News Release
Christian Marclay: The Clock and Omer Fast: Continuous Coverage with a
FREE opening party on Friday, 14 September, 2012
The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery’s Fall 2012 season opens with two
outstanding exhibitions featuring the work of award-winning artists
Christian Marclay and Omer Fast.
Christian Marclay’s The Clock has been called “a masterpiece of our time.”
Since premiering in London in 2010, the work has drawn thousands to art
venues around the world who have lined up to see this critically-acclaimed,
24-hour montage of film and television.
The Power Plant is pleased to present
The Clock to Toronto audiences for the first time. Narrative structures and
constructions involving film and the media also concern Omer Fast, whose
most recent work Continuity, featured in dOCUMENTA (13) 2012, will be
included in this captivating solo exhibition.
The Power Plant opens both exhibitions FREE to the public as part of the yearlong
celebration of the gallery’s 25th anniversary. Join us for a
FREE Opening Party for all on Friday, 14 September, 2012 from 5 – 11 PM.
Be one of the first to see the new exhibitions and meet artist Omer Fast. A
public tour of the exhibitions with Director of The Power Plant Gaëtane Verna
and guest-curator Melanie O’Brian will begin at 6:15 PM. JK Frites, Fidel Gastro,
and Ezra’s Pound will be onsite to tempt all taste buds and a cash bar will be
available.
Christian Marclay: The Clock
15 September – 25 November, 2012
The Clock (2010) is a unique and compelling work created by world-renowned
sound and video artist Christian Marclay (born 1955, California). The work is an
ode to time and cinema, and is comprised of thousands of iconic and
recognizable fragments from a vast range of films, which together create a 24-
hour, looped, single-channel video. Marclay compiled film clips of
wristwatches, clock towers, sundials, alarm clocks, and countdowns, each of
which illustrate every minute in a 24-hour period in real time. The Power Plant
will open its doors for several special 24 hour viewing periods during the
course of the exhibition, providing the public with the opportunity to see
The Clock in its entirety.
Years in the making, The Clock examines how time, plot, and duration are
depicted in cinema. Audiences are stunned by its clever construction, as they
can use the piece to tell the local time. Captivated viewers can experience a
vast range of cinematic settings and moods within the space of a few minutes,
making time unravel in countless directions and rupturing any sense of linear,
narrative sequence. The work is both an homage to film history and an
affirmation of our present time. It won a Golden Lion award at the
54th Venice Biennale in 2011.
“It is with great pride and excitement that we open this exhibition,” exclaims
Director of The Power Plant Gaëtane Verna. “This project is extraordinary and
we could not have made it accessible to all audiences here in Toronto without
our Presenting Sponsor RBC Wealth Management. RBC has partnered with
The Power Plant on many past exhibitions and we are so fortunate to have their
continued support.”
The Power Plant also appreciates the many individuals and donors who helped
to bring this important work to Toronto. “In particular, I would like to
acknowledge Jay Smith & Laura Rapp and Carol & Morton Rapp who were
instrumental in acquiring this work for the National Gallery of Canada and
bringing this internationally-renowned work to The Power Plant specifically,”
adds Verna.
“I also acknowledge the strong community of art supporters who
answered the gallery’s call for the opportunity to host as many 24-hour viewing
periods as possible: Lead Sponsors Ira Gluskin & Maxine Granovsky Gluskin
and Shanitha Kachan & Gerald Sheff; Lead Donors Nancy McCain &
Bill Morneau, Michelle Koerner & Kevin Doyle and Eleanor & Francis Shen; and
Support Donors Dr. Kenneth Montague and Keith Thomson.
Marclay’s fascination with the collage of sound and image dates back to the late
1970s. Marclay played music with bands in underground club scenes, often
using homemade instruments such as a record turntable converted into a
portable electric guitar-like device. His innovative artistic practice continues to
combine aural and visual sources with a keen sensibility toward complex
editing, sampling and looping techniques. Marclay’s experimental work with
sound, video, and film has been extremely influential on a younger generation
of artists for whom the idea of digital sampling and mixing recordings is now a
given.
Toronto audiences will have the exclusively opportunity to hear
Christian Marclay talk about his work on 5 November, 2012 at 7 PM when
The Power Plant and its Primary Education Sponsor CIBC will present him in
conversation with Canadian artist Michael Snow at the Enwave Theatre,
Harbourfront Centre.
Members of The Power Plant will have the first opportunity to see the
The Clock in advance of the larger public opening at a
Members-First Exhibition Preview on Friday, 14 September, 2012
from 2 – 5 PM.
