Laiwan

Laiwan (born 1961, Harare, Zimbabwe) is an interdisciplinary artist, writer, curator and educator based in Vancouver, British Columbia. Her wide-ranging practice is based in poetics and philosophy.

Laiwan
Born1961 (age 61–62)
Harare, Zimbabwe
NationalityCanadian
EducationEmily Carr University of Art and Design
Simon Fraser University
Occupation(s)Artist, Writer, Educator
Known forCultural criticism, activism, participatory projects, teaching
Websitehttp://www.laiwanette.net/

Biography

Laiwan was born in Harare, Zimbabwe in 1961. Her family emigrated to Canada in 1977 to leave the war in Rhodesia. She graduated from Emily Carr College of Art and Design in 1983. In 1999, she received an MFA from Simon Fraser University School for Contemporary Arts, also in Vancouver, British Columbia, where she currently lives. She is an interdisciplinary artist interested in poetics and philosophy.[1][2] Laiwan has won several prizes, such as the 2021 Emily Award from Emily Carr University.[3] She founded the Or Gallery in 1983,[4] where her intent was to dispel myths about the impossibility of founding and operating a gallery, particularly for women.[5] She was chair of the grunt gallery board of directors from 2010 to 2014.[6][7] Laiwan currently teaches in the Interdisciplinary Arts Program at Goddard College in Washington State.[8]

Artistic practice

Laiwan investigates embodiment through performativity, writing, music, and audio works, in a variety of media. Her practice unravels and engages in the idea of presence by way of bodily and emotional intelligence. Her work is held in Vancouver Art Gallery collection, Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery Collection,[9][10][11][12] and other private collections, and her time-based work is available from VIVO Media Arts Centre in Vancouver,[13][14] and V-Tape in Toronto.[15]

Early work

In Laiwan's 1986 slide sequence work, The Mesmerization of Language: The Language of Mesmerization, she deals with language as a structure which has a life independent of its conveyed meaning.[16] There are three parts to this artwork.[17] Part One, titled "OBSESSION : POSSESSION" shows the poem Sappho 31 in both the original Greek and as an English translation. Part Two is titled "SPELL", wherein Laiwan translates the Christian prayer Our Father from sign language into words, deconstructing and breaking apart the text, phrase by phrase, word by word, and letter by letter. "Untitled", which is Part Three of the project, moves from language into images of landscapes.[18]

In the exhibition catalogue for Political Landscapes I (1989) at Tom Thomson Memorial Art Gallery, Stephen Hogbin describes Laiwan as an artist who examines the political relationship of geography and identity.[19]

Work

Select solo exhibitions
  • Laiwan: Traces, Erasures, Resists, The Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery, UBC, 2022[20][21][22]
  • How Water Remembers, Massy Arts, Vancouver, 2021[23]
  • Fountain, The Wall at the CBC Plaza, commissioned by the Vancouver Heritage Foundation, 2015 [24]
  • Loose Work, Or Gallery, Vancouver, 2008 [25] and also at On Main, 2008 [26]
  • Duet: Étude For Solitudes, YYZ Artist’s Outlet / Images Festival, Toronto, 2006 [27]
  • Quartet for the year 4698 or 5760: Improvisation for four projectors, with Lori Freedman, Open Space Gallery, Victoria, 2002 [28]

Select group exhibitions

Site Specific Works

In 2016 as part of the City of Vancouver's Public Art Program, the Coastal City series, Laiwan displayed Barnacle City, which was projected on various buildings throughout downtown Vancouver.[43] In 2018, Laiwan started the Mobile Barnacle City Live/Work Studio, an installation created in the SiteFactory bus, which was a part of Emily Carr University's Living Labs Ten Different Things project series. Mobile Barnacle City was installed in various locations around Chinatown in Vancouver. The project also involved T’uy’tanat-Cease Wyss and Anne Riley.[44][45]

Curatorial

In 2014, Laiwan curated Queering the International, an exhibition part of the Queer Arts Festival, which took place at the Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre. The exhibition examined issues of sexual identity.[46]

Bibliography

Catalogues

Reviews of Laiwan's Work
  • Queer Art Speaks to love, hate around world by Robin Laurence, The Georgia Straight, July 31-August 7, 2014 Volume 48, number 2432
  • QAF extending its reach, draws top talent by Dana Gee, the Province newspaper, July 22, 2014
  • Digital Art Reflections & 10 Seconds in Time ask audiences to stop and consider by Robin Laurence, The Georgia Straight, August 21, 2012, pg. 33

Writing
  • LUNG: Toward Embodying in DAMP, anthology on Vancouver’s media artists, Anvil Press, Vancouver, 2008 [47]
  • Ed Pien: Drawing Hauntology feature article in Canadian Art, Summer 2007, Vol. 24 #2 [48]

