MSVU Art Gallery: Artist in Residence
Katie Belcher // January 12, 2012
MSVU Art Gallery welcomes:
URSULA JOHNSON: ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE
Organized by MSVU Art Gallery
with support from HRM Residency Initiative
10 January through 18 February
www.msvuart.ca
From 10 January through 18 February, Mi’kmaw artist Ursula Johnson will work in a studio space within the gallery, hosting basket-making workshops, open studio days and other events. As an activist, Johnson employs contemporary, theatrical and traditional Aboriginal practices to engage viewers in social situations. A skilled basket maker, she frequently combines basketry with performance and relational aesthetics. For example, in the performance Elmiet (2010, detail above), Johnson’s actions and basketry “scalp” headpiece reminded a crowd on the Grand Parade of the continued existence of the 1756 Scalping Proclamation in Nova Scotia legislation. In Ke’Pitemn (2008), she served tea and bannock to strangers in the North End, to reinforce a sense of community among persons of various backgrounds. As an urban resident, she interprets the sense of urgency of aboriginal cultural preservation. Johnson has exhibited widely and participated in artist’s residencies across Canada.
OPEN STUDIO DAYS Ursula Johnson welcomes visitors to her studio during these times:
Saturday, 14 January, from 10am to 5pm
Tuesday, 17 January, from 10am to 5pm
Thursday, 9 February, from 10am to 5pm
BASKETRY WORKSHOPS Free to attend. Please register by contacting 902-457-6160 art.gallery@msvu.ca
PART 1: Saturday, 28 January, from 10am to 5pm
PART 2: Saturday, 4 February, from 10am to 5pm
PUBLIC LECTURES
Thursday, 2 February, from 5:30–7:30pm: Ursula Johnson in conversation with artist/writer, Shirley Bear, C.M.
Saturday, 11 February, 1pm: Artist’s Talk
CATALOGING PARTY
Enjoy a drumming performance and refreshments at Johnson’s end-of-residency celebration. All are welcome to view the pieces created during Johnson’s residency and to assist in naming them. The pieces will be catalogued and tagged for a future exhibition. Saturday, 18 February, from 12 to 3pm
For more information, contact Katie Belcher at 902-457-6291, katie.belcher@msvu.ca
