PREVIEW
SPACE FOR SPACE 20th ANNIVERSARY
Thursday, November 8
Room 371 ACAD
Artist and curator Tammy McGrath speaks with practised eloquence about her greatest passion: art.
As a longtime employee and devotee of The New Gallery, she has had ample opportunity to explore her discipline, logging innumerable hours in the gallery and her studio. Naturally attracted to the fringe elements of contemporary culture, McGrath's keen eye was quick to perceive the many unnoticed works of art being created by talents in and around Calgary.
"I knew a lot of people that were doing underground art. Sound and video artists whose stuff was never seen because they didn't know how the gallery system works or they just weren't interested in it or there wasn't a place for them in the gallery. Some of them are categorized as 'performative artists,’ working in hybridized forms of sound, video, performance, spoken word, etc. We wanted to open up a place in the gallery where these people could be included."
Over the past three years, McGrath has brought her initial concept to fruition – the result is Space For Space, a forum that is both conducive to the performance of audio art and at the same time facilitates the experience of these presentations. To achieve this lofty goal, McGrath sought out the input of fellow artisans and craftsmen working in their respective fields, many of whom operate under the banner of The New Gallery, an artist-run centre. Established 26 years ago, The New Gallery is a collective comprised of an elected board and a handful of hired employees, the majority of whom are working artists.
"We are not art dealers. We do not sell art out of the gallery, but rather present contemporary and experimental work for its own sake. We pay artists a modest fee for their exhibit, but actually, artists are paid much lower than they should be, especially for all their contributions to society and the amount of volunteer work that every artist in the city does."
With the combined efforts of The New Gallery team, enthusiastic volunteers and the artists themselves, the rough concept of Space For Space began to take shape. The participants knew from experience that there was a rift between experimental artists working in visual and aural media and their audience, the community at large. After some discussion, they concluded that between featured gallery displays, they did in fact have space for space.
"I didn't realise how big of a demand (there was). For the first meeting it was just word of mouth and there were about 10 people there. By the second or third event we had about 100 people showing up!
Highly conceptual in nature, the projects proposed by some of the potential artists were almost impossible for many to comprehend. This is where McGrath steps in and facilitates meaningful dialogue between artist and audience. She is able to explain the concepts and motivations that spawn the items presented at Space For Space – inventive, absurd and full of life, these events are an invitation for music and art lovers of all kinds to leave their preconceptions at home and take a walk on the wild side.
"To begin with it was open to all genres – we just didn't want pieces that were going to hang on the wall. We wanted works that were going to be interactive. We didn't want works that were going to be static."
The Space For Space phenomenon soon gained momentum and developed into an irregular bimonthly occurrence. Over the course of an "average" evening of Space For Space, an audience may be treated to up to six sets of performances by individual artists or small troupes of artists. Musical instruments, film, recorded sounds, voices, acting, dance, video, paint and sculpture are brought to life and manipulated in ways that can never be duplicated.
"The thing with Space For Space is that it's experimental sound. So, it's not the kind of thing that people want to go and dance to. It could be, potentially, but mostly it's a good venue for like-minded individuals to hang out together and exchange ideas. Different equipment, different techniques, different ideas surrounding sound art."
The New Gallery is entirely dependent on government funding and the support of the numerous creative and hard working individuals who provide free labour and financial assistance whenever possible. The gallery has also applied to Canada Council for the Arts numerous times for project funding for Space For Space, but in three years has received nothing, so the event relies on public donations in order to survive.
That doesn't stop McGrath and her tireless comrades from developing bigger and better ideas, though. As a direct result of their support of local artists, Space For Space has been offered an offsite location in which to hold their third anniversary event. The Alberta College of Arts and Design has volunteered to host the upcoming Harris Show, to be organized by Space For Space veteran Sean Chamberlain. It will feature audio and visual works by artists and performers such as Rodney Guitarsplat, Tokyosexwhale, Cody Oliver, Octopus and many more. |
