertake.
I
“With this donation Jill Rawlinson
has shown significant insight into ACAD’s
potential on a community-wide scale,”
said Carlson. “Her generosity will be
celebrated for years to come, as ACAD
faculty, students, staff and the community-
at-large will benefit from her vision.” ■
The rAwLINSoN fuND INITIATIveS
wILL SIgNIfICANTLY CoNTrIBuTe
To The ABILITY of ACAD To ASSerT
ITS STANDINg IN The worLD of
ArTIST AND DeSIgNer eDuCATIoN.
Sign up for more information on ACADEmail [email protected], follow us on Twitter (acadonline) or become a friend on facebook (Alberta College of Art + Design)
CuLTurAL
LeADerShIp
works in which we have mapped out three
key concepts—innovation, play and creative
process. This research work has impacted
how we understand the creative process,
and has garnered attention both nationally
and internationally.
ACAD is continuing to grow and build,
most notably through the addition of
21 new faculty over the past four years.
We look forward to welcoming the last
of these new faculty in 2009. We also
look forward to fulfilling part of our new
College mandate by initiating our Master’s
degree program within the next eighteen
months, which is an exciting first for
the college.
As we continue to raise our profile as a
catalyst in the community, our biggest
priority will be finding a new home.
Our current campus has certainly served
us well over the years, however with over
1100 students, the current location cannot
accomodate our growth, nor do we have
room to provide the level of programming
that we strive to offer.
Designed with both art and function
in mind, the new ACAD campus will
provide the necessary space for a larger
student services area, better facilities for
exhibitions, lecture theatres, performance
art spaces, a large cultural centre as
well as more diverse public programming.
The larger facility will integrate our
creative programming with to the business
community, who will then have access
to the innovative problem solvers their
businesses need.
As the President of Alberta College
of Art + Design, my job is to look beyond
the campus for innovative opportunities
that will greatly improve art and culture
in our community. We must engage present
students, prospective students, alumni,
faculty, community artists, government
and business and we invite you to join us
on our explorations. ■
Lance Carlson,
President + CEO
Show + Sale Brings
Art Lovers to the College
This March ACAD students
prepared one of a kind
artwork to raise money for
their tuition and expenses
during the school year.
The 20th anniversary ACAD
Spring Show + Sale (March
19, 20 and 21, 2009) was a
wonderful success, raising
record amounts of money
for students. The three day
event brought in thousands
of community members
to campus, and exposed
emerging artists to Calgary
collectors and art lovers. ■
Fridhandler Lecture
on Non-Western Art
The Second Annual
Fridhandler Lecture on
Non-Western Art 2009
featured keynote speaker
Marcia Crosby, and was
entitled “Self Identifying
as ‘Modern Indian Artists’:
1940–1967”. This annual
lecture was created by
Ellen and Daryl Fridhandler.
Ms. Crosby’s lecture focused
on the work of several
Aboriginal artists who had
not been given intellectual
or cultural value in Western
art history, but who were
members of vibrant, migrant
and mobile aboriginal
communities. The 2009
Fridhandler Lecture was
held on March 2, 2009. ■
ACAD Students
Ignite Social Change
ACAD is pleased to be a
participant in Design Ignites
Change, an innovative
student program which
channels the power of
design thinking to ignite
social change. ACAD
students will join their
counterparts in 17 other
universities to create work
that addresses powerful
social topics, and to act
as mentors to high school
students. ACAD is the
only Canadian Post-
Secondary institution to
be accepted as a member
into this program, and we
look forward to seeing
the contributions that our
students will make. ■
his year’s 2009 President’s ACAD Smart Night
was held on April 4, 2009, and was a fascinating
evening of dialogue and discussion. This year’s keynote
speaker was Tom Kelley, general manager of the
international design firm IDEO, and author of The Ten
Faces of Innovation and The Art of Innovation. Tom Kelley
is one of the world’s most respected experts on managing
innovation and design—how to make business more
creative, not just in its products and services, but also
in its thinking and processes. This year’s President’s
ACAD Smart Night was held at the Hyatt Hotel in Calgary
and was co-chaired by Cynthia Moore, and D’Arcy
Levesque. As they explain, “Smart Night is a unique and
special event in Calgary. It’s a chance to hear the most
fascinating ideas about innovation and creativity,
and to share them with others during an elegant black-
tie evening of conversation”. ■
President’s ACADSmart Night
T
1 Guests enjoy
a customized menu
of “Smart” food.