Special 24-Hour Viewing Periods
The gallery will be open for several 24-hour periods so that visitors can have
the opportunity to see the work in its entirety. Please expect significant wait
times during the opening weekend presentation.
Opening Weekend
Friday, 14 September, 5 PM – Sunday, 16 September, 5 PM
Scotiabank Nuit Blanche Toronto
Saturday, 29 September, 10 AM – Sunday, 30 September, 5 PM
Watch-a-Thon
Tuesday, 16 October, 10 AM – Sunday, 21 October, 5 PM
Art Toronto 2012
Saturday, 27 October, 10 AM – Sunday, 28 October, 5 PM
Closing Weekend
Friday, 23 November, 10 AM – Sunday, 25 November, 5 PM
This exhibition was organized by the National Gallery of Canada.
It was purchased in 2011 with the generous support of Jay Smith & Laura Rapp
and Carol & Morton Rapp, Toronto. It was jointly acquired by the
National Gallery of Canada and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
PRESENTING SPONSOR: RBC WEALTH MANAGEMENT
LEAD SPONSORS: IRA GLUSKIN & MAXINE GRANOVSKY GLUSKIN AND
SHANITHA KACHAN & GERALD SHEFF
LEAD DONORS: NANCY MCCAIN & BILL MORNEAU; MICHELLE KOERNER &
KEVIN DOYLE AND ELEANOR & FRANCIS SHEN
SUPPORT DONOR: KEITH THOMSON
Omer Fast: Continuous Coverage
15 September – 25 November 2012
Guest Curator: Melanie O’Brian
The Power Plant presents a solo exhibition of the work of critically-acclaimed
Berlin-based artist Omer Fast. Fast (born 1972, Jerusalem) works primarily with
video to test our understanding of media and examine how individual and
collective histories interact. Focusing on narrative structures and constructions,
he mixes sound and image into stories that test the line between personal and
media accounts of current events and history, particularly a recent history of
war. The exhibition includes three significant projects spanning the last decade
that reveal his facility with, and critique of, the languages of media, cinema,
documentary, and contemporary art. In his concern with the strategies of digital
manipulation and perception, Fast’s work draws attention to the permeable
boundaries between documentary and fiction.
Fast uses strong visual and audio narrativity, from the collage of media footage
into new narratives to the layered use of material culled from recorded
interviews. In CNN Concatenated (2002), begun in the aftermath of 9/11, Fast
edits clips from CNN’s “talking heads” so that each word is spoken by a
different newsperson. This anxious new address demonstrates the mutability of
information and language. The work asks the viewer to question media
authenticity and authority and addresses the audience’s experience of news,
particularly the language of fear.
Five Thousand Feet is the Best (2011) relies on montage to disrupt the
relationship between a narrative and its interpretation. Told between flashbacks
and interviews, the work is based on conversations the artist conducted with a
US Predator drone aerial vehicle operator. The drone operator agreed to
discuss the technical aspects of his job and his daily routine on camera. Off the
record, he briefly described recurring incidents in which the unmanned plane
fired at militants and civilians in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and the
psychological difficulties he experienced as a result. The narratives form a
circular plot that returns fitfully to the voice and blurred face of the drone pilot
and to his unfinished story.
Continuity (2012) is Fast’s most recent work. Its narrative follows a
contemporary middle-aged German couple reuniting with their son, a young
soldier just back from service in Afghanistan. What first appears to be an
emotional family reunion turns out to be a compulsive ritual enacted by the
couple who hire a series of young male escorts to come home with them,
spend the night and play their son. The repeated family reunions are
contaminated by inexplicable events and the disappearance of each son.
Ultimately, the story slips into the uncanny, the oedipal, and finally into the
zombie genre.
Accompanying this exhibition is a new publication, Omer Fast: 5000 Feet is
Best, co-published by Henie Onstad Kunstsenter (HOK), Norway and The Power
Plant, edited by Milena Hoegsberg, Acting Chief Curator, HOK and
Melanie O'Brian, and designed by Node.
As part of the gallery’s International Lecture Series, Omer Fast will speak in
advance of the opening of his exhibition on 11 September, 2012 at 7 PM at
the Studio Theatre, Harbourfront Centre.
THIS EXHIBITION IS SUPPORTED BY ARTIS.
Please send all requests for images and interviews to
rboyko@thepowerplant.org.
Upcoming Programs and Events
PRIMARY EDUCATION SPONSOR: CIBC
INTERNATIONAL LECTURE SERIES: Omer Fast
Tuesday, 11 September, 7 PM
Studio Theatre, Harbourfront Centre
FREE Members, $12 Non-Members
Omer Fast will be at The Power Plant in advance of the opening of his solo
exhibition to speak about his acclaimed practice.
