Femmes br@nchées Salon #55: MÉTA FEMMES BRANCHÉES

Studio XX is proud to welcome, directly from SOUTH AFRICA and from THE UNITED STATES, young artists Kathryn Smith (Johannesburg) and Monica Praba Pilar (NYC). Their visit marks the comeback of the MÉTA FEMMES BR@NCHÉES, a chance for special guests to combine an evening of presentation or performance with a day long workshop for a group of participants.

Digital divide, Technology and the third world, Gender and racial issues, Creative industries, Performative interventions, Urban spaces under construction, Socially-engaged public art practice and Transforming societies.

These topics will be the focus of in-depth discussions with these two up-and-coming international artists, whose individual and collective works explore the convergence of public space, identity and digital culture.

MÉTA FB 1 : KATHRYN SMITH – Johannesburg (South Africa)

Artist, curator and author born in Durban in 1975, Kathryn Smith engages with technology from a perspective that’s both political and philosophical. Her work combines video, found footage, text and photography. With the artists, writers and curators Marcus Neustetter and Stephen Hobbs, she’s part of The Trinity Session, an independent contemporary arts production team. Assuming the form and economy of a flexible socially-engaged consultancy, they produce public art projects, curated exhibitions, video screenings, research and critical writing. Their work focuses particularly on urban development, criticism, technology and the body, and new media art.
http://onair.co.za/thetrinitysession/directorsks.htm
http://www.artthrob.co.za/03dec/artbio.html

:: Thursday 29 April 5:30PM ::

Artist Presentation
Media Urbanscapes: excess/access and development

at the Centrale Galerie Powerhouse
460 Sainte-Catherine Street West # 506, Montréal

During her presentation, Kathryn Smith will discuss The Trinity Session’s research, placing an emphasis on the creative interventions of groups faced with an acute shortage of technological resources. She will discuss methodologies developed and practised by The Trinity Session including creative business practices such as the Mobile Office concept, as well as focus on the challenge of living and working in a developing country, within an urban setting in the midst of radical transformation. The presentation will also engage with the love affair that some countries abroad have with post-Apartheid South Africa and explore how this affects the visual arts industry on a local level. Along with socio-political and economic issues, gender, access and technology play a huge role in the way that contemporary art is understood, valued and disseminated both within South Africa and abroad.

Drawing on her experiences in Johannesburg, South Africa, where the juxtaposition of extreme 1st and 3rd-World conditions is particularly apparent, Kathryn will encourage participants to reflect on the different ways that rich and poor segments of society relate to technology. She’ll also let us in on her independent research projects and the upcoming travelling exhibition Euphemism, speaking of these within the context of South African contemporary art and in relation to the body of her work as a whole.

Free for members / $4 for non-members

:: Saturday 1 May 9:30—4:30PM ::

Interactive Seminar
Media Urbanscapes: Lo-Tech Resolutions

at Studio XX
338, Terrasse Saint-Denis, Montréal

In this workshop, Kathryn Smith will elaborate on the reflections undertaken during her presentation. With a socio-political and feminist regard, she’ll examine the dynamics of technology in South African and on the African continent in general.

Access to technology helps and hinders the development of culture in a country where social and human rights issues such as housing, poverty and HIV/AIDS are foremost on the political and economic agendas. Arts and culture find themselves sidelined and, where it is available, public funding tends to prioritise crafts industries and similar ventures, which are considered to be empowering and self-sustainable in the long-term. The problem is that artists, who see income-potential in the administration of such projects, are insufficiently trained as facilitators and managers, which in turn begs the question: should this be the primary focus of artists? This workshop will thus invite participants to explore methods of artistic entrepreneurship, developed by The Trinity Session, independently from galleries and public financing.

Presented with various scenarios, workshop participants will have the opportunity to conceptualise and trouble-shoot in a simulated version of a focused group session dealing with significant sites and commissioning methods. The workshop will give participants a thorough appreciation of the complexities of working in a post-colonial environment where historical, “imported” methods are finding their place within indigenous knowledge systems, and where finding lo-tech solutions to problems within an unevenly developed communications landscape is a valued skill.

A FIRST for the Studio! Weather permitting, this event will happen on the rooftop of the building where Studio XX is located; participants will be inspired by an incomparable view of the mediatised island on which they live!

$20 members/ $30 non-members
Don’t wait! 15 to 20 seats will be available by reservation: 514.845.0289

This first seminar is particularly intended for artists, activists, critics and teachers, but could also be open to others who simply feel moved by the themes that will be addressed. In order to allow the artist to adequately prepare, those who would like to register are asked to submit a few lines about themselves (brief bio or short resume) indicating what they would most like to explore during their MÉTA FEMMES BR@NCHÉES workshops.

Everyone is welcome to attend these activities. The presentations and workshops will be conducted in English. Translation will be available by request.