2 Tom Kelley,
author of The 10 Faces of Innovation,
speaks at the
2009 Smart Night.
Photography
Dwayne Norman
CATALYST / page 4
ACAD Reaches Out
to Drop-In Centre Members
The Calgary Drop in and
Rehab Centre, situated
in the heart of downtown,
was the site of an afternoon
workshop of watercolour
painting hosted by ACAD,
and featuring artist Richard
Boulet. Members of
the drop in centre were
given the opportunity
to join Richard Boulet and
participants from ACAD
in an exploration of the
limits of their creativity with
an afternoon of watercolour
painting on March 6, 2009. ■
ACAD Hosts the Exposure
2009 Calgary Banff
Photography Festival
The spring of 2009
brought a record amount
of events to ACAD, many
of which were a part of the
Exposure 2009 Calgary
Banff Photography Festival.
This festival provides an
opportunity for the public
to look at photography as
a rich art form in its many
genres, and this year brought
many new workshops,
lectures and exhibitions.
ACAD was pleased to host
visiting artists, workshops
and events thoughout the
month of February as a
part of this annual event. ■
ACAD presents the 2009
Reel Artists Film Festival
ACAD’s Illingworth Kerr
Gallery, in conjunction with
the Canadian Art Foundation,
presented the 2009
Canadian Art Reel Artist
Film Festival this March 29
to March 31, 2009. The
festival lineup included
documentary films that
focused on in-depth
profiles of, and interviews
with, artists including
Alice Neel, Yves Klein
and Antony Gormley.
The festival was very well
attended, and was an
exclusive opportunity for
Calgarians to see many
of these great works. ■
nternationally
renowned
artist Philip Glass
joined a full house
of ACAD faculty,
staff and students
on January 22, 2009
for a fascinating
artist talk and presentation. Glass shared
his thoughts on creativity and collaboration
across disciplines. Philip Glass’s visit to
ACAD was funded by the President’s Circle.
The full audio recording of our discussion
with Philip Glass is available for download
on our website at www.acad.ca. ■
philip glass visits ACAD
CommuNITY
Image courtesy
of philipglass.com
An intimate conversation with one of the most important artists of our time.
I
1 Philip Glass
1 Crowds
gather at the
Reel Artist Film
Festival at
the Illingworth
Kerr Gallery.
ACAD in the Community
1
1
2 1
Issue No. 1 / page 5
ultidisciplinary students from the Alberta College
of Art + Design were pleased to present the
ninth anniversary of the extremely popular wearable art
runway show, ArtaWEARness on February 27, 2009.
This annual catwalk performance fashion show is a
sell-out event every year, and the 2009 evening was
another show stopping evening of wearable art on the
runway. Some of Calgary’s most exciting emerging artists
created avant-garde work, exploring aspects of sculpture,
fibre arts, alternative materials and the human body. ■
ArtaWEARness IX: A Wearable Art Extravaganza
M
1 Wearable Art,
by Lydia Karpenko.
2 Dee Fontans,
ArtaWEARness
organizer.
Directorial Debut ACAD INTroDuCeS DIreCTor guY mADDIN To CALgArY
n March 5,
2009, The
Illingworth Kerr
Gallery presented
a full house,
one-night-only,
performance
of Guy Maddin’s
unique cinematic masterpiece, My Winnipeg.
In this work, Maddin paints the City of
Winnipeg—his lifelong home and muse—
O
CommuNITY
Photography
Jennifer McVeigh
with dreamlike recollections and
curious histories. Restaging “archetypal
episodes from (his) family history”,
Maddin mines the streets of Winnipeg,
striving to both rediscover and escape
the city’s enchantment. This highly
anticipated event was a first for Calgary,
with Guy Maddin performing his highly
personal, melodramatic narration
during the film, followed by a Q+A with
the director. ■
1, 2 Guy Maddin
presents
“My Winnipeg”
to a full house
at the Illingworth
Kerr Gallery.
ACAD Funded Research ProjectsCompleted Research Projects
Alan DunningThe Auratic Body: The Visual
and Sonic Virtual Representation
of Human Physiology
Alan Dunning has a strong
history of research and was
the first faculty member
to bring significant external
research funding to the College
through a three-year SSHRC
(Social Sciences and Humanities
Research Council) grant
that ran from 2004–2007.
