Revealing Spaces: Kate Wilhelm, Shaun Downey, and Andrea Carvalho Curated by Sonya Jones The Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa
Revealing Spaces: Kate Wilhelm, Shaun Downey, and Andrea Carvalho © 2012 The Robert McLaughlin Gallery 72 Queen St., Civic Centre Oshawa, Ontario L1H 3Z3 rmg.on.ca Graphic Design: Jacquie Severs, The Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa Printing: David Thomas Printing, Whitby Curator: Sonya Jones Catalogue of an exhibition held at The Robert McLaughlin Gallery 30 June – 26 August, 2012 Distributed by: ABC: Art Books Canada 327 Ste. Catherine W., Suite 229 Montréal, Québec H3B 1A2 abcartbookscanada.com ISBN: 978-1-926589-35-0 1. Wilhelm, Kate, 1976 - . 2. Downey, Shaun, 1978 - 3. Carvalho, Andrea, 1980 - . 4. Art Modern—21st century—Exhibitions. 5. Artists—Canada. 6. Sculpture, Modern—21st century—Exhibitions. 7. Painters—Canada. 8. Photographers—Canada. I. Jones, Sonya, 1981 - . II. The Robert McLaughlin Gallery. III. Title. 709.2 The Robert McLaughlin Gallery gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the City of Oshawa, The Canada Council for the Arts, and the Ontario Arts Council.
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Foreword and Acknowledgements
Every two years the RMG presents an exhibition featuring three emerging regional artists. This exhibition series has particular significance within the context of The Robert McLaughlin Gallery’s mandate to contribute meaningfully to the narrative of contemporary Canadian art, as well as engage with our community. Incorporating the mediums of photography, painting and sculptural installation, Revealing Spaces is visually impactful and engaging. When we begin to look beyond the obvious (and equally striking) differences of Kate Wilhelm, Shaun Downey and Andrea Carvalho’s work, we allow ourselves to explore subtle relationships and common threads between the works. Revealing Spaces not only examines the individual practices of the three artists, but also serves to define the connectivity between their motivations, vision and artistic endeavors. The result is a cohesive and compelling exhibition. On behalf of the RMG, I would like to extend my appreciation to curator Sonya Jones for her sensitive and thoughtful approach to the work of Wilhelm, Downey and Carvalho. To the artists: we thank you for your willingness to share in this experience. The City of Oshawa is an important and committed supporter of the RMG and all of its endeavors. We are grateful for their generous financial contribution. The RMG is also appreciative of the assistance received from The Canada Council for the Arts and the Ontario Arts Council. This contribution is a vital part of sustaining programming and education at the RMG.
Gabrielle Peacock Chief Executive Officer
REVEALING SPACES
In continuation of the biannual series of exhibitions that feature emerging Durham Regional artists, the RMG presents Kate Wilhelm, Shaun Downey and Andrea Carvalho in Revealing Spaces. When examining three very different artists, who on the surface only share a common geography, thematic connections begin to unveil themselves in surprising ways. In this case, the spaces depicted or created in all of their artworks are infused with meaning. Locations, in general, are filled with narrative, whether about that location itself or the people who have occupied them or presently do. Yi-Fu Tuan, author of Space and Place: The Perspective of Experience, describes a conversation between two scientists following a visit to Kronberg Castle in Denmark: Isn’t it strange how this castle changes as soon as one imagines that Hamlet lived here? As scientists we believe that a castle consists only of stones, and admire the way the architect put them together…None of this should be changed by the fact that Hamlet lived here, and yet it is changed completely.1 The experience of visiting the castle was augmented by knowing the story of Hamlet, despite it being fictional; the place became alive with narrative. In Revealing Spaces, the locations depicted or created in all three artists’ work are not necessarily the primary focus, but are meant to be explored in order to reveal deeper meaning.
Kate Wilhelm Furiouser ‘N’ Furiouser 2012
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Toys scatter the floor, art adorns the walls, and Kate Wilhelm bounces her baby on her lap. This is the scene in Wilhelm’s home during a studio visit—much like the women in her photographs, she too balances two identities—artist and mother. Her series Yes these bones shall live depicts roller derby girls in full derby gear (roller-skates, fishnets, elbow/knee pads etc.) in their private homes. Roller derby, one of the only sports played almost exclusively by women, is a full contact, sometimes brutal sport. It personifies power, domination, and independence. Yet, Wilhelm chooses to take the women out of the arena and place them in their domestic surroundings with their loved ones or personal belongings. They are photographed either by themselves or with the people they live with, including all their family or just their partners. Prior to photographing her subjects, Wilhelm connects with the women on a personal level. This is when she discovers similarities with them in terms of their role as mothers, their personal struggles, or their domestic practices. She invites herself “into their homes, their most private, domestic spaces, the arena that is historically and culturally seen as women’s space”2 and explores these dualities—derby and domesticity.