OPENING PARTY
Friday, 14 September, 5 – 11 PM
The Power Plant
FREE
Be one of the first in the city to see the new exhibitions and meet artist Omer
Fast. A cash bar will be available.
INTERNATIONAL LECTURE SERIES: Sarah Morris
Wednesday, 3 October, 7 PM
Studio Theatre, Harbourfront Centre
FREE Members, $12 Non-Members
Sarah Morris (born 1967) lives and works in New York and London. She has had
solo exhibitions worldwide and her achievements have been recognized with
several awards. Morris will speak about her work, which includes painting, sitespecific
installations and film. She will pay particular attention to her acclaimed
feature-length film Beijing (2008).
Co-presented with Centre[3] for Print and Media Arts
IN CONVERSATION: Christian Marclay and Michael Snow
Monday, 5 November, 7 PM
Enwave Theatre, Harbourfront Centre
FREE Members, $12 Non-Members
Christian Marclay will be in Toronto on this special evening to speak about
The Clock with Canadian artist Michael Snow. Snow’s career spans a variety of
media, including photography, film, video, and sound art. He has received
numerous awards and has had solo exhibitions around the world.
Presented by CIBC
INTERNATIONAL LECTURE SERIES: Douglas Coupland
Wednesday, 28 November, 7 PM
Studio Theatre, Harbourfront Centre
FREE Members, $12 Non-Members
Douglas Coupland (born 1961) is a Canadian novelist who has published
thirteen novels and written about visual art for publications such as The New
York Times and Artforum. In 2000, he recommenced a visual practice that
merges art with design and text. Acting as a cultural commentator, Coupland’s
talk will draw on his art practice to address the notion of “public” and “private,”
fiction and non-fiction.
More about the Artists
Christian Marclay lives and works between London and New York. Born in
California in 1955, he studied at École Supérieure d’Art Visuel in Switzerland. In
1977 he moved back to the United States and graduated from the
Massachusetts College of Art in Boston with a Bachelor of Fine
Arts. He has extensive international exhibition and performance history with
solo exhibitions including: The Clock, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York (2011);
What You See is What You Hear, LEE UM Samsung Museum of Art, Seoul
(2010); The Clock, White Cube Mason’s Yard, London (2010); Festival, Whitney
Museum of American Art, New York (2010); Christian Marclay with Irene
Schweizer, Gare du Nord, Basel (2009); Christian Marclay: Replay, DHC Art
Foundation, Montréal (2008); Cycloptically. Rolywholyover, Fifth Episode,
Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain, Geneva (2008); Crossfire, White Cube
Hoxton Square, London (2007); The Bell and the Glass, Moderna Museet,
Stockholm (2006); Christian Marclay, Barbican Art Gallery, London (2005);
Christian Marclay, Galerie Yvon Lambert, Paris (2005); Christian Marclay, The
Seattle Art Museum (2004); Christian Marclay, Kunstmuseum Thun, Switzerland
(2004); Sol LeWitt/Christian Marclay, Collection Lambert, Avignon (2004);The
Sounds of Christmas, Tate Modern, London (2004); Christian Marclay, UCLA
Hammer Museum, Los Angeles (2003); and Christian Marclay: 1980 to Present,
The Center for Curatorial Studies, Bard College, Annandale on Hudson (2003).
Omer Fast (born 1972, Jerusalem) lives and works in Berlin. He received his BA
from Tufts University (1995) and his MFA from Hunter College (2000). He was
the recipient of the 2009 Preis der Nationalgalerie für Junge Kunst and the
2008 Bucksbaum Award, among other honours. Fast has had solo exhibitions at
the Wexner Center for the Arts, Columbus (2012); Whitney Museum of
American Art, New York (2010); Berkeley Art Museum (2009); and Museum of
Modern Art, Vienna (2007). His work has also been featured in dOCUMENTA
(13) (2012) and numerous biennials and group exhibitions. His work is
represented by gb agency, Paris and ARRATIA BEER, Berlin.
For more information about exhibitions and public programs, call
+1.416.973.4949 or visit thepowerplant.org.
The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery at Harbourfront Centre
231 Queens Quay West, Toronto, ON, M5J 2G8, Canada
Admission
ALL YEAR, ALL FREE
NEW Gallery Hours
Tuesday – Sunday, 10 AM – 5 PM
Thursday, 10 AM – 8 PM
Open holiday Mondays
-30-
Media Contact
Robin Boyko
Marketing & Communications Coordinator
The Power Plant
+1.416.973.4927
rboyko@thepowerplant.org
No comments:
Post a Comment