This research project set out to
express the body’s physiological
processes as dynamic sonic and
visual forms in 3-dimensional,
virtual and actual environments;
and to map these constructs
to contemporary cultural work
on representation, reality and
the body. Alan has been involved
with a successful SSHRC
application for renewed support.
Wayne Giles, Darlene Lee and Chris FreyConcept Mapping: Creating
a concept map for innovation.
Wayne Giles, Darlene Lee and
Chris Frey have been funded
by the Institute for the Creative
Process. This is a collaborative
research project with Dubberly
Design to map the concept
of “innovation”.
Dick Averns + Alex Link How Do Tourette
Syndrome and Co-Morbidities
Affect Career Choice and
Achievement in the Workplace
Through ACAD support and
AACTI (Alberta Association
of Colleges and Technical
Institutes) support, this initial
one-year project, deployed
innovative and creative
qualitative research methods
base on visual arts, performance,
narrative fiction, and narrative
non-fiction to develop new
health literacy tools with which
to improve the understanding
of these mental health
conditions in relation to
vocational aptitude. AACTI
has set criteria that strongly
encourage leveraging financial
support from an industry or
community client for funding
longitudinal studies and Dick
Averns is currently seeking
that support.
2007–2008 Newly Funded Projects
Alan DunningThe Permeable Body
Alan Duning has been awarded
funding from the Marion Fund
for Innovation in Research and
Teaching to support deloads
to enable his involvement in
this SSHRC funded research
project that is a continuation
and development of the
previously SSHRC funded
project ‘The Auratic Body:
Visual and Sonic Virtual
Representation of Human
Physiology (2004–2007).
In addition to the continuing
development of this work,
the project will pursue
two intriguing developments
arising out of the current
research, breathing and its
relationship to body states
and micro-events at the
surface of the skin. The research
team will construct a series of
interactive virtual environments,
performances and installations
that present novel ways
of revealing the complex
interactions of body and world
through the subtle interplay
of skin, breath and other
biological functions.
Alex Link & Richard BrownRendering Comics Art:
Building A Cross-Departmental
Comics Curriculum
Alex Link and Richard Brown
have been awarded funding
from ACAD through the Marion
Fund for Innovation in Research
and Teaching to produce an
experimental learning module
to introduce sequential art as
an area of study in both studio
and academic courses. The
innovation of this module will
be four-fold: it will be cross-
departmental in structure,
it will be cross-departmental
in its pedagogy, it will be
a tentative step toward the
development of a specialist
area of study, and it will be a
unique expansion to currently
offered curriculum by offering
the intensive study of comics,
or sequential art. The funding
will facilitate the projects
two phases, the development
of the curricular model and
the delivery of the pilot courses
within the ACAD curriculum,
as well as a research paper
evaluating the success
of the outcomes.
Robert GeyerThe Living Glass
History Project
Robert Geyer has been
awarded funding from the
Marion Fund for Innovation
in Research and Teaching
to support this project. The
Living Glass History project
is a pilot course that adopts
a new approach to teaching
glass students at ACAD the
conceptual history of their
medium. Course content will
be supplemented by interactive
real time video-conferencing
with glass artists who have
lived within/through glass
history. The idea is to link the
tradition of oral history with
new media technology. Using
interactive video conferencing,
students would be able to
engage in real time dialogue
with glass artists whom have
significantly influenced the
studio glass movement since
the 1960’s in North America.
Continued on page 12...
ALBERTA COLLEGE OF ART + DES IGN
Through ACAD’s Extended Studies you can study visual art, media arts, and design through a full year schedule of challenging and creative courses, workshops and special events designed to meet your creative learning goals.
With Stitched and Drawn by Richard Boulet and New Work by Sarah Anne Johnson, Illingworth Kerr Gallery Director/Curator Wayne Baerwaldt presented two contrasting, multi-layered examinations of the effects of mental health issues.
SIgN up BY JuNe 22,
for ThIS YeAr’S progrAm.
The 2009 pre-CoLLege
progrAm ruNS from
JuLY 6–31, 2009.
1
2
n May 14th,
2009, over
190 graduates of
ACAD’s Bachelor
of Fine Arts and
Bachelor of Design
programs took to
the stage at the
Jubilee Auditorium to receive their degrees,
and to enter into a new and exciting stage
in their lives.
