BY: LEANNE BENN
Starting Jan 27th, 2018, the ROM will proudly host a new and original exhibit focused on Black Contemporary Art. Here We Are: Black Canadian Contemporary Art is an exhibition that will focus on the work of nine different artists that explore contemporary art, race, and identity in Canadian history.
The aim of this exhibition is to explore Black Canadian contribution to the contemporary art world while addressing issues of culture and history. The exhibition will deal with issues that are current and historical when addressing black culture and identity in Canada. The ROM’s director and CEO, John Basseches says “The work represented in the exhibition not only encourages visitors to re-examine their idea of what Canada is but offers a broader telling of the Canadian story through the Black Canadian experience.”
This exhibition will add to the overall fabric of Canadian society by presenting ethnic issues and the relevance of Black Canadian society. This will give visitors a chance to reflect on issues dealing with race, inclusion and the sense of belonging to society. The exhibition is more than just a singular narrative, it pushes us to un-learn history and question what we know about art history and how we curate contemporary art shows.
Original work will be featured from Canadian artists, Sandra Brewster, Michele Pearson Clarke, Chantal Gibson, Sylvia D. Hamilton, Bushra Junaid, Charmaine Lurch, Esmaa Mohamoud, Dawit L Petros and Gordon Shadrach. The artists came together under the collaborative project by curatorial experts, Dr. Julie Crooks, assistant curator at the AGO and independent curator, Dominique Fontaine. The curators and artists established a conceptual framework and format for the artists to tell their stories through their work.
This exhibition will challenge you as a viewer to think about the history of Black Canadians and their portrayal in the art world. By doing this you will gain a new perspective of Canadian identity through compelling artistic installations. This exhibition is set to mark Black Canadian presence in our country and help people understand and re-think the role of a contemporary artist in Canada.
For more information, visit rom.on.ca and stay tuned for this upcoming and original exhibition.
