This artist talk with Calgary based artist Paul Robert will provide further context on his exhibition "Teinture De Bukavu" which is currently on view at the Alternator. Join us and Paul Robert on either Thursday evening or Friday afternoon for an opportunity to hear from the artist directly, to ask questions, and engage in meaningful discussion.
A grid of over 100 luminous and brilliantly coloured swatches, less than a foot square each, and composed of tightly-woven seed beads, forms the centrepiece of this exhibition. The beaded swatches, designed by algorithms that take as input colours from the Pantone Fashion Color Report each spring and fall since 2015, are then outsourced for production to Bagalwa Baliahamwabo, a family friend of Paul Robert, and his ad hoc team of artisans in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo.
This ongoing work is a comically tragic re-staging of the antagonisms inherent in production and consumption under globalization. Immaterial labour in the form of commodities’ intellectual and cultural content is contrasted with something that sits uneasily between the romanticized craftsmanship of the indigenous artisan and the cheap manual labour of the foreign factory worker. Capital and commodities flow effortlessly between nations that in so many other ways remain literally worlds apart. Robert strives to give a fresh visibility to these conditions, recognizing his contribution as a single node in an ecosystem of more and less entitled, provocative, and idealistic voices.
Artists and creatives from all disciplines and stages of their careers are welcome to join at one of two ZOOM sessions on Thursday, July 9, 6-7 p.m. and Friday, July 10, 2-3 p.m.
Alternator Chats are informal sessions are ideal for those who are interested in engaging with each other and Alternator staff about projects that they are continuing, are researching or have started new and can be used as a sounding board for processing your new practices, methods and approaches to your practice, especially during this time of isolation.
Both sessions are free and open to the public. Participation in both sessions is limited to a maximum of eight (8) people. Participants will be provided with a Zoom link to join their session. Please secure a spot by registering through Eventbrite using the link below.
For more information about Alternator Chat, visit www.alternatorcentre.com.