The 2009 ACAD Convocation ceremony
was a highly energetic event, filled with
the embodiment of our college values and
a joyous recognition of our new graduates.
This year our keynote speaker was Minister
of Culture and Community Spirit Lindsay
Blackett. The ACAD Convocation Ceremony
is truly a celebration of our graduates, and
of this exciting step they take into their
future. This year graduates were brought
into the Jubilee Auditorium by a ceremonial
drummer, and they were danced out by
a traditional Chinese Dragon dance to bring
them luck in all they do.
O
The 2009 graduating class was addressed
by ACADSA President Dan Barnfield,
President Lance Carlson, and President of
the ACAD Board of Governors, Jim Peacock.
During the ceremony, the 11 recipients of
the Board of Governors’ Graduating
Student Awards were recognized for their
outstanding achievement, as was Romy
Straathof, winner of the 2009 Governor
General’s Academic Medal. The convocation
ceremony was also a chance for ACAD
to celebrate the recipient of our Board
of Governors’ Alumni Award of Excellence,
Meg Van Rosendaal, and her contributions
to the Calgary art community. ■
Celebrating our New graduates
1 ACAD 2009
Graduating class.
2 ACAD students
are welcomed
to convocation.
Issue No. 1 / page 7
Marion Nicoll Gallery ScheduleMain Space
December 1 – 13 / 08
Robert Turiff—Robs Tiki Lounge Reception: December 4, 2008
Caitlind R.C Brown— Love MachineReception: January 22 / 09
January 26 – 31 / 09
Andrea Lothrop—DelveReception: January 29 / 09
February 2 – 7 / 09
Roxanne Driediger— Lets Play DressupReception: February 5 / 09
February 9 – 14 / 09
Jodie Stevens— Finding ‘normal’Reception: February 12 / 09
February 23 – 28 / 09
ArtaWEARness IX Silent AuctionReception: February 27 / 09
March 2 – 7 / 09
Jennifer Toke— The Wayfaring SomnambulistReception: March 5 / 09
March 9 – 14 / 09
Sarah Hermanutz—CatWomenReception: March 12 / 09
March 30 – April 4 / 09
Kelly Covert— The Pixelated PresenceReception: April 2 / 09
April 6 – 11 / 09
Meags Fitzgerald—CrecheReception: April 9 / 09
April 13 – 18 / 09
Pamela Norrish—I Think We Might Be Stuck Here, Maybe.Reception: April 16 / 09
+15 Window
Epcor Centre for the
Performing Arts
205 8th AVE SE Calgary, AB
October 6 –
December 5 / 08
Carisa Hendrix—Private
December 8 / 08 –
January 31 / 09
Block
February 2 –
March 28 / 09
ACAD Show and Sale Design Competition
LRT Space
October 6 –
December 12 / 08
Lisa Shannahan— Who are we?
December 15 / 08 –
February 7 / 09
Heather Smith— Imaginary Friends
February 9 –
March 14 / 09
Michelle Trudgeon— Memorize Clouds
oN CAmpuS
Photograhy
Dwayne Norman
The student-run Marion
Nicoll Gallery creates a unique
context for education and
experimentation among artists
attending ACAD. The MNG
consists of of three programming
spaces – the main space,
a +15 window, and the LRT
space – and showcases student
work to the public and peers,
providing emerging artists with
experience presenting work
in a professional setting.
Exhibiting Canada’s Most Exciting Emerging Artists
n Wednesday, May 13,
2009, a collection
of works by Canada’s
finest emerging artists and
designers opened to the
public at the 2009 Alberta
College of Art + Design
(ACAD) Grad Show.
The annual comprehensive
exhibition of work, this year
organized by Wayne
Baerwaldt and the Illingworth
Kerr Gallery curatorial team,
was installed throughout
ACAD providing public
access to classrooms,
workshop spaces, hallways,
windows, and many other
spaces not traditionally
used to display art or open
to the public. The Grad
Show premiered with a
public opening reception
on Wednesday, May 13
and ran until Saturday
May 23, 2009. ACAD
is the core of Calgary’s
burgeoning art and design
scene with our graduates
poised to become an
important part of that
community – in Calgary
and beyond. ■
O1
2
Niche Award Winners
Louise Chong
First place in the student category of
Jewellery: Fashion at the Niche Awards
went to ACAD Graduate Louise Chong
for her large scale neckpiece “Inside Out”.