Kate Wilhelm Gender Bend’her 2012
Kate Wilhelm Ginger Slaughters with Mike, Carol and Mason 2011
The home is important to both Wilhelm’s artistic practice and personal life. In Radical Homemakers, a book that challenges preconceptions about domesticity, author Shannon Hayes interviewed various homemakers who maintain their feminist ideals while practicing and celebrating domesticity. She says that “these families did not see their homes as a refuge from the world. Rather, each home was the centre for social change, the starting point from which a better life would ripple out for everyone.”3 Hayes’ book has had a profound influence not only Wilhelm’s own domestic life, but her artistic practice as well. The book encouraged her thoughts on “feminism, domestic work, finances, economic security” and helped shape her idea of “the home as a site not only for constructing personal identity …but as a site for social change and power.”4
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Wilhelm’s derby girls embrace their domestic lives at home while practicing an activity that is described as an “odd hybrid of sport, social activism and pink sexuality.”5 Many of the women are mothers like Wilhelm (or expecting such as in Clare de Lunatic and Demon-Ade) and balance their domestic lives with their fringe sport personas. Feminist Adrienne Rich, in her book Of Woman Born: Motherhood as Experience and Institution, discusses motherhood as a social construction—an institution. She says that “Motherhood…is one part of female process; it is not an identity for all time”6 The derby mothers defy this idea of institution yet also embrace the domesticity of motherhood. They have chosen to not only be defined as mothers but to have an avenue where they can express themselves as individuals. Wilhelm says “Derby throws any received cultural notions of femininity in your face; yet many derby girls are mothers (perhaps the ultimate ‘feminine’ vocation) and the bouts7 are extremely family friendly.”8
Left: Kate Wilhelm Suzy Slams with Brogan, John and Miles 2011 Right: Kate Wilhelm Clare de Lunatic and Demon-Ade 2012
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In works such as Ginger Slaughters with Mike, Carol and Mason, Suzy Slam with Brogan, John and Miles, and Lippy Wrongstockings with Chase, Izzy and Sid, the derby girls are photographed surrounded by their family members. Although they seem out of place in what mimics a traditional family portrait, the presence of their families acknowledges the support system needed to pursue derby as a recreational sport. And, as Wilhelm is always aware of constructing identity, their families also represent a part of who they are. In all three works, the derby girls not only stand out because of their derby outfits, but they are the only family members standing up. Their expressions and body language convey the tough attitude required in derby, while their inner strength and independence comes out appropriately among the family members who have had a hand in instilling these qualities in them. In contrast, in Stitch Ripper with Leonard and Darlene, Stitch Ripper is seated and her mother stands at her side. The body language and expression of Stitch Ripper is much more passive than the other woman, and her mother seems to dominate the photograph. In works such as Kiss My Ashlinn with Thom and Stitch Ripper with Leonard and Darlene, there is a sad undercurrent and the viewer is left with unanswered questions about the circumstances of these women’s personal lives. Wilhelm does not consider her photographs documentary, in that they are not documenting the private lives of roller derby girls but instead she uses roller derby to “examine how real women both contradict and conform to traditional gender roles in performing their identities.”9 In Wilhelm’s photographs we are confronted with two seemingly contradictory identities, yet these women have married them by appearing in their homes—a place where identity is built and nurtured.
