Robert Kelly Minutia

Gallery 1C03 presents

Robert Kelly

Minutia
March 3 – April 2, 2011

Artist-led workshop in collaboration with Platform Centre for Photographic + Digital Arts: “Minutia: The Books I Didn’t Write – Generating Thoughts, Ideas and Forms in a Digital Age”, March 2, 7 – 9 p.m. at Gallery 1C03
Opening reception: March 3, 4 – 6 p.m. at Gallery 1C03
Artist’s lecture in collaboration with Alliance for Arts Education in Manitoba: “The Creative Disposition: Understanding Creativity Competencies and Creative Maturity”, March 3 at 7:30 p.m. at Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall (3^rd floor, Centennial Hall)
Artist’s talk: March 4 at 12:30 p.m. in Room 2C14 (2^nd floor, Centennial Hall)
Artist-led workshop in collaboration with The Writers’ Collective: “The Book of The and Another Book of The: Idea Generation – The Indispensable Core of Creativity”, March 5, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. at Gallery 1C03

Calgary-based artist Robert Kelly’s love of language led him to create this conceptual installation consisting of eleven distinct books of concrete poetry displayed on lecterns. A piece whose initial imposing appearance belies the artist’s often playful manipulation of text, the bookworks are based on the eleven words from the sentence fragment “the first time I heard the sound of a page turning.” Kelly’s point is to consider how awareness of minutiae is fundamental to meaningfulness. Minutia demonstrates this by isolating and recontextualizing components from the English language to create an arena in which to explore meaning. Kelly’s installation uses words, letters and sounds in his books to explore the meaningless/meaningful dynamic and challenge our level of awareness.

A special interactive component of the installation is an invitation for gallery visitors to respond to the texts in Minutia using graphite supplied by Gallery 1C03 to write or sketch their thoughts directly on the gallery walls.

Robert Kelly works in Calgary as a conceptual artist and educator. He practices in various media including painting, printmaking, installation and performance. Kelly’s themes are as diverse as his media, as revealed by two bodies of work which he continues to develop: White Noise is a new series of public installations and events focused on the threshold between passive tolerance and action, while Concept of Raven is a group of large-scale painted constructions that use the raven to explore spiritual, cultural and ecological perspectives. Kelly teaches creativity theory and practice, studio art and design and curriculum theory and design for the faculties of art and education at the University of Calgary. The editor of two recent publications on creativity as a primary rationale for education, Kelly has delivered many lectures and workshops on the subject of creativity and educational practice and serves as a consultant for the new Fine Arts Curriculum Initiative for the Alberta Ministry of Education. Kelly has presented his art in solo and group exhibitions across Alberta and in British Columbia and Ontario. Since its initial presentation at the Nickle Arts Museum in Calgary, Kelly’s conceptual bookwork installation Minutia has also been shown at the Maltwood Gallery in Victoria and at the McIntosh Gallery in London, Ontario. Minutia is Robert Kelly’s first solo exhibition in Manitoba.

Gallery 1C03 gratefully acknowledges financial assistance from The University of Winnipeg, Manitoba Arts Council and the Department of Canadian Heritage.

Regular gallery hours: Monday – Friday: 12:00 – 4:00 p.m.; Saturday: 1:00 – 4:00 p.m.
Admission to Gallery, reception, artist's lecture and artist’s talk are free and open to all. Pre-registration is required for workshops and registration fees apply. Contact Platform at outreach@platformgallery.org or The Writers’ Collective at writerscollective@uwinnipeg.ca for details.

For information, contact: Jennifer Gibson, Curator, Gallery 1C03 1st floor, Centennial Hall, The University of Winnipeg 515 Portage Ave, Winnipeg MB R3B 2E9 204.786.9253 | j.gibson@uwinnipeg.ca uwinnipeg.ca/index/artgallery-index | gallery1C03.blogspot.com

2nd unSacred review & 2 days left

Sandee Moore responds to unSacred in today's Uptown mag. You've got 2 more days to see the show if you haven't already!

unSacred review

Have a look at Alison Gillmor's review of Gallery 1C03's current exhibition unSacred in today's Winnipeg Free Press.

Cinema Politica: Mommy Mommy

Together as part of the international documentary screening network Cinema Politica, Gallery 1C03 and The University of Winnipeg Students’ Association (UWSA) are pleased to present the film Mommy Mommy at

Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall on Tuesday, February 15 at 7 p.m.

Experience the trials and tribulations of a lesbian couple from Quebec on their emotional journey to becoming adoptive parents.

Sylvie Rosenthal / Canada / 2007 / 48 min

We Are Family, the quintessential gay anthem, has taken on new meaning in gay districts and liberal suburbs across North America as more and more gay and lesbian couples choose prams over parties. Yes, the most liberated homosexuals in history are becoming parents! But even in places like Quebec, one of the few places in the world to have legalized both gay marriage and adoptions, things aren't as easy as they may seem. Produced by Rezolution Pictures in association with CBC Newsworld, the documentary MOMMY, MOMMY follows Linda and Mona, a lesbian couple from Quebec, on their quest to create the family they've always dreamed about. Linda and Mona embark upon a five year long emotional rollercoaster ride where they're confronted by the complications of access to IVF, and bans against same-sex couples adopting from overseas. After finding a birth mother in the US who welcomes lesbian parents, Linda and Mona find a final, devastating roadblock thrown up by the Christian-based adoption agency and their own government. The same one that legalized same-sex adoptions! The couple refuse to give up, and Linda and Mona's dream finally comes true in the most unexpected way.

Mommy Mommy was selected for screening by the LGBT* Centre at The University of Winnipeg and is presented in conjunction with Gender Week on campus. A discussion will follow the film facilitated by Kristine Barr, lawyer, local school trustee and human rights advocate.

All screenings will be open to all audiences – everyone is welcome. Our screenings will always be free, but donations to offset costs are encouraged. Eckhardt-Gramatté Hall is located on the third floor of Centennial Hall at The University of Winnipeg.

Gallery 1C03 and the UWSA wish to thank Cinema Politica for making it possible for us to participate in this network. We are grateful to the Canada Council for the Arts for generously supporting this initiative.

Image: Scene from Mommy Mommy by Sylvie Rosenthal