Alberta Biennial of Contemporary Art June 23 - September 9, 2007

Image courtesy of Paul Kuhn Gallery, Calgary: Mark Mullin, Absorption Rates II, 2007.

As it goes again, the structure of the biennial is far more interesting than the art represented, which when summarized, does not consistently capture the implied themes of "Utopia or Disaster," but maybe in the larger context, frames how art is viewed in Alberta.
There are strong works and artists represented: Mark Mullin of Calgary grounds his colour texture chaos with lines of solid circular tones, creating works that are visually stimulating in a very modern colour palette, and are far more impressive in person than in print; Jonathan Kaiser continues his estranging installations of suburban isolation, a very young artist with only a small handful of alternative group shows behind him.
There are also less strong works such as the multicoloured panel of rave photography or the computer/time counter that maybe belongs more as novelty than function in the lobby of a science centre than in the middle of any art biennial.
Heralded as an institutional showcase for Alberta artists, the AGA must be more clear as to what, who, and why they are curating these shows. To use the model of a biennial, is somewhat both precocious for Alberta, and in many ways, archaic and typical of Alberta. If the Alberta art scene is to gain national attention, arguably the raison d'etre of the biennial, and to market itself successfully, we need to first identify ourselves before we try to sell ourselves.

First Impressions: The Works Art & Design Festival, June 22 - July 4, 2007

On Friday at noon, the anticipated Ken Rinaldo kinetic robotic sculpture was suffering from technical difficulties. Only the 2D Dee Fontain wearable art pieces were up and the other interactive art shows on Churchill Square were not yet ready to go. Crossing the square, one could see Ted Kerr's pieces hanging across the 3 Banana's cafe, though we had only hoped to see the pieces larger, and higher, giving them more presence akin to their subject matter. Steered towards the library glass exhibition, it was surprisingly the upstairs exhibit by Leila Armstrong that held my attention. Kitschy and filled with just enough subtext, the dioramas surpassed the poorly laid out floor plan of the downstairs glass show. Although impressive in skill and technique, there was no overall flow to the sprawling show. It was back to the office and I had visited the festival as one of the many downtown business lunch crowds that only has 50 minutes to grab a bite and walk within a 5km radius.

Later that day at 5pm, a group of arts-related individuals, with no time and distance restrictions, had gathered to "do the works". Hitting up the square to see the now functioning Rinaldo and to be slightly disappointed. Navigating through the gauntlet of robotic sensory arms, the projection shot askew elsewhere, taking you away and out of the space and accompanied by a few 2D images that did not relate very well to the rest of the exhibition.
Other spots visited were the two library shows and Kerr again, Manulife Place with Val Nelson's impressions, Ric Kokotovich's work in Scotia Place and the "Out is In Project" inside City Hall. The group had scattered on the square to freely peruse the craft and food tents--some of which still remained closed at 6pm.

Although none of the art pieces made any lasting impressions on any members of the group, we regardless sat in the beer garden listening to free music, drinking beer and watching the Churchill square regulars boogey up the dance floor. Once again, I am confused as to what the festival presents in theory and in practice, as I felt I had experienced neither. A ruddy carnivalesque atmosphere on the square, another cheeky ad campaign that this time appears to alienate and offend, along with semi-alternative spaces for art, I must propose the ever-remaining question: Who is the festival trying to reach?

Cesar Alvarez and Peter Hide

It is a plesant coincidence that in the same week MFA sculptor student Cesar Alvarez and local sculptor legend Peter Hide both open their shows at FAB (outside sculpture garden) and Scott Gallery, respectively.

Alvarez, whose work on first impressions alone, echos the lineage of Hide, Anthony Caro, and David Smith. Although even within this lineage there is already fractions and tangents in style and theory, Alvarez appears to take up where Hide left off and returns to the simplicity of the 'abstract' form. The shapes, the forms, seemingly present a sense of being, an ontological presence that balances the urge and the resistance to shape an existing form.

Clearly the skill level differs; there is no question that Hide is the senior weilding his scraps and pieces into a form wholly of his own creation. Also, Hide's current pieces were on the smaller scale, and therefore changes their overall density and impact; but looking at both's approach to metal, where one is just beginning and the other just entering his golden years, one can only wonder how each relates to their respective craft.

This is not just 3D sketching as some believe modernist sculptures to be; and to the passerby, the large forms standing on Edmonton's street corners, parks, and LRT station platforms can appear indistinguishable from one to the next. But looking closer, sandwiched between the impressions left by encountering Alvarez and Hide, there seems to always be a power over the object; and it is this overall presentation of this domination, this ever-present presence, that makes them at odds with the fleeting transience of forgettable public encounters.