11/1/2002
Dana Claxton
Oboro, Montreal
Waterspeak, a new installation work, blends video and film footage of waterfalls and the winter rapids of Capilano River to address issues of environmental degradation and differing cultural constructions of nature.
Waterspeak, a new
installation work, blends
video and film footage of
waterfalls and the winter
rapids of Capilano River to
address issues of
environmental degradation
and differing cultural
constructions of nature.
Merging with the water, the
characters Man and Woman overlap and dissolve in a quiet,
insistent discussion about listening and speaking. The
multiple moving images of natural phenomena are
heightened through their scale and saturated colour.
A rich and complex audio track samples water sounds and
throat-singing with music by Russell Wallace, a composer
who has collaborated with Claxton over the past decade.
The seductive qualities of recorded voice, the familiarity of
video and film, and the contemplative space of the gallery
combine in an investigation of the sacred in art and the
place these concerns might be given within the artspeak of
visual arts practice.
(Lorna Brown)
Dana Claxton is a Vancouver interdisciplinary artist who
works in film, video and performance. Her work has been
featured in exhibitions at Walter Philips Gallery at the Banff
Centre and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Her
performances have been presented at AKA in Saskatoon,
the Western Front and as part of Grunt Gallery’s Live at the
End of the Century Performance Festival. Claxton’s work is
included in the permanent collections of the Vancouver Art
Gallery, the MacKenzie Art Gallery and the Winnipeg Art
Gallery.
Since 1982 OBORO supports the development of contemporary art arising out of different cultural practices. Run by a collective of wild artists, open to all forms of artistic expression and research, the centre encourages innovation, experimentation, exchange of ideas and critical discussion. Alert to the world and its different communities, OBORO supports creation in visual arts, media arts, performance and new technologies. Our activities include exhibitions, residencies, conferences, concerts, publications, workshops,
network projects as well as productions through the new media lab.
Oboro
4001, rue Berri, local 301 (Quebec), H2L 4H2 Montreal, Canada