References
  1. "(Da bao)(Takeout): Good to Go – Canadian Art". Canadian Art. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  2. "Unconventional Art Practices: An Evening of Artist Talks". SiteFactory. Archived from the original on 2018-03-06. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  3. Vancouver, 520 East 1st Avenue; V5t 0h2, Bc; Canada (2021-05-13). "Attending to Small Marvels with Interdisciplinary Artist Laiwan". www.ecuad.ca. Retrieved 2022-03-24.
  4. "About — L A I W A N". L A I W A N. Retrieved 2022-03-24.
  5. Williams, Carol (2011). Vancouver Anthology, Stan Douglas, ed. Vancouver: Talonbooks/Or Gallery. p. 209. ISBN 978-0-88922-614-2.
  6. "grunt gallery Annual Report, 2013–2014" (PDF). grunt gallery, Vancouver. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  7. "grunt gallery Annual Report 2011–2012" (PDF). grunt gallery, Vancouver. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  8. "Laiwan – Goddard College". Goddard College. Archived from the original on 2017-03-19. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  9. "The Heartless Series: Little Women – Laiwan". belkin.pastperfectonline.com. Archived from the original on 2017-03-19. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  10. "she who had scanned the flower of the world – Laiwan". belkin.pastperfectonline.com. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  11. "The Book of Fragilities – Laiwan". belkin.pastperfectonline.com. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  12. "The Blind Heart: a book fan – Laiwan". belkin.pastperfectonline.com. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  13. "Automatopoeia | Video Out – Vancouver, British Columbia". www.videoout.ca. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  14. "Video Out Catalog – "Remotely In Touch" by Laiwan". www.videoout.ca. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  15. "Video | Vtape". www.vtape.org. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  16. Pakasaar, Helga (1986). Broken Muse. Vancouver: Vancouver Art Gallery. p. 5. ISBN 0-920095-59-3.
  17. "The Language of Mesmerization / The Mesmerization of Language". www.belkin.ubc.ca. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  18. "The Language of Mesmerization / The Mesmerization of Language". www.belkin.ubc.ca. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  19. Hogbin, Stephen (1989). Political Landscape Introduction. Owen Sound, Ontario: Tom Tomson Memorial Art Gallery. p. 15. ISBN 0-929021-04-5.
  20. "Laiwan: Traces, Erasures, Resists".
  21. Wadsley, Helena (2022-02-07). "Laiwan". Galleries West. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
  22. ""Traces, Erasures, Resists" — Laiwan". “Traces, Erasures, Resists” — Laiwan. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
  23. "Gallery Exhibition / "How Water Remembers" by Laiwan – Massy Arts". Retrieved 2022-03-24.
  24. "Vancouver Heritage Foundation Projects: The WALL". Vancouver Heritage Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  25. "Or Gallery Exhibition: "Loose Work"". Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 18, 2017.
  26. Gallery, On Main. "News : On Main Gallery". onmaingallery.com. Archived from the original on 2017-03-19. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  27. "Laiwan: Duet: Etude for Solitudes". YYZ. 2006-03-11. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  28. "Quartet for the Year 4698 or 5760: improvisation for four projectors | Open Space". openspace.ca. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  29. "Laiwan: PANDEMIA — The Movie". libby.ecuad.ca. Retrieved 2022-03-24.
  30. ""Thought, outside" group exhibition at the Western Front — L A I W A N". L A I W A N. 24 November 2020. Retrieved 2022-03-24.
  31. "Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery | Beginning with the Seventies GLUT". belkin.ubc.ca. Retrieved 2018-03-10.
  32. "Through a Window: Visual Art and SFU 1965–2015 – SFU Galleries – Simon Fraser University". Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  33. "(Da bao)(Takeout) | Plug In ICA". plugin.org. Archived from the original on 2017-03-19. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  34. Surrey, City of. "(Da bao)(Takeout)". www.surrey.ca. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  35. "(Da bao)(Takeout): Good to Go – Canadian Art". Canadian Art. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  36. "C.1983 – Presentation House Gallery". presentationhousegallery.org. 2011-12-23. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  37. "Vancouver Art Gallery". www.vanartgallery.bc.ca. Archived from the original on 2019-02-26. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  38. "HOW SOON IS NOW: Contemporary Art from Here | AHVA – The Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory". ahva.ubc.ca. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  39. "Vancouver Art Gallery". www.vanartgallery.bc.ca. Archived from the original on 2018-08-02. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  40. Liz, Park (2007-01-01). Limits of Tolerance : Re-framing Multicultural State Policy. ISBN 9780973271171. Retrieved 2017-03-18. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  41. "Laiwan: Call Numbers – The Library Recordings – other sights". othersights.ca. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
  42. "Laiwan | Artspeak". Retrieved 2019-03-09.
  43. "Works by Laiwan and Ryan Peter part of Vancouver's latest Coastal City public art installations". Georgia Straight Vancouver's News & Entertainment Weekly. 2016-06-14. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
  44. "Laiwan: Mobile Barnacle City". SiteFactory. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
  45. "Projects / Ten Different Things | 2017 – 2018".
  46. "Queering the International speaks to love, hate around the world". Georgia Straight Vancouver's News & Entertainment Weekly. 2014-07-30. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
  47. Laiwan (2008). "LUNG: toward embodying". DAMP: Contemporary Vancouver Media Art. Vancouver: Anvil Press. pp. 112–113. ISBN 978-1895636895.
  48. "Ed Pien: Drawing Hauntology – Canadian Art". Canadian Art. Retrieved 2017-03-18.
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