Wednesday, October 20
Painter Andrew Morrow invited me to attend the free panel discussion he has organized for this Friday at 7 p.m. as part of the Enriched Bread Artists (EBA) annual Open House festivities. The topic—The Visual Arts in Ottawa: A Time for Change?—was intriguing but seemed quite open-ended, so I asked Andrew to elaborate. Here is our email exchange:
How did you go about selecting the panel?
Heather Anderson is there because we needed a voice from the NGC. I have yet to meet Heather and was interested in learning a little bit more about her particular perspective in relation to the gallery. Patrick Mikhail is there as an art dealer and gallerist. I am represented by him, and know that he is ambitious, outward-looking, and is certainly interested on bringing Ottawa art to a broader public. Andrea Fitzpatrick, an art theory professor at the University of Ottawa, is a dynamic speaker, a massive intellect, and approaches her writing and teaching with a determinedly global perspective. She was also involved in the NY commercial art scene before coming here, and so is able to compare the two communities. Lastly, Peter Honeywell ... is Peter Honeywell. As the executive director of the CAO he knows everything and everybody, also, he was recently involved in a study that compared the arts in Ottawa to what is taking place in other capital cities around the world.
What are the major trends/specific topics with which the panel will grapple?
Questions asked will be:
I'm going to be encouraging a lot of audience participation, so I imagine there will be lots of other questions not included in the list here.
Tony
Painter Andrew Morrow invited me to attend the free panel discussion he has organized for this Friday at 7 p.m. as part of the Enriched Bread Artists (EBA) annual Open House festivities. The topic—The Visual Arts in Ottawa: A Time for Change?—was intriguing but seemed quite open-ended, so I asked Andrew to elaborate. Here is our email exchange:
What gave rise to this panel discussion?
Since arriving from Toronto three years ago, I have found myself often trying to define the visual arts community here in Ottawa, particularly in relation to other centres where my practice has been based (Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver). And in talking about this with others, I've noticed that I'm not alone. Also, there seemed to be many recurring themes in the conversation ... such as lack of opportunity, absence of a serious collector base, a small group of overexposed artists, etc. etc. My personal feeling is (and this can be backed up by empirical evidence) that Ottawa is currently in a renaissance, and is emerging as a competitive, and exciting artistic hub full of potential. I think that we are in the middle of a moment and that certain opportunities have to be seized. So, my hope is that this talk will result in some of the usual topics being laid to rest, and others being raised.
How did you go about selecting the panel?
Heather Anderson is there because we needed a voice from the NGC. I have yet to meet Heather and was interested in learning a little bit more about her particular perspective in relation to the gallery. Patrick Mikhail is there as an art dealer and gallerist. I am represented by him, and know that he is ambitious, outward-looking, and is certainly interested on bringing Ottawa art to a broader public. Andrea Fitzpatrick, an art theory professor at the University of Ottawa, is a dynamic speaker, a massive intellect, and approaches her writing and teaching with a determinedly global perspective. She was also involved in the NY commercial art scene before coming here, and so is able to compare the two communities. Lastly, Peter Honeywell ... is Peter Honeywell. As the executive director of the CAO he knows everything and everybody, also, he was recently involved in a study that compared the arts in Ottawa to what is taking place in other capital cities around the world.
What are the major trends/specific topics with which the panel will grapple?
Questions asked will be:
1. "Does the stereotype of Ottawa as boring and conservative apply to the its visual arst community? If this is the case, is there still the possibility for good work to come from this?"
2. "Is the recent globalization of the visual arts reflected in Ottawa? Should it be?"
3. "Is there an emerging collector base of young, professionals interested in challenging and intelligent artwork? If so, are they being served? If not, how can we better connect them to the artistic experiences they want?"
4. "What is the official position of the NGC in relation to the local visual arts community?"
5. "Based on Ottawa 2020, a new MFA at the U of O, Festival X, a possible 2011 Capital City Nuit Blanche, etc. it can be said that Ottawa is currently emerging as an exciting arts community. If this is true, how would it be characterized, and will this emergence benefit the community as a whole or just the usual cadre of community regulars?"
I'm going to be encouraging a lot of audience participation, so I imagine there will be lots of other questions not included in the list here.
Tony