Kate Wilhelm Stitch Ripper with Leonard and Darlene 2011 Next Page: Lippy Wrongstockings with Chase, Izzy and Sid 2011
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While Wilhelm’s locations inform the viewer about the identity of the subject, Shaun Downey’s settings drive the narrative. The quiet and muted scenes leave the viewer wanting more. Downey’s intention is not to imply an overt narrative, but to encourage the viewer to create one. American painter Andrew Wyeth, an influence of Downey’s, said that “the master is the one who can simultaneously give the effect of simplicity and restraint—yet you can go right up to it and explore it endlessly with the greatest joy.”10 The realism of Downey’s technique is accessible, as are the simplicity of his settings. There is a familiar and nostalgic quality to them. He invites the viewer into his world: “the voyeuristic view into my world will allow them to relax and appreciate the fleeting beauty and quiet moments of their own existence.”11 In Blue Cup, a girl, with her back to the viewer, is on the phone. Despite the quiet demeanor of this alleged simple scene, it is ripe with narrative. Questions as to who is on the phone, or what the nature of the conversation is, are asked and the viewer begins to fill in the blanks themselves. The timelessness of this scene is also typical of Downey’s works. The age of the girl is uncertain, as is the time period being depicted. In seeking to connect with a broad audience, Downey keeps the locations, objects, and fashion in his paintings timeless. The clean and uncluttered kitchen in Blue Cup, with the rotary dial phone, sans appliances, could be any kitchen over the last 50 years.
Shaun Downey Blue Cup (detail) 2009
Engaging a wider audience is not only what draws him to realism but also what influences his subjects. Although they are personally driven, his subjects are universally relatable. In The White Dress, the figure stands in front of a large window in a white walled room. There is a quietness to this scene that is enhanced by the room’s starkness. Downey revels in tranquil scenes as they invoke a calmness that he seeks in our fast paced world.12 He reveals that these quiet moments are “calm expressions of my admiration for my companions.”13
Right: Shaun Downey Gosia 2012 Left: Shaun Downey The White Dress 2012
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Like Andrew Wyeth, who painted people and places he was connected to and loved, Downey paints loved ones in locations that have a personal affinity to him. Wyeth said: “I think one’s art goes only as far and as deep as your love goes.”14 This is particularly true for Downey, whose latest body of work focuses on his immediate surroundings, and the people and places he holds dearest. For example, both New Day and Teal Telephone, White Suitcase depict the home he shares with his wife. The people in his paintings, however, are not always connected to those specific places and may have roles in his life that were outside of the time that these places were current to Downey’s life. He merges two realities to enhance the people’s and place’s continued importance to the person he is today. For example, In the Woods depicts Downey’s wife outdoors in Heber Downs Conservation Park located in the Durham Region. Downey’s wife is only connected to the Durham Region through Downey, but by placing her in that landscape he has merged two important elements of his life—his life growing up in Oshawa and the life he now shares with his wife.
Right: Shaun Downey New Day 2011 Next Page: Shaun Downey Into the Woods 2009
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In Oshawa Shirt, Toronto Jacket and Pink Coco, the focus is less on the location and more on the individual. However, there are other elements that suggest the importance of particular places in Downey’s life. For example, in his selfportrait he is depicted wearing a shirt from Oshawa and a jacket from Toronto—the two places Downey considers home. In Pink Coco, the subject is placed in front of decorative wallpaper—suggesting a location, albeit one we have to construct with our imagination. Prior to Pink Coco, there was Blue Coco, which in 2010 was selected to be a part of the BP Portrait Exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in London, England. Pink Coco depicts the same woman but this time with blond hair and pink wallpaper. ‘Coco’ was hired as a model for Blue Coco, but through the chain of events that would lead to the BP Portrait Exhibition, the two became close friends (she also appears in White Dress). The location in Pink Coco— Downey’s studio—is not the focus but rather it is where the journey took them since the painting of Blue Coco. Downey’s locations are open to the viewer to explore, instilling their own narrative along the way, but they are also locations of personal significance. All of the spaces, whether it is his new studio where he paints seven days a week, the home he shares with his wife, or a park with childhood sentiments, contribute to Downey’s personal narrative—coming together to shape who he is today.
