Western Canada's art magazine since 2002
5 May 2020 Vol 5 No 9 ISSN 2561-3316 © 2020
From the Editor
Portia Priegert
We seem to be nearing the end of the first phase of the coronavirus pandemic with some easing of public health protocols, including the first opening this week of a major public gallery.
The Winnipeg Art Gallery is set to welcome the public on Thursday following Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister’s announcement last week that galleries are among the venues that can open, if they can do so safely.
Several other provinces appear ready to step back some restrictions later this month. Let’s hope we are disciplined enough to keep viral spread in check during the easing of the great pause.
As the weeks of isolation have rolled past, the challenges – particularly for those of us who live alone – have begun to weigh more heavily. I almost teared up reading an essay for our next issue by Sarah Swan, who writes with emotional acuity about how she misses going to galleries. I realized too how much I have missed seeing a really good exhibition. But am I ready to visit a gallery? I'm still cautious, even when I venture out around the neighbourhood for walks, continually appraising distances and the state of people’s health, unable to relax. It's not a great way to live and I’m interested to watch how these feelings evolve.
In this issue, we continue to explore how artists are coping with the pandemic. We have a report from Brooklyn by Manitoba-raised artist Jillian MacDonald, who was sick for a month and believes she may have had COVID-19. As part of our House Call series, she describes how she is obsessively drawing holes. I love reading submissions for this series, and am hoping to continue it moving forward, so please drop me a note if you want to share your story.
I’m also looking for ideas for another series, Sneak Peek, which we are publishing during the pandemic. In this issue, Sneak Peek looks at projects by two artists: Nicole Bauberger, who has set up an outdoor gallery along a trail near her home in Whitehorse, and Vancouver artist Robert Kleyn, whose video featuring bars of soap is accompanied, appropriately, by the sound of running water.
Meanwhile, writer Paul Gessell explores the aesthetics of interiority – something most of us are becoming more sensitive to these days – with Leslie Hossack, a photo-based artist whose latest project focuses on Danish painter Vilhelm Hammershøi. “When you fall in love with Hammershøi’s domestic surroundings and psychologically charged interiors,” says Hossack, “you enter your own personal labyrinth where you encounter endless open passages and countless locked doors.”
To round things out, we've included reviews of two books that might help while away the hours – Everything is Relevant, an anthology of Ken Lum’s writing, and Hinterland Remixed, by Winnipeg academic Andrew Burke.
Moving forward, along with Sarah’s essay about her renewed fondness for art galleries during the pandemic, we are polishing up a story about an important Lionel LeMoine Fitzgerald exhibition that's set to open Thursday, two months after it was installed at the Winnipeg Art Gallery.
Here at Galleries West, we will continue our efforts to keep you informed about Western Canada’s evolving cultural landscape as we move toward our new normal. Please support us through these challenging times however you can – by sharing our stories, advertising your events, renewing your listings, or even making a small donation to help us maintain our coverage of Western Canada. Whatever form it takes, we deeply appreciate your support.
Take care and be well,
CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE: Madeline Bogoch, Paul Gessell, Dorothy Woodend