Our congratulations go out to Louise for
her fine work.
Carte Blanche 2
Mark Mullin, Chris Cran, Bradley Harms
ACAD is pleased to announce a newly
published survey of contemporary painting
in Canada, entitled Carte Blanche 2.
Included in this book are ACAD faculty
Mark Mullin, Chris Cran and ACAD painting
and drawing technician Bradley Harms.
ACAD at the Junos
Chad vanGalen
Recent ACAD Alumnus Chad VanGalen
has been nominated for the Juno category
of best alternative album: learn more at
www.junoawards.ca/nominees. We will
be watching the Junos to cheer for Chad
on March 29th!
ACAD in ActionACCompLIShmeNTS + ACCoLADeS for our STuDeNTS, ALumNI, STAff AND fACuLTY
CATALYST / page 8
“Fix This” Award Winners
Katherine Whitt, Sarah Burchell,
Christine Sammon, Andrew Mott,
Richard Ballermann, Connie Carruthers, Tara
Griffiths, Susan Menzies,
Barb Tipton and Aileen Lublinkhof.
ACAD is pleased to announce the winners
of the 2008 FIX THIS awards, given to
the top ten suggestions for improvements
to our College by members of the ACAD
community. Awards go to Katherine Whitt,
Sarah Burchell, Christine Sammon, Andrew
Mott, Richard Ballermann, Connie Carruthers,
Tara Griffiths, Susan Menzies, Barb Tipton
and Aileen Lublinkhof. The full results of the
FIX THIS Survey, and updates on actions
being taken by the College to make many
of the suggested improvements will be
available on our website soon.
Exhibition: Richard Edwards
BLACK RIVER…In Vases Over Me…
April 3 – 25 / 09
The Ruberto/Ostberg Gallery,
Exhibition: Chris Willard
It Isn’t What You Think
March 7 – March 28 / 09
Herringer Kiss Gallery
Applied Arts Awards Winners
ACAD Visual Communications Design
students recently won a total of thirteen
awards in the annual Applied Arts Magazine
Awards. The students’ work appears in the
September 2008 issue of Applied Arts.
This special Awards issue is often used by
potential employers to scout out new talent.
Winners are also featured on the Applied
Arts website in a Students Awards Gallery,
which attracts more than 200,000 unique
visitors annually. Our students, along with
the other winners, were recognized at
a special Award Winners’ Exhibit held in
November in Toronto. The thirteen awards
won by the ACAD students are more than
those won by students at any other design
school or college.
ACAD Alumni Win
Lieutenant Govenor Awards
Robin Arsenault and Chad Van Gaalen
Two of our ACAD alumni, Robin Arsenault
and Chad Van Gaalen, are recipients of
the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Arts
Foundation’s emerging artist’s awards. Each
winner receives a cheque for $10,000, with
no stipulations as to how they can spend it.
The awards come as a result of the Alberta
Arts Foundation’s desire to create awards
that support developing artists, in addition
to the distinguished artist’s awards they
initiated in 2005.
ACAD Alumni Illustration Award Winners
Congratulations to our award winning
alumni who took recently home awards
from the following publications: Society
of Illustrators 51 (New York), 3x3 Magazine
Illustration Annual, Applied Arts 2008
Illustration Annual, Communication Arts
48, Spectrum 15, Original Art (Society
of Illustrators New York), and the Ignatz
Awards (Small Press Comics Awards).
Art Educator of the Year Nomination
Charles Lewton-Brain
Charles Lewton-Brain has been nominated
for NICHE magazine’s 2009 Arts Educator
of the Year Award. This nomination
has come from students at ACAD, and
this year approximately 200 arts instructors
were nominated.
Extended StudiesA L B E RTA C O L L E G E O F A RT + D E S I G N
July 6 – 31, 2009
20 intense days of full-time studies in visual arts and design for serious art students between 16 – 18 years. Interdisciplinary. Studio-based. College credit. Learn more, and apply at www.acad.ca/extended_studies.html
ACAD Faculty Showcased
in Exhibition of
Post-Minimalist Artists
Neo-Minimalism: Western Canada’s
Post-Minimal Artists
January 15 – February 25 / 09
Triangle Gallery of Visual Arts
Exhibiting artists are:
David Burdeny (Vancouver),
Catherine Burgess (Edmonton),
Marjan Eggermont (Calgary),
Paul Kuhn (Calgary), Eve Leader
(Vancouver), Tanya Rusnak (Calgary),
Laurel Smith (Calgary),
Christopher Willard (Calgary)
and Tim Zuck (Calgary).