Shaun Downey Pink Coco 2012
Just as the viewer produces their own narrative in Downey’s paintings, similarly they are encouraged to create their own dialogue with the space in Andrea Carvalho’s installation work. Carvalho’s depiction of space in her work is quite literal—it is architecturally informed and meant to be physically experienced. In installations the emphasis is typically not concentrated on the object itself, but more on the visitor experience and interaction. This is the case in Carvalho’s work, where within the viewer’s interaction with the installation they create their own space—this experience being a part of the artwork itself. By physically engaging with the sculptural installation, the viewer appropriates personal meaning with the space based on their relationship to it and their own life experiences. Carvalho is concerned with “a dialogue of space, the built environment, and experiences of the everyday through post-minimal aesthetics and conceptual approaches.”15
Left: Andrea Carvalho Two Parts Gravity, One Part Transition (detail) 2012 Right: Andrea Carvalho Two Parts Gravity, One Part Transition (detail) 2012
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When entering the space the viewer is confronted with six sculptures, all of which have a 4’ x 4’ board balancing on one corner of a post made from found objects. They appear in two rows of three, symmetrical, however differentiated by the various shapes/forms and lights that appear on the board’s surface. Although the individual works are static, because they balance while seemingly precariously defying gravity, there is a sense of motion. The expectation is that they are swaying, floating in the air. The lights on the surface of the boards also allude to movement, not only because of the reflections created on the smooth surface of the “table top,” but also because of the buzzing sound of the fluorescent lighting—enhancing the hovering sensation. The viewer senses the balance and weight of the work as they explore the space. Our instinct is to assume the weight of the objects is light, but logic tells us otherwise.
Andrea Carvalho Untitled (table) 2009
Right: Andrea Carvalho Preliminary sketch for Two Parts Gravity, One Part Transition 2012 Next page: Andrea Carvalho Preliminary sketch for light placement in Two Parts Gravity, One Part Transition 2012
Architecturally speaking, the objects themselves do not immediately suggest a building or structure. It is the spatial experience of being in the gallery with these objects that creates an architectural space. To Carvalho, architecture is not always a fixed object or structure; it can also be the spatial connection that makes the space—existentially and physically. Her work placed outdoors, for example, would create an entirely different built environment. For her, “architecture and art….become diverse media through which we explore human experience of space and time.”16 There are, however, definite references to architecture with her exploration of gravity and symmetry. In Mechanics and Meaning in Architecture, author Lance LaVine says that “unlike any other human experience, gravity does not change over space or time. Gravity is the most orderly and consistent of all human experiences and hence gives birth to mental conceptions of regularity and permanence.”17 Carvalho, therefore, turns the permanence of gravity upside down by having her most weighted objects lightly hovering, challenging our understanding of how gravity works. Additionally, although the work is installed symmetrically, referencing one of the earliest “rules” of classical architecture, they are not a mirror reflection. By both paying homage to and yet challenging important architectural elements such as gravity and symmetry, Carvalho is also exploring what constitutes a site as place: architecturally, socially and geographically.18
In particular, Carvalho’s work explores liminality. Liminality, in relationship to contemporary art, references works that deal with transitional states.19 This transitional passage, the in between of two states, is where the lines are blurred between making of space and experiences of space. The lights and cutouts that appear on the boards of Two Parts Gravity, One Part Transition “reflect spaces of passage/transitional spaces, doors, windows, openings etc.”20 These passages are used to enter or leave a structure, but in Carvalho’s case they are integrated as abstract shapes. These visual clues take the formal shapes and patterns of doors and passageways to connect the concept of liminal passage to the overall spatial experience. In reflecting on the question of what constitutes a site as a place, Carvalho, in a sense, has created a non-place— a term coined by French anthropologist Marc Augé to describe places of transience. The liminal passage between space and experience of space is temporary, and will be different for each visitor and in different gallery spaces. Carvalho reflects on “the affect of non-places/spaces, those of passage (liminal) and how they can be detached from specific histories, vernaculars, and language and just become a present space, one in which to be present within.”21 According to cultural theorist Michel de Certeau, as individuals traverse through spaces, they create personal itineraries that they instill with meaning. For both Wilhelm and Downey the spaces they depict serve a purpose in their work—to reveal identity and to encourage narrative, while Carvalho is focused on creating spatial experiences through our physical relationship to the space. Spaces, whether private or public, are meant for humans to occupy and experience. Much like de Certeau believed, the artists have the viewers navigating various spaces that reveal meaning, whether about the artists themselves, the subjects, or through physical relationship to them.
