Stagnating in Obscurity, Awaiting Discovery*
On April 15, 2021, premiere on Facebook at 5:30 pm
At the invitation of Dazibao, the Contemporary Art Auction Research Group, originally directed by David Tomas, presents a videographic reflection on the exhibition Moving Through Time and Space. Both a tour of the exhibition and a meta-commentary on the medium of video, this work experimentally addresses some (since not all are questions) questions surrounding the devices of capturing and projecting, disseminating and receiving the works in the exhibition.
This video work takes the form of a diptych juxtaposing macro and micro points of view in order to produce a tension between two of the exhibition’s temporalities. Reflective of the research group’s most recent projects, on the one hand this project refers to the exhibition’s sequence as an integral part of its meaningful temporality. Restricting, replaying, and dissipating are strategies Tomas explored in turn to confront the audience with the reception of the work. On the other hand, the idea of the camera’s eye, a recurring motif in Tomas's early work, interferes with this project, alongside the exhibition views, as a nod to his systemic thinking. What detours, what systems should be used to view the work and reflect on its spatiotemporal framework?
The Contemporary Art Auction Research Group was founded by David Tomas in 2016. Tomas dedicated his research to the production of a new type of meta work, in order to interrogate the institutional and epistemological critical limits of art and the art world. Their work has been exhibited at the UQO gallery in 2018 (Gatineau), at the E6-03 space in 2019 (Montréal) and in the publication An Economy of Discursive Field.
The members of this research group are Catherine Béliveau, Emmanuelle Duret, Rosalie Jean, Manoushka Larouche, Catherine Lescarbeau and Geneviève Massé.
Exhibition
David Tomas
From February 26 to April 24, 2021
Dazibao thanks the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, Programme Exploration et déploiement numérique, whose support made possible the online presentation of this event.
Dazibao thanks the Contemporary Art Auction Research Group for their generous collaboration as well as its advisory programming committee for its support.
azibao receives financial support from the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, the Canada Council for the Arts, the Conseil des arts de Montréal, the ministère de la Culture et des Communications and the Ville de Montréal.
Dazibao acknowledges that we are located on unceded territory of the Kanien'kehá: ka Nation and that Tiohtià: ke / Montreal is historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations, and today, is home to a diverse population of Indigenous as well as other peoples.