Neo-Minimalism, an exhibition curated by
Harry Kiyooka, a Professor Emeritus of Art
and an independent curator, features nine
Western Canada’s artists whose practice
centers on redefining the boundaries of
minimal art with a contemporary aesthetic.
Exhibition: Blake Senini
We Are All in the Same Air
January 8 – February 14 / 09
We Are All in the Same Air is a collection
of five new sculptures that expands on
his interest in the relationships of sculpture
within the physical space it occupies,
by creating a dynamic within the sculpture
between forms. We Are All in the Same Air
is presented at the Skew Gallery.
Exhibition: Dianne Bos
Place
January 31 – February 28 / 09
Place is a group exhibition exploring
contemporary ideas of space and how it
relates to photography, shown at Newzones.
This exhibit features the work of:
Dianne Bos, James Holroyd, Joshua
Jenson-Nagle, Sarah Nind, Colleen Philippi
and John Folsom.
Exhibition: Nancy Price
Hopeless...Romantic
Hopeless...Romantic, shown at the Stride
Gallery, featured several works which
intertwined craft and art revealed mostly
through the production of wearable pieces.
Issue No. 1 / page 9
SNAP!Stars 09 Winner
Geoffrey Fehr
ACAD photo student Geoffrey Fehr is the
winner of the Magenta Foundation SNAP!
Stars 09 ACAD competition. SNAP!Stars
is presented by TD Canada Trust and
is open to third and fourth year students
attending Canadian and American art
schools. TD Canada Trust presented cash
awards of $1,500; one prize for each of the
winning student from the participating
universities. One photograph, selected by
the jury, from each winner was also added
to the SNAP! Live Auction Gala on Sunday,
March 1, 2009. Work featured in the Live
Auction is now being showcased on the
SNAP! Website.
ACAD Photo and VCD Students
Take Home Prizes at the CAPIC Awards
Alexander Henrikson, Inger Marthe
Skyberg and Douglas Nhung
The prize winners of the first CAPIC Rodeo
Student contest were announced at the
Rodeo Awards presentations in Toronto,
and ACAD students have taken home the
second prize in illustration, and third prize
in both illustration and photography
categories. Alexander Henrikson, Inger
Marthe Skyberg and Douglas Nhung
have all been recognized by the Canadian
Association of Photographers and
Illustrators in Communications.
War Art Now
Dick Averns
Between Jan 11th and March 23rd, 2009,
Dick Averns was artist-in-residence at the
Calgary Allied Arts Foundation (CAAF)
st[art]@art central studio in downtown
Calgary. As part the Department of National
Defence Canadian Forces Artists Program,
he was working on a visual art and writing
project engaging the War on Terror, War
Art Now. This research has recently
received support from ACAD’s Marion Fund
for Innovation in Teaching and Research,
with funding directed towards research for
scholarly publications and a photo essay. 1 Student work in
ACAD’s painting studios.
1 Photography
David Fenton
Exhibition: Mark Mullin
January 23 – February 28 / 09
This collaborative print exhibition between
VanDeb Editions and Olive Branch Press
includes work from Mark Mullin’s New York
Suite. This exhibition offers a collaborative
survey of selected artists who have devel-
oped influential works with VanDeb Editions
and Olive Branch Press. This exhibit was
held at the Ink Shop Printmaking Centre
and Olive Branch Press in New York.
Experimental Art + Culture
January 16 – April 4 / 09
The Art Gallery of Calgary
Artist Iain Baxter& will be working
at the AGC for a two week period with
the following ACAD students:
Kris Weinmann 2nd Yr BFA, Richelle Bear
Hat 3rd Yr BFA, Slavek Pytraczyk 3rd Yr
Painting, Shiori Saito 4th Yr MADT.
Exhibition: StART Profs
March 13 – April 8 / 09
ACAD Painting program faculty Sue Menzies
and Chris Willard, and ACAD Painting
alumna Laurel Smith, are featured in the
stART Profs show at Studio 21 in Halifax—an exhibition of work by 15 prominent paint-