Andrea Carvalho Two Parts Gravity, One Part Transition (detail) 2012
Sonya Jones Exhibition Curator
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END notes 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21
Yi-Fu Tuan, Space and Place: The Perspective of Experience, (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2001) 4. Kate Wilhelm, Artist Statement 2012. Shannon Hayes, Radical Homemakers: Reclaiming Domesticity from a Consumer Culture, (Richmondville, NY: Left to Write Press, 2010) 18. Kate Wilhelm, email, February 14, 2012. Emma Tom, “Fishnets and Mouthguards”, The Australian, April 24, 2010. Adrienne Rich, Of Woman Born: Motherhood as Experience and Institution, (London: Virago, 1977) 37. Bout is the Derby word for “game.” Kate Wilhelm, Artist Statement, 2012. Ibid. Wanda M. Corn, Brian O’Doherty, Richard Meryman, and E.P. Richardson, The Art of Andrew Wyeth, (San Francisco: The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, 1973) 69. Shaun Downey, Artist Statement, 2012. Studio Visit with Shaun Downey, February 15, 2012. Shaun Downey, Artist Statement. 2012. Corn, The Art of Andrew Wyeth, 74. Andrea Carvalho, Artist Statement, 2012. Catherine Smith, Looking for Liminality in Architectural Space, http://limen.mi2.hr/limen1-2001/ catherine_smith.html Lance LaVine, Mechanics and Meaning in Architecture, (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2001) 70. Andrea Carvalho, Artist Statement, 2012. Smith, Looking for Liminality. Andrea Carvalho, email, April 15, 2012. Ibid.
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List of Works
Kate Wilhelm
Shaun Downey
Clare de Lunatic and Demon-Ade 2012 digital archival print 61.0 x 76.2 cm
Blue Cup 2009 oil on canvas 83.8 x 55.9 cm
Furiouser ‘N’ Furiouser 2012 digital archival print 61.0 x 91.4 cm
Gosia 2012 oil on canvas on panel 121.9 x 76.2 cm
Gender Bend’her 2012 digital archival print 61.0 x 91.4 cm
In the Woods 2009 oil on canvas 91.4 x 121.9 cm
Ginger Slaughters with Mike, Carol and Mason 2011 digital archival print 61.0 x 76.2 cm
New Day 2011 oil on canvas 121.9 x 81.3 cm
Inna’Goddess Da-Vida 2010 digital archival print 61.0 x 76.2 cm Kiss My Ashlinn with Thom 2011 digital archival print 61.0 x 76.2 cm Lippy Wrongstockings with Chase, Izzy and Sid 2011 digital archival print 61.0 x 91.4 cm Stitch Ripper with Leonard and Darlene 2011 digital archival print 61.0 x 76.2 cm Suzy Slams with Brogan, John and Miles 2011 digital archival print 61.0 x 76.2 cm
Oshawa Shirt, Toronto Jacket 2012 oil on canvas on panel 61.0 x 54.6 cm Pink Coco 2012 oil on canvas on panel 50.8 x 40.6 cm Teal Telephone, White Suitcase 2012 oil on canvas on panel 81.3 x 121.9 cm The White Dress 2012 oil on canvas on panel 121.9 x 81.3 cm Andrea Carvalho Two Parts Gravity, One Part Transition 2012 wood, fluorescent lights, paper, paint, Styrofoam installation, various dimensions
Artist’s Biographies
Andrea Carvalho In 2010 Carvalho completed her MFA in Sculpture at Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec where she is now based. Her practice, while rooted in sculpture and installation, includes site-specific performance, and drawing that explores variable connections to place through the built environment, architecture, and notions of belonging. She has participated in several group exhibitions at Eastern Edge (Newfoundland), Cambridge Galleries (Cambridge), Dare-Dare (Montreal), Art-Mûr (Montreal), Burlington Arts Centre, as well as solo exhibitions at Forest City Gallery (London), and Latcham Gallery (Stouffvilleupcoming). Carvalho has also been invited to participate in residencies in Windsor and speak in Newfoundland, Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia. Shaun Downey Downey studied figurative drawing and painting at Angel Studios in Toronto, and illustration at Sheridan College. He has exhibited his work at Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition, Toronto International Art Fair, Ingram Gallery and Engine Gallery. In 2010, Downey’s Blue Coco was selected for exhibition in the BP Portrait Exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in London, England. He is currently represented by Engine Gallery in Toronto. Kate Wilhelm Wilhelm holds a B.A. in English from the University of Guelph. In 2010, she won the Pikto Prize in the RMG Exposed juried competition at The Robert McLaughlin Gallery, and in 2011 was named a Critical Mass Finalist and a Flash Forward Emerging Photographer. Her work has been exhibited locally and internationally, including in New York City, and was included in the book, The M Word: Real Mothers in Contemporary Art, published in 2011.